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How does an Oklahoma school manage calendars, enrollments, and attendance for distance learning?

This article explains how Oklahoma schools will configure and implement SchoolInsight calendars, enrollments, and attendance for distance learning reporting requirements. These requirements can be found in the 20-21 OSDE Enrollment and Attendance Guide. For answers to questions about information in the guide, refer to the OSDE Enrollment and Attendance Guidance Questions and Answers.

All Oklahoma schools that have students who will participate in distance learning should complete the following required configuration:

  1. Create OSDE COVID-19 and distance learning attendance codes
  2. Update student enrollment basis of admission
  3. Enable the e-learning check-in attendance option
  4. Create calendar(s)
  5. Set calendar in-school and remote learning days
  6. Assign calendars to students

Additionally, during the academic year schools will implement enrollment, calendar, and attendance changes to be aligned with changes to student’s learning environment:

Configuration

Create OSDE COVID-19 and Distance Learning Attendance Codes

The OSDE added the following five new attendance codes to be used for the 20-21 academic year.  Create these attendance codes in Schoolinsight at each school.  Refer to this article to learn more about how to create them and the options to choose when creating them. 

Distance Learning

  • DVAP - Distance learning present
  • DVA - Distance learning absent
  • DVA5 - Distance learning absent - half day

COVID-19 Related Absences

  • COV - COVID related absence
  • COV.5 - COVID related absence - half day

Update Student Enrollment Basis of Admission

In the OSDE guidelines, a student's planned learning environment determines the basis of admission code for an enrollment. Therefore, at the start of the academic year, each student’s basis of admission code should be set according to the student’s planned learning environment. Consult with the OSDE and refer to this table to for more information about learning environments and basis of admission codes.

To set basis of admission code for many students:

  1. Admin Main > Student Multi View > Mass Edit
  2. (Optional) Select a Grade Level filter above the Data To Edit header
  3. Select an Entry (Other Code)
  4. Scroll to the list of students
  5. Select students
  6. Save

To set basis of admission for a single student:

  1. (District) Admin Main > Student Single View > Search/Select student > Edit
  2. Select an Entry (Other Code)
  3. Save

Enable the e-learning check-in attendance

The Wave has implemented a new calendar date code of 03 for planned distance learning days. The e-learning check-in attendance option is required in order to set distance learning days on the calendar and to implement the new 03 code. When e-learning check-in is enabled, an attendance popup will show on the main page of the student and parent portals asking them to check-in. This popup will only show up for students on e-learning attendance days as indicated on their assigned calendar. If you do not wish to allow your students to use the e-learning check-in feature, enable this option while configuring calendars and then disable after setting the calendar days (see below).

To enable the e-learning check-in attendance option:

  1. Go to Admin Main > Attendance > Options
  2. Edit
  3. Check the option to use e-learning check-in
  4. Select a Check-in Period Attendance Code
    • This will be the period attendance code for students who check-in
    • (Recommended) Distance Learning Present
  5. (Optional) Select a Missing Period Attendance Code 
    • This will be the period attendance code for students who do not check-in.C
    • (Recommended) Distance Learning Absent
  6. (Optional) Select a Check-in Time Frame
    • Students and parents will be able to check in within the set start/end times only. Leave the times blank, if students/parents can check-in anytime during the day. 
  7. Save

Note that you can set your Check-In Start Time and Check-In End Time so that students and parents have ample time to login and complete their check-in on e-learning days. In our example, school normally starts at 8:15 AM, but we’ve turned on the e-learning check-in option for earlier in the day, 7:00 AM, so that students can check-in prior to the normal school start time. Also, a school day normally ends at 2:45 PM, however, our end time is set for 3:15 PM

If you are enabling this feature for the purpose of setting distance learning days on your calendar for Wave reporting, but do not wish to allow online check-in, return to this page and deselect the Use E-Learning Check-In option after selecting remote learning days on the calendar.

 For more detailed information about E-learning attendance please refer to the following KB:

Create Calendars

Calendars allow you to indicate e-learning and in-school days. E-learning days will be automatically coded with the new 03 calendar date other code that is required by the OSDE. Furthermore, when the attendance e-learning check-in option is enabled, the calendar e-learning setting controls the days when students can use the e-learning check-in attendance functionality. 

For blended learning students, creating separate calendars per group of students allows you to indicate when groups of students are on the same schedule for in-school and distance learning. Best practices dictate that you create a separate calendar for each group of students that be distance learning on the same days. You can also create calendars for individual students if they have a unique distance learning schedule.

