Class Action Secondary User Guide

8/8/2019 Class Action Secondary User Guide

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Introduction

The design ofClass Action Gradebookis based on two things that

you are already familiar with - your classroom and your gradebook.

When you open a class (start with "A Sample Class" in yourClass

Action folder - see our "tour" below) you will see the "Classroom

View" or seating chart. Seats can be alphabetized, randomized,

grouped, or just dragged where you want them. Grades andassignments can be displayed (or not). Assignment Scores and

attendance information can be entered directly into student seats.

Following the classroom tab (tabs are above the classroom) are tabs

representing the gradebook. The first is the Grade Summary, followed

by tabs named after assignment categories A Sample Class has three

assignment categories, Homework, Classwork and Tests - You can

have as many or as few as you want.

The Grade Summary view gives you an overview of each student's

grades and missing assignments. It can be printed out (displaying either

students' names or ID numbers) and is especially useful when you are

making out report cards. You can enter student names directly into the

gradebook here, or by double clicking on a name, enter or view more

detailed information about a student.

The next three tabs in A Sample Class open views of assignment

categories. Grade information can be entered for each assignment.

More detailed information about an assignment can be viewed by

double clicking on an assignment column.


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Introduction

This tour is designed to quickly familiarize you with the way Class

Action looks and works. It will not attempt to cover all ofClass

Action 's features, but will give you the knowledge you need to get

going. It will use the Sample Class file found in the Class Action

Folder. If you have not opened it, please do so now by double clickingon the Sample Class Icon.

Class Action 's Classroom View will appear. Along the top of the

seating chart are three pop-up menus: Display Assignment, "Display

Attendance", and Seating Arrangement.


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Class Action allows you to enter or edit grades directly into the seating

chart. Click on the Display Assignment menu and choose

Homework. Click on P 14, and Page 14 scores appear in each

student's seat. Select "Hide Scores" from the "Seating Arrangement"

menu if you want only student names to be displayed.

Using the Seating Arrangement menu, you can alphabetize,

randomize or group your class. You can move or exchange student

seats by dragging and clicking.

Now select the Grade Summary tab. The Class Action Summary

area will appear.

The Grade Summary Area

Below the Title Bar is a list of students and a summary of their grades.

A Sample Class has been divided into three assignment categories:

Homework, Classwork, and Tests. You can divide your class

into as many or as few assignment categories as you wish. You can

weight each category (for example, homework 25%, classwork 25%,

tests 50%). To see what the summary looks like when categories are

weighted, select "Weighted Categories" from the Grading menu.

(Weighted)


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Watson Brown has accumulated a total of 447 points, 83.2% of the

total available of 537. On the grading scale used by "A Sample Class,

Watson has earned a letter grade of B-.

Watson's Homework average is 75.0%, 24 points out of 32, and he is

missing (the missing assignments columns is labeled Miss) one

assignment. Classwork is 92.0%, no assignments missing, and

Watson's Test average of 81.7%, 331 points out of 405 possible.

All the grade information in the summary has been computed by Class

Action.

The next stop on our tour is Assignment Categories.


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Assignment Categories

Class Action stores and displays student assignments in

Assignment Categories. A Sample Class has three,

Homework, Classwork, and Tests. For you own classes, you

may have as many or as few as you need.

Scores can be entered and displayed as points, percents, or

letters and can be displayed as combinations.

Click on the "Tests" tab.

Scores are displayed as letters and points. Click the Points

Button.

Or the Percents Button.


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Or Letters.

Or Points and Percents.

To get complete information about an assignment, double click

on an assignment column, or select an assignment and click on


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the Assignment Information button.

On to our next topic, Attendance.


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Attendance

In the Attendance menu, select "September."

You can enter or change attendance data by right clicking on a cell and

choosing an attendance code for the pop-up menu. Attendance data

can also be entered into the seating chart by selecting a date from the

Attendance Selector menu.

Attendance codes can be modified to fit your needs.

In the Attendance menu, select "Attendance Summary."

The Attendance Summary provides an easy way to view and print attendance

information for your class. Weekly, monthly, and daily attendance reports

available for your class, and individual student reports can also be viewed and


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printed.

On to our next topic, Entering and Editing Information.


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Entering and Editing Information

You can enter student information into the Classroom view

(seating chart) by double clicking on a student's name. Use the

"Display Assignment" pop-up to enter or change assignment

information (the assignment must have already been created in

the Gradebook).

In the Gradebook, you can enter information by clicking on a

cell and typing. Double clicking on a student's name brings up

the Student Information view. See How To Get Student

Information.

You can create or modify an assignment by double clicking on

it in the gradebook.

For more information clickEnter Grades in the GradingOptions section.

Creating Your First Class is next.


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Setting Up Your First Class

Creating Your Class Using the New Command

Class Action offers two ways to set up a new class. You can

copy features of an existing class using the New Grading

Period command in the File Menu, or you can create an

entirely new class using the New command, also in the File

Menu. In this section we will help you to create you first class

using the New command.

Choose New from the File Menu.

You may move from box to box by mouse clicking or using the

tab key.

In the first four boxes enter information as you wish it to appear

on reports (don't worry about mistakes - anything you enter


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from now on can be easily changed later).

Assignment categories are like the pages in your paper

gradebook, except that each can hold an unlimited number of

assignments. A Sample Class had three assignment

categories: Homework, Classwork, and Tests.

When you are done filling in this dialog, you will get a chance to

name your assignment categories.

Enter the number of students in the class in the next box. It isn't

necessary to add extras to accommodate students who might

enter later. You can add them as needed.

You may choose weighted or unweighted grades.

Weighted grades give a fixed percentage weight to each

category. Most teachers use unweighted points. If you are

unsure about which to pick, see Weighted Vs. UnweightedGrades.

After you have made your choices, click OK and a new

dialog will appear:


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(If you have chosen Weighted Categories the dialog will

include boxes for category weights. Class Action will let you

know if your weights don't add up to 100%.)

Enter the names of your assignment categories and the number

of assignments you wish to start with in each category. There is

no need to start with a large number. A good idea is to start

with two or three week's worth and add assignments as you

need them.

