SchoolTimetable User Help Guide

2. Dashboard Overview

After login, the dashboard is your control panel for all daily timetable work. At the top, you can quickly see summary cards such as total classes, total subjects, total teachers, and generated timetables. These numbers help you confirm whether initial setup is complete before generation.

1. Check summary cards first to ensure all required data is added (classes, subjects, teachers).
2. Use the left sidebar to open modules in order: Class Select, Subject Select, Teacher Select, Assign Teacher, Break Time, then Generate Timetable.
3. Review recent activity or latest created records (if shown) to confirm your last update was saved correctly.
4. If any count looks low or zero, go back to that module and complete missing entries before generating timetable.
5. Use dashboard as a quick health check page every day before making edits, regeneration, or printing.

4. Select Subjects

In Subject Select, add all subjects that will be used in timetable generation for each class. Subject names must be clean and non-duplicate, because the same subjects are reused later in teacher assignment.

1. Open Subject Select from the sidebar menu.
2. Enter one subject name at a time (example: Tamil, English, Maths, Science, Social Science, Computer Science).
3. Use a consistent naming style for all subjects (for example, always use Maths, not both Math and Maths).
4. If you want the same color for all selected subjects, enable Common Color and choose one color.
5. When Common Color is enabled, both master subjects and custom subjects will use that single selected color.
6. If Common Color is disabled, you can assign different colors subject-wise for better visual separation.
7. Click Save / Submit to create the subject.
8. Repeat until all required academic and activity subjects are added.
9. Go to Subject View and verify that each subject appears only once.
10. If there is spelling mismatch or wrong subject name, use edit option and correct it immediately.
11. Delete only unwanted duplicates or invalid subjects; avoid deleting subjects that are already mapped to teachers unless you plan to remap.
12. Before moving to Assign Teacher, confirm your final subject list is complete for all classes and sections.

5. Create Teachers

In Teacher Create, add all teaching staff before assigning subjects. Teacher names entered here will be used directly in timetable generation, so accuracy and duplicate control are very important.

1. Open Teacher Create from the left sidebar.
2. Enter teacher name exactly as you want it to appear in timetable and reports.
3. Add one teacher at a time and click Save / Submit.
4. Repeat until all teachers for all classes/sections are added.
5. Go to Teacher View and verify the full list.
6. Check for duplicate entries with spelling variations (example: Ravi Kumar and RaviKumar).
7. Use edit option to correct spelling/capitalization mistakes and maintain one standard name.
8. Delete only unwanted duplicate records; avoid deleting teachers already mapped to subjects unless you will remap them.
9. Before opening Assign Teacher, confirm each required subject has at least one available teacher in the list.

6. Assign Teacher-Subject to Class

This is the most important step for automatic timetable generation. In this screen, each class gets its subject, teacher, and weekly period mapping. Wrong or incomplete mapping can cause generation failure or invalid timetable.

1. Open Assign Teacher module from sidebar.
2. Select the target Class & Section first (example: Class 6(A)).
3. Set Working Days and Periods per Day for that class.
4. For each subject row, choose the correct Teacher Name.
5. Enter Weekly Period Count for each subject based on school plan.
6. If options are available, mark Class Teacher and Core Subject correctly.
7. Click Save / Update and verify success message.
8. Repeat the same process for every class and every section.
9. Mandatory: Class/Section must be selected before mapping starts.
10. Mandatory: Every subject must have a mapped teacher.
11. Mandatory: Weekly period value is required for all mapped subjects.
12. Mandatory: Total subject weekly periods should match the class weekly capacity (Working Days x Periods per Day), unless your system allows free/empty periods.
13. After save, re-open the class mapping once and cross-check all values before timetable generation.
14. If one teacher is shared across many classes, verify load is realistic to avoid timetable conflicts.
15. If any subject or teacher is missing in dropdown, go back to Subject Create / Teacher Create, add it, then return and map again.

7. Configure Break Time and Period Timings

In Break Time Configuration, define your daily school timing structure. This setup controls how periods are split across the day and directly affects timetable generation output.

