# Exam management — datesheet, marks entry and results

> Create an exam and its datesheet, enter marks paper by paper, set your grading scale, see the result sheet and send datesheets and results to families.

Source: https://pathshala.mjxtechnologies.com/docs/academy/exams-and-marks/

In Pathshala, **Exams** holds every exam you run and its datesheet: which subject, which class, which day and out of how many. From each paper you open **Marks** to enter what every child scored, and the **Results** screen adds it all up per class.

A coaching centre sees **Tests** instead of Exams, and a skill institute sees **Assessments**.

> [!PATH] Apps › School & Academics › Exams

![Exams screen with the Add button of the New exam form marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-1.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams")

![An exam's datesheet with the Add paper button marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-2.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams")

The exam screens share one tab strip: **Exams**, **Marks**, **Results**, **Grades** and **Send**.

## Steps to create an exam

1. Open **Exams** and use **New exam**.
2. Type the **Name** (for example "Half-Yearly Examination 2026").
3. Choose the **Kind**: Unit test, Term / semester, Half-yearly, Final / annual, Practical, or Other.
4. Optionally set **From** and **To** (the window you announce) and a **Note** (for example "Syllabus as circulated on 12 Nov").
5. Press [[Add]].

> [!SUCCESS]
> The exam appears in the list as a draft. Use the **All**, **Drafts** and **Published** filters to find it.

## How to build the datesheet (add papers)

1. On the exam, press **Datesheet**.
2. Under **Add a paper**, choose the **Class**, the **Section** (or the whole class) and the **Subject**.
3. Set the **Date (optional)**, **From** and **To** times, **Out of** (100 by default) and an optional **Pass mark** and **Note** (for example "Hall 2").
4. Press [[Add paper]]. Repeat for every paper.

A paper with no date sits at the bottom until you give it one. Two papers the same children sit at the same hour are marked, but still saved.

From the datesheet you can also press **CSV**, **Save all papers as one PDF**, or "…or the answer keys, in one file" (the last two need question papers built — see [Question papers](academy/question-papers)).

### Each paper's buttons

| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Marks** | Opens marks entry for this paper |
| **Paper** | Opens the question paper builder (Pro). On Basic it shows **Paper** with a 🔒 and opens the upgrade page |
| **Edit** / **Remove** | Change or delete the paper |

### Each exam's buttons

| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Datesheet** | Opens the papers of the exam |
| **Publish** / **Un-publish** | Shows or hides the datesheet for families |
| **Send** | Sends the datesheet on WhatsApp (publish it first) |
| **Cards** | Prints admit cards — see [Admit cards](academy/admit-cards) |
| **Results** | Opens the result sheet |
| **Show results** / **Hide results** | Lets families see the results, or hides them again |
| **Tell families** | Sends a "result is out" WhatsApp (show the results first) |
| **Edit** / **Delete** | Change or delete the exam |

## How to enter marks

> [!PATH] Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Datesheet › Marks

![Datesheet with the Marks button on a paper marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-3.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Datesheet › Marks")

![Marks screen with the first mark box marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-4.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Datesheet › Marks")

1. Open the exam's **Datesheet** and press **Marks** on the paper.
2. Type each child's mark. Use **Find a child** to jump to a name or roll number.
3. Tap **Abs** if the child did not sit the paper, or **N/A** if they were not expected to sit it. Leave a box empty for a sheet you have not checked yet.
4. Add a note to a sheet if needed ("A note about this sheet").
5. Press [[Save marks]].

> [!SUCCESS]
> The average, grades and positions update. The average counts only the sheets marked so far.

Switch the order between **Register** (roll order) and **Highest first**. **Changes** shows who changed which mark and when. **CSV** downloads the marks.

> [!NOTE]
> Positions are worked out from the sheets marked so far and are never saved. Two children on the same mark share a position and the next one skips it. A child who was absent, not taking the paper, or not yet checked has no position.

## How to set your grading scale

> [!PATH] Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Grading scale

![Grading scale screen with The bands marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-5.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Grading scale")

The grading scale is your institution's own ladder — one scale for the whole institution, used everywhere a mark is shown.

