PowerTeacher Gradebook Report Card Guide for 2020-2021 ... · For grade 1-6 English Language Arts, teachers report grades on three strands: 1. Writing and Other Ways of Representing,

Nova Scotia Public Education System

PowerTeacher Gradebook Report Card Guide for 2020-2021: Grades PR-6 User Guide

Revision Date: September 25, 2020


September 25, 2020

1 Summary of Report Card Tasks ....................................................................................................................3

2 Assigning Grades for your Courses ..............................................................................................................4

2.1 Important First Step for Grade 1-6 Teachers .......................................................................................4

2.2 How to Enter your Grades ...................................................................................................................4

2.3 Entering Grades for English and French Language Arts .......................................................................6

2.3.1 Reporting ELA for English Program Students .............................................................................6

2.3.2 Reporting ELA for Immersion Program Students .......................................................................7

2.3.3 Reporting FLA for Immersion Program Students .......................................................................7

2.4 Entering Grades for Integrated Mathematics/ Mathematics ............................................................8

2.5 Entering Grades for Music and Physical Education .............................................................................9

2.6 Entering Grades for Core French .........................................................................................................9

3 Completing the Learner Profile as the Homeroom Teacher ................................................................... 10

3.1 Entering the Learner Profile Comment ............................................................................................. 10

3.2 Entering Grades for Social Skills/Work Habits .................................................................................. 11

4 Entering Comments for your Courses ....................................................................................................... 13

4.1 Overview ........................................................................................................................................... 13

4.2 Entering Comments .......................................................................................................................... 13

4.3 Using Smart Text when Writing Comments ...................................................................................... 15

4.4 Viewing your Comments ................................................................................................................... 15

5 All the Grades and Comments are in for a Class? Now What? ................................................................. 16

(Note: Names appearing in this document are fictitious names)


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1 SUMMARY OF REPORT CARD TASKS

Report Term

Grade Level

Learner Profile Integrated English (P - 3) / English (4 - 6)

and French Language Arts and Integrated Mathematics (P - 3) /

Mathematics (4 - 6)

Music and Physical Education

Core French

Term 1 Primary

report with the developmental scale and comment from the classroom teacher. (max 450 characters)

report with a comment inclusive of integrated subjects, as applicable. (max 1000 characters)

1 - 3 report with the developmental scale and comment from the classroom teacher. (max 450 characters)

report with the developmental scale and with a comment inclusive of integrated subjects, as applicable. (max 1000 characters)

4 - 6



Term 2 Primary



report using a comment. (max 600 characters)



report using the developmental scale and a comment. (max 600 characters)

4 - 6


report with the letter grade scale and with a comment inclusive of integrated subjects, as applicable. (max 1000 characters)



Term 3 Primary



report using a comment. (max 600 characters)




4 - 6


report with the letter grade scale and with a comment inclusive of integrated subjects, as applicable. (max 1000 characters)




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2 ASSIGNING GRADES FOR YOUR COURSES

2.1 IMPORTANT FIRST STEP FOR GRADE 1-6 TEACHERS

Before you begin, be sure you are grading the correct subject and viewing the correct reporting term.

2.2 HOW TO ENTER YOUR GRADES

1. In the Gradebook, select the year or term from the Classes section and the correct Reporting Term for the report card being generated. If the wrong year or reporting term is selected, then any information you enter in the Gradebook will not be displayed on the report card.

2. Select the desired course and then click the Scoresheet tab. 3. Click the Final Grades tab. A series of columns are displayed, and the content will vary depending

on the course that has been selected. All elementary report card grades are entered in Final Grades mode.

Since grades are not reported for grade primary subjects, grade primary teachers can skip this section and proceed to Section 3.


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The student’s grades can be entered by either:

Method 1: Direct Entry

Use your keyboard to type the appropriate code in the cell to the right of the student’s name. Below are the possible grades that can be assigned to students and refer to the table on page 3 for more details on the grades that can be used for reporting – as they differ by subject and reporting term.

Note: letters are not case sensitive, so they can be entered as lowercase characters for quicker entry.

