User's Guide - California State University, Northridge



SOLAR Business Process Guide:

SOLAR Services

for Faculty

California State University, Northridge

|DOCUMENT HISTORY--SOLAR Business Process Guide: Faculty Administrative Module |

|DATE |ACTION |PAGE REFERENCES, IF ANY |

|03/29/2004 |Added permission number information, Refresh button information |See the Generate Permission Numbers |

| | |section and the Select a Grade Roster|

| | |and Enter Grades section. |

|05/05/2004 |Added information about using the Sort By drop-down menu on the Class |See the View a Class Roster section |

| |Roster page. |and the Generate Pemission Numbers |

| |Adjusted information about generating permission numbers, which now |section. |

| |displays on the Class Permission Numbers page. | |

Copyright ( 2003 by California State University, Northridge. All rights reserved.

Information in this book is subject to change without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of California State University, Northridge.

Trademarks

Product and company names herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction 1

Prerequisites 1

Support and Resources 1

2. Sign In/Sign Off 3

3. Record Grades 7

Select a Grade Roster and Enter Grades 8

Review Grades 16

Approve and Submit Grades 17

Changing Grades After Final Approval and Posting 20

4. View and Print a Class Roster / Generate Permission Numbers 21

View a Class Roster 22

Generate Permission Numbers 26

Print a Class Roster or Permission Numbers page 29

5. Download a Class Roster 31

6. Understand Permission Numbers 37

1. Introduction

“SOLAR” is the name for the student administration system used at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). The name is an acronym for Student On-Line Administrative Resources. The SOLAR system administers student and academic data and information for faculty, staff, administrators, and students.

The SOLAR system rollout is part of the California State University (CSU)-mandated Common Management System (CMS) implementation of an integrated information system at all 23 campuses. All CSU campuses are scheduled to complete implementation of the software developed by the company, PeopleSoft, by 2007.

The SOLAR Services for Faculty module is integrated with the entire SOLAR system, which allows many offices to work together to serve our students, faculty, staff, and community. The SOLAR system enables us to centralize information used to maintain student and applicant records, the course catalog, schedule of classes, class enrollments, and grading information. It minimizes repetitive data entry; streamlines academic data; and provides up-to-date administrative information about students and applicants for faculty and advisors.

Prerequisites

The contents of this guide are designed for use by those who have a basic understanding of computers and how to use a Web browser.

Support and Resources

After you complete your training, you may have additional questions. To obtain assistance:

• Review this document, the “SOLAR Business Process Guide: SOLAR Services for Faculty,” which provides step-by-step instructions detailing the tasks and procedures related to using the module.

• Call SOLAR Support Services at extension 7267. SOLAR Support Services provides training, documentation, and related support service to CSUN faculty, staff, and administrators who use the SOLAR system to administer functions related to the SOC, Student Inquiry, Advisement, and Grading.

2. Sign In/Sign Off

Access SOLAR by launching your internet browser and signing into the CSUN Campus Web Portal. The supported browser for using the system is:

• On a PC or Mac, use Microsoft’s Internet Explorer version 5.0 or higher.

NOTE: Other browsers may or may not provide the same performance and are not supported.

[pic] CAUTION: Your SOLAR session will timeout when no activity has occurred. If your session times out, log into the system again, navigate to the location desired, and if your access enables you to work with data, reenter unsaved work.

SOLAR is a web-based application that is opened like any secured Web site on the Internet.

To sign in:

1. Open your Internet browser window.

2. Enter in your browser address field.

(If a security information dialog box displays, click the Yes button.)

[pic] TIP: Bookmark your logon page for future access.

The CSUN Campus Web Portal home page opens.

[pic]

3. Enter your email address in the User ID field and your password in the Password field, and then click the LOG IN button. (If a security dialog box opens, click the Yes button.)

NOTE: If either the User ID or Password entered is invalid, the system will display an error message. Re-enter the User ID and Password and try to log in again. Select the Forgot Password or Forgot User ID links as needed.

