Academic years

Overview

Academic years are the temporal containers for all academic data in Decimal. Understanding how they work is essential for managing your school's data correctly.

Academic year structure

Academic Year: 2024/2025
├── Term 1 (Sep 1 – Dec 15)
│   ├── Mid-Term Exam
│   └── End-of-Term Exam
├── Term 2 (Jan 6 – Mar 28)
│   ├── Mid-Term Exam
│   └── End-of-Term Exam
└── Term 3 (Apr 14 – Jul 4)
    ├── Mid-Term Exam
    └── Final Exam

Each term has a is_current flag indicating the active term. Only one term can be current at a time.

Data scoping

All academic data is scoped to an academic year: class definitions are per-year, subject assignments are per-year, marks and grades are per-term within a year, attendance records are dated but reported per-term, and there is one timetable per academic year.

Historical data

Previous academic years are preserved as read-only. You can view historical grades and attendance, generate reports for past years, compare current performance with historical data, and access archived student profiles. Historical data cannot be modified, ensuring data integrity.