The Data Manager’s Operational Roadmap
Phase 1: Initial Setup
Initial setup tasks required before the start of the academic cycle.
1.1 School Details
1.2 Year Groups
Navigate to: Setup > School > Year Groups to manage year groups.
A Year Group represents a cohort of students in the same academic grade. Gradewing supports a standard seven-year structure, typically ranging from Year 7 to Year 13 (or local equivalents). You can rename year groups at any time to match your school’s terminology.
Internal grading, student progress reports, and other features operate at year group level.
1.2 Academic Year
Navigate to: Setup > Academic years to add or manage academic years.
An Academic Year defines the school’s annual cycle, typically spanning from September to July. It serves as the foundational organizational structure for most academic data.
Multi-Year Continuity:
Gradewing supports the creation of additional consecutive academic years at any time, all while maintaining the integrity and accessibility of historical data.
Understanding Academic Year relationships
Student and Teacher records transcend individual academic years. They are linked to academic years through their enrolments.
However: Teaching groups, pastoral groups, internal grading moments and student progress reports are tied to a sole academic year.
1.4 Custom subjects
Navigate to: Setup > Custom subjects to create or manage custom subjects.
Any subject that is not included in our Subject Qualification Repository should be set up as a custom subject. For additional guidance and best practices, please refer to the Custom Subjects Guide.
Custom Subjects are optional
If all your subjects are included in our default subject repository, you do not need to create any custom subjects.
Phase 2: Populating the System
2.1 Students & Enrolments
Navigate to: Setup > Students to create student records and manage enrolments.
Student creation includes:
- academic year enrolments and subject enrolments
- group tags and learner statuses for enhanced analysis and tracking
- guardian contact information to enable effective report sharing
Critical setup task you should master
We recommend you read the Student Setup Guide to ensure a smooth and efficient setup process.
For guidance and tips on managing students, please refer to the Student Setup Guide.
2.2 Teachers
Navigate to: Setup > Teachers to create and manage teacher records.
The term Teacher refers to all Academic Staff––not just subject teachers.
Teaching and pastoral groups must be assigned to existing teacher records during creation. Linking a Teacher record to a User account grants the User access and responsibility for the academic data of their assigned groups.
2.3 Teaching Groups
Navigate to: Setup > Teaching groups to create and manage teaching groups.
Teaching groups connect Students with their Subject Teachers during a given academic year. Only students assigned to teaching groups are eligible to receive internal grades and appear in progress reports.
Teaching Groups are essential
Each student should be assigned to at least one teaching group for each subject they are enroled in.
A student may be assigned to multiple teaching groups for a given subject. A teaching group can be co-taught by multiple teachers, and include students from different year groups. For additional guidance and best practices, please refer to the Teaching Groups Setup Guide.
2.4 Pastoral Groups
Navigate to: Setup > Pastoral groups to create and manage pastoral groups.
Pastoral groups are tutor (form) groups, advisory groups, enrichment groups, support groups, and any other type of pastoral grouping implemented in your school.
Pastoral Groups link students with their assigned Pastoral Teachers, and allow these students to receive pastoral comments and other information in Student Progress reports.
Teaching Groups vs Pastoral Groups
Teaching groups are formally associated to a subject with grading, whereas Pastoral Groups are not.
A student may be assigned to multiple pastoral groups. For guidance and best practices, please refer to the Pastoral Groups Setup Guide.
2.5 User Accounts & Permissions
Navigate to: Admin > Users to manage user accounts and permissions.
User accounts are required for staff to access the system and perform their roles. Permissions are automatically assigned based on the user’s role (Teacher, Leadership, Data Manager or Admin).
Each User account should be linked to a unique Teacher record to ensure proper access and responsibility for academic data. Deleting a Teacher record will not deactivate the linked User account, and vice versa.
Data Manager accounts
Data Manager access should be granted only to a limited number of trusted staff members. Users with this permission have full editing and deletion access within the system.
Phase 3: Grading
There are three distinct grading environments in Gradewing, each with its own setup and management process: Examination results, Expected grades, and Internal grading moments.
3.1 Examination Results
Navigate to: Setup > Examinations to record official examination results.
Examination results can be recorded for any subject found in our Subject Qualification Repository. The Examination Gradebook meets the specific grading needs of each subject, including the recording of component / unit results for linear and modular qualifications.
Why record Examination Results?
Recording exam grades in Gradewing allows you to:
- Run (Value-Added) Analysis: Evaluate examination outcomes against Expected Grades, internal grades and standard benchmarks.
- Confidently Set Expected Grades: Gradewing automatically suggests Expected Grades for KS5 (A-level or IB DP) subjects based on KS4 exam data.
- Maintain a Structured Examination Record: At no extra cost.
3.2 Expected Grades
Navigate to: Setup > Expected grades to set up and manage expected grades.
Expected grades are statistical predictions of student (final) attainment, based on prior attainment or baseline assessments. Expected grades are typically set at the start of the academic year.
Gradewing provides a chances table via GEM (Grades Expectations Model) a data-grounded setting for KS5 (A-level or IB DP) subjects based on KS4 exam results. AI analyst to help you set the correct expected grade
Why record Expected Grades?
They serve as benchmarks for student performance and form the baseline of Value-Added analysis. Progress vs. Expected grades can also be showcased in Student Progress reports.
3.3 Internal Grading Moments & Gradebooks
Navigate to: Setup > Grading moments to create and manage internal grading moments.
Internal grading moments are custom assessment points defined by the school, such as mock exams, end-of-term assessments, or any other internal evaluation.