Contact the University Help Desk at x1400 if you do not have a CSUN email account, if you do not know your CSUN User ID or password, or if you need further assistance in accessing the CSUN Campus Web Portal.

The CSUN Campus Web Portal home page opens.

[pic]

4. Select the SOLAR for Students and Faculty link from the My Menu pagelet.

[pic]

5. Select the SOLAR Services for Faculty link.

[pic]

The SOLAR Services for Faculty page displays.

[pic]

6. Use the links that display to navigate to the component(s) with which you want to work such as View My Class Rosters (see the section in this document, “View and Print a Class Roster,” Record Grades (see the section in this document, “Record Grades,” or Downloads (see the section in this document, “Download a Class Roster”).

SIGNING OFF: For security purposes, before leaving your computer, be sure to manually sign out of the system by selecting the Sign out [pic] link to close the application and end the current session attached to your ID. The Sign out link displays in the upper-right corner of the campus web portal header.

As a security precaution, your SOLAR session will end automatically after a period of inactivity. Before this occurs, the system displays a message indicating your session is about to be timed out unless you follow the instructions in the dialog box that opens.

[pic]

3. Record Grades

Use the Record Grades module to enter grades for class sections in the current academic term.

[pic] REMINDER: Final grades must be submitted into the SOLAR system within five (5) working days from the date of the final exam for a class section.

The Record Grades module displays to you only those class sections to which you are assigned as the Instructor of Record for an academic term.

Instructor(s) of Record are the instructors assigned to a class section through the SOLAR Schedule of Classes (SOC). Each Instructor of Record is designated with primary or secondary responsibility for a class section during the SOC build and receives access to the class section grading roster as follows:

• A Primary Instructor can enter and approve grades for a class section grading roster.

• A Secondary Instructor can only enter grades for a class section grading roster.

This section reviews how to open a grade roster, enter and review grades, and approve grades for a class section.

Select a Grade Roster and Enter Grades

Before entering grades for a class section you are teaching, open a grade roster for the class section. To do so:

1. Sign into the CSUN Campus Web Portal, and select the SOLAR Services for Faculty page. (For information about signing into the CSUN Campus Web Portal see the chapter, “Sign In/Sign Off,” of this document.)

[pic]

2. Click the Record Grades link on the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

[pic]

The Record Grades page displays.

[pic]

3. Select the current academic term from the Grade Rosters list. Scroll up or down the page as needed to view the terms that are available to you.

[pic]

The Select Grade Roster page displays.

[pic]

4. Click the name of the course you want to work with from the Course Title column. Be sure to select the appropriate Section and Class Number from the list of courses. For example, use information in the the Class Nbr column and the Course Title column to make your selection.

[pic]

The Grade Roster page displays. Use the Grade Roster page to change the Approval Status field, enter and adjust grades for each student on the class roster, and view student enrollment details for each student.

[pic]

The Approval Status [pic] field on the Grade Roster page defaults to Not Reviewed.

5. Click in the Display Ungraded Students Only [pic] checkbox if you want to see only those students for whom grades have not been entered and saved.

[Otherwise, leave the checkbox deselected (unchecked) [pic].]

6. To enter a grade for a student, use your mouse to click in a Grade Input field box or use the key on your keyboard to move the cursor into the Grade Input field for a student, and then:

[pic]

• Type in the grade using your keyboard, and repeat the process for each student,

OR

• Use the Lookup [pic] icon beside the Grade Input field for a student to select from a list of valid values. To use the Lookup [pic] icon to enter a grade for a student. To do so:

a. Click the Lookup [pic] icon that displays beside the Grade Input field for a student.

The Lookup Grade Input page opens.

[pic]

b. Click the Lookup [pic] button. (Make sure that the Grade Input field and Description field are empty on the Lookup Grade Input page before clicking the Lookup button.)

The grading basis for the class section displays in the Search Results portion of the page. The grade input selections that display vary depending upon the grading basis for the class section, which is determined by the course catalog, and the grading basis selected by the student for the class section.

