iGradePlus

Pros

This is a marvelous tool that can make easy school management. I prefer this software for managing my online school. It helps to reduce the stress to manage a school perfectly. It is very easy to use and affordable. I feel comfortable while I log in there as a teacher. Its features always surprise me.

Cons

It is quite simple to use and I never found any problems while using it. Any school teacher can use this software for passing everyday tension free

Pros

The ability to communicate with students and parents with ease. Posting student work and grades make grading and creating a portfolio of student completed work for Parent, IEP, or 504 meetings a perfect place for evidence of student growth.

Cons

None at this time. If I do have any questions about changes. There is always a quick response.

Pros

I love the easy access and simplicity of moving through the tabs screens. The email is great and so is the bulletin board

Cons

I'd prefer if teachers could access all of their courses at once. It's annoying to have to create each subject for each teacher and then manually enter the students. It is very time consuming at the start of each year. The report template needs improving. For elementary students there must be an option to record promoted or retained without having to create so many different templates.

Pros

Ths is a very user friendly product that has multiple uses in addition to managing grades and assignments. the bulletin board and empoyee/student evaluations are quite useful.

Cons

Our center enrolls students from 8 different high schools. It would nice to be able to print a list of students by high school and for grade reports at the term and the semester.

Pros

I like how I can email my students' work when I am out. Students find it easy to follow assignments and grades.

Cons

only that last year we could not enter a grade with the automatic columns in assessments

Pros

User friendly
Similar to what I used before--PowerSchool
I did not want to revert back to old school ways and have to figure grades by calculator. Not that I am lazy, but it just seems easier to have it more than one place.

Cons

There is currently nothing that I would say that I dislike about this software.

Pros

I love how easy it is use. It makes keeping data super easy. When I have a question or there's a bug (which I'd expect from time-to-time with any online tool) customer service is quick to fix and provide support.

Cons

It really isn't much of a con as it sometimes has bugs that crop up - it's part of being an online tool. Customer service is quick to make fixes and provide support, so I really can't fault this tool.

Pros

Completely easy to use. It makes sense. I can spend just a few minutes at the beginning of the year setting it up and I'm good for the rest of the school year.

Cons

Nothing, really. It perfectly fits my needs.

Pros

What I like most about this software is that I can easily add classes, course #s, Instructors, and Students into the system. I also like that this software has a memo board for me to write general announcements so students, staff, and faculty can view it all at once.

Cons

What I like least about this software is that there is no "confirm" button when adding classes, course #s, Instructors, and Students into the system. It get a little confusing knowing whether or not you've added certain things or not.

Pros

It's easy to use and it offers a free program

Cons

Nothing yet. I am still exploring this program.

Pros

We are a small program and iGrade does everything that we need it to do and more.

Cons

We haven't encountered anything that we didn't like yet.

Pros

The ease to management of the students data and their day to day activity is really awesome over this app. It is a best software for the educators for classroom management and student information management.

Cons

It is a bit typical to understand at the beginning but after few go throughs it's very easy and time efficient.

Pros

Integration with our existing processes was very easy, and we were able to develop very useful features for managing our Daily Performance Measurement reporting for all students on a timely and effective basis and for keeping track of students on sugar-free diets, etc.

Cons

The one feature that we miss most is the ability to store and retrieve current photos for all students.

Pros

It allows be to plug in my classroom census, syllabus, grade scale and grade weights. As I log into my books, it calculates and averages grades as I have preset. I can communicate with students and send digital and virtual assignments with a location for their response.
The customer service is fast, personal and helpful. He is always coming up with new ways to expand and improve the product.

Cons

I wish there were a better way to copy and paste a syllabus in the calendar from one week and year to the next.

Pros

Initially anxious as a teqcher about changing software companies because of learning curve for everyone and the impact on productivity. But they have excellent customer service, even at the non-admin level.

Cons

There is occasionally a lag time when I'm entering grades at end of a term or advising students individually.

Pros

It is very easy to use and, they have great customer service. Features are upgraded and added on a regular basis. The creators even listen to customers on things that are needed or ways to improve.

Cons

It needs to do a better job in video meetings and communications. It would be great to have one place for emails and chats.

Pros

The software functions well and the customer service response has been great over the years. I also liked that users are sent an activitation invitation email. I can quickly tell whether students are really going to take the online classes seriously if they activate it quickly. Those who do tend to stay in the course. Those who don't... a warning signs that they may not be best suited for the online environment.

