Open the School Website, Click the Power School Teacher Login Icon

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PowerTeacher Gradebook

Open the School Website, Click the power school teacher login icon.

To get into your Power Teacher Program:

1.  Open PowerTeacher

2.  Enter your username and password

User name is the first part of your email: jdoe

Enter your password. The default is usually: password

3.  Click the Enter button

The page you will be viewing is called the start page. You can get back to this page at any time by clicking the PowerTeacher icon in the top left.

On this page you can:

1.  Take attendance (Desk chair icons)

2.  View Student information (Back packs)

3.  View Daily Bulletins

4.  Change your password (under Personalize)

5.  Go into your gradebooks.

6.  Print Reports

If asked if you want Windows to remember your password, choose No

*The first thing you need to do is set up your gradebook to calculate final grades.

The Gradebook Interface

1.  Click the Gradebook button in the left pane

2.  Click the Launch Gradebook button

3.  As the program launches, you may receive a security warning, click Run.

4.  When the gradebook opens change the drop down menu on the upper left from current classes to 2010-2011. You will see a list of current classes and the students enrolled in each class. By default, the Gradebook opens up in the Scoresheet.

5.  The gradebook window is broken into different panes, the panes can be adjusted by clicking and dragging the 3 vertical lines in the upper right corner of the pane.

NOTE: The Scoresheet window can be filtered by Reporting Term (which also includes the current week, the next week, etc…and which is located directly under the Scoresheet tab).

Calculating the Final Grade using Term Weights

You have to set your classes up to calculate using your finals and your EOCT scores and all assignment grades correctly. This is done once at the beginning of the year. It is best to do this for all classes for the year.

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Make sure you have 2010-2011 selected at top left corner under classes so all of your classes show.

2.  Select a class

3.  Click the Grades Setup tab

4.  Click the reporting term (the one at the very top…ex: Y1 for year-long, S1 for semester one clases, S2 for semester two classes) for the class you want to set up final grade calculation.

5.  Select Term Weights (the 2nd radio button in the bottom portion of the screen under “Calculate Y1, S1, or S2 Final grade using:”)

6.  Find below the instructions for YOUR particular class and follow the directions for each class (this MUST be completed for each of your classes):

For Semester One (S1) classes without an EOCT:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field by clicking the number under the word “weight” in the table at the bottom. Enter 375 for Q1 and 375 for Q2.

·  Double-click the term’s weight field for F1 and enter 250, E1 should be set at 0 if it does not automatically set itself after you set F1

·  Click Save

For Semester One (S1) classes WITH an EOCT:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field by clicking the number under the word “weight” in the table at the bottom. Enter 375 for Q1 and 375 for Q2.

·  Double-click the weight field for F1 and enter 100,

·  Double-click the weight field for E1 and enter 150.

·  Click Save

For Semester Two (S2) classes WITHOUT an EOCT:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field by clicking the number in the box under the word “weight” and enter 375 for Q3 and 375 for Q4.

·  Double-click the weight field for F2 and enter 250, E2 should be set at 0 if it does not automatically set itself after you set F2

·  Click Save

For Semester Two (S2) classes WITH an EOCT:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field and enter 375 for Q3 and 375 for Q4.

·  Double-click the weight field for F2 and enter 100,

·  Double-click the weight field for E2 and enter 150.

·  Click Save

For Year Long (YR) classes WITH an EOCT:

Enter the weights as follows:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field and enter 375 for S1 and 375 for S2.

·  Double-click F2 and enter 100,

·  Double-click E2 and enter 150.

Click Save

For Year Long (YR) classes WITHOUT an EOCT:

·  Double-click the term’s weight field and enter 375 for S1 and 375 for S2.

·  Double-click F2 and enter 250,

·  Double-click E2 and enter 0 if it does not set itself after setting F2.

·  Click Save

Categories

Before you can use Gradebook to record student scores, assignment categories need to be defined. Gradebook has four pre-defined category types: Homework, Project, Quiz and Test. You can modify (edit or delete) the existing categories and/or create new categories.

Once your categories are set up, they are available to all of the classes you teach.

1.  Go to Tools, Categories

Editing Existing Categories

1.  Click on a Category in the left pane

2.  Make any desired changes to the fields that are set up:

a.  Color

b.  Points Possible

c.  Score Type

d.  Include in Final Grade

3. If you wish to delete the category, click the – in the lower left corner of the categories window.

Creating New Categories

1.  Click the + in the lower left corner of the categories window.

2.  Enter a Name for the category

3.  Enter an Abbreviation

4.  Choose a Color from the drop-down list

5.  Enter the Points Possible (this will be the default point value of any assignments in this category)

6.  Choose a Score Type from the drop-down list.

7.  Check Include in Final Grade if appropriate

8.  Enter a description

9.  Repeat steps 1 – 8 until all categories are set up

10. Check Include in Final Grade if you want this category to be included in grading. See NOTE below.

****IMPORTANT**** YOU MUST CREATE A CATEGORY ENTITLED FINAL EXAM AND A CATEGORY ENTITLED EOCT. Instructions on using these will be below under “Putting in Final Exam Scores and EOCT Scores.”

Click the Close button when you are finished working with categories.