[pic]

c. Select the appropriate grade by clicking a link that displays. The selected grade displays in the Grade Input field for the student.

NOTE: Enter WU for an unauthorized withdrawal, which represents a student unofficially withdrawing from a class section. Enter I to submit a grade of incomplete, which represents a contracted agreement between an instructor and student to complete all class activities. If a student officially withdraws from a class the system automcatically displays a W in the Grade Input field.

d. Repeat the previous steps to enter a grade for each student in the class section.

7. Click the Refresh [pic] button at the bottom-left corner of the Grade Roster page from time to time to allow the system to verify that you’ve made valid grade entries.

[pic] CAUTION: Clicking the Refresh [pic] button DOES NOT SAVE the grades you’ve entered.

If you make an invalid grade entry or entries, the system displays an error message box.

[pic]

• Click the OK button in the error message box, enter a valid grade entry in the Grade Input field by using your keyboard to enter a grade or clicking the Lookup [pic] icon beside a Grade Input field to select from a list of choices, and then press the key.

NOTE: The SOLAR application allows you to enter only those grades or grading abbreviations that are valid for the specific grading basis associated with each course. If a letter grade is entered for a CR/NC course it is converted automatically to Credit or No Credit. The grading basis for a class is determined by the course catalog. Review the valid grade abbreviations and grading basis for a student in a class section and select a valid grade input by using the Lookup [pic] icon beside the Grade Input field for a student.

8. Click the Save [pic] button at the bottom-left corner of the page from time to time while entering grades for students and when you have finished inputting all grades on a grade roster.

[pic] TIP: When you click the Save [pic]button with the Approval Status drop-down field set to Not Reviewed you can exit the grade roster and return to it at a later time. Grades previously entered and saved display, and you can complete, review, and/or change grades as needed. Clicking the Save button also ensures that grades you’ve entered are saved in case your Internet session is disconnected or interrupted.

9. At any time while you are working with the Grade Roster page, select the Detail [pic] link to view the Student Enrollment Detail page for a student, and then click the Return [pic] button to go back to the Grade Roster page.

[pic]

Review Grades

1. After entering grades for students on the Grade Roster page, you may select Ready for Review from the Approval Status drop-down menu.

The Grade Roster page displays grades in an easy-to-read format for your review.

2. Check grades for accuracy and ensure that a grade has been entered for each student.

[pic]

3. If you need to change a grade or grades, select Not Reviewed from the Approval Status drop-down menu on the Grade Roster page, adjust the grade(s) in the appropriate Grade Input field(s), and click the Save [pic]button.

4. If you are the primary instructor for a class section, you must also approve and save class section grades in order to officially submit grades to Admissions and Records. To do so, follow the procedures in the next section of this document, “Approve and Submit Grades.”

NOTE: You can print any page in the SOLAR application at any time by selecting File>Print from the menu bar of your Internet Explorer browser.

Approve and Submit Grades

1. After entering and reviewing grades for students on the Grade Roster page and ONLY when the grade roster is ready for approval and submission to Admissions and Records, select Approved from the Approval Status drop-down menu.

[pic]

2. The SOLAR system checks that a grade has been entered for each student listed on the grade roster.

• If a grade has been entered for each student listed on the grade roster, click the Save [pic] button to save and submit grades to Admissions and Records.

[pic] CAUTION: If you do not change the Approval Status drop-down menu to Approved and click the Save button, the grade roster will not be submitted to Admissions and Records. After a grade roster is approved, saved, and submitted to Admissions and Records using the SOLAR system, grade changes CANNOT be made through the SOLAR system.

(The Request Grade Change link that may display on the Grade Roster page is not functional.) For information about changing grades after they have been approved, see the section in this document, “Changing Grades After Final Approval and Posting.”

[pic] TIP: The system does not provide a notification message when a grade roster has been submitted to Admissions and Records. Print a copy of the grade roster for your records as an indicator that the grade roster was approved and saved. To do so, select File>Print from the Internet Explorer menu bar.