Cons

There was a little bit of a challenge when initially determining how to set up individual courses within a semester, but once you get the hang of it, it works well.

Pros

IGrade is very user friendly. Customer support is very quick to respond and help if you have any questions about functions in the grading system. If something changes they keep users informed.

Cons

Some times it runs a little slower than I would like. It can also kick you out at the most random times.

Pros

This grading program is very easy to use. It is a very cost-effective option for our small school who is on a tight budget. It offers many of the same functions and options that a larger company would offer, but at a fraction of the cost. We have enjoyed using it for over 2 years now!

Cons

There are a few features that iGradePlus has not offered, however after contacting custom service about this features, I was many time told there were already working on creating that function, so I just had to wait. Each upgrade has been an improvement from the last and created more ease of access also.

Pros

Being able to assign weights to grade categories, attendance section is easy to use, assignments have good detail especially with comment section. Being able to invite students/parents to see grades is very convenient.

Cons

Reports, especially those in excel format are crowded with more information than is needed. Also, not being able assign the same assignment to more than one class at a time is frustrating. It seems that there have been more interruptions in service this year even leading to the loss of some information.

Pros

Having worked with a couple of different grade recording programs over the years, I truly appreciate how user friendly the program is. Teachers don't need to spend a lot of extra time with complicated procedures for entering grades. Also, I am operating from a small mission school in Haiti and we have had some special needs over the last couple of years and the service behind the scenes has been second to none. I seriously can't imagine getting the sort of personalized attention we have received from the folks at iGradePlus anywhere else.

Cons

My only frustrations in using the program have stemmed from the quality of our local internet connections here in Haiti and not really anything that iGradePlus would have control over!

Pros

Wow, just amazing. A lot of the grade book features I've been looking for years. I've tried so many and ultimately for the ease of use, price, and customizability, I have not found anything that compares.

Cons

If you are using a traditional grading system it works exceptionally well. For standards-based grades, it is difficult to use unless you use some type of conversion (they say this feature is coming). Otherwise, it does everything I need it to do with a clean interface.

Pros

1. Online
2. Ability to share with parents and guardians
3. Economical
4. So many good options - to take attendance, keep grades, and record behavior
5. Report Card Generator
6. Ability to create assignments across several classes

Cons

1. The report generator is not the most user friendly and creates odd looking reports
2. The attendance generator does not appear to be intuitive - often recording multiple absences on the same day when changes are made.

Pros

Excellent Customer service and fast response to any questions.
Parent portal is an excellent feature to allow parents to keep track of their student's work.
Easy to enter grades.

Cons

Needs a few more tweaks to help with efficiency, like additional assignment copy options and removing some repetitive process steps, but this is me being a bit nitpicky.

Pros

About a year and a half ago our school had been using another online grade book that caused us one headache after another. After switching to Igradeplus, many of the problems from before have vanished. It is very reliable and easy to use. At our school we have many different teachers logging in and entering grades and attendance, so having a software that is straight forward and fast is a must. And even though it has made registration, attendance, grading etc easier, the customer service is where Igradeplus really pulls ahead. When I run into a problem that I can't seem to figure out, I simply send an email to the developer and normally on the same day I will receive a reply that walks me through the hang up. Or if there isn't a feature that we need, I'll ask. And they take care of it! It's hard to find that kind of service anymore.

Cons

The only search feature is the browser's "Command+F" or "Control+F"option. Normally this works alright, but there have been many times when we look for a student and the browser's search option hasn't been able to locate the student.

Pros

Look this gradebook is easy to use, easy to figure out (even for me) and extremely reliable. It always is up and running 24/7. My students love it.

Cons

The selecting of grade categories and % of each category is a little daunting (for me). Just not quite as easy as everything else.

Pros

Inexpensive, easy to use, cloud based, parent and student portals

Cons

the only thing I wish it would do is notify parents if there is a missing assignment.

Pros

I like the student's grade management function most.

Cons

Please consider implementing a button that allows a person to choose something like attendance for "all", or "one specific dates".

Pros

Ease of use
Everything in one place
Affordable
Real Time changes

Cons

Not sure there are any items that I do not like.

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to iGradePlus

Pros

It was affordable, easy to learn, great customer support.