Each category has a Character Limit, the number of

characters (including decimal points) you may type in a single

assignment score. You may use any number up to 9. Your

choice also determines the width of each cell in the category. If

you are uncertain, use the default value of seven. You can

change it later, if you need to by selecting "Category

Information" from the Class menu.

When all the boxes are filled in, click OK. You will see a

dialog which allows you to set up a grading scale for this class

and, if you wish, for future classes.


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Remember that the number in the Percent box is the lowestpercent that can receive a particular grade. You may enter any

description you wish in the Letter Grade box as long as it

doesn't exceed seven characters.

If you wish your grading scale to apply to future classes, click

Apply to Future Classes. Even with this option in force you

can still apply a different grading scale to new classes whenever

you wish.

The last dialog will let you configure you seating chart.


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Finally, you will be given the option of placing "shortcut" icons

for your class on the desktop or in the Start menu.

Creating Your Class Using the New Grading Period

Command

Remember that if you want to create similar classes you will probably

find it easier to use the New Grading Period command. For

information on this command see How to Begin a New Grading

Period.

and finally, One Last Thing...


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One Last Thing

That's our brief tour. Remember there's a lot more to Class Action,

and lots more help in these files.

A printable User Guide can be downloaded from our web site.

We hope you enjoy usingClass Action Gradebook. Be sure to e-mail

us at [email protected] if you have any comments

or questions.

Back to an Introduction to Class Action Gradebook.


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Grading Weighted Categories Versus Unweighted Points

Class Action makes is easy to weight your assignment

categories or use an unweighted, total points, system. The

choice is yours.

In this section we will explore the advantages anddisadvantages of each.

Unweighted Points:

Weighted Categories:

What Are Weighted Categories?

For an example of Weighted Categories open A Sample

Class, and choose Weighted Categories form the Grading

Menu.

Notice several changes in the Summary window:

Points are no longer listed, because they have meaning only


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when a weighting factor is applied.

The weight of each assignment category (that is, its contribution

toward a student's grade) is listed under its name.

Students' grades are not the same as they were under the

unweighted system.

Grades have been calculated as follows:

A student's percentage in each assignment category is

multiplied by the weight of that category and the results added

to get a final percentage.

Here is the calculation Class Action made for Watson Brown

in A Sample Class:

Category Weight

X

Percent = Weighted

Score

Homewor

k

.25 75.0 18.75

Classwor

k

.25 92.0 23.0

Tests .50 81.7 40.85

Total 82.6%

What Are Unweighted Points?

The unweighted or total point, grading system is the most

common grading system, probably because grades are easier

to hand calculate. Every point, whether it is in homework,

essays, tests, or whatever, is worth exactly the same as every

other point.

Add up a student's points, divide by the total possible, and you

have his or her percentage.

Relative Merits of the Two Systems


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A major advantage of an unweighted or point system is that is

familiar to most students and teachers. In an unweighted

system, a point is a point is a point, no matter whether it was

earned doing homework or taking a test.

Problems in unweighted grading systems can occur when the

number of points in an assignment area becomes

disproportionate to its value as an indicator of achievement. If

you give more homework and fewer tests than you planned,

students' grades might be too greatly influenced by their

homework scores.

Such a situation cannot occur in a grading system using

weighted categories. If you decide that homework is to be

worth 25% of your students' grades then, no matter how much

you assign, its contribution will remain at 25%.

This is the major advantage of a weighted system. It allows you

more precise control.

The major disadvantage of weighted grading is that it can be a

little more difficult for students (and their parents to

understand). If you decide to use it, be sure you can hand

calculate a grade(see the example above). Somewhere along

the way you will need to explain your system to a skeptical

student or parent.


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Class Action Reports

Reports and Graphs Concerning Individual Students

Class Action has four reports about individual students, the

Student Report, Parent Letter, Proficiency Report, and

Deficiency Report. They share the same format and

capabilities.

Each assignment category can be customized to show all

assignments, missing assignments, or only summary information.

Class averages can be displayed for individual assignments and

assignment categories. Use the "Modify Display" button.

To change the reports font and font size, click the Font button

at the top of the report.

Attendance information (if you keep it) is automatically included

in each report.

Individualized comments can be automatically added to every

report concerning a particular student.

Reports can be printed or e-mailed individually or automatically

printed or e-mailed to an entire class.

For more information, see The Student Report, Parent Letters,

Proficiency and Deficiency Notices, How To E-Mail Reports

to Parents, and How to Add Comments to a Report.

Assignment Reports and Graphs

Students can be listed in the assignment report by name or ID

number and can be sorted by rank, name or ID number.

Assignments can be graphed as either Bar or Pie charts.

For more information, see Assignment Reports and Assignment

Graph.


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Reports and Graphs Concerning the Entire Class

The Summary can be printed with either student names or numbers(see

File menu), and Bar or Pie charts of the classes grade distribution can

be printed (see Graph menu).

Attendance Reports

Class Action creates two attendance report, a daily report and an

individual student report. For more information, see Attendance

Reports for more information.

Attendance is also included in individual student reports.


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Student Report

To create a Student Report, click on the "Student Report" tab.


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Under each assignment category (in the case of A Sample

Class Homework, Classwork, and Tests) is information about

its assignments and grades. In this example, a different way of

displaying data has been chosen for each category.

Student Report

Homework:

The first line lists maximum available points and the student's

individual score and calculated percent. Underneath is a list of

missing assignments. The names of these assignments are the

names entered into the assignment information window. If you

have not entered assignment name information, Class Action

will use the Assignment ID you entered in the gradebook.

Classwork

Only summary information is displayed.

Tests

Every assignment is displayed individually. Assignment titles are

taken either from the assignment information area or, if no

information has been entered there, from the top of the

gradebook assignment column.

Grade

The student's class points, percent, and letter grade and a

summary of the class grading scale are listed under Grade.

Customizing Your Report

Click on the "Customize Report" button on the Control Panel.

You will see the following dialog. Radio buttons allow you to

choose how information in each category will be displayed.


