Teacher’s Gradebook Software
Two Overseer applications were designed specifically for use by teachers. The first of these, Overseer LAN runs on a local area network and links directly to the master Overseer database which is used (via Overseer Admin) by the school office for administrative purposes. Overseer LAN gives teachers real-time access to up-to-date information on their classes and students.
The second application for teachers, Overseer Grades, is stand-alone gradebook software which can be installed on any PC of opportunity at school or at home. It references information via a teacher’s personal, portable, Grades database which is created at the beginning of each school year and is maintained throughout the year by that teacher. Each Grades database contains a set of files for each term which may be used to record test scores and anecdotal information on the progress of all students in all classes taught by the teacher. A new set of files is added to each Grades database at the beginning of each term. At the end of the term, the contents may be uploaded automatically to the master database. These creation and import activities, as well as any mid-term updates to a Grades database, may be performed either by the teacher (via Overseer LAN) or by office staff (via Overseer Admin).
A key objective of Overseer LAN and Overseer Grades is to efficiently support electronic recording and printing of report cards. Overseer LAN may be used for this purpose on its own – at the end of each term. Alternatively, teachers may use Overseer Grades throughout each term to record detailed progress of students on individual tests, projects, assignments, and other activities which contribute to their term marks. Overseer Grades dynamically computes weighted averages for all tests etc based on weights assigned by the teacher. By the end of the term, final marks already exist, and need not be transferred manually. They can be imported via Overseer LAN (or Admin), together with final comments to the master database for printing on report cards.
There are three types of spreadsheet within which teachers may view and/or edit student marks and comments: by subject component, by subject area or for all subject areas. These reflect the hierarchy within which marks are managed, i.e. by subject areas, subject components and tests. An additional classification, subject category, is also available when using custom report cards to record subjective assessments of student progress.
Besides subject area comments and term summary comments which may be printed on report cards, Overseer Grades supports internal comments which are neither imported to the master database nor printed on report cards. These are solely for use by teachers to make notes about students’ work throughout each term, from which they can glean nuggets for transfer to report cards at the end of each term.
Download the Overseer Teachers Guide for additional information on Overseer Grades.
