The Courses & Sections screen is used to set up the subjects/programs, courses, and sections offered at the school.
In order to view and edit information in the Courses & Sections screen, the View and Edit permissions for Courses & Sections must be enabled in Users > Profiles for the user's profile. Additionally, there are individual permissions for "Edit Subjects/Programs," "Edit Courses," "Edit Sections," "Sections - Restricted Access," "Edit Teacher History," "Edit Requests Subject," and "Edit Teacher Requestable" that can be used to control which user profiles have the rights to edit information for these specific areas in Courses & Sections.
When the system preferences “Use Individual Course Field Permissions” and/or “Use Individual Section Field Permissions” are enabled, view and edit permissions may be individually set for each course field and section field in Users > Profiles.
Subjects are not necessarily graduation subjects. Subjects are simply a way to organize courses for quicker navigation. Subjects are like folders that hold a group of courses. Elementary schools may want to organize subjects according to grade levels, such as Kindergarten, First Grade, Second Grade, etc. Secondary schools may want to organize subjects according to general subject areas, such as Math, Science, English, Electives, etc. Subjects may be set up at the district level for consistency, or school users may have the profile permissions to add or modify subjects.
1. At the bottom of the Subjects list, click the + icon.
2. In the New Subject fields at the top of the screen, enter a Title for the subject.
3. Enter a Short Name for the subject.
The Vocational Program Number, Total Hours for Program, and Required Percentage of Hours Attended fields are not applicable, as they are used for post-secondary education.
4. Click Save.
The new subject is added to the Subjects list.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list.
2. At the top of the screen, edit the subject fields as needed.
3. Click Save.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list.
2. At the top of the screen, click Delete.
3. In the confirmation message, click Delete.
The subject is removed from the Subjects list. If there are courses and sections within the subject, a warning message will display indicating the courses and sections must be removed first before deleting the subject.
In accordance with district policy, new courses may be added to the school based on courses found in the Course Catalog, if the Course Catalog is enabled. If the Course Catalog is not enabled, any courses can be added.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list that will house the new course.
2. At the bottom of the Courses list, click the + icon.
3. In the New Course fields at the top of the screen, select the course from the Search pull-down. To quickly locate a specific course in the list, enter the full or partial course name or number in the filter box at the top of the pull-down. The list of courses will filter. Select the desired course.
Alternatively, enter the Course Number. If the Course Catalog is enabled, the Course Number field will be red and will remain red until a valid course number is entered. Begin typing a course number to locate a specific course. As numbers are typed, a list of corresponding courses matching the numbers will display. Click the desired course or enter the full course number. The course number can contain up to 50 characters. If the "Max Course Num Length" system preference is set, then the Course Number field will only allow the number of characters set in the preference.
Once the Course Number is entered, the Title field will auto-populate based on the Course Title defined in the Course Catalog (if enabled). If an invalid number is entered, the Course Number field will remain red and you will not be able to add the course.
4. If applicable, fill out the rest of the course fields:
Any course fields defined in the Course Catalog will auto-populate and cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Title | Enter the title of the course. |
| Prerequisites 1, Prerequisites 2, Prerequisites 3 | If students must successfully complete other courses before enrolling in this course, select the prerequisites in the pull-downs. Selecting multiple courses in one pull-down represents an “OR” relationship. Selecting a course in each pull-down represents an “AND” relationship. |
| Graduation Requirements Subject, Graduation Requirements Subject 2, Graduation Requirements Subject 3 | Select the graduation subject for the course. Graduation subjects are set up in Grades > Graduation Requirements > Graduation Subjects tab. Up to three graduation subject areas can be defined for a course. This is used by the Graduation Requirements Report to determine if a student has met the graduation requirements for his/her assigned graduation program. When a student successfully completes a course, the system will check the first Graduation Requirements Subject. If the student has already met the requirements for the first Graduation Requirements Subject, the system will check the Graduation Requirements Subject 2 field, and so on. If the student has met the graduation requirements for all the graduation subjects, the course will count as an elective. |
| Credits per Course History Term | Enter the number of credits students earn per course history term. |
| Allow Students to Request this Course | Select this check box to allow students to enter a request for this course. If this check box is not selected, only administrators will be able to enter requests for this course. The system preferences “Allow Students to Enter Course Requests Starting” and "Allow Students to Enter Course Requests Ending” in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab allow you to set the timeframe when students can enter course requests. |
| Allow Teachers to Approve Requests | This option will display if the system preference “Teachers approve course requests” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow the student’s current teacher in the subject area to approve course requests for the course for the next school year. |
| Allow Students to Enroll themselves in this Course | This option will display if the system preference “Allow students to enroll themselves in classes” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow students to register for the course from the Student Portal. The Course Registration Begins and Course Registration Ends data must be set on the marking periods in Setup > Marking Periods. |
| Schedule this Course first | Select this check box if this course should be scheduled first before other courses when running the Scheduler for students who have a course request for this course. |
| Alternate Course 1, Alternate Course 2, Alternate Course 3 | When the Scheduling system preference "Use new Alternate Student Course Requests (Permanent once enabled)” is enabled, the Alternate Course 1, Alternate Course 2, and Alternate Course 3 fields are available to set global alternates for the course. When attempting to schedule the student via the Scheduler or Auto-Schedule, the system will first consider the individual student’s alternate requests as set in Student Requests. If the student’s alternate requests cannot be fulfilled, the system will look to the alternate requests set on the course. Note: As of version 12.0.71, the alternate course requests functionality is enabled for all customers. |
| WDIS OCP Hours | This field is for Post-Secondary education. |
| OCP | This field is for Post-Secondary education. |
| Course Sequence | This field is for Post-Secondary education. |
| CAPE | This field is for Post-Secondary education. |
| Subject | To change the subject a course is housed in, select a subject from the pull-down. |
| Grade Level(s) | To limit this course request to certain grade levels at the school, select the check box for each applicable grade level. If grade levels are selected, then the course will not be available for selection for students not in those grade levels when adding course requests unless the “Courses For All Grade Levels” option in selected on the Student Requests screen. The course can also be added for the student on the Student Schedule screen. |
| Course Length | If the Course Length is not set in the Course Catalog, this field will default to Automatic. This field is important for Requests Reports. If no sections are built when requests are entered, courses with a Course Length of Automatic are considered as 1 unit when counting requests. If the course is a half unit, such as Economics, then change the Course Length to 0.50 - Semester. |
| Allow Teachers to Request This Course | Select the check box to allow teachers to request this course for students. Teachers are only allowed to request courses within their grad subject area, unless Requests Subjects are set on the course. See below for information on Requests Subjects. The system preferences “Allow Teachers to Enter Course Requests Starting” and "Allow Teachers to Enter Course Requests Ending” in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab allow you to set the timeframe when teachers can enter course requests. |
| Requests Subject | This allows teachers to request a course outside of their grad subject area. Select one or multiple grad subjects from the pull-down. Teachers of the selected grad subjects are allowed to request the course. |
5. When finished, click Save.
The new course is added to the Courses list for the subject.
In accordance with district policy, new courses may be added to the school based on courses found in the Course Catalog, if the Course Catalog is enabled. If the Course Catalog is not enabled, any courses can be added.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list that will house the new course.
2. At the bottom of the Courses list, click the + icon.
3. In the New Course fields at the top of the screen, select the course from the Search pull-down. To quickly locate a specific course in the list, enter the full or partial course name or number in the filter box at the top of the pull-down. The list of courses will filter. Select the desired course.
Alternatively, enter the Course Number. If the Course Catalog is enabled, the Course Number field will be red and will remain red until a valid course number is entered. Begin typing a course number to locate a specific course. As numbers are typed, a list of corresponding courses matching the numbers will display. Click the desired course or enter the full course number. The course number can contain up to 50 characters. If the "Max Course Num Length" system preference is set, then the Course Number field will only allow the number of characters set in the preference.
Once the Course Number is entered, the Title field will auto-populate based on the Course Title defined in the Course Catalog (if enabled). If an invalid number is entered, the Course Number field will remain red and you will not be able to add the course.