Cons

No online testing function
No student billing in their portal

Pros

Easy to use. Easy to access. Great features and amazing customer service.

Cons

I like everything about it. I have no issues.

Pros

It is quite easy to use and has great features.

Cons

Not a dislike but a few features I do not use.

Pros

Easy to use and customizable for any school situation!

Cons

Not one thing that I can think of, it's free.

Pros

The program is user-friendly. iGradePlus is an easy way to keep up with the grades and parents are able to see how they child is doing at all times.

Cons

I haven't found anything I don't like about iGradePlus

Pros

I love how user-friendly iGradePlus is! The command buttons are logical and easy to find.

Cons

I personally struggle with the reporting section, but I am still working on mastering it!

Pros

It did the job for calculating the percentages for each subject and also for the students' overall average, which was extremely beneficial!

Cons

Not being a techy person I did not find it intuitive, however it did the job for calculating the percentages for each subject and also for the students' overall average.

Pros

The simplicity and everything is in one place. It is also super customizable (not a one size fits all).

Cons

Nothing as yet. I am super happy with them!

Pros

iGradePlus has completely changed my professional life, and the educational life of my students. Gone are the days when I had to run around like a harried parent, making sure students knew what was going on and what it could mean for them. Now the information about what they need to do and what it means to their grade is there, always-accessible online, clear and transparent. They have no excuses, they always know where they stand, and it is instantly clear to them and their parents what they need to do to improve. I have to do a fraction of the hard discipline and motivation that I used to do, because when kids can see their situation clearly they generally want to do the best they can with it. And when parents also know exactly what is going on they easily can see how to help. And most parents, in their hearts I´ve found, truly want to help if only they know what the problem is and HOW to help.
My first report card and parents´ evening with iGradePlus were an absolute revelation. There was no stress, no tears, no frantic negotiations and threats from parents- everyone walked in already knowing what the current grade was, and more or less which categories of grades and activities were the problem. We spent our time not arguing but pleasantly discussing subtleties of the students´ challenges, feelings, and strengths. Other teachers started to notice how relaxed I was at grade time, and now much of my school is using iGradePlus.

Pros

I like being able to copy assignments to other classes I teach, which saves me time. Entering grades is user friendly for the most part, meaning you can figure it out with little to no training. I like that there are things you can personalize, as in creating different assignment categories.

Cons

I don't like that the default setting for attendance is "present" (but that may just be how my school administrator set it up). I sometimes use the administrator account to look up students' grades and attendance in all their classes, and what I notice is, and this is my biggest complaint with iGrade, that students' absences are hard to track per class period when you look up their attendance. It just says they have 3 absences, but doesn't say in which period (unless you go through extra steps to figure it out).

One other feature I don't like is that grades copy automatically when we start a new school year: this means if I taught English 10 1st period last year, but this year I teach English 12 1st period, my gradebook for 1st period is FULL of all of the old assignments from 1st period last year. That requires me to go and delete them all, which can be very time consuming (even if trying to do a bulk delete, which seems to slow the program down significantly).

Finally, I wish teachers had the ability to simply look up students' grades in other classes without having admin access in iGrade.

Pros

iGradePlus is used by all our instructors because it is easy to understand and set up and provides a fantastic array of record keeping and student management options. Instructors are able to set parameters and guidelines for grading, keep track of attendance and behavior, easily communicate with parents and students, and offer parents access to their children's grades. Anytime I have a question or have encountered a problem and email the company, I receive a quick response and the help I need to fix the problem.

Cons

Working up methods of deducting percentage off of total grades instead of point off of scores for grades. As of the end of this past school year, iGradePlus hasn't included a percent off total score option, just a points off the score entered option for late work. Much of my grading involves inputting actual points on a quiz or study guide which can range from 10 points to 125 points, so it's difficult to have a built in number of points deduction for late work. I need a percent off late work option. I have been told they are working on that option, so it might be fixed for this year. But that is a minor problem compared to how much I like the overall program!

Pros

Initially I chose iGradePlus because of its price and ease of use. However after using it I discovered they had quick and responsive service. We are pleased with the overall product and service. More is added every year and most is based on what we ask for as customers.

Cons

There are several features not up and running yet. This is probably due to the number of years it takes to refine the software. I will say though, new features are rolled out several times a year. Thankfully these roll outs are based on what we the customers need and ask for. Knowing this we patiently and expectantly look forward to the continued evolution of this product.