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Adding Individualized Comments to Your Report

Individualized comments to be entered in advance for each

student in a class. Student Reports, Parent Letters, and

Proficiency and Deficiency Notices will contain these

comments.

See How to Add Comments to a Report for more information.

Printing Your Report

You may print only the displayed report, or you may

automatically print reports for an entire class. To Print the

displayed report, click the Print Student button on theControl Panel. To Print reports for the entire class, click the

Print Class button. For fast printing (and longer ribbon or ink

cartridge life) choose the faster button in the print dialog.

With most printers this setting will produce good looking

reports.

E-Mailing Your Report

If you have entered an e-mail address in the Student

Information Dialog, reports can be automatically attached to


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e-mails and sent during your next e-mail session. Click the

"E-Mail Student" button to send to an individual student, or the

"E-Mail Class" button to send to all members of your class for

which e-mail address have been entered. For more information,

see How To E-Mail Reports to Parents.

For an overview ofClass Action

's reports, seeClass Action

Reports.


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The Parent Letter

To create a Parent Letter select a student and click on the

Parent Letter tab.

Class Action will create a window named Parent Letter

similar to the report below which was taken from A Sample

Class.


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Homework:







Classwork


Tests





Grade



Click on the "Customize Report" button on the Control Panel.




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comments.








With most printers this setting will produce good looking

reports.





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which e-mail address have been entered. See How To E-Mail

Reports to Parents.



Reports.


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The Assignment Report

To create a report about a single assignment, select any cell in

the assignment's column click on the Assignment Report tab.

Class Action will create a window named Assignment

Report similar to the report below which was taken from A

Sample Class.

Using Student Numbers


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If you have entered student ID numbers for your students you

can display them in place of your students' names (see Student

Info Dialog to learn how to enter student numbers). Just click

on the Use Student Numbers button in the report Control

Panel. To show names again, click on the same button (which

now says Use Names).

Sorting

If you are displaying students by name, you may wish to

alphabetize the list without alphabetizing the list in the main

grade book. You can do this with the Sort button on the

report Control Panel.

If you are using student numbers, the Sort button will sort

your students by number.

You may sort your students by rank by clicking the "Rank"

button.

For an overview ofClass Action's reports, see Class Action

Reports.


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Proficiency and Deficiency Notices

Click on the Proficiency Notice or Deficiency Notice tab.

Except for their titles, these reports are identical to the Student

Report described above. Click the "Set Cutoff" button to enter

a minimum grade (Proficiency) or maximum grade (Deficiency)

to be printed or e-mailed.


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Homework:







Classwork


Tests





Grade



Click on the Customize Report" button on the Control Panel.




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comments.








With most printers this setting will produce good-looking

reports.





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which e-mail address have been entered. For more

information, see How To E-Mail Reports to Parents.



Reports.


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Attendance Reports

Attendance Summary

You can access a summary of attendance information for all the

students in a class by selecting "Attendance Summary" from the

Attendance menu.

The Attendance Summary can be printed with either student names or

ID's by clicking the Print Summary button.

Weekly Class Attendance Report

Click the Print Week button to print a week's attendance data for

your entire class.

Monthly Class Attendance Report

Click the Print Month button to print a month's attendance data for

your entire class.

The Daily Attendance Report and Student Attendance Report (On the

Attendance menu) display attendance information for a particular day

or for a particular student.

Attendance Information is also included in The Student Report, Parent

Letters, and Proficiency and Deficiency Notices.

See How To Enter Attendance Information for information on

recording attendance.


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The Student Progress Graph

The Student Progress Graph lets you compare a single

student's results in an assignment category against the class

average.

To create a Student Progress Graph, select "Student Progress"

from the Graph menu.

Class Action will create a graph similar to the graph below which was

taken from A Sample Class.


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Posting Reports on the Web

If your are subscribed to Class Action's Web Service, then you can

post reports and messages on the web. Students and parents will have

password protected access to their information.

The following reports are available for upload:

Student Report

Parent Letter

Missing Assignment Report

Deficiency

Proficiency

Assignment Information

Message

From the Web/Email menu, select the report you want to upload. If

you are not a subscriber, you will be directed to our subscription

renewal web page.

If the report has been previously uploaded, it will be replaced.

For an example of the uploading process, go to Introduction to Web Service.


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The Assignment Graph

To create a pie or bar chart of an assignment, select any cell in

the assignment column and choose Graph Assignment from

the Graphs Menu.

Class Action displays a new window:

If your grading system includes + and - grades, they will be

ignored. A B+ will be included in the B's and a C- with

the C's.

Print your graph with a click on the Print button. On most

printers, the faster setting produces excellent results (and

does not deplete your ink supply as fast).


Reports.


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The Class Graph

To create a pie or bar chart of your class grade distribution,

choose Graph Class from the Graphs Menu.

Class Action will create a new window titled Grade distribution.

The example below is taken from A Sample Class.

If your grading system includes + and - grades, they will be

ignored. A B+ will be included in the B's and a C- with the

C's.

Print your graph with a click on the Print button. On most

printers, the faster setting produces excellent results (and

lessens the drain on your ink supply).


Reports.


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Printing Student and Assignment Information

To Print the information you have entered in one or all of your Student Information

or Assignment Information boxes, select "Print Student Information" or "Print

Assignment Information" from the Print menu. You can then choose whether to

print information on all you students or a selected student.


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Keeping a daily journal

You can keep daily journal entries if you have set up attendance for your class

(see How to Enter Attendance Information to set up attendance).

Select a month from the Attendance menu, select a date, and click the Daily

Journal button.


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Adding Comments to a Report or Letter

You can add individualized comments to Student Reports, Parent Letters,

and Deficiency or Proficiency Notices. Comments can include a students

first or last name.

Select "Comments" from the Grading menu.

You can edit or replace the default comments and add new ones. To

include a student's name on a report, type "first.name" or "last.name" - no

quotes and all lower case.

To include a comment on a student's report, click on the student's name

in the left-hand column and click on the check box beside the comment.


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That's all there is to it! The comments you checked will appear on any

report you print or e-mail.