4. If applicable, fill out the rest of the course fields:
Any course fields defined in the Course Catalog will auto-populate and cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Title | Enter the title of the course. |
| Prerequisites 1, Prerequisites 2, Prerequisites 3 | If students must successfully complete other courses before enrolling in this course, select the prerequisites in the pull-downs. Selecting multiple courses in one pull-down represents an “OR” relationship. Selecting a course in each pull-down represents an “AND” relationship. |
| Graduation Requirements Subject, Graduation Requirements Subject 2, Graduation Requirements Subject 3 | Select the graduation subject for the course. Graduation subjects are set up in Grades > Graduation Requirements > Graduation Subjects tab. Up to three graduation subject areas can be defined for a course. This is used by the Graduation Requirements Report to determine if a student has met the graduation requirements for his/her assigned graduation program. When a student successfully completes a course, the system will check the first Graduation Requirements Subject. If the student has already met the requirements for the first Graduation Requirements Subject, the system will check the Graduation Requirements Subject 2 field, and so on. If the student has met the graduation requirements for all the graduation subjects, the course will count as an elective. |
| Credits per Course History Term | Enter the number of credits students earn per course history term. |
| Allow Students to Request this Course |
Select this check box to allow students to enter a request for this course. If this check box is not selected, only administrators will be able to enter requests for this course. The system preferences “Allow Students to Enter Course Requests Starting” and "Allow Students to Enter Course Requests Ending” in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab allow you to set the timeframe when students can enter course requests. |
| Allow Teachers to Approve Requests |
This option will display if the system preference “Teachers approve course requests” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow the student’s current teacher in the subject area to approve course requests for the course for the next school year. |
| Allow Students to Enroll themselves in this Course |
This option will display if the system preference “Allow students to enroll themselves in classes” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow students to register for the course from the Student Portal. The Course Registration Begins and Course Registration Ends data must be set on the marking periods in Setup > Marking Periods. |
| Schedule this Course first | Select this check box if this course should be scheduled first before other courses when running the Scheduler for students who have a course request for this course. |
| Alternate Course 1, Alternate Course 2, Alternate Course 3 | When the Scheduling system preference "Use new Alternate Student Course Requests (Permanent once enabled)” is enabled, the Alternate Course 1, Alternate Course 2, and Alternate Course 3 fields are available to set global alternates for the course. When attempting to schedule the student via the Scheduler or Auto-Schedule, the system will first consider the individual student’s alternate requests as set in Student Requests. If the student’s alternate requests cannot be fulfilled, the system will look to the alternate requests set on the course. Note: As of version 12.0.71, the alternate course requests functionality is enabled for all customers. |
| Course Sequence | Select the course sequence, if applicable. |
| PEIMS Course Number | Enter the course number as designated in PEIMS. |
| Monthly Minutes | Enter the number of minutes the course meets per month. |
| T-Stem Indicator | Select this check box to indicate the course is a T-STEM (Texas Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) course. |
| PK Curricula | For Pre-K courses, select the curricula used. |
| High Quality PK Program | If applicable, select the check box to indicate the course is part of the Highly Quality Prekindergarten program. |
| Program Evaluation Type | If applicable, select the program evaluation type. |
| Student Instruction Type | For Pre-K courses, select the length of the instructional day. |
| PK School Type | For Pre-K courses, select the Pre-K school type. |
| Child Care Operation Number | If applicable, enter the Child Care Operation Number. |
| Subject | To change the subject a course is housed in, select a subject from the pull-down. |
| Grade Level(s) | To limit this course to certain grade levels at the school, select the check box for each applicable grade level. |
| Course Length | If the Course Length is not set in the Course Catalog, this field will default to Automatic. This field is important for Requests Reports. If no sections are built when requests are entered, courses with a Course Length of Automatic are considered as 1 unit when counting requests. If the course is a half unit, such as Economics, then change the Course Length to 0.50 - Semester. |
| Allow Teachers to Request This Course | Select the check box to allow teachers to request this course for students. Teachers are only allowed to request courses within their grad subject area, unless Requests Subjects are set on the course. See below for information on Requests Subjects. The system preferences “Allow Teachers to Enter Course Requests Starting” and "Allow Teachers to Enter Course Requests Ending” in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab allow you to set the timeframe when teachers can enter course requests. |
| Requests Subject | This allows teachers to request a course outside of their grad subject area. Select one or multiple grad subjects from the pull-down. Teachers of the selected grad subjects are allowed to request the course. |
5. When finished, click Save.
The new course is added to the Courses list for the subject.
Courses (when initially imported or set up by the district) may not be in the subject folder structure a school wants. Courses can be moved to different subjects as desired.
If the Courses & Sections: Sections - Restricted Access permission isn't enabled, you cannot open the Course details pop-up window while viewing Section details or move sections. To enable the permission, see Users > Profiles > Scheduling tab.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list that currently houses the course. For example, some districts have all courses initially set up in within an All Courses subject.
2. Click the course in the Courses list.
3. Click the Subject pull-down and selected the appropriate subject in the pull-down.
4. Click Save.
The course is moved to the selected subject.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list, and then click the course in the Courses list.
2. Edit the course fields at the top of the screen as needed.
Any course fields defined in the Course Catalog cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
3. Click Save.
A course can be duplicated to create another course with the same course fields set. Courses with the same course number should not be in the same subject folder. Some districts may want courses with the same course number in different subject folders. Copying a course does not copy the existing sections.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list, and then click the course in the Courses list that you want to copy.
2. At the top of the screen, click Copy.
3. In the confirmation message, click OK.
The copy of the course is created and displayed on the screen with "copy" appended to the Course name in the Course list.
4. Modify the Course Number or any other course fields as needed.
5. Click Save when finished.
Courses created in error can be deleted as needed.
If sections have already been set up within a course, the sections must be deleted before deleting the course.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list, and then click the course in the Courses list.
2. At the top of the screen, click Delete.
A warning message will display instructing you to delete the sections first if there are sections set up within the course.
3. In the confirmation window, click Delete.
The course is removed from the Courses list.
Students enrolled in the course can be viewed on the Courses & Sections screen.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list, and then click the course in the Courses list.
2. At the top of the screen, click List Students in this Course.
The Schedule Report is displayed, with the students enrolled in the course listed along the right side of the screen.
Click a student's name to open the student's schedule in a pop-up window.
3. To go back to viewing the course, click View/Edit this Course at the top of the screen.
Students with unfilled requests in the course can be viewed on the Courses & Sections screen, as long as the Scheduler has been run for that school year.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list, and then click the course in the Courses list.
2. At the top of the screen, click List Unfilled Requests in this Course.
The Schedule Report is displayed, with the students with unfilled requests in the course listed along the right side of the screen.
Click a student's name to open the student's schedule in a pop-up window.
3. To go back to viewing the course, click View/Edit this Course at the top of the screen.
Sections can be added to a course as needed. The section level is where the teacher is assigned, as well as the room, period, meeting days, seats, grading scales, and so on.
