ClassMat is a printable A3 report that produces one page per class, with students sorted around the outside and a customisable centre layout. You control the data tile next to each student, the sort order, the middle of the page, and the six assignable colour dots above each photo. With around 18 data tile options and nearly 20 centre layouts to choose from, each ClassMat can be tailored to a specific purpose.
The report is designed to give teachers a quick snapshot of their class at a key point in time. Schools commonly use it at the start of a semester or term for class planning, and again after reporting periods to review progress and identify trends. ClassMat reports can be saved as regular PDFs for printing or as interactive PDFs that let staff type notes directly on the page.
In this article
Quick Start Guide
A quick walkthrough to find and generate a basic ClassMat report. For a full explanation of customisation options, see the Training Video and Detailed Guide below.
- Start on the Home page
- Click the pink “Report quick links” button
- Select “Classmat” from the menu
- Choose a cohort of students
- Select the subjects you want to generate ClassMat reports for
- Press the green “Continue” button until your screen says “Building Classmats”
- Change the Student Data Tile to the third option “Selected Subject”
- Choose the Middle of Layout from the drop-down menu
- Change the User Field to the last option “Lev/Cat” (Level/Category)
- To save, press the green “PDF Bundle” button
- Press “Bundle to TrackEd_docs”
- Choose between regular or interactive PDF and click “Continue”
Training Video
- 0:01 What is ClassMat: An A3 printable page per class with students sorted around the outside, customisable data tiles, centre layout, and colour dots.
- 1:19 When to Use It: Designed as a snapshot at a key point in time, commonly used for Week Zero class planning and post-reporting progress review.
- 2:13 Layout Options: Clockwise vs Quadrants: Clockwise sorts students in a circle and gives full control of the centre. Quadrants plots students by two number-based measures but removes the customisable centre.
- 4:14 Data Tiles, Centre Layouts, and User Fields: Around 18 data tile options (recommended: “Selected Subject”), nearly 20 centre layouts supplied by schools, and a range of user field options including Level/Category.
- 5:58 Creating a ClassMat from the Home Page: Walks through selecting a cohort, choosing subject codes, and building ClassMat reports with recommended default settings.
- 8:41 Adding a Second Page: Options for adding a custom image (e.g. differentiation grid or glossary) or a second ClassMat with different data tile and centre settings.
- 10:38 Saving as PDF Bundle: Save to TrackEd_docs or staff SharePoint folders. Regular PDFs are faster; interactive PDFs allow staff to type notes on the page.
- 11:28 Interactive PDF Features: Text boxes, OneSchool student links, email admin button, and custom URL button. Text boxes work in browsers and Acrobat; buttons only work in Adobe Acrobat.
- 14:33 Printing Interactive Notes: Use File > Print in Adobe Acrobat and enable “Summarise comments” to include typed notes in the printed output.
Detailed Guide
Clockwise vs Quadrants
Choosing a Data Tile
Centre Layout Options
Sort Order and User Field
Adding a Second Page
Saving and Sharing
Interactive PDF Options
Printing with Notes
How ClassMat Works
ClassMat generates one A3 page per class based on the timetable import. For secondary schools, make sure your timetable import is up to date before generating. In primary schools, TrackEd creates a timetable automatically from Student Summary and results imports, so no separate timetable import is needed.
To create a ClassMat, go to the Home page, click the pink “Report quick links” button, and select “Classmat.” Choose a cohort (one at a time), then pick the subject codes you want reports for. You can select all subjects and unselect a few, or pick specific codes. Press “Continue” through the default settings and TrackEd will build the reports.
Once built, you can adjust the data tile, centre layout, and user field before saving. Use the navigation bar at the top to click through different subject codes and preview each class.
Clockwise vs Quadrants
The first choice when creating a ClassMat is the layout format. Clockwise (recommended) sorts students from the 12 o’clock position around the page in a circle. This gives you full control over the centre of the page, with a wide range of staff notes templates and editable labels.
Quadrants plots students using two number-based measures. Students strong in both appear in the top right, weaker in both in the bottom left, and mixed results in the other corners. Students without a clear fit appear in the centre. This layout can be harder for staff to read and removes the customisable centre, so most schools use the clockwise option.
Choosing a Data Tile
The data tile controls what information appears next to each student photo. There are around 18 options. The recommended choices are “Selected Subject” (shows the result for whichever subject you’re viewing), “A to E in Data” (shows achievement levels with supporting data), and “Latest in Trend” (shows the latest result with a trend indicator of whether the student went up or down).