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E-Mailing Reports to Parents

Class Action makes it easy to keep in touch with parents by e-mail. Enter

an e-mail address in the Student Information view (double click on a

student's name to bring it up).

Select a student in either the Classroom or Gradebook and click on the

tab of the report you want to e-mail.

Customize the report using the "Change Display" button. Add comments if

you want by selecting "Report Comments" from the Grading menu.

Click the "E-mail Student" button. You will be asked to save the report in

HTML form. HTML is the language used by web browser. Using HTML

insures that any computer with a web browser will be able to read the

report.

After you have saved the report, you will be given an opportunity to change

the default message that accompanies it. The report will be sent as an

attachment to the message to insure that its original formatting will be

maintained.

To e-mail reports to your entire class, click "E-Mail Class". You will see a

list of class member with e-mail address so you can choose eliminate

anyone you don't want the report sent to (if it is a deficiency or proficiency

notice, only students above or below the cutoff will be checked).

When you first use Class Action's new email, you will be asked for information to

allow it to connect to your internet service provider's mail server (you'll only have to

do this once!). For setup instructions, see Setting Up Email.


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Create a New Class

Class Action offers two methods of creating classes, New and

Begin New Grading Period.

If a similar class does not exist, use the New command in the

File Menu. This technique is described in detail in the section

Creating Your First Class.

If a similar class already exists, or if you are carrying an existing

class into a new grading period, it will be easier to use the

"Clone" or Begin New Grading Period command in the File

Menu. See How To Begin a New Grading Period.

Using Clone

If you have several similar classes, create the first class using the

New command as described in the Setting Up Your First Class

section. Then use the Clone command to set up the rest of your

classes.

The Save dialog will use the previous class's name with "(clone)" appended so

that your existing class won't be overwritten. Change the name to that of your new

class.


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Begin a New Grading Period

The New Grading Period command can be used to begin a new

grading period with an existing class. You may carry forward

student names, grade totals, grade averages, or start completely

anew.

Choose New Grading Period from the File Menu and click the

appropriate check boxes

If you are beginning a new grading period with the same students,

you have the option of carrying point totals forward or averaging

two grading periods together on an equal basis.

Checking the Grade Totals box totals all the points from the

previous period into the first column of each category. It also

saves a the lowest score so that if you are using the Drop LowScore option, the lowest score from either period is dropped.

Checking the Grade Averages box creates new columns at the end of

the Summary page which show letter grades and averages from the

previous period and a running average of the current and previous periods.

The two periods are weighted on an equal basis. You can weight each

period and add more than one grading periods by selecting "Begin a New

Grading Period" again when the second period is complete.

See Average Two Periods and a Final.


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Averaging more than one grading period or two grading periods and afinal exam.

You can use the "New Grading Period" selection in the File menu to average

grading periods together or average final examination with one or more grading

periods. After each grading period is complete, check the "Grade Averages" box in

the New Grading Period dialog. You will be given an opportunity to weight each

period. If you wish to average a final with your grading periods, select "New

Grading Period" after you last grading period and add and weight your final.

see Begin a New Grading Period.


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Changing Category Information

To change the name or character limit (the maximum number of

characters that can be entered in a score) of an assignment category,

choose Change Category Info from the Class Menu.


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Add or Remove Assignments

To add a new assignment in the gradebook, double click on an empty

column and enter you information. The only boxes that must have

information are the ID, Max, and Weight boxes. The weight should be 1.0,

unless you want the assignment to have greater importance than the

points assigned in the Max box would indicate.

If there are no empty assignment columns left, choose "Add Assignment

Columns" from the Class menu.

To add an assignment from the seating chart, choose the category from the

"Display Assignment" pop-up menu and select "Add New Assignment."


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Add or Remove Students

Adding students to a class

To add one or more students to a class, choose the Add

Students command from the Class Menu.

Enter the number of students you wish to add in the box. You

may add up to 99 students at one time (repeating the process as

many times as you need). Above selection adds new student

rows above a cell you have selected. To end of list adds rows at

the bottom of the class.

Removing a student from your class

Class Action provides two methods of removing students from a

class, Archive Selected Student and Delete Selected Student.

Archive Selected Student

If you wish to retain information about the student, use theArchive Selected Student command in the Class menu.

The Archive Selected Student places the character @ in from

of the student's name. Scores and grades are frozen so that

subsequent assignments have no effect.

Restore Archive

Should a student return, you can use the Restore Archive

command. Click on the archive you wish to restore and choose

Restore Archive from the Class Menu.

Delete Selected Student

If you wish to permanently remove all information about a student, use the

Delete Selected Student command.


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Changing the Size of a Seat in the Seating Chart

If your seating chart is too crowded, you can make the seats smaller by selecting

"Small Seats" from the Seating Arrangement pop-up menu.


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Changing Class Action Color Scheme

You can create your own color scheme by selecting "Select Colors" from the

Class menu.


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Change the Student Name Column

Long names in your class? You can increase the number of

characters allowed with this command in the Class Action menu.

You can also change the width of the student column here,

although it is probably easier to position the cursor over its right

border, watch it change shape, and (holding down the mouse

button) drag the border where you want it .


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Weighted Categories or Unweighted Points

The Weighted Categories or Unweighted Points section

discusses the merits (and disadvantages) of each system and

explains how grades are calculated.

To change from one system to the other, use the Grading Menu.

The system you are currently using will have a check to the left of

it. After you have selected the system you want to use, Class

Action will recalculate your grades. If you are choosing Weighted

Points and have not previously assigned weights for the class, a

dialog will appear asking you to enter weights for your

categories.

Weighted Categories or Unweighted Points will appear on the Status

Bar.


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Add Category

Select Add Category from the Class menu and fill in the

requested information. If you are using weighted categories, a

second dialog box will ask you to re-weight your categories.

Delete Category

To delete an assignment category, choose Delete Category

from the Class Menu.

Delete Category does just what it says. The category and all its

information will disappear forever. Be sure you have a backup

copy of your class file before you delete a category.