1. Click the subject in the Subject list, and then click the course in the Courses list you want to add a section to.
2. At the bottom of the Section list, click the plus sign.
3. Complete the New Section fields at the top of the screen as needed:
Any section fields defined in the Course Catalog will auto-populate and cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Teacher | Select the teacher assigned to the section. The teacher’s staff number displays next to the teacher’s name. Only active users with a Teacher profile will be available for selection. |
| Room | Enter the room number. If rooms have been set up in Setup > Rooms, select the room from the pull-down. If the Homeroom Number field is set in the Teachers tab of the user’s record, the room number will auto-populate in the Room field on the section when the Teacher is selected. |
| Resource Display Room | When the system preference “Default section display room to resource display room” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab, the Display Room column is available in Setup > Rooms. When a Display Room is defined on the Rooms screen, it is populated in the Resource Display Room field on the section. The Resource Display Room displays as the room for the section throughout Focus, including on the Teacher Schedules Report, Student Schedule, Print Student Schedules, etc. The Display Room Option field on the section in Courses & Sections can be used to override the Resource Display Room. |
| Display Room Optional | If the room number that should display on schedules differs from the room number in the Room field or the Resource Display Room field, enter the display room number or room name (e.g. gym, band). |
| Period | Select the period the section will meet. If the system preference “Enable Ending Period” is turned on in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab, select the beginning period in the Beg field and the ending period in the End field. |
| Bell Schedule | Select the bell schedule the section will follow if there is more than one bell schedule set up for the school in Setup > Periods. If the school only has one bell schedule, this field will not display on the section. If no bell schedule is selected for the section, Focus will first check the attendance calendar assigned to the section for a bell schedule. If none is found, then Focus will use the school’s default bell schedule. |
| Rotation Days | If the school uses rotation days, select the rotation days the section will meet. If the section meets on all rotation days, select all the check boxes; do not leave them blank. The length of the rotation and the rotation day label (letters or numbers) are set up in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab using the “Advanced Rotation” and “Rotation Day Label” preferences. If the school does not use rotation days, this field will not display on the section. |
| Meeting Days | Select the days of the week the section meets (for state reporting). If rotation days are being used, do not modify the meeting days. |
| Marking Period | Select the full term of the course (full year, semester 1, semester 2, quarter 1, etc.). This indicates the seat time of the course. |
| Seats | Enter the maximum number of students who can be enrolled in the section. The Scheduler will never exceed this value when scheduling students, though administrators can override the seat maximum when manually scheduling students. |
| IEP Seats | Enter the maximum number of IEP students that can be enrolled in this section by the Scheduler. If this field is left blank, there is no restriction. Logic for determining IEP students:
|
| ESOL/ELL Seats | Enter the maximum number of ESOL/ELL students that can be enrolled in this section by the Scheduler. If this field is left blank, there is no restriction. Logic for determining ESOL/ELL students:
|
| Short Name | The Short Name will auto-populate with the next increment but can be edited as needed. Short names must be unique for all sections within a course. |
| Course History Term | Select when grades should be sent to Course History (e.g. at the end of each quarter, at the end of each semester, or at the end of the school year). |
| Double Blocked | The Double Blocked field is used for posting grades. This is typically used if one school in the district uses a 4x4 block schedule and the rest do not. If a course in the Course Catalog is assigned 1 credit for a Full Year grade posting window, but the section is a double-blocked section meeting every day, then the 1 credit needs to be posted at the end of the semester. When this check box is selected, the system will post the credit at the semester instead of the end of the year for this section. This field is also used to calculate the credits/units set in Student Requests and the Requests Reports. This field is only displayed on the section if the system preference “Enable Special Double-Blocked Posting Averaging” is turned on in Setup > System Preferences > Grading tab. |
| Takes Attendance | Select the check box to designate that this section takes attendance. |
| Graded | Select the check box to designate that this section is graded. |
| Affects GPA | Select the check box to designate that this section affects GPA. |
| Active | Select the check box to designate that this section is an active section. Deselecting the check box will prevent students from being enrolled in the section. Only sections that do not have students currently enrolled can be marked as inactive. Inactive sections do not display on the Teacher Schedules Report. Attempting to add an inactive section to a student’s schedule in Student Schedule or Mass Add Course will display an error message. |
| Gender Restriction | If enrollment in the section is limited based on gender, select the appropriate gender. |
| Grade Levels | If enrollment in the section is limited based on grade level, select the appropriate grade levels. |
| Team | If your school uses team scheduling, select a team to restrict enrollment in this section to students assigned to the team. If teams are not set up in Scheduling > Teams, this field will not display on the section. See Assigning a Team to a Section below for more information. |
| Grading Scale | Select the grading scale used to post grades for the course. Grading scales are set up in Grades > Grading Scales & Comments. The grading scale can be set to null (blank) if the section does not post final grades. The teacher will not receive alerts to post final grades for the section, and the teacher will not display on the Final Grades tab of the Teacher Completion report for the section. |
| Standards Grading Scale | Select the grading scale used to post standards grades for standards assigned to the course. Standards grading scales are set up in Grades > Grading Scales & Comments. The standards grading scale can be set to null (blank) if the section does not post standards grades. The teacher will not receive alerts to post standards grades for the section, and the teacher will not display on the Standard tab of the Teacher Completion report for the section. |
| Grade Posting Scheme | Select the grade posting scheme, which designates how semester and full year grades are calculated for the section. Grade posting schemes are set up in Setup > Grade Posting Averaging. |
| Calendar | Select the calendar the section will follow (if there is more than one calendar set up for the school). |
| Parent Section | Select a parent section for the section, if applicable. Sections are packaged for the purpose of linking the sections together for scheduling. This is most often used in elementary scheduling when sections for language arts, math, science, art, music, etc. are packaged together with the homeroom section as the parent section. When scheduling students, students scheduled into the parent section will automatically be scheduled into the child sections. See Packaging Sections in Courses & Sections below for more information. |
4. Complete the Co-Teachers, State (Florida, Texas), Vocational/WDIS, and Inclusion tabs as needed. See the procedures below for more information.
5. Click Save.
A section can be moved to another course as needed. For example, a section of Biology 1 may need to be moved to Biology 1 Honors.
If the Courses & Sections: Sections - Restricted Access permission is enabled, you cannot open the Course details pop-up window while viewing Section details or move sections to another course.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. At the top of the screen, click the bold course link.
3. In the pop-up window, click the Move section ___ to a different course link.
4. Click the subject and course to move the section to.
5. In the confirmation message, click OK.
The section is moved to the selected subject and course. Any standards assigned to the previous section will be assigned to the new section.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Edit the section fields at the top of the screen as needed.
Any section fields defined in the Course Catalog cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
3. Click Save when finished.
The Copy feature is used when additional sections are needed within the same course; this process is generally recommended over adding a new section.
1. Click the subject, course, and section to copy.
2. At the top of the screen, click Copy.
3. In the confirmation message, click OK.
The copy of the section is created and displayed on the screen. The Short Name will auto-populate with the next available number in the sequence, but can be edited if needed.
4. Modify the Teacher, Room, Period, and any other section field that needs to be changed.
5. Click Save when finished.
The Co-Teachers tab is used to document the co-teachers of the section, set the co-teacher's permissions to the Gradebook and attendance for the section, and define whether the co-teacher will be included in state reporting. A co-teacher can work with more than one section, and a section can have more than one co-teacher.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Co-Teachers tab.
3. In the first empty row, complete the co-teacher fields as needed:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Co-Teacher | Select the co-teacher from the list of active teachers at the school. |
| Permissions | Select the level of permissions to give to the co-teacher for attendance and the Gradebook. Select None, Read Only, or Modify. |
| Scheduling Method | Select the Scheduling Method used. If the co-teacher is an official co-teacher as designated by the state, select C - Co-teaching. |
| Highly Qualified | Setting this field is no longer needed. |
| Team Teacher Training | Select the team teacher training status. If the co-teacher is state reportable, then an option needs to be selected. Note: For Florida, at least one teacher (regular or co-teacher) needs 3 or more years of teaching experience. |
| Cert/Licensure/Qual Status | Select the co-teacher's certification status. |
| Primary Instructor | Select this check box if the co-teacher is the primary instructor for the section. |
| Report to DOE | Select this check box if the co-teacher should be submitted on the Teacher Course format for state reporting. |
| Start Date, End Date | Select the start date and end date for when the co-teacher will work with the section. |
| Start Time, End Time (Post-Secondary) | For Post-Secondary sections, enter the start time and end time for when the co-teacher will work with the section. |
| Days Override | Select the days the co-teacher will work with the section. |
4. When finished, click Save.
The Co-Teachers tab is used to document the co-teachers of the section, set the co-teacher's permissions to the Gradebook and attendance for the section, and define whether the co-teacher will be included in state reporting. A co-teacher can work with more than one section, and a section can have more than one co-teacher.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Co-Teachers tab.
3. In the first empty row, complete the co-teacher fields as needed:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Co-Teacher | Select the co-teacher from the list of active teachers at the school. |
| Permissions | Select the level of permissions to give to the co-teacher for attendance and the Gradebook. Select None, Read Only, or Modify. |
| Class Role | Select the class role to report to TEA, or select Do Not Report to TEA. |
| Co-Teacher Start Date, Co-Teacher End Date | Select the date range the co-teacher will work with the section. |
| Start Date, End Date | Select the start date and end date for when the co-teacher will work with the section. |
| Days Override | Select the days the co-teacher will work with the section. |
4. When finished, click Save.
The History tab contains records of previous teachers of the section. Teacher history records can be added directly in the History tab. In addition, when teachers are modified on a section in Courses & Sections or the Master Schedule Report after the school year has begun, a prompt will display where the change must be logged.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the History tab.
