Key Concepts Glossary

Academic System A named set of grading rules -- assessment types, weights, and grade boundaries -- that applies to a section of the school. A school running GES JHS and Cambridge IGCSE would have two separate academic systems with different rules.

Academic Year A named school year (e.g. "2025/2026") with a start and end date. Contains one or more academic periods.

Academic Period A subdivision of an academic year -- typically a term or semester (e.g. "Term 1", "Semester A"). Assessments and reports are tied to specific periods.

Aggregate The combined final score for a student across all assessment types in a subject for a given period. Calculated automatically using the configured weights.

Assessment Any graded activity -- a class test, mid-term exam, end-of-term exam, practical, or coursework. Every assessment belongs to a class, a period, and an assessment type.

Assessment Status The lifecycle stage of an assessment. Draft means it is being prepared. Open means teachers can enter scores. Closed means scoring is complete and the results are locked.

Assessment Type A category of assessment (e.g. Class Test, Mid-Term Exam, End-of-Term Exam). Each type carries a defined weight -- the proportion of the final grade it contributes.

Best-N Aggregate An aggregate rule used in GES JHS and SHS systems where a student's final aggregate is calculated using their best N subjects rather than all subjects. The value of N is configured per academic system (e.g. best 6 of 8 subjects). This follows the Ghana Education Service grading convention.

Class Teacher Remark A short written comment from the student's class teacher (form teacher / home room teacher) that appears on the student's report card. Separate from subject teacher comments.

Department An organisational grouping of related subjects and staff. Examples: Science Department, Humanities Department.

Generated Report A PDF document produced for a specific student for a specific Report Group. Contains the student's scores, grades, aggregate, class position, and remarks. Stored securely and accessible via a link.

Grade Boundary The score range that corresponds to a specific grade. For example, 80--100 = Grade 1, 70--79 = Grade 2. Configured per academic system.

HOD (Head of Department) A staff role with department-level oversight. Can view assessments and classes within their department.

Offline Score Entry The ability for teachers to enter scores without an active internet connection. Scores are stored on the device and synchronised automatically when connectivity is restored.

Principal Remark A written comment from the school principal that appears on the student's report card. Entered by the principal or administrator through the admin portal.

Report Group A container for a term's report cards. Groups together all student reports for a specific academic period and academic system. Report Groups move from Draft to Finalized before PDF generation.

Report Group Status Draft means the Report Group is still being prepared. Finalized means it is locked and PDF reports have been (or can be) generated.

Role A defined permission level that determines what a staff member can see and do within SA3. A staff member can hold multiple roles simultaneously.

School Section A subdivision of the school under an academic system -- for example, Primary School, JHS, SHS. Each section can have its own year groups and subjects.

Subject An academic subject taught at the school (e.g. Mathematics, English Language, Integrated Science). Subjects belong to a school section and optionally to a department.

Teaching Assistant A staff role with read-only access to assigned classes. Cannot enter or modify scores.

Weighted Grading A grading method where different assessment types contribute different proportions to a student's final score. For example, class tests may contribute 30% and the end-of-term exam 70%. Weights are configured per academic system and must total 100%.

Year Group A named cohort level within a school section -- for example, "Class 1", "JHS 2", "Form 3". Classes are created within year groups.