Main Menu

SIS 2000+ Graduation Requirements Editor, Step 6

Step 6, Configure Graduation Requirements

Before you start adding Graduation Requirements to the Requirements Editor, you must first do some configuration from within the Requirements Editor itself. The configuration done here will affect the Graduation Requirement set-up and processing that will be performed.

6.1 Launch Requirements Editor
From the Main Menu, click on Academic History. Then click on Requirements. The opening screen of the Requirements Editor (Fig. 14) is a summary listing of the different rule types and their associated eligibility rules. For example you may have several types of 'Graduation Requirements' because of the different diplomas that your schools offer, or perhaps your requirements changed over the years and different graduating classes may have a different set of requirements for graduation.

Fig. 14

• Rule Type -
  The type of rule that you have created. 'Graduation Requirements' for example. (The available types were defined in the 'Eligibility Rule Types' table (zerultyp) in the Table Editor.)
• Eligibility Rule -
  The name that you've given to the specific rule that is associated with the Rule Type. (This data is stored in the eligrule table).

Before you add rules for the first time, you will want to go through the Requirements Configuration steps first. If you have already configured requirements and are returning to add more Graduation Requirements rules or edit existing rules, go to Step 7, "Add Graduation Requirement Rules".

6.2 Activate Configuration mode
From the opening summery screen of the Requirements Editor, click the Config command button. The configuration process involves three steps, or tabs. The first two will be performed now. The last one, 'Graduation Reqs.' will be configured later.

6.3 Configure 'Fields to Sum' tab
Checking for eligibility through the Requirements Editor basically works through summary calculations. The application checks to see that students meet a minimum set of requirements by summarizing the totals that they have earned in certain fields. This tab is where you will define what those certain fields are (Fig. 15).

Fig. 15

For Graduation Requirements, the field that you will want to sum is the field that stores the amount of credit that a student was awarded for the successful completion of their courses.

6.3.1 Add/Edit a Field to Sum
Click Add to add a new field to sum to the Requirements Editor. To change an existing field to sum, select the field to edit from the Field drop-down box and click Edit.

The selections on this tab populate the eligsfld table:

• Field -
  The field that will be summed. This drop-down box comes from the eligsfld table. As new fields to sum are added to this screen, this drop-down list is populated. To view the configuration of a particular field to sum, once more than one record has been added, use this drop-down box as a selector.

The eligsfld table is edited through the 'Fields to Sum' tab. The fields in the eligsfld table are:

• esflduniq - a unique number for each entry in the table. Generated by SOS 2000+ automatically.
• Descript - the description that you give to the field that will be summed. Edited through the Fields to Sum Tab, on the 'Description' line.
• sntype - used to tie this table to the Eligibility Rule Type Table (zerultyp). For Graduation Requirements, this must be a 'G' so that it matches up with the entry in the Eligibility Rule Type table for Graduation Requirements where the erultypc is also 'G'. Currently set to 'G' by SOS 2000+ automatically as new entries are added.
• snflduniq - used to define which database field is actually being summed. This number comes for the snfields table. (In the SQL Editor, look at the snfields table to find the record for the transcript table, graduation credits awarded field (trnscrpt.gradcrawd)). Use the same number from snfields table, snflduniq field for this entry in the eligsfld table, snflduniq field. Edited through Fields to Sum tab, 'Table' and 'Field to Sum' drop-down boxes.
  
  
• Description -
  The description that you give to the field that will be summed.
• Table -
  The table where the field you want to sum is located. The transcript (trnscrpt) table is used for Graduation Requirements.
• Field to Sum -
  The field within the above table that will actually be summed. The Graduation Credits Awarded (gradcrawd) field in the transcript (trnscrpt) table is used for Graduation Requirements.
  
  

6.3.2 Save your changes
Click on the Save command button

6.3.3 Delete a field to sum
To delete a field to sum, select the field from the Field drop-down box and click Delete. Confirm the delete command.