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Calculate Grades

Class Action will automatically recalculate your grades when you

go to the Grade Summary area or create a report. You may

disable this feature by un-checking Auto Calculate in the

Grading Menu.

If automatic calculation is disabled, grade can be recalculated by

clicking the = button on the right hand side of the Control Panel.

Whether automatic calculation is disabled or enabled, grades will

be recalculated when a class is saved or closed, or when a report

is generated.


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Changing Category Weights

If you are using weighted categories, you may change their

weighting by choosing the Category Weights command from

the Grading Menu.

Class Action will remind you if your weights don't add up to

100%.


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Curve an Assignment

You can scale or curve scores on an assignment. by choosing

Curve Assignment from the Grades Menu. The following

window will open:

Scores have been sorted from highest to lowest. The three

columns on the right are examples to give you an idea of what

curve factor you might want to use. Curve factors from .01 to .99

raise scores. The lowest scores are raised the most, and no

score will go above the maximum points available for the

assignment. Curve factors above 1.00 lower scores.

You can test different factors by typing them into the Enter


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Factor box and clicking the Display Curve button. When you

find the curve you want, click the Curve Assignment button, and

new scores will appear in your gradebook.

You may restore the original scores at any time by clicking the

Restore Scores button.

The Rounding button allows you to choose to display scores to

tenths (93.6) or rounded to integers (94).


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Using the Drop Low Score Option

You may choose to drop the lowest percentage score from any or

all of your assignment categories by selecting the Drop Low

Score command from the Grading Menu.

Select the category or categories from which the lowest

percentage is to be dropped:

Grades will be automatically re-computed with lowest score dropped for

each student Drop Lowest Score" will appear on the right hand end of the

Status Bar. When you look at the scores in the assignment area, you will

find that Class Action has drawn a line through the scores it has dropped.

As you add new assignments, adjustments for new low scores will be

made when you recalculate.


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Enter Grades

Into the Gradebook

Class Action's "Student" columns on the left side of the window

below, and the assignment categories to its left (such a

"Homework" in A Sample Class), are examples of areas into

which you can type information.

Information is displayed and entered in cells, represented by

boxes and underlines in the gradebook window.

Use the mouse to place the cursor over a cell and click your

mouse.

The selected cell is enclosed in a box. Any typing you do will go

into it.

To Enter a letter grade, click the Letters button. To enter a

percent grade, click the Percents button.

Class Action offers two typing modes, Rapid Entry and Edit.

You will probably use Rapid entry for most typing. When you

select a cell with a single click (or move the selection rectangle

around with the Tab, Enter, Return, or arrow keys) you are in

the Rapid Entry mode.

Rapid Entry supports limited editing. After you select a cell, the

first key not only enters a character but also clears previous

information. While you are typing, you can use the backspace

key to eliminate the last character you entered. The delete key


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on the numeric keypad clears a cell completely.

The Edit typing mode offers a complete editing capability and is

especially useful in editing longer passages such as student

names.

To enter the Edit mode, right click on a cell and select Edit Cell

from the pop-up menu or select "Edit Cell" from the Edit Menu. A

flashing vertical line (called an insertion point) will appear at the

end of the text. You can place the insertion bar between any two

characters with a mouse click. (If you click outside the cell, Class

Action will leave the Edit mode.) Any text you type will appear at

the insertion point.

Examples of typing in the two modes are presented in Finding

Your Way Around Class Action.

You may undo typing by choosing the Undo command from the

Edit Menu.

Into the Seating Chart

In the Classroom View (seating chart), select the assignment's

category from the Display Assignment pop-up menu. Then

choose the assignment from the dialog box that appears.


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You can then enter assignments directly into student's seats byclicking on them or using the arrow, tab, or enter keys to select

them.

You can enter letter grades instead of points. They must be

identical to the letter grades you have entered in the second

column of the grading scale dialog.


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Class Action will average the low and high of a grade's range.Using the grading scale above, if you enter a B- Class Action

averages 79.5 and 83.0 to obtain an average of 81.25. Grade

averages are calculated based on 81.25% times the number of

points for the assignment.

If you enter a B- in an assignment worth 100 points, the student

would receive 81.25 points. A B- in an assignment worth 25 points

would give the student 20.3 points out of 25.

Class Action will make the lowest letter grade on your scale 10%

below the lowest percent you have entered. In the scale above, an

F would be valued at 49.5%. If you wish to achieve finer control

over the lowest grade, you can enter a point value for your lowest

score when you enter scores.


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Excuse an assignment

To excuse a student from an assignment, type an e or an E in

the assignment's cell. If you leave a score blank, Class Action

averages it as a zero and adds it to the student's missing

assignments.


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Give Extra Credit

You can make an assignment extra credit by entering the number

0 into the assignment's Maximum Points row.

You can also give extra credit as part of a regular assignment by allowing

points above the assignment's maximum. Thus, a student might be given

110 points on a test with a Maximum Points of 100.


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Standards Based Grading

When setting up your grading scale using a numerical grading system, use words

for your grades. Instead of entering 1, 2, 3, 4, enter One, Two, Three, Four. This

will prevent Class Action from confusing a score you enter with "letter" grades.


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Weight an Individual Assignment

You can use the Assignment Information Area to weight individual

assignments. For example, assigning a factor of 2 to a 100 point

assignment will cause it to be given a value of 200 when grades

are calculated.

To weight an assignment, double click on its column in the gradebook or

select it with a single mouse click and click the Assignment Info button

on the Control Panel. Enter the weight factor in the "Weight" box. A

weight of 1.0 means the assignment receives its normal point score.


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Removing an Assignment Category from Calculation

An assignment category can be removed from calculation by selecting

"Excuse Categories" from the Grading menu.

You can enter check mark grades in a category that has been removed from

calculation by right clicking on a cell and selecting the check from the pop-up

menu.


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Entering You Pocket PC Key

To register your Pocket PC, select Register Pocket PC from the Help menu of the

Windows (not the Pocket PC) Edition and paste in your Pocket PC registration

key.