Developmental Scale Code Definition WD Well Developed understanding and application of concepts and skills DE Developing as Expected with understanding and application of concepts and skills ND Needs Development with understanding and application of concepts and skills Letter Grades Code Definition A Thorough understanding and application of concepts and skills B Good understanding and application of concepts and skills C Basic understanding and application of concepts and skills D Limited understanding and application of concepts and skills. The student has not met expectations. Other Codes Code Definition INS Insufficient Evidence to report on achievement of the expected learning outcomes

Method 2: Right Click

1. Right-click on an entry location.

2. Click ‘Grades’.

3. Select the appropriate abbreviation for the entry.


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2.3 ENTERING GRADES FOR ENGLISH AND FRENCH LANGUAGE ARTS

• Under the Classes section, click on the Integrated Language Arts class for 1-3 or Language Arts Class for 4-6.

• Ensure that the correct reporting term is selected and that you are in Final Grades mode. • As shown in the below image, the first column is for the Comment for the subject. • The columns following the Comment column are for the strands. Use one of the methods explained

on page 5 to enter grades for your students. A grade must be entered for each strand in each reporting term.

The strands that will be reported on vary depending on the type of Language Arts course you teach.

2.3.1 REPORTING ELA FOR ENGLISH PROGRAM STUDENTS

For grade 1-6 English Language Arts, teachers report grades on three strands:

1. Writing and Other Ways of Representing, 2. Reading and Viewing, 3. Speaking and Listening

Grade 1-3 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, Term 2, and Term 3. Grade 4-6 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, and letter grades in Term 2 and Term 3.


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2.3.2 REPORTING ELA FOR IMMERSION PROGRAM STUDENTS For students in the French Immersion program, the ELA strands will vary depending on the grade level of the English course. Since French Immersion students do not take ELA in grades 1-2, Immersion teachers do not report on this course until grade 3. In grade 3, teachers will report on all three strands, but in grades 4-6 teachers only report on the (1) Writing and (2) Reading strands. As shown in the below image, the Speaking strand is not reported on in grades 4-6 English (this situation only applies to students enrolled in the Immersion program). Grade 3 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, Term 2, and Term 3. Grade 4-6 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, and letter grades in Term 2 and Term 3.

2.3.3 REPORTING FLA FOR IMMERSION PROGRAM STUDENTS

For grade 1-6 French Language Arts, teachers report grades on three strands:

1. Writing and Other Ways of Representing, 2. Reading and Viewing, 3. Speaking and Listening

Grade 1-3 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, Term 2, and Term 3. Grade 4-6 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, and letter grades in Term 2 and Term 3. In addition to reporting on the three strands, there is an additional strand for Shows interest and pride in using the French language. This strand appears in a fourth column and is graded using the Developmental Scale.


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Even though the French language strand appears along side the other strands in Gradebook, this strand will appear (as shown below) at the end of the Learner Profile section when generating the students’ French Immersion report cards.

2.4 ENTERING GRADES FOR INTEGRATED MATHEMATICS/ MATHEMATICS

• Under the Classes section, click on Integrated Mathematics for 1-3 or Mathematics for 4-6. • Ensure that the correct reporting term is selected and that you are in Final Grades mode. • The first column is where the grade is entered for the subject. Use one of the methods explained on

page 5 to enter grades for your students. • Grade 1-3 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, Term 2, and Term 3. • Grade 4-6 teachers will report using the Developmental Scale in Term 1, and letter grades in Term 2

and Term 3.


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2.5 ENTERING GRADES FOR MUSIC AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION

• Under the Classes section, click on the desired Music or Physical Education course. • Ensure that the correct reporting term is selected and that you are in Final Grades mode. • The first column is where the grade is entered for the subject. Use one of the methods explained on

page 5 to enter grades for your students. • Grade 1-6 teachers do not report on Music and Physical Education in Term 1, and in Term 2 and Term

3, use only the Developmental Scale.