To create a new calendar:

  1. For district managed calendars go to School District Admin Main and for school managed calendars go to Admin Main 
  2. Go to Yearly Setup > Academic Calendars > Create Calendar
  3. Select the Academic Year
  4. Enter a Title that describes the group of students that the calendar will be assigned to
  5. Enter calendar data
    • First day of calendar
    • Last day of calendar
    • First day of attendance
    • Last day of attendance
    • Days school is scheduled
      • Select the days of the week that school is in session
    • Instructional minutes
    • Minutes per day
    • Lunch minutes
    • Date when first nine weeks ends
    • Grade levels
      • Choose the grade levels that apply to this calendar
  6. If at the district level, select the Schools to make the calendar available to
  7. Leave Calendar for external school/district unchecked

After creating the calendar, update it to indicate instructional days, holidays, breaks, teacher institute days, parent/teacher conference days, etc. For more information about creating calendars and updating calendar days, refer to the following articles:

Select Calendar In-School and Remote Learning Days

As previously mentioned, the OSDE added a new calendar date other code of 03, which indicates a planned distance learning day. An 03 code will be automatically selected when you select e-learning days on a calendar. E-learning days should be selected when:

  • An entire school switches from traditional in-school learning to distance learning
  • Blended learning students are planned to be distance-learning

These selections should be made to reflect the students that the calendars are assigned to.  

To set the e-learning option on each date that students will be distance learning:

    1. For district managed calendars go to School District Admin Main and for school managed calendars go to Admin Main
    2. Go to Yearly Setup > Academic Calendars
    3. Click view next to a calendar
    4. Click edit for a month
    5. Select X-Instructional School Day
    6. Check use e-learning attendance
    7. Save

Below is an example of how a calendar will appear for an in-school day and a distance learning day. Notice that the Report As data field is automatically set to 03-Distance/Virtual Learning on days where the Use E-Learning Attendance option is selected:

In-School                                                                             Distance

mceclip12.png                   mceclip13.png

Assign Calendars to Students

After the calendars have been set, you can assign calendars to students. SchoolInsight allows you to filter by grade level and other demographic information in order to balance the student groups.

To assign a calendar to a single student:

  1. Go to (District) Admin Main > Student Single View > Search/Select a Student
  2. Edit
  3. Select the correct calendar
  4. Save

To assign a calendar to a group of students:

  1. Go to Admin Main > Yearly Setup > Academic Calendars > Mass Assign Calendars
  2. Select a Calendar to assign
  3. (Optional) Filter the students by clicking on the menu button next to any column title and choosing the desired filter
  4. Check the students you would like to assign the selected calendar to
  5. Save

For more information about mass assigning calendars to students refer to the following KB:

Daily Management

Adjust Calendars

As previously mentioned, calendars allow you to indicate e-learning and in-school days. E-learning days will be automatically coded with the new 03 date code that is required by the OSDE for distance learning days. This may happen when:

  • An entire school switches from traditional in-school learning to distance learning
  • Student learning environment options are changed

Create calendars, update in-school and remote learning days, and assign calendars to students as needed throughout the year.  Keep in mind that for any particular student, the e-learning distance learning dates that have occurred should remain as e-learning dates.  Therefore, only assign calendars to students that match their distance learning dates.  This may mean creating a new calendar if a student planned distance learning dates change and do not match a calendar that is already created.

Manage Enrollments

When a change in a student’s planned learning environment results in a change to the basis of admission code, you are required to exit the student enrollment and re-enter the student with the correct basis of admission code. On the other hand, if a change in a student planned learning environment does not require a change in the basis of admission code, you should not exit and re-enroll the student.

Prior to making the enrollment change, determine if you will need to create a calendar with the assigned distance learning days and create the calendar. This way, you can select an applicable calendar when you re-enroll the student.

To change a student’s enrollment basis of admission:

  1. (District) Admin Main > Student Single View > Search/Select student > Edit
  2. Select Exit Description 3505 - Exited
  3. Select an Exit Date equal to the date that the planned learning environment will change
  4. Select Exit (Other Code) N/A
  5. Click the blue plus button (mceclip14.png)
  6. Select the new Entry Description 1835 - Re-Entry with no interruption of schooling
  7. Select the Entry Date 
  8. Select the Entry (Other Code) 
    • Note this is the basis of admission
  9. (If needed) Select a Calendar
  10. Click Save

Manage Attendance

The OSDE requires that specific attendance codes be used for students who are traditional, distance, virtual, and blended learners. This table provides more information regarding learning environments and attendance codes. Assign the designated attendance codes to students as required by OSDE. 

Learning Environments 

The below table provides abbreviated descriptions and scenarios of the OSDE defined learning environments for the 20-21 academic year. Additionally, it references the applicable basis of admission, attendance codes, and calendar date codes to be used for each scenario.

This table is provided for reference only. The OSDE may make modifications to their policies that SchoolInsight is unaware of. Always refer to the 20-21 OSDE Enrollment and Attendance Guide and the OSDE Enrollment and Attendance Guidance Questions and Answers for up-to-date information.  Also, consult with the OSDE when needed.

      mceclip1.png

*Calendar days for distance learning students can be reported with a calendar date code of either 03 or N/A. If you will be allowing the students to use e-checkin, you will need to set the calendar days for the distance learning students to e-learning. This will allow distance learners to use the e-learning check-in and will also report an optional calendar date code of 03. On the other hand, if you do not use e-learning check-in, you do not need to change your calendar day e-learning selection. This is because you are not required to submit a calendar day code of 03 for distance learners who are quarantined.