3. To manually add a new record, use the blank row at the bottom of the table. Select the Teacher, Start date, End date, and enter a Comment if needed.
4. Click Save.
When the teacher is modified or added to the section after the school year has begun using the Teacher pull-down on the section, a prompt will display where the change can be logged. Select the Start Date, End Date, enter a Comment, and click Done.
If your profile has the "History Logging Control" profile permission disabled for Courses & Sections, the "Do not log history" option will be hidden.
Focus contains sync functionality to update and split records when the teacher ID on a section is changed. A resync occurs if the teacher is changed on a section in Courses & Sections or Master Schedule Report, or if a teacher enables gradebook grouping in Preferences, or modifies the type of grouping in the same screen.
- Gradebook assignments and categories are duplicated to create a second record which may be modified by the new teacher and linked to their sections. If the incoming section is going into a gradebook group, then the groups join records are resynced to create records for the existing sections in the group joined to incoming assignments, and the incoming section joined to existing assignments. All existing assignments which have been graded for at least one student are assigned only to existing students, if previously assigned to all. Incoming assignments previously assigned to all students are assigned to the incoming students only. Note: The new teacher can still modify the assigned students after the section move, if desired.
- Seating chart room layouts are split in two where the new layout is assigned to the new teacher. The new teacher can then modify or delete the seating chart layout they received from the previous teacher, while the previous teacher may continue to use their previously existing layout on other classes and modify it.
The Florida tab contains fields are that are specific to Florida state reporting.
If any of these fields were set in the Course Catalog, they will not be editable on the section.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Florida tab.
3. Edit the Florida fields as needed. The Florida fields include:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| FEFP Number | Select the FEFP number corresponding to the section. The FEFP number will filter to student schedules. FEFP numbers can be modified on the student schedule as needed. |
| District of Instruction | Enter the district number only if the district of instruction is different from the enrolled district. |
| School of Instruction | Enter the school number only if the school of instruction is different from the school where the schedule is built. The School of Instruction will filter to student schedules. |
| Day of Week Scheduled, Alternate Date Certain | If applicable, select the day of the week for the alternate date certain. The Student Course extract and Class Size Report will take this day into account when outputting data. |
| Class Minutes Weekly | Enter the number of minutes this class meets each week. This should correspond with the bell schedule where possible. The Class Minutes Weekly will filter to student schedules. Note: This field cannot be blank or 0. The DOE will not accept 0 minute sections. Florida only: An error message will display when attempting to Save if the Class Minutes Weekly is less than the Inclusion Minutes Weekly set in the Inclusion tab. |
| Scheduling Method | Select the scheduling method, as defined by the DOE. S - Self-contained: One teacher provides total instruction for the entire class period. A - Alternate Week Schedule: Teacher meets with different groups of students in same course/classroom on same day, but alternate weeks. Note: When this option is selected on a section, there must be a matching section. B - Block: Course is scheduled so that students may earn one credit in the course of a semester. C - Co-teaching: A classroom in which two or more teachers share responsibility for planning, delivering, and evaluating instruction for all students in a class. In order to be considered co-teaching, this delivery system is provided whenever a class/subject is taught by two or more teachers and must continue for the entire class period. G - Individual or Small Group Instruction: Teacher meets with an individual student or small group of students on an individualized basis within a traditional classroom but not as a co-teacher. Note: The Pull-out check box in the Florida tab must also be selected for the section to be excluded from class size. Without the Pull-out check box selected, the section is treated as S - Self-contained for class size. I - In-class One-on-One: Teacher meets with an individual student or small group of students on an individualized basis within a traditional classroom but not as a co-teacher. M - Multiple Use Classroom or Pod: More than one class meets during the same period in a space designated by one FISH number but separated by temporary “walls." W - Wheel Class: Same course meets in the same room with the same teacher during the same period on multiple days of the week, but with different groups of students. |
| Exclude from FTE | Select the check box to exclude the section from FTE, for example, homeroom and study hall classes. |
| Exclude from FASTER | Select the check box to exclude the section from FASTER transmissions, for example, homeroom and study hall classes. |
| Facility Type | Select the facility type where the section is held. By default, this should be set to 00-School District Facility. If the section is held at a local college, DJJ facility, off campus OJT, virtual instruction, hospital homebound, or is set in another location, select the correct value. |
| Distance Learning | Select whether or not the section requires students to attend in class, or if the class can be held via internet, video conference, or by other means. This field is used for post-secondary education. This field should not be used for K-12 since the Online Course field in Grades > Final Grades, GPA, & Class Rank is available. |
| Online Course | Select an option to designate if this is an online course. This is used for K-12 courses to designate whether a student meets the online course requirement. This field cannot be edited on the schedule. This field can be set and pulled from the Course Catalog. |
| Dual Enrollment Indicator | Select the type of dual enrollment for the course (for eligible secondary students or home education students in post-secondary courses creditable toward high school completion, career certificate, or associate or baccalaureate degree). All courses with a U or C school of instruction require a Dual Enrollment Indicator of A. Depending on the technical articulation agreement, adult technical courses may be B or C. If the Dual Enrollment Indicator is used, the FEFP code for K-12 must be 103. This field can be set and pulled from the Course Catalog. |
| Dual Enrollment Institution Type | Select the institution type for the dual enrollment section. This field can be set and pulled from the Course Catalog. |
| Primary Instructor | Select the check box to indicate the teacher assigned to the section is the primary instructor. For sections with an S scheduling method, the Primary Instructor check box should be selected. If a co-teacher is assigned to the section, only one teacher can be designated as the primary instructor. |
| Course Flag 1, Course Flag 2, Course Flag 3, Course Flag 4 | Select the applicable course flags. Course flags are defined at the state and district level and will likely flow down from the Course Catalog. |
| Cert/Licensure/Qual Status | Select the teacher’s certification status. For teachers certified and licensed in their field, select I - Certified/Licensed in field being taught. For out-of-field teachers, select the correct value. If using the HQ/Lic process, this field will be locked and will update automatically. |
| Highly Qualified | Setting this field is no longer needed. |
| ESSA Title III | Select the check box to indicate this section is for language instruction for LEP and immigrant students funded by Title III money. |
| Reading Intervention Component | Select the code to indicate whether or not the course is used to provide reading intervention for all students. This value filters to student schedules. |
| Math Intervention Component | Select the code to indicate whether or not the course is used to provide math intervention for all students. This value filters to student schedules. |
| PMRN | Select the check box to indicate this section is where students are receiving reading instruction. When selected, the teacher ID for this section is reported to the Progress Monitoring and Reporting Network during Survey 8 on the Student Demographic format. |
| Pull-out | Select the check box to indicate this section is a “pull-out” section for students leaving their traditional class to receive extra instruction. Note: Pull-out sections should have the Scheduling Method set to G - Individual or Small Group Instruction to be excluded from class size. In state reporting extracts, period 88 will be added as the ending period for the section to denote the pull-out. |
| Team Teacher Training | Sections with a scheduling method of C or I (with a matching S section) must have a Team Teacher Training value selected. Note: For Florida, at least one teacher (regular or co-teacher) needs 3 or more years of teaching experience. |
| Virtual Instruction Provider | If applicable, select the virtual instruction provider. This field is only used if the course is a virtual school/program course. |
| Online Course Provider | If applicable, select the online course provider. |
| Blended Learning Course | Select the check box to indicate this section is considered a combination of instructor-led and virtual/online learning. |
| Location of Student | If applicable, select whether students are in a district facility or not when taking virtual/online courses. |
| EOC Exam Term | If applicable, select the EOC exam term to determine whether the EOC exam counts as a full year exam or semester exam. This field is used to create EOC exam records. |
| ELL Instructional Model | If applicable, select the ELL instructional model. This must be set for any student/section where an FEFP code of 130 is used. |
| Gifted | Select the check box to indicate this is a gifted section. This check box is for local use and is also used in the HQ/Lic process. Use the Gifted check box if you want the gifted designation to be on the section level instead of the course level. |
| Semester Content | If applicable, select whether the content being taught in this section is for semester 1, semester 2, or for the course term. |
4. When finished, click Save.
The Texas tab contains fields that are specific to Texas state reporting.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Texas tab.