6.4 Configure 'Sum Selection' tab
This screen (Fig. 16) is used to define the relationships between tables (joins) that will be used when defining Requirement rules. For example, in Graduation Requirements, you may define that a student must earn 10 graduation credits (units) of subject of Art to be eligible for graduation.

On the 'Fields to Sum' tab, you only defined which field will be summed, but you did not yet define which records that contain that field will be used for each summation. For example, only records for 'Drafting', 'Dance', and ' Art' courses will count towards students' Art requirements.

On the 'Sum Selection' tab, you do not yet set up the subjects or courses that may be included in each summation, but you do set up the joins between the transcript table and the course tables so that you can later complete that set-up.

6.4.1 Add/Edit a Sum Selection
Click Add to add a new type of Sum Selection. To change an existing Sum Selection, choose the Sum Selection to edit from the Selection drop-down box and click Edit.

The selections on this tab (Fig. 16) populate the eligfld table:

• Selection -
  The field that will be able to select from when defining your Graduation Requirements. As new Sum Selections are added to this screen, this drop-down list is populated. To view the configuration of a particular Sum Selection, once more than one record has been added, use this drop-down box as a selector.
• Description -
  The name that you give to the Sum Selection. This should be an understandable name that you will be able to recognize easily while making your selections when actually defining a Graduation Requirements rule.
• Field / Constant -
  Choose one, as follows:
• Field - involves joining table together. When Field is chosen you will be able to select courses or subject from an available course or subject list and arrow them over to a selected course or subject list when actually defining Graduation Requirements.
• Constant - Does not involve joins; it means that you are selecting a field from the transcript table itself. When Constant is chosen, you must type in a course code or subject name when making your selections while actually defining the Graduation Requirements.
  
  
• Table/Field for Compare -
  This is where the join you are creating will begin. For Graduation Requirements, the table will be 'trnscrpt'. The field will depend on what it is you are attempting to join or use. Examples are given below.
• Table/Field for Join -
  These lines are used to tell the Requirements Editor which tables to join for this Sum Selection. Examples are given below.
• Table/Field for Select -
  This is the table and field that will be used in the actual selection. This is basically the stopping point of the join.
• Description Fields -
  These are the fields that users will be able to see when making their selections during the definition of Graduation Requirement rules. The field choices here come from the table selected above, on the Table/Field for Select line.
  
  

6.4.2 Save your changes
Click on the Save command button.

6.4.3 Delete
To delete a sum selection, select the field from the Field drop-down box and click Delete. Confirm the delete command.

Examples of Sum Selections:

COURSE CODE / DESCRIPTION (Fig. 16) - This set-up will allow you to select from a list displaying the course codes and their corresponding descriptions. This must be accomplished through a join. Therefore, FIELD must be selected.


Fig. 16




SUBJECT CODE / DESCRIPTION (Fig. 17) - This set-up will allow you to select Subject areas, by their code and description, as they are displayed in District Courses. This must be accomplished through a join. Therefore, FIELD must be selected.


Fig. 17




SPEEDE EXPRESS CODE (Fig. 18) - this set-up will allow you to use a field that is directly stored in the transcript record. That is why CONSTANT is chosen instead of FIELD. For this method you can only choose the table and the field that you will be selecting from. When you use this method, you will not have a selection box while defining the Graduation Requirement rules; you will type in the SpeedeExpress Course Code Number of the courses that will be selected.


Fig. 18




SUBJECT CODE (Fig. 19) - this set-up will also allow you to use a field that is directly stored in the transcript record. Again, CONSTANT is chosen instead of FIELD. When you use this method, you will not have a selection box while defining the Graduation Requirement rules; you will type in the Subject Codes associated with the courses that will be selected. The Subject Codes can be viewed in the Subject Codes table in the Table Editor.


Fig. 19

6.5 Configure 'Graduation Reqs' tab
This tab can not be completely set-up until after you have defined at least one Graduation Requirement rule in the next step. The configuration of this tab will be covered in Step 7, "Add Graduation Requirement Rules".

6.6 Exit Configuration mode
Click the End Config command button to return to the main Requirements summary screen.