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Web Service

Class Action's web service provides an easy way to use the internet to

communicate with students and parents. The first time you select a report

or message to upload, password protected web accounts are created for

you and each student you select. Login information is email to parents or

students.

You maintain control of both the information uploaded and who will be

able to view it. You can add or delete reports and messages at any time.

The following reports are available for upload:

Student Report

Parent Letter

Missing Assignment Report

Deficiency

Proficiency

Assignment Information

Message

Uploading Report and Messages


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Uploading Reports and Messages:

Select the report you wish to upload from the Web/Email menu. Be sure

you are connect to the web. Dialup users need to dial out before

uploading.

Example

Select "Upload Student Reports to Web" from the Web/Email menu.

You'll be asked to login:

If you haven't signed in before, click OK and enter your email address and

create a password:


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You'll see instructions for web login:

Select the report you want to upload and students to be included.

If you list student or parent emails, login information will be emailed directly


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to them and you'll receive a copy. If you use ID numbers, then login

information will be emailed to you only. If you are using the Sample Class,

change one of the email addresses to your own to see an example of the

login information email that is sent to students.


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Class Action will create or update student accounts as necessary and

upload reports.


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Remembering Teacher and Student Passwords

To recover a forgotten web password, select "Request Teacher Web

Password" or "Request Student Web Password" from the Web/Email

menu. Passwords and login information will be emailed to the email

address on record for the teacher or student.

Password can also by retrieved from our website by entering your email on our

login page and clicking "Remember my Password."


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Setting Up Class Action's Email.

Select "Configure Email" from the Web/Email menu. You will be asked

for information to allow it to connect to your internet service provider's

mail server:

If you are a Web Service subscriber, you have the choice of using your

internet service provider's email server or Class Action's.

If you are not a subscriber, you will need to use your own provider's


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web server.

Web Service Subscribers:

Name: Your name as you want it to appear in the From box.

Email Address: Your return email address.

Click the "Use Class Action Web Server" button.

Note: Some Internet Service Providers block the use of mail

servers other than their own. In most cases, you can contact your

provider and ask them to unblock third party access. If your

service provider is unwilling to do so, follow the directions below.

Using your Internet Service Providers Email Server:

Name: Your name as you want it to appear in the From box.

Email Address: Your return email address.

Authentication Method: For most ISP's, select Authorized Login.

User Name and Password: If you have selected Authorized Login,

enter your email user name and password.

Server: Your outgoing mail server. If you are using Outlook, in the

Tools menu select Email Accounts, then Change. click on yourconnection and then click the Change button. Click the Connection

tab and look for "Outgoing Mail (SMTP)."

Before you send mail you will have to be connected to the internet. If

you have a dialup connection, dial out first.


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Import Student Information

Class Action can import a student list or complete student information.

To import a list of names, save your list in .csv (comma separated value) form

using a spreadsheet such as Excel. From the File menu, select Import/Student

Names and import your .csv file.

To import student information, a .csv file must be created with the following

headers:

student_name, student_id, year_in_school, phone_number, parent_name,

address_street, address_city,

address_state, address_zip, email_address1, email_address2

If your students' first and last names are in separate fields, you can use first_name

and last_name instead of student_name.

Order is not important, and it isn't necessary to have each field.

From the File menu, select Import/Student Information.


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Importing and Exporting Data to Other Applications

Class Action can import a student list or complete student information.

To import a list of names, save your list in .csv (comma separated value) form

using a spreadsheet such as Excel. From the File menu, select Import/Student

Names and import your .csv file.

To import student information, a .csv file must be created with the following

headers:

student_name, student_id, year_in_school, phone_number, parent_name,

address_street, address_city,

address_state, address_zip, email_address1, email_address2

If your students' first and last name are in different fields, you can use

first_name and last_name instead of student_name.

Order is not important, and it isn't necessary to have each field.

From the File menu, select Import/Student Information.

Class Action Can import assignments from Blackboard, a popular online teaching

tool. In the File menu, select Import/Blackboard to open a Blackboard file saved in

.csv form. Assignments will be matched with existing students and new students

will be added. When Blackboard assignments are imported, all previously entered

scores and assignment data in the selected assignment category will be

overwritten.

Student lists, summary, and category information can also be exported in .csv

format. Select "Export" from the File menu.

HTML documents can also be created by Class Action. See How to Create a WebPage.


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Transferring a Student to Another Class

You can transfer a student's information and assignments to another class by

selecting the student's name in the gradebook and choosing "Transfer Student

Out" from the Class menu. Open the second class and select and empty student

row in the gradebook (if none is available, use "Add Student" from the class

menu). Select "Transfer Student In" from the Class menu.

This function will only work if the two classes are have identical structure. Each

must have the same assignment categories and the same number of assignments

in each category.


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Transferring Assignments to Another Class

You can transfer assignment information to another class by selection the top cell

in an assignment column in the gradebook and choosing "Transfer Assignment

Out" from the Class menu. In your second class, select the top cell of the first

empty assignment column and choose "Transfer Assignment In" from the Class

menu.

The procedure works like copy and paste (you can select multiple columns),

except that i t transfers all information in the Student Information window.

You can transfer multiple assignments by selecting several top cells at once.


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Class Action Can import assignments from Blackboard, a popular online teachingtool. In the File menu, select Import/Blackboard to open a Blackboard file saved in

.csv form.

Assignments will be matched with existing students and new students will be

added. When Blackboard assignments are imported, all previously entered scores

and assignment data in the selected assignment category will be overwritten.


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Entering, Displaying, and Printing Attendance Information

To set up attendance, select "Setup Attendance" from the Attendance

menu. The first two dialogs let you choose beginning and ending days for

your class. The next two allow you to set the days of the week your class

meets and the attendance codes you will use.

Entering Attendance from the Classroom View

Attendance Information can be entered in the Classroom View, using the

Display Attendance Pop-up menu.

After you have select a date by choosing "Today's Attendance" or "Select

Date" from the Display Attendance Pop-up menu or from the Attendance

menu, each student seat will display any attendance code that has

already been entered.

To enter an attendance code, right click on a seat and select a code from

the pop-up menu

You can add, delete, or edit attendance code by selecting "ChangeCodes" from either the Display Attendance pop-up menu or the

Attendance menu.