3. Edit the Texas fields as needed. Texas fields include:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| CTE Certified Teacher | If applicable, select the check box to indicate the instructor is a CTE certified teacher. |
| Class Type | Select the type of class that is reported at the section level. |
| ATC Indicator | Select an option to indicate if this is a high school course for which college credit may be awarded by a post-secondary institution under the conditions of a local articulation agreement or statewide Advanced Technical Credit program agreement. |
| Non-Campus Based Instruction | Select an option to indicate whether the course is taught off-campus. This is not pulled in the 305 format. |
| College Credit Hours | Enter the college credit hours if the course has an ariticulation agreement where the student can earn college credit. |
| Population Served | Select the type of students being served in the class. |
| Special Explanation, Special Explanation 2, Special Explanation 3 | Select the applicable options. Options are defined at the state and district level and will likely flow down from the Course Catalog. A district can define up to 3 special explanations on a section. |
| Class Minutes (Per Day) | Enter the number of minutes the section meets per day. |
| Class Minutes (Monthly) | Enter the number of minutes the section meets per month. |
| Homeroom Indicator | Select the check box to indicate this is a homeroom section. |
| Exclude from State Reporting | Select the check box to exclude the section from state reporting. |
| Exclude from TREx | Select the check box to exclude the section from TREx transmissions. |
| CTE Hours Override | If applicable, select an option to override the CTE hours set in the Course Catalog. This is useful when a school uses rotation days for CTE courses but other schools in the district do not use rotation days. |
| Semester Content | If applicable, select whether the content being taught in this section is for semester 1, semester 2, or for the course term. |
| High Quality PK Program | If applicable, select the check box to indicte the section is part of the High Quality Prekindergarten program. |
| Program Evaluation Type | If applicable, select the program evaluation type. |
| Student Instruction Type | For Pre-K sections, select the length of the instructional day. |
| PK School Type | For Pre-K sections, select the Pre-K school type. |
| Days Taught October Week 1 (Week 2, Week 3, Week 4) | If applicable, enter the number of days in which physical education instruction is provided to the section for each week of October. |
| Minutes Taught October Week 1 (Week 2, Week 3, Week 4) | If applicable, enter the number of minutes in which physical education instruction is provided to the section for each week of October. |
4. Click Save when finished.
The Inclusion tab is used to set up inclusion sections without having to create a separate section and package the sections together. When adding requests for a student, requests can be marked with the Inclusion check box. When scheduling students, the system will schedule the students into sections where inclusion has been set up.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Inclusion tab.
3. In the empty row, define the inclusion teacher's information:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Inclusion Teacher | Select the inclusion teacher from the list of active teachers at the school. |
| Permissions | Select the level of permissions to give to the inclusion teacher for attendance and the Gradebook. Select None, Read Only, or Modify. |
| Scheduling Method | Select I - In Class One-on-One. Since this tab is for inclusion sections only, I is the only scheduling method option. |
| Highly Qualified | Setting this field is no longer needed. |
| Team Teacher Training | Select the team teacher training status. This is required for the inclusion scheduling method. Note: For Florida, at least one teacher (either team teacher) needs 3 or more years of teaching experience. |
| Cert/Licensure/Qual Status | Select the teacher’s certification status. If using the HQ/Lic process, this field will be locked and will update automatically. |
| Inactive | Select “Yes” to make the inclusion section inactive. An inclusion section can be marked as inactive even if it has been previously scheduled for a student. The existing inclusion schedule record will not be removed from the student. When an inclusion section is made inactive, it will no longer appear in the section menu for the inclusion teacher, it will not be included in state reporting, and the ability to select “Inclusion” on the primary section will no longer be available on the Student Schedule. |
| Primary Instructor | Select this check box if the inclusion teacher is the primary instructor for the section. For inclusion, this is typically set to No (unchecked). |
| Report to DOE | This field is set to Yes by default. Deselect the check box if the inclusion teacher should not be submitted on the Teacher Course format for state reporting. |
| Course Num | If the course number for the inclusion section is different from the regular course number, enter the course number in this field. Focus will populate upon extract the course number from the primary section and prepend the section ID with an I to make it unique. |
| Section Num | If the section number for the inclusion section is different from the regular section number, enter the section number in this field. |
| Inclusion Minutes Weekly | Enter the number of minutes the inclusion section meets each week. If no minutes are added to the inclusion section, then the inclusion section will have 0 minutes on the schedule record and the S section will have its normal number of minutes. If minutes are added to the inclusion section, then the minutes on the inclusion schedule record will display this number. The minutes on the associated S section will be the S weekly minutes minus the inclusion section weekly minutes. If the inclusion section is removed from the student or the student is dropped from the inclusion section, the minutes are added back to the S section. Note: If the system preference "Do not subtract minutes when using the Inclusion tab" is enabled, the number of minutes set in Inclusion Minutes Weekly on inclusion sections are not subtracted from the Class Minutes Weekly on the associated section. Florida only: An error message will display when attempting to Save if the Inclusion Minutes Weekly are greater than the Class Minutes Weekly. |
| Inclusion FEFP | Select the FEFP number for the inclusion section. |
| Inclusion Reading Intervention Component | Select the reading intervention component for the inclusion section. |
| Inclusion ELL Instructional Model | Select the ELL instructional model for the inclusion section. |
| Start Date, End Date | Select the start date and end date for when the inclusion teacher will work with the section. |
| Inclusion Rotation Days | If an advanced rotation is set up for the school, select the rotation days the inclusion section meets. |
| Days Override | Select the days the inclusion teacher will work with the students in this section. Note: A teacher may work with a section one or more days during the week; select the appropriate days. To be reported for state reporting class size, Friday should be selected. |
4. Click Save when finished.
The Subs tab displays substitute teachers assigned to the section from Attendance > Attendance Setup > Subs. Only users with the "View Substitutes" permission for Attendance Setup can view this tab on the section screen. Users with "View Substitutes" and "Edit Substitutes" permissions for Attendance Setup can add, modify, and delete substitutes from the Subs tab on the section screen. Records that have been added, modified, or deleted in the Subs tab on the section screen will be reflected in Attendance > Attendance Setup > Subs, and vice versa.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Subs tab.
3. Select the Substitute teacher.
In order for a substitute teacher to appear in this list, the substitute teacher must have the teacher profile assigned. Note: Substitute teachers can be selected for any schools when you clear the selected Schools from the corresponding pull-down via Users > User Info > Permissions tab.
4. Select the Start Date and End Date of the assignment.
5. Click Save.
If more sections exist than are needed, some sections may be deleted. Sections cannot be deleted if there are students scheduled into the section, or if attendance and grades are tied to the section.
Attempting to delete a section that has students scheduled with start dates in the future will display a confirmation message indicating this. Proceeding with deleting the section will delete the section and the student schedule records from the database.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. At the top of the screen, click Delete.
A warning message will display instructing you to remove the section from student schedules before deleting the section if there are students scheduled into the section. A warning message will also display if student data (attendance or grades) are tied to the section.
3. In the confirmation message, click Delete.
The section is removed from the Sections list.
Students enrolled in the section can be viewed on the Courses & Sections screen.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. On the top of the screen, click List Students in this Section.
The Schedule Report is displayed, with the students enrolled in the section listed along the right side of the screen.
Click a student's name to open the student's schedule in a pop-up window.
3. To go back to viewing the section, click View/Edit this Section.
Students with unfilled requests in this section can be viewed on the Courses & Sections screen, as long as the Scheduler has been run for that school year.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. At the top of the screen, click List Unfilled Requests in this Section.
The Schedule Report is displayed, with the students with unfilled requests in this section listed along the right side of the screen.
Click a student's name to open the student's schedule in a pop-up window.
