SystemAdmin->Calendar->Calendar Tab: Calendar
Student Day Minutes is the number of instructional minutes that are used to determine Exact Attendance. Do not include passing time or the passing time will automatically be counted as "present" time even if the student is absent. Also do not include minutes for any "period" in which attendance is not taken - if they cannot be marked absent, they are automatically considered present. Periods in which attendance is not taken should be marked as non-instructional on the Periods tab. This number should match the total Instructional Minutes in the day as shown on the "Periods" tab in the "Period Schedule Info" section.
Whole Day Absence Minutes is the number of Instructional Minutes for which a student must be marked absent in order to be counted a whole day absent when doing Daily Approximation Attendance.
Half Day Absence Minutes is the number of Instructional Minutes for which a student must be marked absent in order to be counted a half day absent when doing Daily Approximation Attendance, assuming the number of minutes does not constitute a Whole Day absence.
Whole Day Absence Minutes is the number of Instructional Minutes for which a student must be marked absent in order to be counted a whole day absent when doing Daily Approximation Attendance.
If this were set to "100", a student would be marked a whole day absent if they were marked absent for any total of 100 instructional minutes or more, but would NOT be marked a whole day absent if they were marked absent for any total of 99 instructional minutes or less.
Half Day Absence Minutes is the number of Instructional Minutes for which a student must be marked absent in order to be counted a half day absent when doing Daily Approximation Attendance, assuming the number of minutes does not constitute a Whole Day absence.
If this were set to "1", a student would be marked a half day absent if they were marked absent for a single instructional minute of the school day.
If this were set to "50", the student would be marked a half day absent if they they were marked absent for any total of 50 instructional minutes or more, but would be considered present for the full school day if they were marked absent for any total of 49 instructional minutes or less.
If this were set to "50", the student would be marked a half day absent if they they were marked absent for any total of 50 instructional minutes or more, but would be considered present for the full school day if they were marked absent for any total of 49 instructional minutes or less.
EXAMPLE:
There are 385 minutes in the school day from tardy bell to dismissal bell (7:40-2:05). On the Periods tab there are four periods listed with bell-to-bell times, totaling 360 minutes. 25 minutes of the school day are "MIA" as passing time between classes. Period 3 has 20 minutes of Lunch listed, reducing the total Instructional Minutes in the day to 340 minutes. Put 340 in the box for Student Day Minutes.
The principal decides that if a student misses a single instructional minute of the day, they are at least a half day absent, and if they miss a single minute more than half the instructional minutes in the day they should be considered absent for the full day. Put 171 into the Whole Day Absence Minutes box (half of 340 plus 1), and put 1 into the Half Day Absence Minutes box.
After taking some heat from parents for this strict policy, the principal decides to back off a bit. He decides that if a student arrives late, leaves early, or otherwise misses a portion of a class, they can still be considered present for the full day as long as they were present for a majority of that class. As classes are 85 minutes long, 43 minutes present is a majority. Therefore a student can miss 42 minutes of school and still be considered present for the full day. He decides to apply this same practice to the full day absence; if a student in any way attends at least 43 minutes of school for the day (the majority of a single class), they have attended enough not to be considered a full day absent. Therefore, he enters 43 in the Half Day Absence Minutes box, and 297 (340 minus 43) into the Whole Day Absence Minutes box. Now, if a student is marked absent for a total of 0 to 42 minutes they are still considered present for the whole day, marked absent for a total of 43 to 296 minutes they are considered half-day absent, and marked absent for a total of 297 to 340 minutes they are considered full-day absent.
The principal decides that if a student misses a single instructional minute of the day, they are at least a half day absent, and if they miss a single minute more than half the instructional minutes in the day they should be considered absent for the full day. Put 171 into the Whole Day Absence Minutes box (half of 340 plus 1), and put 1 into the Half Day Absence Minutes box.
After taking some heat from parents for this strict policy, the principal decides to back off a bit. He decides that if a student arrives late, leaves early, or otherwise misses a portion of a class, they can still be considered present for the full day as long as they were present for a majority of that class. As classes are 85 minutes long, 43 minutes present is a majority. Therefore a student can miss 42 minutes of school and still be considered present for the full day. He decides to apply this same practice to the full day absence; if a student in any way attends at least 43 minutes of school for the day (the majority of a single class), they have attended enough not to be considered a full day absent. Therefore, he enters 43 in the Half Day Absence Minutes box, and 297 (340 minus 43) into the Whole Day Absence Minutes box. Now, if a student is marked absent for a total of 0 to 42 minutes they are still considered present for the whole day, marked absent for a total of 43 to 296 minutes they are considered half-day absent, and marked absent for a total of 297 to 340 minutes they are considered full-day absent.