Grading schemes, scales, and periods

A grading scheme is the rulebook used to turn a student's raw scores into a final grade. It ties together three building blocks: a grading scale that maps percentages to letter grades, an optional transmutation scale that converts a weighted average into a different display format, and one or more grading periods that define the timeline for assessments. You must assign a grading scheme to a class before you can open the gradebook or submit grades.

Grading scales

A grading scale defines the letter grades your school uses and the numeric percentage range that earns each one. Grading uses closed-closed intervals — both the lower and upper bounds are inclusive — and enforces a strict gap between adjacent bands so no score can fall into two grades at once.

Note: Every grade band uses a closed-closed interval [min, max]. Adjacent bands must not share a boundary or overlap — the minimum of each band must be strictly greater than the maximum of the band below it. For example, if band B has a maximum of 89, the next band down (C) must have a maximum of 88 or lower. A gap of at least 1 percentage point between adjacent bands is required. Overlapping or touching boundaries will be rejected when you save the scale.

Each student's score is rounded to the nearest whole percent before looking up the grade band, so every score falls unambiguously into at most one band.

Example grading scale

In the example above, each band's maximum is strictly less than the next band's minimum (89 < 90, 79 < 80, 69 < 70, 59 < 60), satisfying the strict-gap requirement.

Create a grading scale

1. Open Grading Scales — Navigate to Grading → Grading Scales and select New Grading Scale.
2. Name the scale — Enter a name (e.g., "Standard 5-Band Scale") and an optional description.
3. Add grade bands — For each letter grade, enter the band name, minimum percentage, maximum percentage, and whether the band counts as passing. Add bands from highest to lowest.
4. Save the scale — Select Save. The system validates that no two bands share a boundary or overlap before saving.

Transmutation scales

A transmutation scale converts a student's weighted-average percentage into a different output — for example, a GPA value or a numeric grade on a 1–5 scale. When a grading scheme has both a grading scale and a transmutation scale:

• The grading scale determines the displayed letter grade for each individual grading period.
• The transmutation scale determines the final course grade (derived from the weighted average across all periods).

Transmutation scale bands follow the same closed-closed interval rules as grading scale bands.

Grading periods

Grading periods subdivide an academic period into gradable segments — for example, Midterm and Finals. Each period can carry a weight in the final grade calculation (e.g., Midterm = 40%, Finals = 60%).

1. Open Grading Periods — Navigate to Grading → Grading Periods and select New Grading Period.
2. Name and configure the period — Enter a name (e.g., "Midterm"), set the start and end dates, and assign a sort order if you have multiple periods.
3. Save — Select Save. Periods are linked to grading schemes when you create or edit the scheme.

Grading schemes

A grading scheme combines a grading scale, an optional transmutation scale, and one or more grading periods with their weights. You can also define scheme components (e.g., Written Work, Performance Tasks) and their contribution weights within each period.

Create a grading scheme

1. Open Grading Schemes — Navigate to Grading → Grading Schemes and select New Grading Scheme.
2. Configure the scheme — Enter a name and select the aggregation method (e.g., weighted average). Attach the grading scale and, if needed, the transmutation scale.
3. Add grading periods and weights — Select the grading periods that belong to this scheme and enter the weight for each period. Weights must sum to 100%.
4. Add components (optional) — Define grade components (e.g., Quizzes, Exams) within each period and set their weights. Grade items in the gradebook are linked to these components.
5. Save the scheme — Select Save. The scheme is now available to assign to classes.

Assign a grading scheme to a class

Before you or your teachers can enter scores, each class must have a grading scheme assigned.

1. Open the class — Navigate to Academics → Classes and open the class (Course Offering) you want to configure.
2. Go to Grading Settings — Select the Grading tab or section within the class detail view.
3. Assign the scheme — Choose a grading scheme from the dropdown and select Save. The gradebook for this class will now be structured according to the scheme's periods and components.

Tip: You can reuse the same grading scheme across multiple classes. If your school has a standard grading policy, create one scheme per curriculum level and assign it to all relevant classes — it saves time and keeps grades consistent.