Entering Attendance from the Attendance Gradebook

Select a month from the Attendance menu. Right-click on a cell, and

select a code from the pop-up menu.

Two reports are available from the Attendance Menu - the Daily

Attendance Report and the Student Attendance Report. Attendance

information is also included in The Student Report, Parent Letters, and

Proficiency and Deficiency Notices.


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Automatic Backing Up of Your Class Files

Although in recent years operating systems and hardware have become

much more stable, it is still important to make periodic backups. Class

Action automates the process by creating a backup of your classes each

time you close them.

When you close a class file, Class Action writes a backup to a folder

named Class Action Backups on your "C" drive. Backup files will have the

same name as your class file, except that the names will begin with A, B,

C, or D. After four backup files have been created, the next file will begin

with A again, overwriting the previous A file. This means that there will

always be four backups to each of your classes.

If you want to change the name and location of your backup folder, select

"Change Backup Location" from the file menu. Be sure to enter a

complete path, such as "C:\Class Action Backups".

Periodic backups should also be made to another location, in case you should

lose your hard drive. You can use "Save As" in the File menu to save your file to

another disk, you email your class file using "Email Class File" in the File menu.


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Emailing Your Class

You can email your class file to another computer. For example, if you work

on grades both at home and at school, you can email your class file back

and forth, avoiding having to save copies to a floppy or CD and physically

transport them.

Set up your email using "Configure Email" in the Class menu, if you haven't

already done so. Select "Email Class File" from the File menu. You will have

the opportunity to enter or change the destination email address.

Your class file will arrive as an attachment to an email.

To learn how to set up your email or email reports click E-Mailing Reports to

Parents.


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When you create a new class, Class Action will ask you whether you want a tabto appear at the bottom of your Class Action window so that you can easily

access the class.

If you want to add or delete a tab to an existing class, select "Tabs" from the File

menu an choose "Add Tab for this Class" or "Delete Class Tab."


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Arranging Your Classroom

You can use the Seating Arrangement Pop-up menu to alphabetize,

randomize, or group your students.

You can drag a student to a new position with your mouse, or exchange two

seats by dragging one on top of the other.

You can turn the grid off and on by selecting "Grid Off" or "Grid On" from the

Seating Arrangement pop-up menu.

If your arrangement is too congested, switch to "Small Seats" using the

Seating Arrangement pop-up menu.


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Class Statistics

Click the "Grade Summary" tab and click the "Class Statist ics" button.

High score, low score, averages, standard deviation, and number of

assignments for the class and each assignment category are displayed.

Assignment Statistics

Click an assignment category tab (such as "Tests" in A Sample Class)

and double click on an assignment column.

The high score, low score, averages, standard deviation, and weighting of

the assignment will be displayed.


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Getting More Information about a Student

To see more information about a Student, double click on the

student's name. Additional information will appear. Information

can be entered by clicking on the appropriate box and typing.

Double click on another student's name, and you will see

information about that student.

For additional information Student Info Dialog


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Password Protect Your Classes

To password protect your classes, choose Password from the

File Menu.


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Save a File

There are three commands in the File Menu that save your work.

The Save command will save changes you have made. If you

close a class or quit Class Action before saving, and AutoSave is

not selected, Class Action will ask you if you wish to save your

changes.

The second command is the Save As command. It is useful

when you wish to make a duplicate of your file. A dialog box

allows you to name your copy (if you do not give it a different

name, it will replace your old file).

Class Action 's New Grading Period command in the File Menu is similar

to the Save As command but allows you are great deal of flexibility as

to what will be saved. It is especially useful when beginning a new grading

period or class. How to Create a New Class and How to Begin a New

Grading Period to find out how to use the New Grading Period

command.


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Attendance menu commands

Set up Attendance Add Attendance to your class.

Change Codes Change the attendance codes that appear in reports.

Set Date Set the date for which you are entering attendance

information.

Attendance information is entered in the Classroom view.

Daily Report Attendance report for a particular day (chosen by Set Date

menu command).

Student

Attendance Report

Attendance report on selected student.


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File menu commands

The File menu offers the following commands:

New Creates a new class.

Open Opens an existing class..

Close Closes an opened class.Save Saves changes in an opened class. See How to Save a File for

more information.

Save As Saves a copy of a class under a new name. See How to Save

a File for more information.

Auto Save When checked, you class will be automatically saved every

three minutes.

Save Summary As

Web Page

Saves you summary page in HTML, so that it can be posted on

a web site or sent as an e-mail attachment.

New Grading

Period

Creates a new class similar to an existing class, or allows

information to be carried forward to a new grading period. See

Create a New Class and Begin a New Grading Period

Print Preview Displays the document on the screen as it would appear

printed.

Print Setup Selects a printer and printer connection.

Password See Password Protect Your Class

Import Import Information from other sources.

Export Export Information to other programs

Exit Exits Class Action.


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Student Information Dialog

Name

Enter student's name here or directly into the gradebook. Enter names

"Last, First" so the list can be alphabetized. On reports, names will be

printed "First Last."

Telephone, ID Number, Year in School

The ID Number can be used on reports in place of the student's name.

Second Language Reports

Check for Reports to be printed in Spanish for this student.

Archive this Student

Check when a student drop and you want to maintain a record of his or

her grade at that time. The student's grade becomes "frozen" and no new

information can be entered.

Parent Name

Parent Address

Parent E-Mail Address

Class Action will e-mail reports to this address.

Comments

Use for your own purposes. Comments will not appear on reports or

correspondence.


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Graph menu commands

Graph Class Creates a pie or bar graph of classes grade distribution. See Class

Graph

Graph

Assignment

Creates a pie or bar graph of an assignments grade distribution. See

Assignment Graph

Student

Progress

Graph a students progress in an assignment category.


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Display Attendance Pop-up Menu

Use the Display Attendance pop-up menu in the Classroom view to enter

attendance information.

Today's Attendance

Displays the current day's attendance information in the seating

chart for adding and editing.