3. To go back to viewing the section, click View/Edit this Section.
Sections are packaged for the purpose of linking the sections together for scheduling. This is most often used in elementary scheduling when sections for language arts, math, science, art, music, etc. are packaged together with the homeroom section as the parent section. When scheduling students, students scheduled into the parent section will automatically be scheduled into the linked child sections.
Sections can also be packaged together in the Teacher Schedules Report or on the Create Packages screen.
1. Click the subject, course, and the child section.
2. Click the Choose link in the Parent Section field.
3. In the pop-up window, click the subject, course, and the parent section.
The selected section will display in the Parent Section field.
4. Click Save. Repeat this process for the other child sections that will be linked to the parent section.
After clicking Save, the parent section displays as a link. Click the link to view the parent section in a pop-up window.
When viewing the parent section, the child sections are listed. Click a child section link to view the section in a pop-up window.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Choose Link in the Parent Section field.
3. In the pop-up window, click Remove the Parent.
The section is removed from the package and the parent section will no longer display in the Parent Section field.
4. Click Save.
If your school uses teams for scheduling, a team can be selected on each section. When running the Scheduler, students are scheduled into sections based on the students' team assignments and the teams assigned to the sections.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. In the Team pull-down, select the team to assign to the section.
3. Click Save when finished.
Subjects are not necessarily graduation subjects. Subjects are simply a way to organize courses for quicker navigation. Subjects are like folders that hold a group of courses. Subjects may be set up at the district level for consistency, or school users may have the profile permissions to add or modify subjects.
1. At the bottom of the Subjects list, click the + icon.
2. In the New Subject fields at the top of the screen, enter a Title for the subject.
3. Enter a Short Name for the subject.
4. Enter the Vocational Program Number in the provided text box.
In order for a program to appear in FA Worksheets, the value for Program Number in Modify Programs must match what is entered for Vocational Program Number in Courses & Sections.
5. Enter the Total Hours for Program in the provided text box.
6. Enter the Required Percentage of Hours Attended in the provided text box. This percentage is used to determine if students have met the criteria in order to complete the program.
7. Click Save.
The new subject is added to the Subjects list.
See the K12 section on Editing Subjects and Deleting Subjects.
In accordance with district policy, new courses may be added to the school based on courses found in the Course Catalog, if the Course Catalog is enabled. If the Course Catalog is not enabled, any courses can be added.
1. Click the subject in the Subjects list that will house the new course.
2. At the bottom of the Courses list, click the + icon.
3. In the New Course fields at the top of the screen, select the course from the Search pull-down. To quickly locate a specific course in the list, enter the full or partial course name or number in the Filter text box at the top of the pull-down. The list of courses will filter. Select the desired course.
Alternatively, enter the Course Number. If the Course Catalog is enabled, the Course Number field will be red and will remain red until a valid course number is entered. Begin typing a course number to locate a specific course. As numbers are typed, a list of corresponding courses matching the numbers will display. Click the desired course or enter the full course number.
Once the Course Number is entered, the Title field will auto-populate based on the Course Title defined in the Course Catalog (if enabled). If an invalid number is entered, the Course Number field will remain red and you will not be able to add the course.
4. If applicable, fill out the rest of the course fields:
Any course fields defined in the Course Catalog will auto-populate and cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Course Number | Enter the number of the course. |
| Title | Enter the title of the course. |
| Prerequisites | If students must successfully complete other courses before enrolling in this course, enter the prerequisite course numbers, one on each line. Alternatively, click the green ellipses icon to open a Courses & Sections pop-up window where the prerequisite course can be selected. Students/Parents cannot purchase classes unless the student has passed prerequisite classes entered via Purchase & Pay and the Public Course Catalog. |
| Graduation Requirements Subject, Graduation Requirements Subject 2, Graduation Requirements Subject 3 | Select the graduation subject for the course. Graduation subjects are set up in Grades > Graduation Requirements > Graduation Subjects tab. Up to three graduation subject areas can be defined for a course. This is used by the Graduation Requirements Report to determine if a student has met the graduation requirements for his/her assigned graduation program. When a student successfully completes a course, the system will check the first Graduation Requirements Subject. If the student has already met the requirements for the first Graduation Requirements Subject, the system will check the Graduation Requirements Subject 2 field, and so on. If the student has met the graduation requirements for all the graduation subjects, the course will count as an elective. |
| Credits per Course History Term | Enter the number of credits students earn per course history term. |
| Allow Students to Request this Course | This option will display if the system preference “Allow students to enter course requests starting (date)” is enabled. Select this check box to allow students to enter a request for this course. If this check box is not selected, only administrators will be able to enter requests for this course. |
| Allow Teachers to Approve Requests | This option will display if the system preference “Teachers approve course requests” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow the student’s current teacher in the subject area to approve course requests for the course for the next school year. |
| Allow Students to Enroll themselves in this Course | This option will display if the system preference “Allow students to enroll themselves in classes” is enabled in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab. Select this check box to allow students to register for the course from the Student Portal. The Course Registration Begins and Course Registration Ends data must be set on the marking periods in Setup > Marking Periods. |
| Schedule this Course first | Select this check box if this course should be scheduled first before other courses when running the Scheduler for students who have a course request for this course. |
| WDIS OCP Hours | Enter the applicable WDIS OCP (Occupational Completion Point) hours the student will be awarded upon completing the course. |
| OCP | Select the applicable OCP (Occupational Completion Point) the student will be awarded upon completing the course from the pull-down. |
| Course Sequence | Select the Course Sequence number the course falls in the sequence from the pull-down. For example, the first course in the sequence will be set to 1 and the second will be set to 2. Once teachers post final grades, Focus will look at the grade and set the appropriate Post Secondary Course Status and, if applicable, award the OCP and WDIS OCP Hours associated with the course. The student will also be dropped as of the date that the final grade is posted. Then, they will be scheduled into the next section in sequence as of the next class date. |
| CAPE | Enter the applicable Florida Career and Professional Education Act (CAPE) industry certification number for the course. |
| Credit Hours | The Credit Hours field populates from the Course Catalog. If it isn’t reflected here or needs to be edited, enter the applicable Credit Hours in the text box. Once entered, it is used to determine the "Credit Hours Attempted" and "Credit Hours Earned” when students are scheduled into the course. |
| Program | The Program pull-down defaults to the Subject selected. Edit the selection as needed. |
| Grade Level(s) | To limit this course request to certain grade levels at the school, select the check box for each applicable grade level. If grade levels are selected, then the course will not be available for selection for students not in those grade levels when adding course requests unless the “Courses For All Grade Levels” option in selected on the Student Requests screen. The course can also be added for the student on the Student Schedule screen. |
| Course Length | If the Course Length is not set in the Course Catalog, this field will default to Automatic. This field is important for Requests Reports. If no sections are built when requests are entered, courses with a Course Length of Automatic are considered as 1 unit when counting requests. If the course is a half unit, such as Economics, then change the Course Length to 0.50 - Semester. |
| Store Category | Select the category created via Setup > Store Setup to determine the category from which the course will be set up in Classes for Sale and sold to students and/or parents in Purchase & Pay. |
| Store Internal | Select the Store Internal check box if the course will only be offered to currently enrolled students at the specified school via Purchase & Pay. |
| Allow Teachers to Request This Course | Select the check box to allow teachers to request this course for students. Teachers are only allowed to request courses within their grad subject area, unless Requests Subjects are set on the course. See below. |
| Requests Subject | This allows teachers to request a course outside of their grad subject area. Select one or multiple grad subjects from the pull-down. Teachers of the selected grad subjects are allowed to request the course. |
5. When finished, click Save.
The new course is added to the Courses list for the subject.
See the K12 section on Moving Courses to Another Subject, Editing Courses, Copying Courses, Deleting Courses, Viewing Students in this Course, and Viewing Unfilled Requests in this Course.
Sections can be added to a course as needed. The section level is where the teacher is assigned, as well as the room, period, meeting days, seats, grading scales, and so on.