NOTE: One nice use of categories is for tracking non-graded assignments, such as field trip permission forms, etc… You will have the ability to filter the category out of any reports you run. If you choose to do this, make sure you leave Include in Final Grade unchecked.

Score Types

Mixed, Points, Percentages, Letter (Percentages is the most common.)

After you have set up the desired categories, you must select the categories you want for each class in order for your final grades to calculate. (Remember if you have assignments created that you do not assign a category, they will not figure into your final grades.)

Calculating the Final Grade using Category Weights

Category weights should only be set under Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4. When you click on Y1, S1, or S2 under Gradebook Setup, you should only see the term weights at the bottom of the screen that we set up earlier. You should NEVER have category weights checked when you have clicked on Y1, S1, or S2.

In order to set category weights, you select Gradebook Setup and then click on Q1 (You will do this for each quarter—the picture below shows categories added to S1…you NEVER will have categories under Y1, S1, or S2 for PCHS) and then the radio button—Category Weights

1.  Click Add Category.

2.  You will then see all the categories you created earlier. Select the checkbox next to each category you want to add to this class for the quarter you are setting up.

3.  Click OK. The category appears on the Grades Setup window

NOTE: Remove a category by selecting the category and clicking the remove button

****Important*** After adding categories to all Quarters, click on F1 or F2. Within F1 add the final exam category you set up earlier and set the weight for 100%. This is the only place you will use the Final Exam category.

Then click on E1 or E2 and add the EOCT category you set up earlier. Set this weight for 100%. This is the only place you will use the EOCT category.

Entering Assignments

Once your categories are set up, you are ready to add assignments to the gradebook.

1.  Select a class

2.  Click the Assignments tab

3.  Click the + in the Assignments pane
The lower half of the pane comes up with settings for the assignment

12. Click the Publish tab (this is where you determine when an assignment will be visible to students and parents via PowerSchool—usually the default is for all assignments you add to be published. If you want every assignment visible to parents you do not need to click this tab at all.)

NOTE: Once an assignment has been created, it will appear in the upper part of the pane. Double-click an assignment to make changes to it.

***You will need to create an assignment entitled Final Exam and an assignment entitled EOCT. However, the dates of these assignments must be exact for them to calculate properly and for them to count in the right term. Please see instructions below for Entering Final Exams and Entering EOCT scores. Please follow these instructions exactly. This is the only place way you should have a Final Exam assignment and a place to input final exam grades as well as an EOCT assignment and a place to put in EOCT scores.

Copying Assignments

Assignments can be set up in one class and copied to other classes.

1.  Select the class you want to copy the assignment from

2.  Click either the Scoresheet tab or the Assignments tab

3.  Click on the assignment you would like to copy

4.  Go to Tools, Copy Assignment

NOTE: Deleting an assignment from one class does not delete it from any of the classes it may have been copied to.

Sorting Assignments

By default, assignments are sorted by Date in ascending order.

1.  Select a class

2.  Click on a column heading to sort the assignments by: name, abbreviation, category, points possible, weight or date due. Assignments appear sorted in ascending order based on the selected column.

3.  Click the same column heading again to sort assignments in descending order.

Entering Scores

1.  Select a class

2.  Click the Scoresheet tab

3.  The assignments you have entered are listed across the top of the scoresheet.

4.  Click in the cell representing the intersection of the row containing the student’s name and the column of the assignment you want to enter the score for.

5.  Enter the score (make sure the score is appropriate for the assignment score type)

6.  Press Return to advance to the next student

7.  Press Tab to advance to the next assignment

8.  Click Save when you are done entering scores

NOTE: Extra credit can be awarded by entering a score higher than the points possible.

NOTE: An assignment can be marked as collected, late or exempt by right-clicking on the score and choosing the appropriate item.

Summary

Click the Summary button in the lower left corner of the Scoresheet to view the mean, median, and mode score of each assignment.

Fill Scores

Fill Scores allows you to enter the same grade on an assignment for several students. It also allows you to mark whether the assignment has been collected, was received late, or is exempt. Additionally, you may add comments.

1.  Click in a score cell

2.  Go to Tools, Fill Scores

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The Score Inspector

The Score Inspector can be accessed for individual student grades on assignments as well as the final grade. It allows you to add additional information to an individual grade or override a final grade. You can also enter your grades via the Score Inspector.

Assignment Grades

1.  Click on the student’s grade that you want to add some details to.

2.  Go to Tools, Score Inspector

Alternatively, right-click on the score and choose Show Score Inspector

Final Grades

1.  Double-click on a final grade

2.  The Score Inspector dialog box opens

Student Information

1.  Click the Students tab

2.  A list containing the students’ names, student numbers, birthdays, genders, grades and home phone numbers will come up.

3.  Clicking on the arrow next to the student’s name will bring up their information in the lower part of the pane – this information includes parent names, emergency contact information and a link to a guardian e-mail address.

4.  Click the x in the upper left corner to close

NOTE: The student number and home phone have been removed from the above picture.

Class Info

1.  Click the Class Info tab

2.  Enter a description for your class and any web links that are needed for the class.

3.  Click Save

Reports

There are 7 reports available in PowerTeacher Gradebook.

1.  Click the Reports tab