Select Date

Displays a calendar to select a date to display and edit information.

Change Codes

Displays a dialog to add, delete, or change the names of

attendance codes:

Default attendance codes are: Exc Absence, Unexc Absence, Exc

Tardy, Unexc Tardy, Warrant Abs, and School Activity.

See How to Enter Attendance Information for a complete explanation off

Class Action's integrated attendance.


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Seating Arrangement Pop-up Menu

Alphabetize

Arranges students in alphabetical order

Randomize

Arranges students randomly..

Add this Arrangement

Saves seating arrangement and adds it to the menu.

Delete this Arrangement

Deletes current arrangement from the menu if i t has been saved.

Group

Requests a number and groups seats mixing grades.

Hide Scores

Turns grade display on and off. When printing a seating chart you may

not want to display grades.

Grid On

Turns seating grid on and off. With grid off, you can drag a seat

anywhere.


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Create a New Class

Class Action offers two methods of creating classes, New and

New Grading Period.

If a similar class does not exist, use the New command in the

File Menu. This technique is described in detail in the section

Creating Your First Class.

If a similar class already exists, or if you are carrying an existing

class into a new grading period, it will be easier to use the New

Grading Period command in the File Menu. See How To Begin a

New Grading Period.

Using the New Grading Period

If you have several similar classes, create the first class using the

New command as described in the Setting Up Your First Class

section. Then use the New Grading Period command to set up

the rest of your classes.

When you choose New Grading Period from the File Menu, you

will see the following dialog.

The check boxes Student Name and Grade Totals are used for

beginning a new grading period with an existing class. They are

explained in the section Begin a New Grading Period.

The check box Assignments can save you time if your class's

assignments are already set up. Points are not carried forward because

they would affect grade calculation.


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Web Page Creation

Class Action can create HTML documents which you can post on a web

site or attach to e-mails.

To create a web page of your Grade Summary, select "Save Summary as

Web Page" from the File menu.

To create a web page of a report, click the "Web Page" button on the

report.


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Index

A

Add Assignments 27 add category 33,Add Student aphabetize seats

Archive archive student 28

arrange seats Assignment Graph 17

assignment information 19 Assignment Report 12

Assignment Statistics 61 assignment weighting 43

assignments in multiple classes 54 assignments, add 27

Assignmet Categories 3 Attendance 56

Attendance Codes Attendance Menu

Attendance Reports 56, 14 auto calculate 34,

auto save autosave

B

Blackboard 55

C

calculate 34 calculation 44

Categories 3 category add 33

category delete 33 category information 26

category weights 35 cell 39

Chage Category Info Change Attendance Codes

change category information 26 change category weights 35

Change Class Info Change Codeschange grading scale 36 change seat position 60

Change Student Column check mark 44

class - new 6 Class Graph 18

Class Menu Class Statistics 61

Class Tabs 59 classroom 60

Classroom - Entering Grades 39 Classroom View - Display Assignment

Popup

classroom view arrangement Classroom View Display Attendance

Popup

Clear Comments 21

copy assignment information 54 creating class 6


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curve assignment 37 curving assignments 37

Cusomizing Report 10 cutoff button 13

D

Daily Attendance Report Daily Report

Deficiency Notice 13 Delete Assignments

delete category 33, Delete Selected StudentDisplay Assignment Popup Menu Display Attendance Popup Menu

drag seat 60 Drop Low Score

drop low scores 38 drop student 28

E

edit mode 39 e-mail 22

E-Mailing Report 10 Entering Grades 5, 39

exchange seat 60 excuse 44

excuse assignment 40 exit

Export 52 extra credit 41

F

File Tabs 59 files: managing

Fill

G

Grade Entering 5 Gradebook -Entering Grades 39

Grades Entering 39 Grading Menu

grading period 24, grading scale 36

Graph Assignment 17 Graph Class 18Graph Menu Graph Student Progress

group seats

H

hide grades HTML

HTML report HTML reports 22

I


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Import 52 Import Student Informationt 51

Import,export to 52 Import,import from 52

internet report Introduction 1

L

letter grades 36 Letter Grades - Entering 39

low scores - drop 38

M

Menu - Display Assignment Popup menu - Seating Arrangment Popup

menu Display Attendance missing assignment 40

mixed ability grouping move seat 60

Move student to another class 53

N

name column width 31 new class 6new grading period 24, new student 28

new term 24 numerical grades 42

P

Palm Parent Letter Report 11

Password 63, 49 PDA

Percent Grades - Entering 39 Personal Digital Assistant

Pocket PC Points - Entering 39

Print Assignment Categories Print Classroom

Print Gradebook Print Grid

printing and print preview printing assignment information 19Printing Report 10 printing student information 19

Proficiency Notice 13

R

randomize seats rapid entry mode 39

remember password 49 remove 44

Report - Parent Letter 11 Report Assignment 12

Report Basics 9 Report Comments 21

Report Customizing 10 Report Deficiency 13


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Report E-Mailing 10 Report Printing 10

Report Proficiency 13 Report Web Page 10

Reports - Attendance 14 reports - e-mail 22

retrieve password 49 rubric 42

S

save 64 save as 64seat 60 seat arrangement

Seat Size 29 Seating Chart 29

Second Language security 63

Select All Set Date

show grades small seat 60

Small Seats 29 Sort by Name

Sort by Rank Spanish

spreadsheet standards 42

Statistics 61 student 62

student add 28 Student Attendance Report

student columns width 31 Student Comments 21

Student Information 19, 62 student remove 28Student Report 10 students 62

summary web page synchronize

T

Tab 59 Taking Attendance 56

term 24 toolbar

transfer assignment 54 Transfer information 53

Transfer student 53 typing grades 39

U

unweighted categories 32 unweighted points 8

unweighted vs. weighted 8 upload 47, 48

uploading reports 47, 48

W

web 47, 48 Web Page

web page summary web password 49

web service 47, 48 weight assignment 43

weighted categories 35, 8, 32 weighted vs. unweighted 8


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weights 35

Class Action Secondary User Guide

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Transcript of Class Action Secondary User Guide