A new software release is now available in the Edsby Sandbox. It is expected that this release will be going into production across all customer sites in the August 13 to August 19 timeframe.
New features in this release
Class Groups
Class Groups can be used for student collaboration, allowing students to work together on projects and assignments. Alternatively, Class Groups can be kept private and visible only to the teacher, making them ideal for use in assessment creation. Class Groups are accessed from the class Students panel on a browser and are created through a new form. Permissions are easily managed through the form, giving educators full control over group access and visibility.
In this example, the teacher has created Class Groups to enable students to collaborate on a group presentation. The teacher can access the groups by clicking on the group name.
Additionally, the teacher has created Class Groups based on the courses students are enrolled in. These groups will be used to speed up the creation of assessments. The teacher can choose to keep these hidden from students.
To create a Class Group, click New Group Category. The teacher then names the groups, assigns students, sets the group visibility and permissions through this form.
Once the groups are created, they can be used in the assessment form. The teacher has the new option of accepting one submission per group.
Classes Zoom enhancement
Before the first bell rings on the new school year, the class Zoom will be empty. A link has been added to easily display upcoming classes.
As always, future and completed classes can be viewed at any time by clicking the chevron and selecting Show completed/upcoming classes.
Correcting archived report cards sheets
Corrections can now be made to archived report card sheets. If the sheet is published, it can be corrected and republished. Republishing the sheet does not generate a notification. If the sheet was either submitted or approved, it can be returned to these states, but not published.
The Senior Admin or Office head must first access the archives and then navigate to the Report Cards Zoom. Reporting periods from previous years are visible in the picker.
To make corrections:
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Open the report card sheet that requires the correction.
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Select "Restore from Archive."
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Make the desired corrections.
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If the sheet has been previously published, click "Republish." The student and parent will have access to the updated report card.
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If the sheet was not published, click "Submit" or "Approve." An updated report card can be printed.
Attendance enhancements
Planned absences
Ongoing and upcoming planned absences are now included in the student’s Attendance List View.
Sign out
When the student is signed out, the current period’s attendance sheet will be updated to show an absence starting at the sign out time.
Notes enhancement
Notes have gained a rich text editor with styled text, bulleted lists, numbered lists and emoticons.
District IT Admin Notes
The District IT Admin home screen includes a link to the Manage page.
Permission and roles changes
None in this release
Quality improvements in this release
Analyze Perspective: In combined classes, all course codes are displayed.
Analyze Perspective: Alignment issues resolved.
Attendance: Erroneous error message no longer present.
Calendar: Only due date is displayed for assessments.
Class Setup: Decaying average is now available as a sub-aggregation method.
Cross-posting assessments: Teachers cannot cross-post to classes where they have class permissions set to Substitute.
Gradebook: Summary columns set to use decaying average are updated by multiple standard assessments.
Gradebook: Multi-column rubric total column is displayed in the grade scheme set in the Class Setup form.
Professional Development Groups: Issues with Progress page have been resolved.
Online tests: Formatting improvements for the Fill in the Blank question for mobile clients.
Portfolio: Issue with viewing attached files has been resolved.
Portfolio: Issue with blank “Show to” field resolved.
Report card sheets: Returning a sheet for correction no longer displays an erroneous error message.
Question sheets: Now automatically updates test totals after saving a section.
Search: Last month filter now produces results.
Timetable: When hide future classes is enabled in the Roles document, the timetable is blank until classes start.
Edsby app: Content entries can be viewed on mobile.
Edsby Capture: The issue with video upload on iPad has been resolved.