1. Click the subject in the Subject list, and then click the course in the Courses list you want to add a section to.
2. At the bottom of the Section list, click the + icon (black plus sign).
3. Complete the New Section fields at the top of the screen as needed:
Any section fields defined in the Course Catalog will auto-populate and cannot be edited. If no value is set in the Course Catalog, the field will be editable.
| Field |
Description |
|---|---|
| Teacher |
Select the teacher assigned to the section. The teacher’s staff number displays next to the teacher’s name. Only active users with a Teacher profile will be available for selection. |
| Room |
Enter the room number. If rooms have been set up in Setup > Resource Scheduler/Rooms, select the room from the pull-down. If the Homeroom Number field is set in the Teachers tab of the user’s record, the room number will auto-populate in the Room field on the section when the Teacher is selected. |
| Period |
Select the period the section will meet. If the system preference “Enable Ending Period” is turned on in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab, select the beginning period in the Beg field and the ending period in the End field. |
| Rotation Days |
If the school uses rotation days, select the rotation days the section will meet. If the section meets on all rotation days, select all the check boxes; do not leave them blank. The length of the rotation and the rotation day label (letters or numbers) are set up in Setup > System Preferences > Scheduling tab using the “Advanced Rotation” and “Rotation Day Label” preferences. If the school does not use rotation days, this field will not display on the section. |
| Meeting Days |
Select the days of the week the section meets (for state reporting). If rotation days are being used, do not modify the meeting days. |
| Marking Period |
Select the full term of the course (full year, semester 1, semester 2, quarter 1, etc.). This indicates the seat time of the course. |
| Seats |
Enter the maximum number of students who can be enrolled in the section. The Scheduler will never exceed this value when scheduling students, though administrators can override the seat maximum when manually scheduling students. |
| IEP Seats |
Enter the maximum number of IEP students (students who have an entry in the ESE Exceptionalities logging field marked as Primary) that can be enrolled in this section by the Scheduler. If this field is left blank, there is no restriction. |
| ESOL/ELL Seats |
Enter the maximum number of ESOL/ELL students that can be enrolled in this section by the Scheduler. If this field is left blank, there is no restriction. Logic for determining ESOL/ELL students:
|
| Short Name |
The Short Name will auto-populate with the next increment but can be edited as needed. Short names must be unique for all sections within a course. |
| Course History Term |
Select when grades should be sent to Course History (e.g. at the end of each quarter, at the end of each semester, or at the end of the school year). |
| Double Blocked |
The Double Blocked field is used for posting grades. This is typically used if one school in the district uses a 4x4 block schedule and the rest do not. If a course in the Course Catalog is assigned 1 credit for a Full Year grade posting window, but the section is a double-blocked section meeting every day, then the 1 credit needs to be posted at the end of the semester. When this check box is selected, the system will post the credit at the semester instead of the end of the year for this section. This field is also used to calculate the credits/units set in Student Requests and the Requests Reports. This field is only displayed on the section if the system preference “Enable Special Double-Blocked Posting Averaging” is turned on in Setup > System Preferences > Grading tab. |
| Takes Attendance |
Select the check box to designate that this section takes attendance. |
| Graded |
Select the check box to designate that this section is graded. |
| Affects GPA |
Select the check box to designate that this section affects GPA. |
| Active | Select the check box to designate that this section is an active section. Deselecting the check box will prevent students from being enrolled in the section. Only sections that do not have students currently enrolled can be marked as inactive. Inactive sections do not display on the Teacher Schedules Report. Attempting to add an inactive section to a student’s schedule in Student Schedule or Mass Add Course will display an error message. Note: The Active check box cannot be cleared and a section cannot be marked as inactive if there are any current or future students scheduled into the section. The Active check box logic also takes into account the recorded WDIS Class End Date; if the date has not passed, the Active check box will be disabled. On the other hand, if all scheduled students have a passed Dropped date recorded, the Active check box can be selected regardless of whether the WDIS Class End Date has passed. |
| Grade Levels |
If enrollment in the section is limited based on grade level, select the appropriate grade levels. |
| Grading Scale |
Select the grading scale used to post grades for the course. Grading scales are set up in Grades > Grading Scales & Comments. |
| Standards Grading Scale |
Select the grading scale used to post standards grades for standards assigned to the course. Standards grading scales are set up in Grades > Grading Scales & Comments. |
| Calendar |
Select the calendar the section will follow (if there is more than one calendar set up for the school). |
| Parent Section |
Select a parent section for the section, if applicable. Sections are packaged for the purpose of linking the sections together for scheduling. This is most often used in elementary scheduling when sections for language arts, math, science, art, music, etc. are packaged together with the homeroom section as the parent section. When scheduling students, students scheduled into the parent section will automatically be scheduled into the child sections. See Packaging Sections in Courses & Sections for more information. |
| Store Category | Select the category created via Setup > Store Setup to determine the category from which the section will be set up in Classes for Sale and sold to students and/or parents in Purchase & Pay. |
| Store Internal | Select the Store Internal check box if the section will only be offered to currently enrolled students at the specified school via Purchase & Pay. |
| Section for Sale | Select the check box to sell sections to parents and students via the Parent/Student Portal > Purchase & Pay or via the Public Course Catalog (when enabled via Setup > System Preferences). |
4. Complete the Co-Teachers, History, Florida, Vocational/WDIS, and Meeting Pattern tabs as needed. See the procedures below for more information.
5. Click Save.
See the K12 section on Moving a Section to Another Course, Editing Sections, and Copying Sections.
The Co-Teachers tab is used to document the co-teachers of the section, set the co-teacher's permissions to the Gradebook and attendance for the section, and define whether the co-teacher will be included in state reporting. A co-teacher can work with more than one section, and a section can have more than one co-teacher.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Co-Teachers tab.
3. In the first empty row, complete the co-teacher fields as needed:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Co-Teacher | Select the co-teacher from the list of active teachers at the school. Upon selecting the Co-Teahcer, a pop-up displays: Teacher History Log. Enter a Start and End Date as well an applicable Comment. Then, click Log Change. This change is logged via the History tab. |
| Permissions | Select the level of permissions to give to the co-teacher for attendance and the Gradebook. Select None, Read Only, or Modify. |
| Scheduling Method | Select the Scheduling Method used. If the co-teacher is an official co-teacher as designated by the state, select C - Co-teaching. |
| Highly Qualified | Setting this field is no longer needed. |
| Team Teacher Training | Select the team teacher training status. If the co-teacher is state reportable, then an option needs to be selected. Note: For Florida, at least one teacher (regular or co-teacher) needs 3 or more years of teaching experience. |
| Cert/Licensure/Qual Status | Select the co-teacher's certification status. |
| Primary Instructor | Select this check box if the co-teacher is the primary instructor for the section. |
| Report to DOE | Select this check box if the co-teacher should be submitted on the Teacher Course format for state reporting. |
| Days | Select the days the co-teacher will work with the section. |
4. When finished, click Save.
The History tab contains records of previous teachers, co-teachers, and inclusion teachers of the section. Teacher history records can be added directly in the History tab. In addition, when teachers, co-teachers, or inclusion teachers are modified on a section after the school year has begun, a prompt will display to log the change.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the History tab.
3. To manually add a new record, use the blank row at the bottom of the table. Select the Teacher, Start date, End date, and enter a Comment if needed.
4. Click Save.
When the teacher is modified or added to the section after the school year has begun, a prompt will display to log the change. If you do not want to log this change in the History tab, select the Do not log history check box. To log the change, select the Start Date, End Date, enter a Comment if needed, and click Done.
When a co-teacher or inclusion teacher is modified or added to the section after the school year has begun, a pop-up window will display to log the change. If you do not want to log this change in the History tab, click the X to close the pop-up window. To log the change, enter the Start Date, End Date, enter a Comment if needed, and click Log Change.
Focus contains sync functionality to update and split records when the teacher id on a section is changed. A resync occurs if the teacher is changed on a section in Courses & Sections or Master Schedule Report, or if a teacher enables gradebook grouping in Preferences, or modifies the type of grouping in the same screen.
- Gradebook assignments and categories are duplicated to create a second record which may be modified by the new teacher and linked to their sections. If the incoming section is going into a gradebook group, then the groups join records are resynced to create records for the existing sections in the group joined to incoming assignments, and the incoming section joined to existing assignments. All existing assignments which have been graded for at least one student are assigned only to existing students, if previously assigned to all. Incoming assignments previously assigned to all students are assigned to the incoming students only. Note: The new teacher can still modify the assigned students after the section move, if desired.
