Documentation

Grades Entry, Submission, Verification and Ratification

iSIMS allows for the entry of grades using two methods; online and via Excel file upload. This document is intended to give a brief explanation on how to use the excel file to upload grades. The iSIMS Excel file is used solely for the uploading of grades and not for any reporting purposes. All reports and statistics regarding grades will be done by the system and can be view on the system with the ability to export to an Excel of PDF format.

 

The Excel file is divided into two sections, the coursework section and the examination grades section. The coursework section is used to capture grades for modules within the course while the examination section is used to capture the examination grades. The system is configured to capture up to eight (8) pieces of coursework and up to six (6) pieces of examination grades.

 

Grades Upload

Each lecturer will be able to download a copy of the grade sheet for the course they are teaching through their My Courses dashboard. This grade sheet will contain all the information about the course and the students who have registered for the course. All that is required of the lecturer is to enter the grades on the grade sheet and upload it into the system from the same page where the grade sheet was downloaded. A lecturer will NOT be able to upload or enter grades for a student who is not registered for the course. Lecturers are also not able to modify the coursework and examination weighting of course.

 

Calculation

The excel file will have basic calculation for determining the letter grade for the course and which component of the course the student fail. Pass and failure rates will be calculated by the system and shown to the appropriate users.

 

 

Grades Verification

The steps are as follows:

  • Navigate to Training > Verify Grades
  • Select the Semester and if necessary Programme offering and campus
  • Click the Select to the right of the grade sheet that you would like to verify the grades for
  • Review the grades, untick the grades that you do not want to verify then click the Verify Grades button

You can use the Show Grade Details to review the details of the grades entered.

 

Grades Ratification

The steps are as follows:

  • Navigate to Training > Ratify Grades
  • Select the Semester and if necessary Programme offering and campus
  • Click the Select to the right of the grade sheet that you would like to verify the grades for
  • Review the grades, untick the grades that you do not want to verify then click the Verify Grades button

You can use the Show Grade Details to review the details of the grades entered.

 

What if the grades need adjustment?

You will need to go back to the grades entry page to make these corrections. The recommended steps are as follows:

  • Navigate to Training > Enter Student Grades
  • Use the appropriate filters to locate the grade sheets.
    • These can be by lecturer or by course. We recommend using the lecturer filters
    • Select the ‘Grades’ button next to the course
  • Check the manual grade entry checkbox
  • Make the requisite adjustments
  • Save

You may also choose to use excel grades upload to make the corrections. In such a case, instead of checking the manual grade entry checkbox, perform the following steps:

  • Select the ‘Download Gradesheet’ button
  • Open the spreadsheet in Excel (2008+ Recommended)
  • Make the requisite adjustments
  • Save and upload to the same page from which the download was made.

After these steps are undertaken you may proceed with the verification and ratification process.

 

 

This document outlines the steps for verifying and ratifying grades. In order to use the verification and ratification screen, grades must be entered using the onscreen or excel method. Please note; migrated grades will be entered as ratified grades. We recommend against using the Grades Migration option to enter grades into the system as you are not able to enter the details of the grades using this option.

 

Last updated on April 11, 2023