Timetable Daily: Important Conversations between the Timetabler and the Daily Organiser (E10)

Modified on Thu, 14 Aug at 12:59 AM

There are conversations that would be beneficial to be had between the timetabler and the Daily Organiser so that both parties have some awareness of each other's systems. The timetabler often sets things up in the etz file without understanding the effects in Timetable Daily. The Daily Organiser often has complications in Tiemtable Daily without understanding that a simple tweak in the etz file would improve things for them.

This documents outlines some areas that are common gaps in understanding between the two areas.

Terminology

.etz: the Tes timetable file containing the timetable, and student and staff data

Timetable Daily: Tes's online module for Daily Organisation

Rotation: The number of timeframes to indicate when certain classes will run during the year. Typically this is semester or term based classes, such as elective or specialist subjects in the lower/mid secondary year levels. For example, a year 9 student has chosen an Art class in Semester 1, then a Technology class in semester 2. The .etz file in this case would be set up with 2 rotations, with the Art class running in rotation 1 and the Technology class running in rotation 2. In a school which has term based classes running in Year 7, the .etz file would be set up with 4 rotations, and could have the following occur: Art in Rotation 1, ICT in Rotation 2, Music in Rotation 3 and Foods in Rotation 4.

Cover: A class or duty needing to be assigned to an alternate teacher due to the regular teacher's absence, excursion, school event, etc. The accounting for each cover could be:

Extra: where the teacher is doing 'extra' than the maximum load. This type of cover adds teaching time to the teacher's regular load.
In-lieu: where the teacher's regular class is cancelled/not running, perhaps due to an excursion or event, and they are able to take a cover in place of the cancelled class. This type of cover does not alter a teacher's maximum teaching load - they lost a class and picked up a class, so the teaching load remains the same.
Underload: where the teacher has not being allocated a full cyclical load in the etz file. This type of cover accumulates until the maximum load is reached, and should the teacher be assigned further covers, they would then count as extra's.

Cover credit: the numerical credit value assigned to each class or duty needing cover. Timetable Daily adds cover credits up for each teacher as covers are given, and will only display teachers as available for a cover if they have not yet reached the maximum allowed credits.

The default class or duty credit calculation is based on the median period length as set in the etz file grid structure. Most regular classes will have a credit value of 1, but schools with differing period lengths may find that the default credit value includes decimals for classes that are not the median period length. Duties are usually much less that the regular teaching time period length, and Timetable Daily calculates the credit value accordingly. Cover credits may be altered by the user.
Example: School has classes running for 60 minutes in length on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, but on Tuesdays period lengths differ and are 75 minutes long. Covers occurring on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays will by default be assigned 1 credit for each cover. Tuesday covers will be automatically counted as 1.25 credit. Duty slots are 15 minutes each, so by default credited as 0.15.

FTE (Full time equivalent) and Maximum extras

The maximum number of extras that full time staff are allowed to do is set in Timetable Daily, with automatic adjustments made for part time staff. The Daily Organiser is not able to set the maximum number of extras on an individual teacher basis in Timetable Daily. (There is also a setting that checks if staff are under or over loaded, explained further below.)
Timetable Daily reads each teacher's FTE entry from the .etz file to know whether it should pro-rata the maximum number of extras for part time staff.
It is important that the timetabler has entered the correct FTE entry for each staff member in the .etz file.
-A teacher with the FTE of 1 (meaning full time) will be able to receive the maximum amount of extras credit as set in Timetable Daily.
- A teacher with the FTE of 0.5 will be able to receive half the number of extras credit than that of a full time teacher.

To do:

Tes .etz file:

- Enable the FTE column ( Teachers > Teacher data > View menu > Tick FTE)

- Enter the correct FTE for each staff member

* TIP: Staff who are on leave and do not have a load, but who need to remain in the file, can be set to zero MaxLoad and zero FTE. They may also be marked as Unavailable for each day of the cycle eg 'Mon,Tue,Wed,Thu,Fri'.

Timetable Daily:

- Set the maximum number of extras that full time staff can do for a set period of time (per week, cycle, semester etc). ( Daily > Settings > Cover Options > ‘Max extras per accounting period’).

Example: School X has a policy that full time staff can do 2 extras each cycle. The ‘ Max extras per accounting period’ is set to 2 (credits) per cycle. A staff member with the FTE of 1 can be given up to 2 covers credit as 'extras' per cycle. A staff member with a FTE of .6 can be given 1.2 covers credit as 'extras' per cycle.

Max Load/Overloads Counted as 'Extras'

It is important that the timetabler has entered the correct MaxLoad (maximum load per cycle, including teaching time and allowances) for each teacher in the .etz file so that Timetable Daily recognises if a teacher is exactly on load, underloaded or overloaded. All of these are understood and handled differently in Timetable Daily when assigning covers.

Schools may calculate the cyclical MaxLoad for staff in a couple of ways:

MaxLoad = maximum teaching time/allowances less one period.
This allows for the teacher to be available to take one 'extra' type cover each cycle without them going over the actual permitted teaching time (as outlined by higher authorities or local agreements).
MaxLoad = actual maximum teaching/allowance load.
Teachers on a full load are not to take any 'extra' type covers at all (they may take 'in-lieu' type covers only).