- Seating chart room layouts are split in two where the new layout is assigned to the new teacher. The new teacher can then modify or delete the seating chart layout they received from the previous teacher, while the previous teacher may continue to use their previously existing layout on other classes and modify it.
See the K12 section on Editing Florida Fields, Adding Inclusion Sections, Deleting Sections, Viewing Students in this Section, Viewing Unfilled Requests in this Section, Packaging Sections in Courses & Sections, Removing a Section from a Package in Courses & Sections, and Assigning a Team to a Section.
The Vocational/WDIS tab is used to customize vocational/WDIS properties as they pertain to the selected section/class, such as start and end times, start and end dates, class daily hours, functioning level, and more.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Vocational/WDIS tab.
3. Edit the Vocational/WDIS fields as needed. The Vocational/WDIS fields include:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Distance Learning | The Distance Learning indicator pulls from the Course Catalog and denotes that the students and the instructor(s) are separated in time and/or place during more than 50% of the instruction. This field is uneditable. |
| AGE Online Course Delivery Indicator |
Select the applicable indicator from the pull-down; options include: Z - Not enrolled in an asynchronous online course or A - Enolled in an asynchronous online course. |
| AGE Institutional Setting |
Select the applicable setting from the pull-down; options include: Z - Not Applicable, A - Adult who is patient or resident of medical or special institution, B - Adult remanded to custody of state correctional facility, C - Adult remanded to custody of Federal correctional facility, D - Adult remanded to custody of county correctional facility, E - Adult remanded to custody of city correctional facility, or F - Adult participating in community correctional program. |
| CTE Dual Enrollment Course Location |
Select the applicable physical location of the instruction provided to dual enrollment students from the pull-down; options include: Z - Not applicable, A - COE-accredited career center or charter technical career center campus, B - Other postsecondary/adult school location (non-accredited institution), C - High school campus, or D - Other K-12 public school location. |
| Homeless Adult Indicator |
Select the check box to set the Homeless Adult Program Indicator in the Teacher Course Extract. |
| Cost Reporting Code | The cost reporting code defaults to the code linked to the program via the Course Catalog and is uneditable. Many tools within Focus rely on this field to properly award apprenticeships and/or technology diplomas. |
| Post Secondary Start Time | Enter the time the class begins. |
| Post Secondary End Time | Enter the time the class ends. |
| WDIS Class Start Date | Enter the WDIS date the class is set to start for the school year. |
| WDIS Class End Date | Enter the WDIS date the class is set to end for the school year. |
| Basic Skills Exam | Pulls the default Basic Skills Exam status for students enrolled in the class from the Course Catalog; this field is uneditable. |
| Class Daily Hours | Enter the number of hours students can earn daily for the class / the number of hours the class is scheduled to take place. |
| Adult Fee Status (First) | This field indicates the status of the Adult Fee. The fee can be required, exempt, deferred, waived, or one of the many other options. |
| Adult Fee Status (Second) |
This field indicates the status of the Adult Fee. The fee can be required, exempt, deferred, waived, or one of the many other options. |
| Voc./Adult Gen. Program Code |
The program code is uneditable and pulls from the Course Catalog depending on the program the section is linked to (selected from the Subject column). |
| Apprenticeship Sponsor Code |
Enter the applicable code for all postsecondary students enrolled in a registered apprenticeship program in which the student is actively registered. Record the six-digit numeric sponsor code listed in Appendix O. |
| Exclude from Billing |
Select the check box to exclude the class from billing; i.e. selecting the check box will make users unable to bill students for the class. |
| Reauthorization / Bill By Reauthorization |
Select how the class should be eligible for reauthorization for billing purposes from the pull-down, such as section, course, hours/custom, etc. |
| Functioning Level |
Select the applicable functioning level from the pull-down. Indicates a default initial functioning level for students enrolled in the course based on TABE or CASAS scores. |
| WDIS Only | Select the check box to indicate that the section should be reported to WDIS where the site is combined K-12 and Postsecondary. |
| Exempt from Total Clock Hours | Select the check box to disregard the clock hours earned in the class as counting towards Total Clock Hours Earned Toward Award. |
4. Click Save.
When creating or modifying a section, the system calculates the number of hours on the section based on the daily class hours, meeting days, and the active calendar days of the section, and displays an error in the Vocational/WDIS if course hours cannot be completed in the time scheduled for the section. See the Scheduled Section Hours Errors report for all courses with errors.
The Meeting Pattern tab allows users to add meeting patterns that are different from the base meeting pattern defined in the section setup. The tab will confirm the different meeting pattern’s start date/end date, start time/end time, meeting days, and class duration. The start date/end date of all meeting patterns must fall within the date range of the base meeting pattern listed in section details. This feature will function similarly to Hours Override feature in Attendance > Attendance Setup.
Be sure to review the settings regarding Meeting Patters via Setup > System Preferences > School Preferences/Default School Preferences > Post Secondary tab.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Meeting Pattern tab.
3. Enter the Start Date and End Date in the provided text boxes.
4. Select the applicable Days using the S, M, T, W, H, F, and S check boxes.
5. Enter the Start Time and End Time, and Duration (Hours).
6. Select the Period and Room from the corresponding pull-downs.
7. Once all information has been entered, while clicked into a text field, press the Enter key to save the line of data.
When saved, the line turns blue and the delete button displays (red minus sign).
8. Click Save to apply the Meeting Pattern to the section.
9. Make edits as needed by clicking any of the text boxes, clearing or selecting check boxes, or clicking the pull-downs to change your selection.
10. Click the delete button (red minus sign) to delete the meeting pattern.
The Catalog Details tab displays section-specific data that affects the display of that section on the Public Course Catalog. In particular, the Catalog Publish Start Date and Catalog Publish End Date fields, which control when a section will appear as an item for sale on public Course Catalog. The section will be published if it is an active section AND today is between the publish start and end dates. If no publish start and end dates are provided, then it will default to the WDIS Class Start/End Dates. The new Section Description and Section Materials fields will appear on the item card on the Public Course Catalog.
Users can add /catalog to the Focus URL in order to navigate to the public Course Catalog screen (similar to the Purchase & Pay screen). Upon enrolling in a course via the Enroll Now button, the user will be directed to Billing > Purchase & Pay.
The Catalog Details tab is available when the district has enabled the setting Enable Public Course Catalog via Setup > System Preferences > Default School Preferences > Billing tab. The section must also be flagged as Section for Sale in section details. See Adding Sections for details.
1. Click the subject, course, and section.
2. Click the Catalog Details tab.
3. Select the Catalog Publish Start Date using the month, day, and year pull-downs.
The Catalog Publish Start Date and Catalog Publish End Date fields control when a section will appear as an item for sale on public Course Catalog.
4. Select the Catalog Publish End Date using the month, day, and year pull-downs.
5. Select the Section Status from the pull-down to determine if the section is active (Running), not currently active (Not Running), or Cancelled.
6. Enter the number of Sessions in the provided text box that should display for sale in the public course catalog.
7. Select the New check box if the section for sale should display as new in the public course catalog.
8. Select the Allow Waitlist check box to allow potential students using the Public Course Catalog to add themselves to the waitlist if the class is already full. If the class is full, the following options/information displays on the Public Course Catalog: Add to Waitlist, Added to Waitlist, and/or Contact school to be waitlisted.
9. Enter the Section Description in the provided text box that should display to users in the public Course Catalog.
10. Enter the Section Materials required for the section in the provided text box.
11. Enter the Section Notes in the provided text boxes that should display for users in the public Course Catalog.
12. Enter the Teacher Daily Planning Time in the provided text box.
13. Enter the Teacher Hourly Rate in the provided text box.
14. Click Save.
The Direct Purchase URL displays so you can share it with other users or preview the public Course Catalog.
If the Period or Hourly Attendance system preference has been enabled via Setup > System Preferences > Default School Preferences > Attendance tab, post-secondary schools can enable sections with both period attendance and hourly attendance at the same site.