Pros

This is a great way for students and parents to take control of their education. I have seen more involvement with the parents on what their students are doing.

Cons

I don't like the way the attendance is taken. I have done it in class instead of for the day.

Pros

As an individual instructor, working with a collective of vendors this platform seamlessly marries to meet the record-keeping our parents and students need. Our student's personal information is kept secure and our educators have a record book that makes communication a breeze. It was simple to set up for each teacher and class. Parents can join easily . Additional parents, tutors and educators can be added to monitor multiple students. Marvin's rapid response to development ideas makes me feel like my organization is his sole focus rather than treating my industry like a red-headed step child. iGradePlus.com has helped our collective in this rapidly changing world of distance education.

Cons

Intergration into Google Classroom would be a lovely next step.

Pros

Excellent way to manage grades AND have BOTH students are parents aware of progress, grades on each assignment so there are no surprises during reporting periods.

Cons

It took a bit to understand all the features .. but ... SUPPORT IS AMAZING. Any question I had was answered in a few hours or less. BRAVO!

Pros

The ease of using this grading program is wonderful. The students are able to log in and see their grades at any time and see my comments of why they lost points. It is easy to add students each semester and if they were already in one of my classes then their information transfers right over with just a click! I love that I can apply the fields I select to everyone in the class if I want when inputting an assignment.

Cons

Navigating through the reports and trying to run a report of just what you need can be cumbersome. I wish once I have created a report that it would be saved as a template regardless if I started a new grading period/semester.

Pros

While the product is great, the thing I appreciate the most is the costumer service! If I could give more than 5 stars I certainly would! As far as the function of the product, the News Feed may be one of my most used features. Having an easy way to post information that can easily be retrieved at a later date/ time by parents and students at their convenience makes my job easier.

Also, the abilty for parents to print transcripts at their convenience is nice for our families.

Cons

From my teacher's perspectives, adding grades to the grade book can be tedious. However, the staff of iGradeplus are top-notch and are always available to hear our requests and have made several of the improvements / updates we have requested.
From my perspective, not being able to add the courses and rosters of the coming year until the current year has been archived creates a great deal of extra work for me. We are a homeschool co-op of about 300 students and I need to keep a very close eye on head-count for each hour of the day and for each course. A traditional school or a school that does not need to keep a close eye on enrollment for each class and each hour may not be effected by the inability to overlap school years.

Pros

I love the versatility of the platform. There are so many functions that work well together. The software is well integrated and very thought out. The pathway from page to page is logical and intuitive. Anytime I had an issue with the iGradePlus, I received a response swiftly. And they are eager to take suggestions as well.

Cons

There are some functionalities of the newest upgrade that are still in beta or not as functional, but I am confident that they are working out the bugs, such as bulletins and memos. I would like to see a search function for the email content. I've used it for so long, my emails have grown.

Pros

Customer service is stellar. User friendly platform. Intuitive. Provides the basic grading records, communication, and data records needed by our school. Affordable for small, non-profit educational institutions.
More pros: rich text features, lesson log, many options for setting up grading and classes, student uploads, able to add links, attachments, and images, email feature, discussion feature
iGradePlus team continues to develop new features and improvements (check out their blog!)

Cons

Video tutorials would be helpful for new people learning how to use the platform.

Pros

There are a lot of online gradebooks to choose from. However, they are not all equal. You might love one feature but then find another aspect is lacking. IgradePlus was wonderful in every way!! First of all, it was the first online gradebook I found that would work for a Dual Language class. I can seperate the two groups but can still assign assignments to all whenever I want. My partner teacher and I use the same account and easily access and manage grades and multiple other features. We seperated the subjects according to the categories from our district report card and now all we have to do at the end of the trimester is create the progress report and grades are done!! We also love that there is a student and parent portal! This makes it easy for parents and students to check on progress. We love it!

Cons

Creating progress reports/report cards was a little challenging to figure out at first and took me some extra time to learn but once I figured it out- they were great! I send print outs with district report cards.

Pros

I like how easy it is to use putting in grades, finding grades, setting parameters and making changes on the student level. I like that whenever there is a problem a solution is quickly dealt out. It is nice to have a place to upload notes sent home and be able to communicate with parents and allow them to view their child(s)' grades.

Cons

Sometimes it can be hard to find assignments if you do not use all of the entry tools available.