It is important that both parties understand how the MaxLoad has been arrived at in the .etz file, and the repercussions in Timetable Daily when accounting for covers.

Sometimes, teachers may need to be assigned 1 or 2 periods over their maximum load in the .etz, in which case, the school may not allow/require them to do any extras. Timetable Daily can be set to read that the teacher is overloaded, and by how much (credit), and therefore will not display them as available options for 'extra' type covers if the maximum allowable extras credit has been reached. It is as if the teacher, by being overloaded, has already done the overloaded amount of 'extras'. They will still be available for in-lieu type covers.

To do:

Tes .etz file:

- Ensure all teachers have the correct MaxLoad entered ( Teachers > Teacher data or Teachers > Staff Allocations)
- Ensure that the ' LdLeft' displays the correct under or overload ( Teachers > Staff Allocations)

Timetable Daily:

To set Timetable Daily to count overloads as extras, ensure the ' Overloads are counted as extras?' check box is checked. (Daily > Settings > Cover options)

In the above staffing allocations example, where the ' Max extras per accounting period’ in Timetable Daily has been set to 2 per cycle:
- Beasley, Pamela is a full time teacher overloaded by 2 each cycle. Pamela is not able to do any 'extra' type covers, as she has effectively done her 2 'extras' each cycle.

- Halpert, Jim has a 0.85 FTE and is exactly on load at 27.5. Timetable Daily will calculate that Jim can take 'extra' type covers at credit value of 1.7 (0.85 x 2) each cycle.

Underloaded Staff and Covers

Sometimes staff are not allocated a full teaching/allowance load in the etz file. These staff may therefore be able to take some covers each week to bring them up to a full load. These are assigned and accounted for in Timetable Daily as 'Underloads'. When assigning covers, 'underloads' are accounted for first, and once the teacher has reached the MaxLoad, further covers will be accounted for as 'extras'.

In the above image:
Claus, Santa is underloaded by 1 each cycle. Santa may receive 1 'Underload' type cover each cycle to bring him up to maximum load, and then can be assigned his two 'extra' type covers.

To do:

Tes etz:
- Check that underloaded teachers are correct in the etz file, and understand the repercussions in Timetable Daily.
- Add notes to the Teachers > Teacher data screen if helpful.
TIP: Sometimes an allowance can be entered into the etz file as a way of adjusting underloads if required (rather than alter the MaxLoad). In the above example, if Santa was actually not able to take the 1 'underload' type cover per cycle, a 1 period allowance called 'Underload adjustment' could be entered in Teachers > Allowances, then he would be exactly on load in the etz and therefore not eligible for any 'underload' type covers. This allowance should be removed when no longer required.

Timetable Daily:

- Understand that covers assigned to teachers will first be accounted for as an in lieu, then as an underload, then as an extra. You can override in-lieu and underloads to be counted for as an extra.

'No Covers' setting in Timetable Daily

There may be a difference between teachers who are unable to take any type covers, and those not able to take 'extra' type covers.
Because Timetable Daily has a ' Max extras per accounting period' setting that applies to all teachers, rather than individual teacher maximum extras, teachers can be marked as 'No covers' in Timetable Daily so that they do not appear as available options for any type of cover.
It is important to note that teachers marked as 'No covers' will not display as an available option for any type of cover, including 'in-lieu' type covers.

For example, the principal would be included in the .etz file on a maximum (allowance) load, but if the principal is not an available option to take covers, they should be marked as 'No covers' in Timetable Daily. There may be other staff, for a variety of reasons, who are not able to take 'extra' type covers, but may take 'in-lieu' or 'underload' type covers. These teachers should not be marked as 'No covers' in Timetable Daily, and perhaps a note could be added to the teacher's data in the .etz file to remind the Daily Organiser of this, such as 'No covers, in-lieus only'.

If staff are not appearing as available to take covers when they should, check with the timetabler on their LdLeft

To do:

Tes etz:
- Communicate with the Daily Organiser over which teachers can take extras and which cannot

- Add notes to the Teachers > Teacher data screen if helpful.

Timetable Daily :
- Uncheck the 'Eligible to cover classes?' checkbox if teachers are not available for any type of cover (Admin > Users > Edit)

Teacher data displaying in Timetable Daily comes from the etz file

Timetable is seen as the 'source of truth' for some teacher information, so must be entered into the .etz file to be viewed in Timetable Daily - it cannot be entered onto Timetable Daily directly. This includes details such as Phone numbers, email addresses, Notes and Unavailabilites.
The Notes field in the .etz file can be a very handy communication tool for the timetabler; adding relevant notes to teachers to remind or make aware to the Daily Organiser. (Do be careful what notes are added to the etz file though, as the Daily Organiser will see them).

To do:

Tes etz:

- Enter information into the .etz file in Teachers > Teacher data. Display fields can be chosen from the View menu.
- Communicate with the Daily Organiser on what entries will be helpful to them.

Timetable Daily :

- Communicate with the Timetabler on what entries would be helpful added to the etz file.