• If a grade HAS NOT been entered for each student on the grade roster, an error message displays.

[pic]

a. Click the OK button in the error message box that displays.

b. Select the Display Ungraded Students Only [pic] checkbox to see which students have not received grades.

c. Select Not Reviewed from the Approval Status menu.

d. Enter grades for the student(s) that display and click the Save [pic] button.

e. Select Ready for Review from the Approval Status menu, and review the grades for the class section.

f. Select Approved from the Approval Status menu.

g. Click the Save [pic] button to save and submit grades to Admissions and Records.

[pic] CAUTION: If you do not change the Approval Status drop-down menu to Approved and click the Save button, the grade roster will not be submitted to Admissions and Records. After a grade roster is approved, saved, and submitted to Admissions and Records using the SOLAR system, grade changes CANNOT be made through the SOLAR system.

(The Request Grade Change link that may display on the Grade Roster page is not functional.) For information about changing grades after they have been approved, see the section in this document, “Changing Grades After Final Approval and Posting.”

[pic] TIP: The system does not provide a notification message when a grade roster has been submitted to Admissions and Records. Print a copy of the grade roster for your records as an indicator that the grade roster was approved and saved. To do so, select File>Print from the Internet Explorer menu bar.

Changing Grades After Final Approval and Posting

After the primary instructor has approved and submitted grades for a class section through SOLAR grade changes CANNOT be made through the system.

That is, if you are a primary instructor for a class section and you change the status of a Grade Roster page to Approve and select the Save [pic] button, you cannot change grades in SOLAR. Instead, you must use the following manual process.

NOTE: You cannot change a grade in SOLAR after it has been approved and saved in the system. After a grade has been approved and saved in SOLAR, use a manual process to change it. The Request Grade Change link that may display on a Grade Roster page is not functional.

To change a grade for a class section after it has been approved and saved in SOLAR:

1. Obtain a Correction of Grade Report form from your department office or from the CSUN Office of Admissions and Records. (Be sure to use the revised version of the form as of 05/03.)

5. Complete the form, including the Student ID number, the original grade submitted through SOLAR, and the new grade.

6. Obtain the appropriate approval.

7. Forward the form to the CSUN Office of Admissions and Records.

4. View and Print

a Class Roster / Generate Permission Numbers

This section reviews how to retrieve a class roster to view each student on the roster, generate and access permission number information for a class sections, and print a roster and permission numbers for a class section.

View a Class Roster

1. Sign into the CSUN Campus Web Portal, and select the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

(For information about signing into the CSUN Campus Web Portal see the chapter, “Sign In/SignOff” in this document.)

2. Click the View My Class Rosters link on the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

[pic]

The Access Class Rosters page displays.

[pic]

3. Select the term for which you want to view a roster. Scroll up or down as needed to view the terms available.

[pic]

The Select Class Roster page displays.

[pic]

4. Click the name of the course you want to work with from the Course Title column. Be sure to select the appropriate Section and Class Number from the list of courses. For example, use information in the Class Nbr column and Course Title column to make your selection.

[pic]

The Class Roster page displays.

(To print a class roster see the section, “Print a Class Roster,” in this document. To download a class roster to an Excel spreadsheet see the section, “Download a Class Roster,” in this document.)

[pic]

5. Select the from options in the Sort By drop-down menu to view class roster information by Student ID, Grade, Name, or Student Level. Select the Permission Number tab to view and work with permission numbers. Select the Permission Numbers tab to view and work with permission numbers for the class section.

[pic]

NOTE: A student is enrolled in a class through the SOLAR system only when the student’s name displays on the Class Roster page.

Generate Permission Numbers

1. Sign into the CSUN Campus Web Portal, and select the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

(For information about signing into the CSUN Campus Web Portal see the chapter, “Sign In/SignOff” in this document.)

