Example Page
Course Selection Review and Line Generation
Having completed course selection, it is important to review the outcomes. Here are a few items to consider:
Courses with few preferences:
Are there multiple options within a single subject area? Sometimes less is more, having too many options results in no single course having sufficient numbers to run even though there are enough students selecting across the wider subject area. Consider collapsing these into more generic courses to capture the interest.
Before cancelling, there are a number of things to consider:
- Check the number of backups for these courses (if you have access to these) – if there are a large number, the course may yet fill up.
- Are there other courses in a similar situation?
- If cancelling multiple courses, check the students – make sure that they are not the same students each time.
Oversubscribed courses:
Where resources are tight, the number of classes that can be run may be limited. If large numbers of students may miss out it would be worth considering how hard the limitation is really. Schools have been known to fit out general spaces on a temporary basis to satisfy the needs of a particular cohort.
Modelling:
It is worth modelling a number of different lines solution scenarios. For example, it may be that you have exactly the right number of students for just three Maths classes. Adding a fourth may seem counterintuitive but could add flexibility so that many more students are able to be granted their preferences.
If cancelling under-subscribed courses, it is worth modelling the different options for cancellation. Often, our first choice is not the right one when preference combinations of individual students come into play.
.