1. Open Break Time Configuration from the menu.
2. Select class (or common configuration option) if your system asks for class-wise timing setup.
3. Enter School Start Time and School End Time first.
4. Set period duration or total number of periods as required by your form.
5. Configure Morning Break, Lunch Break, and Evening Break timings only if applicable.
6. Define how many periods come before and after each break.
7. Ensure all break timings are inside school start-end range and there is no time overlap.
8. Mandatory: Start time and end time must be valid and end time must be later than start time.
9. Mandatory: Total periods configured in all segments should match periods per day used in Assign Teacher mapping.
10. Mandatory: Break slots should not overlap with period slots.
11. Click Save / Update and confirm success message.
12. Open Break Time View and verify period order, break placement, and final daily timeline.
13. If timing structure changes (new lunch slot, extra period, reduced hours), update this module first and then regenerate timetable.

8. Generate Timetable

Use Timetable Form / Generate only after class, subject, teacher mapping, and break-time setup are fully completed. This module creates the timetable automatically based on your configured rules.

1. Open Generate Timetable from the sidebar.
2. Select the required class/section for which timetable should be generated.
3. Confirm break-time configuration and periods-per-day are correct before clicking generate.
4. Verify that all subjects for that class have mapped teachers and weekly period counts.
5. Click Generate to start automatic allocation.
6. The system assigns subjects period-wise while avoiding teacher overlap/conflict where possible.
7. Wait for success message, then open View Timetable to verify day-wise and period-wise output.
8. If generation fails, check mandatory data first: missing subject mapping, missing teacher mapping, invalid period totals, or break-time mismatch.
9. If timetable is generated but not balanced as expected, adjust weekly subject periods or teacher mapping and regenerate.
10. For major structure changes, delete old timetable for that class and generate again with corrected settings.

9. View, Edit and Print Timetable

Use View Timetable to verify the generated schedule before final usage. From here, you can make controlled edits and print a clean version for staff and classrooms.

1. Open View Timetable and select class/section.
2. Verify each day and each period slot carefully (subject, teacher, and sequence).
3. Confirm break positions, start/end times, and total periods are displayed correctly.
4. Check for visible issues like repeated teacher in impossible slots or missing subject entries.
5. If a small correction is needed, open Edit Timetable and update only the required day/period cell.
6. After editing, save and immediately recheck the full week view for that class.
7. For large correction requirements, prefer regenerate instead of doing too many manual edits.
8. Use Print option after final verification to generate clean hardcopy output.
9. Before printing, check page orientation and scale settings so all periods fit clearly.
10. Keep one verified soft copy for records and use print copy for staff display/notice board.

10. Reports and Daily Maintenance

Reports and maintenance modules help you monitor workload, detect data issues early, and keep timetable data clean throughout the academic year.

1. Use Teacher Report to review teacher-wise period load and daily slot distribution.
2. Use class-wise timetable view/report to confirm every class has complete weekly coverage.
3. Track overload/underload cases and balance by adjusting subject-period mapping where needed.
4. Perform weekly data check for duplicate subjects, duplicate teachers, and unused entries.
5. Do all master-data changes (class, subject, teacher) only through their management screens.
6. If academic policy changes (new periods, different breaks, new subject), update configuration first, then regenerate affected classes.
7. After every major update, verify timetable output again before publishing to staff/students.
8. Keep finalized print/soft copies for reference and audit during exam or inspection periods.
9. Use only authorized logins for edits and avoid shared credential usage.
10. Always logout after saving, especially on shared systems.

Continuous Flow: Start Next Class Timetable

1. First, complete timetable generation for one class and verify it in View Timetable.
2. Then open Assign Teacher and select the next class/section (example: from Class 6(A) to Class 7(A)).
3. Set working days and periods for that next class, then map all subjects with teacher names and weekly periods.
4. Save the mapping and open Break Time if class-wise timing is required.
5. Now go to Timetable Form / Generate, select the next class, and click generate.
6. Repeat the same cycle class-by-class until all classes are generated continuously.

Best Practices Before Generating

Follow this quick checklist every time before clicking Generate to avoid conflicts and rework.

1. Verify class setup is complete and all required sections are available.
2. Ensure subject names are clean, consistent, and duplicates are removed.
3. Confirm all teachers are created with correct names and no duplicate entries.
4. Check every class has full teacher-subject mapping with weekly period counts.
5. Validate weekly total periods match class capacity (working days x periods/day).
6. Confirm break-time and period timings are saved and aligned with class schedule.
7. Review one class mapping end-to-end before bulk generation.
8. Use regeneration for major logic changes; avoid excessive manual edits after generation.

FAQ