The data tile updates automatically as you navigate between subject codes, so a maths class will show maths results and an English class will show English results when using the “Selected Subject” tile.
Centre Layout Options
The middle of the page has nearly 20 starting layouts, all contributed by schools based on real use cases. Options range from open templates with broad staff notes areas to more prescriptive layouts with specific prompts and reflection questions. There’s a balance between guiding teachers with structured prompts and giving them open space to write freely.
The labels on most centre layouts can be edited on the Settings page in TrackEd. This means you can take any starting layout and adjust the text to match your school’s language or processes.
Sort Order and User Field
The sort order controls how students are arranged around the outside of the page. The default sorts by result for the selected subject, then alphabetically within each result band. A range of other sort options are available depending on your use case.
The user field appears underneath each student photo. The “Lev/Cat” (Level/Category) option is a useful choice as it shows the DDA level and category for students with a Disability Discrimination Act record in OneSchool (e.g. “Quality Differentiated, Cognitive”). Combined with the assignable colour dots (where you might set a purple dot to indicate DDA status), this gives teachers a quick high-level flag for students they may want to look into further.
Adding a Second Page
By default, ClassMat produces a single page per class. You can add a second page in two ways.
Image: Drag and drop any PNG or JPEG onto the placeholder area. Schools use this for things like a glossary explaining what each data point means, a set of instructions for how to use the ClassMat, or a differentiation planning grid where staff fill in strategies for each student.
Second ClassMat: Pick a different data tile and centre layout for the second page. This produces a two-page PDF per class. For example, page one might show the selected subject result with a staff notes centre, while page two shows all subject results with trend indicators and a data reflection centre. When printed, these can go back-to-back on a single A3 sheet.
Saving and Sharing
Use the “PDF Bundle” button to save ClassMat reports. Two main options are available: “Bundle to TrackEd_docs” saves all class PDFs to your local TrackEd documents folder, and “Bundle to Staff Folders” saves each class PDF into a folder named by staff ID. The staff folders option integrates with SharePoint and Teams to share reports electronically. For setup details, see Sharepoint Integration.
When saving, you choose between regular PDF (faster, best for printing) and interactive PDF (allows staff to type notes on the page). Regular is the right choice if you’re printing and handing out physical copies. Interactive is better when staff will work with the document on screen.
Interactive PDF Options
Interactive PDFs take longer to generate but add several useful features. When saving as interactive, you can enable four optional elements:
- Text boxes let staff type notes directly on the page. These work in both browser-based PDF viewers and Adobe Acrobat.
- Student link (OS button) opens OneSchool for each student directly from the PDF.
- Email admin button lets staff email whatever they’ve typed on the document to an address you set during generation.
- URL button opens a custom link you paste in during generation.
Printing with Notes
If staff have typed notes into an interactive ClassMat and want to print it with those notes included, there is one extra step. In Adobe Acrobat, go to File > Print and enable the “Summarise comments” option in the print dialogue. Without this, typed text may not appear in the printed output. Saving the PDF in Adobe Acrobat also requires a manual save (in browsers, saving is usually automatic).
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the ClassMat report used for?
A: It is an A3 printable page per class that gives teachers a quick snapshot of their students and key data points. Schools commonly use it for class planning in Week Zero or Week One and after reporting periods to review progress.
Q: What is the difference between Clockwise and Quadrants?
A: Clockwise (recommended) sorts students in a circle and gives you full customisation of the centre. Quadrants plots students by two number-based measures but removes the customisable centre area.
Q: Can I change what appears next to each student?
A: Yes. The student data tile controls what shows beside each photo. There are around 18 options, including subject results, trends, and attendance data. The recommended option is “Selected Subject.”
Q: Can I add a second page to the ClassMat?
A: Yes. Add either a custom image (PNG/JPEG) or a second ClassMat with different data tile and centre options. Both print as a two-page PDF per class.
Q: Why do the OneSchool/URL/email buttons not work from SharePoint?
A: Those buttons only work when the PDF is saved locally and opened in Adobe Acrobat. In-browser PDF viewing supports text entry but will not fire the interactive buttons.
Q: How do I print the ClassMat with typed notes included?
A: In Adobe Acrobat, go to File > Print and enable “Summarise comments” in the print dialogue. This includes typed text fields in the printed output.
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