2.6 ENTERING GRADES FOR GRADES 4-6 CORE FRENCH

• Under the Classes section, click on the Core French course. • Ensure that the correct reporting term is selected and that you are in Final Grades mode. • The first column is where the grade is entered for the subject. Use one of the methods explained on

page 5 to enter grades for your students. • Grade 4-6 teachers do not report on Core French in Term 1, and in Term 2 and Term 3, use only the

Developmental Scale.


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3 COMPLETING THE LEARNER PROFILE AS THE HOMEROOM TEACHER

3.1 ENTERING THE LEARNER PROFILE COMMENT

The learner profile reports on the social skills, behaviours, and work habits that are important to be a successful learner.

1. Under the Classes section, click on the Homeroom Attendance Only AM PR to 6 class.

2. If not already selected, select Final Grades mode.

3. Learner Profile comments (up to 450 characters) are entered in the first column, Learner Profile.

4. Using your mouse, right click in the cell in the Learner Profile column in line with the first student, and

then select Show Comment Inspector. 5. Enter or select your comment and click Close. 6. Move down to the next student and enter the comment. Continue until all the students in the class are

complete. See Section 4.2 to learn more about entering comments using the comment inspector.

After a comment is entered, a small blue icon ( ) is displayed in the Learner Profile Comment column. You can hover over the icon with your mouse to display the content of the comment.


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3.2 ENTERING GRADES FOR SOCIAL SKILLS/WORK HABITS

After a comment has been made for the Learner Profile, the next series of columns contain the Social Skills/Work Habits items of the Learner Profile. The Learner Profile items are:

Classwork and Assignments • Completes classwork • Completes homework ** • Strives to produce quality work

Interacts with Others • Interacts positively • Resolves conflicts appropriately • Works collaboratively

Organizational Skills • Comes prepared for class • Manages own materials and belongings • Uses time efficiently

Responsibility and Independence • Accepts responsibility for own actions • Follows instructions/directions/rules and routines • Respects school property and the property of others • Works independently

You can hover your mouse cursor over the words in the column header to display the description horizontally for ease of reading.

**The category for Completes homework is only required to be completed for grade 4-6 students. Teachers of grade P-3 students can ignore this category.


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When entering Learner Profile grades, the Learner Profile codes are as follows: (note that the codes appear abbreviated in the Gradebook but will display using the full wording on the report card)

WD - Well Developed DE – Developing as Expected ND - Needs Developing N/A -Not Applicable

Method 1: Direct Entry 1. Click on an entry location.

2. Type the appropriate code for the entry (WD, DE, ND, N/A)

Note: letters are not case sensitive, so they can be entered as lowercase characters for quicker entry.

Method 2: Right Click 1. Right-click on an entry location.

2. Click ‘Grades’.

3. Select the appropriate code for the entry.


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4 ENTERING COMMENTS FOR YOUR COURSES

4.1 OVERVIEW

Comments are required to be included for all students in all subject areas that are reported on the elementary report card. The comments reflect student achievement in relation to the expected learning outcomes specific to the course. Before entering any student comments, be sure the reporting term is set to the correct reporting term and that the Gradebook is set to Final Grades mode. Comments that are saved electronically in MS Word or MS Excel format can be copied and pasted into the Gradebook. Once a comment has been added for a student, a comment icon ( ) will appear.

4.2 ENTERING COMMENTS

For report card comment writing tips, please visit the iNSchool site at: http://bit.ly/ReportCardsNS.

To access the Comment Inspector, right-click on a student’s cell and select ‘Show Comment Inspector’ or CTRL + SHIFT + I on the keyboard (COMMAND + SHIFT + I on a Mac). To add a comment for a student, you will need to use the Comment Inspector.

2. Enter the comment for the student in the comment box. Use the functionality of the Comment Inspector to quickly move up or down to the next student.

