Sessions aka Session Plans, are the lessons or sessions happening across the organisation and what builds the Timetable.
Tip If you are relatively new to Databridge and/or this is your first time adding Sessions, we recommend using one of your Training Days for assistance
Accessing the Session Creator screen
To access Session Creator, navigate to Sessions -> Session Manager.
On the Session Manager screen, click on the New Session option on the right hand side and this will bring up the Creator screen.
Setting the Timetable for the Session
The first tab, Date & Times, is where you set the day(s) and time(s) for the Session you want to create.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Site | The Site the Session will be taking place. |
| Weekly Recurrence | Numerical value of the weekly recurrence. For example, 1 means the Session will be every week, 2 means every 2 weeks etc. |
| Holiday Set | The holiday set for the academic year. Ensure this is correct before creating Sessions to avoid the need to delete Sessions later. |
| Timetable Scale | Determines the scale that is displayed on this tab for selecting blocks. |
| Start Date | The date you want to start adding the Session e.g. 01/09/2020 |
| End Date |
The date you want to stop adding Sessions. For example, if the same as the start date it would only add one Session, or if similar to 31/07/2021 it would add Sessions for the whole academic year. |
| Separate Sessions | A toggle that prevents block merging when selecting blocks on the scale. |
Once you have set the relevant Site, Recurrence, Holiday Set and Dates, you can start selecting the relevant block(s) on the Timetable Scale.
To set a block, click the relevant area on the Timetable Scale and a yellow block will appear to represent the Session at that day/time:
In this example, we are setting the Session to be on a Wednesday for Session 1, or 09:00 - 10:00.
If this Session will occur on more than one day, we can select another block accordingly:
Now we are setting the Session to be on a Wednesday AND on a Friday during different times.
We can extend the blocks by clicking the next column next to it, for example clicking on Wednesday (Tea Break) column does the following:
If we want two blocks right next to each other WITHOUT them merging like this, click the Seperate Sessions toggle first.
If the time of the Session is slightly different to the Timetable Scale column, you can click on the block and change the times accordingly:
Change the Start and End time accordingly as required.
You will notice you can also specify a Break Start/End time as well. If you set these, the Timetable will display a grey area through the Session block on the live Timetable accordingly.
From this modal, you can also click the Remove Session button to take the block off the Scale.
Setting the Subject
Click on the Subject Tab and set options accordingly:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Subjects is the default option for this dropdown for creating Sessions, but you can change this to Tutorials to bulk add these here instead of using the Tutorials screen. |
| Department | Department filter to show only Subjects linked to that Department accordingly. |
| Subject | The Subject of the Session/Tutorial. |
| Subject Detail | Additional notes on the Subject. |
Setting the Location
Click on the Location Tab and set options accordingly:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Only show setup subject locations | Tick this to limit the Location dropdown by the Locations linked to the chosen Subject in Standard Values. |
| Building Type | Select type to filter the Location dropdown accordingly. |
| Building/Location | The room the Session till take place. |
Selecting the Location will also display useful details about the room on the right hand side.
Adding Learners to the Session
Click on the Learners Tab. On the left hand side, you can select from multiple filters to change the Learners displayed underneath.
If you tick 'Learners who desired these Subjects', it will filter the list of Learners to only show those that have the selected Subject as one of their Subject Choices.
If you type directly into the Search List box, this will filter the list accordingly e.g. as you start typing someone's name the list changes immediately.
To add a Learner to the Session from the list, click on the
icon. They will then move from the list on the left, to the list on the right.
Alternatively, you can select all learners on screen at once by clicking the Add All button. To revert this, above the list of selected students on the right side of the screen you'll see the option Remove All.
The fields/options on the right hand side of this tab should be set accordingly:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Flexible Session | If ticked, the Session Leader can add additional Learners/Staff themselves later on. |
| Max Class Size | Set automatically from Subject, but you can set a value in the override field. This value is used for Provision Planning report. |
| Learners | Lists the Learners you have selected for the Session. - Clicking the left arrow will remove them from the Session. - Clicking the clock icon will allow you to set individual times for the Learner if they will not be in it for the full duration. - Clicking the edit icon will allow you to set individual Subject and/or Location. - Entering text into the Timetable notes field will display this on the Learner Timetable. |
Adding Staff to the Session
Click on the Staff tab. On the left hand side, similar to the Learner tab, you can select different filters to change the list of Staff to select from.
Ticking 'Only show setup subject staff' will only show Staff that are linked to the Subject in Standard Values.
If you type directly into the Search Staff box, this will filter the list accordingly e.g. as you start typing someone's name the list changes immediately.
To add a staff to the Session, click on the 
icon. They will then move from the list on the left, to the list on the right.
When you have moved the relevant Staff across, set the fields accordingly:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Leader | The Session Leader. Only one can be selected and by default it sets this to the first person moved across. |
| Secondary Leader | The Secondary Leader of the Session. Only one can be selected. |
| Oversee | Anyone ticked as Overseeing the Session will not appear on the Session nor in Attendance, but they will have access to the Session. |
| Icon Buttons | - Click on the left arrow icon to remove them from the Session. - Click on the clock icon to set individual times if the Staff will not be in the Session for the full duration. |
| 1 to 1 Learner | If Staff will be one to one with a Learner, select the relevant one. |
Creating the Session
Click on the Finish tab to have two final options.
'Check for Clashes' will take the Sessions you are about to create and find any Sessions already in the system they will conflict with. Databridge will display any it finds in the table and colour codes them accordingly. You can use the clash ticks to ignore certain types of Session conflicts.
Once you are happy, click Create Sessions(s) and Databridge will add them accordingly. You will be prompted if you want to add a similar set of Sessions. Clicking Yes will let you stay on the creator screen with all the previous options selected, clicking No will return you to the Session Manager screen.
Tip If you have set any Essential Staffing Requirements, you will be informed if none of the Staff set for the Session have any necessary training/qualification
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