1. Open **Grading scale** (from the Exams screen or the **Grades** tab).
2. Press **+ Add a band** for each range, or **Start from a ready-made ladder**: "10-point ladder (A1 to E)" or "Four words (Distinction to Needs work)".
3. Set where each band **starts**, its letter or word, and optionally its grade points.
4. Use **Try a percentage** to check how a mark will be graded (for example 46.9).
5. Press [[Save scale]].

A child gets the band with the highest start at or below their percentage. With no scale, marks are shown as numbers only — right for a centre that ranks rather than grades. Pathshala does not work out a CGPA.

## The result sheet

> [!PATH] Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Results

![Exam card with the Results and Send buttons marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-6.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Results")

![Results screen with the Class and Section boxes marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-7.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Results")

Choose the **Exam**, the **Class** and optionally the **Section**. You get one line per child across every paper: the total, the percentage, the grade and the position in the class. **CSV** downloads it; **Cards** prints report cards (see [Report cards](academy/report-cards)).

A total gets a position only where the child has a mark on every paper of the sheet.

### When can families see results?

- Exam-wide: press **Show results** on the exam card (owner or admin).
- One section at a time: on the result sheet, press **Publish this section** (or **Publish this class**). **Take back** hides it again.

The sheet always says whether "Families can see these results" or "Families cannot see these results".

## How to send the datesheet and results on WhatsApp

> [!PATH] Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Send

![Send the schedule screen with a class and Select all marked](media/academy/exams-and-marks-8.jpg "Apps › School & Academics › Exams › Send")

**Send the schedule** WhatsApps one class's families the days and times their children sit each paper. **Tell families the result is out** sends one WhatsApp naming the child and the exam, with a button that opens the result.

1. Open **Send** (or press **Send** / **Tell families** on the exam).
2. Choose the **Exam** and the **Class**.
3. Tick who gets it (**Select all** / **Clear**).
4. Press [[Preview]] to see the message, then [[Send]].
5. **What went out →** shows the log.

> [!WARNING]
> The message leaves on your institution's own WhatsApp number, and a WhatsApp template must be approved by Meta first. If the screen says **One template to create first**, press [[Create this on my number]]. Meta usually replies within a day. Messages are billed as WhatsApp usage.

## Who can use exams?

| Task | Who |
|---|---|
| See exams, datesheets and grading scale | Owner, Admin, Staff |
| Create exams, add papers, publish the datesheet | Owner, Admin |
| Enter and change marks | Owner, Admin, Staff (the subject teacher, class teacher, a cover teacher or the principal) |
| See results | Owner, Admin, Staff |
| Change the grading scale | Owner, Admin |
| Show results, send datesheets and results | Owner, Admin |

Plan: **MJX Academic Basic** and above. Sending on WhatsApp is in Basic. The **Paper** builder and **Save all papers as one PDF** need Pro; on Basic they show a 🔒 and open the upgrade page.

## Troubleshooting

| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| "You can see the exams and their datesheets. Only the office can change them." | Your login can read only. Ask the owner or an admin. |
| "You can see the marks. Only the subject teacher, the class teacher, a cover teacher or the principal can change them." | You are not linked to this class or subject on the Staff screen. |
| "Nobody is on the roll" | No students in the paper's class. Admit students or check the paper's class. |
| "No WhatsApp number connected" | Connect your number in **WhatsApp Settings** before sending. |
| "Template is with Meta" | You submitted the template; nothing sends until Meta approves it. |
| "Not available yet on the shared number" | This message cannot go from MJX's shared number; connect your own. |
| "Network problem. Nothing was saved — try again." | Your connection dropped while saving marks. Save again. |

Teachers can also enter marks in the [MJX Teacher app](apps/teacher-app). Families read published results in the [MJX Parent app](apps/parent-app).

## Questions people ask

### Is an absent child given zero?

No. Tap **Abs** for a child who did not sit the paper. An absent child gets no mark, no grade and no position — never a zero.

### Are grades saved with the marks?

No. Grades are worked out from your grading scale every time they are shown. Change a band and every mark reads the new way at once.

### When do families see the results?

Only after you press **Show results** on the exam (or publish one section on the Results screen). Until then, families cannot see them.

### Does the result WhatsApp include the marks?

No. It names the child and the exam and has a button to open the result. No total, percentage, grade or position is in the message.

### Two papers on the same day and time — will it stop me?

No. The datesheet marks the clash so you can see it, but it still saves, because papers are often moved late.