2. Navigate to a Class Roster page.

[pic]

3. Select the Permission Numbers tab.

Use the following table to enter information in the Assign More Permission Numbers portion of a Permission Numbers page:

[pic]

|FIELD |INSTRUCTIONS |

|Expiration Date |Enter an expiration date (MM/DD/YYYY) for the permission numbers, or click the Choose a Date|

| |[pic] icon and select a date from an online calendar. |

| |NOTE: You may use different expiration dates, and generate one or more permission numbers |

| |as you choose. Permission numbers expire by default after the term adjustment period, |

| |usually three weeks into a term. |

|Quantity Needed |Enter the number of permissions (for example, 12) that you want to generate. |

4. Click the Submit [pic] button.

[pic]

Unused and used permssion numbers display in the Permission Number Usage Summary portion of the page.

[pic]

NOTE: The appearance of a used permission number on the Permission Numbers page indicates ONLY that the student has entered the permission number into the system and that the number is no longer valid.

A student is enrolled in a class through SOLAR only when the student’s name displays on the Class Roster page.

Print a Class Roster or Permission Numbers page

1. With a page displayed, select File>Print from the browser menu.

[pic]

A Print dialog box displays.

[pic]

2. Select the Print [pic] button.

5. Download a

Class Roster

To download a class roster into an Excel spreadsheet:

1. Sign into the CSUN Campus Web Portal, and select the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

(For information about signing into the CSUN Campus Web Portal see the chapter, “Sign In/Sign Off,” in this document.)

[pic]

2. Click the Downloads link on the SOLAR Services for Faculty page.

[pic]

The Schedule of Classes Download page displays.

[pic]

3. Click the Run button.

[pic]

The Class Roster Download page displays.

[pic]

4. Enter information into the fields that display on the Class Roster Download field as follows:

|Field |Instructions |

|Term |Enter the four-digit term number (for the Fall 2003 term, enter 2037), or click the Lookup [pic] |

| |button to select a term number from a list of valid values. |

|Session |Click the Lookup [pic] button to select a session number from a list of valid values. The numeral 1|

| |represents Regular Sessions (Fall, Spring) and is most commonly used. |

|Class Nbr |Enter the class number, which is usually a five-digit number. (Extension class sections may have |

| |four-digit class numbers.) |

| |DO NOT use the Lookup icon. |

| |(The class number is equivalent to the ticket number as used in the legacy system.) |

[pic]

5. Click the View Results button.

[pic]

The Class Roster Download page displays.

[pic]

6. Select the Excel SpreadSheet link.

[pic]

The class roster information automatically downloads into an Excel spreadsheet file,

[pic]

7. Save the Excel spreadsheet to your computer as you would any other file.

6. Understand

Permission Numbers

Class permission numbers replace the manual process of how a student adds a restricted class or adds a class after an academic term has started. Permission numbers replace the Class Add form.

[pic] CAUTION: Protect the display and distribution of permission numbers and permission number lists.

Review the information in this section to learn about permission numbers and their use:

What are permission numbers?

Permission numbers are numbers generated for a class section and then assigned to students to allow enrollment in a class section at the beginning of an academic term or in a class section that is restricted or full.

Each permission number is a unique number that:

• Can be used only one time and only for the class section for which it was issued

• Must be used before its expiration date, which is usually three weeks after the start of the academic term

• Overrides requisites, class enrollment limits, and consent restrictions, unless otherwise specified. (It does not override a student’s maximum credit limits or time conflicts.)

How do permission numbers work?

At the beginning of an academic term, each class roster available to faculty from the View My Class Rosters page will include, by default, at least ten permission numbers on it. (See the “View and Print Class Rosters” section of this document for information about viewing a class roster.)

A faculty member gives a student a permission number. The permission number is the student’s only authority to add the class section.

The student, then, must enter the permission number into the student registration system to register for the class section.

Why do I have to protect permission numbers and permission number lists?

Permission numbers must be protected because, if lost or stolen, they can be used by anyone who has student access to the SOLAR system to register in the class section for which they are associated.

While the SOLAR system records the name of each student who uses each permission number, it’s important to be vigilant about protecting access to permission numbers to ensure their proper distribution and use.

-----------------------

12

06/04/2004

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download