3. If you are copying comments from another document (such as MS Word or MS Excel), paste comments in the Gradebook by using the following method (right-click option does not work in Gradebook):

• To Copy, press CTRL + C • To Paste, press CTRL + V


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4. If using your personalized comment bank to insert comments, select My Comment Bank. Choose a comment from the list and click Insert Selected.

a. There is a Find box, type in a word you know is in the comment; the comments that contain this word are the only ones now selectable. Clear this field to see all the comments again.

b. Double click on the comment to bring it down to the comment box, or, if you want to insert multiple comments, select multiple comments, (CTRL Click on a PC or Command Click on a MAC) then click Insert Selected.

c. Once the comments are in the comment box you may edit them. DO NOT add any HTML code in the comment box.

For more detailed instructions on how to set up your personalized comment bank, refer to the support document located on the iNSchool website at https://inschool.ednet.ns.ca . Afterwards, navigate to Teachers (click Learn More) > User Guides > PowerTeacher Gradebook > Using the Personal

Comment Bank in PowerTeacher Gradebook – User Guide.

The maximum number of characters that will be displayed on the report cards for the comments are:

Grade Level Learner Profile Language Arts / Integrated Language Arts

Mathematics / Integrated Mathematics

Core French, Music and Physical Education

Pr-6 450 1000 1000 600

There is a character counter that indicates how many characters have been entered. If a character limit has been set, Gradebook will prevent you from entering more than the specified number of characters. If a comment is pasted into the comment box that exceeds

the number of allowable characters, the whole comment will be displayed with a warning message. Please note that if your comment exceeds the character limit, only the portion of your comment not exceeding the limit will display on the report card.

https://inschool.ednet.ns.ca/


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4.3 USING SMART TEXT WHEN WRITING COMMENTS

Smart Text is a code that will automatically replace the inserted code with the appropriate student information. These are converted by decoding the Smart Text directly within the Gradebook when you save the comment. The Smart Text that is available to use with comments is listed below. Since these codes are immediately decoded within the Gradebook when you save, they offer some advantages to the smart pronouns previously used:

• Teachers will know that the code has worked when they save the comment in the Gradebook. • Teachers will have an accurate character count in the Gradebook. • Comments will appear properly within the portal.

note: there is no underscore note: there is no underscore

4.4 VIEWING YOUR COMMENTS Administrators

• From the start page of PowerSchool, click on Systems Reports. • Click on the Customs tab. • Click on the down arrow for the word Grading to show the reports under that section. • Select Grade P-6 Comments. • Choose a Teacher, Year and a Term.

Teachers

• From the start Page of PowerTeacher View My Comments (P-6). • Select a Year and Term.


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5 ALL THE GRADES AND COMMENTS ARE IN FOR A CLASS? NOW WHAT?

When all the comments and grades for all the students are entered in a course, click on the box that displays the term in progress. This must be done for each class as you complete it, including the homeroom class.

In the window Final Grade Completion Status, check the box to indicate that all final grades are entered. Enter any comments (for Administration only) and click OK. The box will then display Grades Complete for the selected term.

1 Summary of Report Card Tasks2 Assigning Grades for your Courses2.1 Important First Step for Grade 1-6 Teachers2.2 How to Enter your Grades2.3 Entering Grades for English and French Language Arts2.3.1 Reporting ELA for English Program Students2.3.2 Reporting ELA for Immersion Program Students22.3.12.3.22.3.3 Reporting FLA for Immersion Program Students2.3.3 Reporting FLA for Immersion Program Students

2.4 Entering Grades for Integrated Mathematics/ Mathematics2.5 Entering Grades for Music and Physical Education2.6 Entering Grades for Grades 4-6 Core French

3 Completing the Learner Profile as the Homeroom Teacher3.1 Entering the Learner Profile Comment3.2 Entering Grades for Social Skills/Work HabitsMethod 1: Direct EntryMethod 2: Right Click

4 Entering Comments for your Courses4.1 Overview4.2 Entering Comments4.3 Using Smart Text when Writing Comments4.4 Viewing your Comments

5 All the Grades and Comments are in for a Class? Now What?

Documents

PowerTeacher Gradebook Report Card Guide for 2020-2021 ... · For grade 1-6 English Language Arts, teachers report grades on three strands: 1. Writing and Other Ways of Representing,