Student groups can be created at both the district level (administrator) and the class level (teacher). District groups can be used district wide, while class groups are created by the teacher, and can only be used for their specific classes. The differences between district and class student groups is found below:

District Student Groups

Example:

Created by an administrator.
Can be used for any class in the district.
Can be used as a filter in Analytics.
Can be used to run reports such as queries, historical reports, and report cards.*
Can be used for assigning lessons, assigning assessments, and adding students to plans.
Can be used for giving recognitions and sharing bookshelf resources.
Represented by a semi-circle.*
District groups appear in the student's Groups section of the student profile.*

❓ Who Can Add/Remove Students from District Groups?

Only Administrators can add and remove students from district student groups.

Class Student Groups

Example:

Created by an administrator or teacher.
Can be used just for that specific teacher's classes.
Can be used as a filter in analytics
Can be used for assigning lessons, assigning assessments, and adding students to plans.
Can be used for giving recognitions and sharing bookshelf resources.
Represented by a full circle.
Teachers can only add their students to class groups. To add a student to a district group, that must be done by an administrator.
Class groups do not appear in the Groups section of the student profile.

❓ Who Can Add/Remove Students from Class Groups?

Teachers can add and remove students from class student groups.
Administrators can add students to class groups if they are a co-teacher on the class.
Administrators can remove students from class student groups, even if they are not a co-teacher.

*These are the distinguishable differences between district-level student groups and class-level student groups.

This article is specifically written for district-level student groups. If you are looking for class-level student groups, check out this resource.

Create a District Student Group

Step 1: From the District module, choose Student Groups.
Step 2: Select Create Group.
Step 3: Title your new student group and choose a color.
Step 4: Select Add.

Add Students to a District Group

Step 1: Select the ellipsis on the desired group and click Assign Students.

Step 2: The group will be auto-selected. You are able to multi-select groups if you wish.
Step 3: Begin typing a name into the search field. The list of students will start to populate below.
Step 4: Choose students from the list. As you click their names, they will appear below. If you added them by mistake, select the trash can icon.
Step 5: Once you've added all of the students you wish to add, select Done.

❗ Administrators are not able to add students to class-level groups unless they are a co-teacher of the class.

Remove a Student From a District Student Group

Administrators can remove students from both district-level and class-level groups.

This can be done in three ways:

From the District Student Groups Page
From the Class List Page
From the Student Profile

From the District Student Groups Page (district groups only)

Step 1: Select the ellipsis on the desired group and select View Students.
Step 2: Select the X next to the student you'd like to remove.
Step 3: Confirm you'd like to remove that student by selecting Yes.

From the Class List Page (district and class groups)

Step 1: Navigate to the Classes module and select the class the student is in.
Step 2: In the Groups column, select the group that you wish to delete the student from.
Step 3: Confirm you'd like to remove that student by selecting Yes.

💡 Tip: If the circle is filled in completely, that is a class group. If the circle is half-filled in, that is a district group.

From the Student Profile (district and class groups)

Step 1: Navigate to the student's Student Profile.
Step 2: Select the Information Section of the student profile.
Step 3: While in the Groups tab, select the ellipsis to the right of the group, then select Delete. You will be asked to confirm by selecting Yes or No.

Edit the Name or Color of a District Student Group

Step 1: Select the ellipsis on the desired group and select Edit.
Step 2: From here, you can change the color or the name of the group.

Edit the Start or End Date of a Student's Enrollment in a District Group

Step 1: Navigate to the student's Student Profile
Step 2: Select the Information Section of the student profile.
Step 3: While in the Groups tab, select the ellipsis to the right of the group, then select Edit.

Delete a District Student Group

❗ Please delete groups with extreme caution, as this data is not recoverable.

District student groups can be deleted from the Student Groups page within an administrator account.

Step 1: From the District module, choose Student Groups.
Step 2: Select the ellipsis on the student group tile that you'd like to delete.
Step 3: Select Delete.
Step 4: Read the warning message carefully, as this data is not able to be recovered.

💡 Tip: If you must delete a district student group, we highly recommend downloading the Student Group Membership export first. This is so you at least have a record of the students in the particular district group you are deleting, just in case. This export can be generated in the Main Admin account only.

FAQ and Troubleshooting

Click to see FAQ and troubleshooting details

Can district groups sync from an SIS (student information system)?

Yes. Contact your Otus CXP to begin the process of syncing your student groups from your SIS into Otus!

What happens if I try to add a student that is no longer actively rostered to a group?

You will receive an error message. You are not able to add student that are not actively rostered to student groups.

How long after a district student group is created do you have to wait for it to be available to use in report cards, query, and historical?

An overnight sync must occur in order for the new group to be used in report cards, query, and historical reporting.

❗ What happens if I delete a district student group?

The data is not recoverable. Please delete groups with extreme caution.

Can administrators add students to class student groups?

Yes. This can be done just like a teacher would add students to their groups. Click here for more information.

What impact does the start and end date have of a student's enrollment in a district-level group?

When generating report cards; the start and end dates of the student's enrollment in the student group must be included within the date range of the report card.

How can I see what groups a student is in?

You can see student groups listed on the main class list page, represented as semi-circles or full circles. Hover over the circle to see the group name. You can also see the groups in the Information section of the student profile.

Is there a way to see a list of all students in a group?

Yes. This can be done by generating a Student Group Membership export from the Main Administrator account. You can also filter the class list page to see just a specific list of students in groups from a certain class.

What can teachers do with district student groups?

Teachers can use district student groups when assigning lessons, assigning assessments, adding students to plans, filtering in analytics, and can view these groups on the class list and in the student profile. The only actions teachers are not able to take when it comes to district student groups are creating, editing, or deleting them, as well as adding or removing students from them.

Is there a way to only share a district group with specific staff members?

No. When a district group is created, the group itself will be visible and available to all staff. However, teachers and admins will only be able to see group membership for students they have permission to view.

Can I create and assign groups anywhere else besides the District Groups page?

Yes. Groups can be created from many places, such as: assessment analytics, standards analytics, 3rd Party analytics, and the gradebook.

Can student groups be used when running report cards?

Yes. District student groups can be used when running report cards.

District Teacher Groups

Class Student Groups

District Recognitions

Viewing Sites, Teachers, and Students from an Admin Account

Student Groups Overview