Building and Managing Weekly Class Timetable Schedules

Create weekly lesson schedules for your class stream, set up recurring lessons, view the calendar, and keep timetables current when they expire.

Timetables in Elimu Bora give each class stream a structured weekly schedule. Teachers and Heads of Department create timetables for the streams they are responsible for, add individual lessons linked to subjects and time slots, and view the result in a calendar. The system handles expiry automatically so historical schedules are always preserved.

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Who creates timetables

Teachers and HODs create and manage timetables for their assigned grade streams. A timetable belongs to a teacher and covers one stream — if a teacher manages multiple streams, they create a separate timetable for each.

Principals and administrators can view all timetables across the school.

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Timetable validity

Each timetable has a valid from date and a valid to date covering a three-month window. When the end date passes, the timetable expires. The system runs a daily job that automatically marks expired timetables, prompting teachers to create a new one for the next period. Historical timetables are never deleted — they remain as a record of past schedules.

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Creating a timetable

1. Go to Timetables

   In the left navigation, go to Timetables and click New Timetable.

2. Select the teacher and validity dates

   Fill in:

   • Teacher — the teacher responsible for this timetable (this is usually you)
   • Valid From — the date this timetable takes effect
   • Valid To — the end of the validity window (typically three months from the start date)

   Click Create to save the timetable.

3. Open the timetable and add lessons

   Open the newly created timetable and add lessons for the stream. For each lesson you will specify:

   • Subject — the subject being taught
   • Grade Stream — the class this lesson is for
   • Start time and end time — when the lesson runs
   • Day of the week — which day(s) the lesson occurs
4. Set up recurring lessons

   For lessons that repeat each week — such as Mathematics every Monday at 8:00 am — enable the Recurring option and select the recurrence pattern (e.g., weekly on Monday). The system stores this as a recurring rule, and the lesson appears on every matching day in the calendar view for the duration of the timetable’s validity window.

5. Add any all-day or multi-day blocks

   For events such as exam days or field trips that span a full day or multiple days, enable the All Day option when adding the lesson. These appear as full-day blocks in the calendar rather than timed entries.

6. View the timetable

   Open the stream’s timetable page to see the calendar view, which shows the current week’s schedule. Navigate forward and backward by week to see how recurring lessons fall across the timetable’s validity period.

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Recurring lessons

Set up recurring lessons for any subject that meets on the same day and time each week. Once configured, you do not need to add the lesson again each week — the system generates occurrences automatically for the full validity period of the timetable. This saves time and keeps the calendar accurate without manual re-entry.

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When a timetable expires

When a timetable’s valid to date passes, the system marks it as expired during its nightly run. You will see an expired badge on the timetable listing. To continue scheduling:

1. Go to Timetables and create a new timetable.
2. Set the Valid From date to the day after the previous timetable ended (or whichever date the new schedule should start).
3. Re-add your recurring lessons for the new period.

The expired timetable remains in the system for reference and is not deleted.

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Viewing a stream’s schedule

Each grade stream has a Timetable tab on its detail page. This shows the current active timetable’s calendar for that stream. Teachers, HODs, and principals can all view it. Students and guardians see the week’s schedule from their own dashboard view.

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Frequently asked questions

Can two teachers share a timetable for the same stream?

Each timetable is owned by one teacher. However, different teachers can each add lessons for the same stream as long as each lesson is linked to the correct subject and stream. The stream’s calendar aggregates all lessons regardless of which teacher created them.

What happens to lessons if I delete a timetable?

Deleting a timetable removes all lessons associated with it. If you only want to stop a timetable, let it expire naturally rather than deleting it so the historical schedule is preserved.

Can I copy a timetable from a previous period?

Currently, timetables cannot be duplicated automatically. When creating a timetable for a new validity period, you add your lessons fresh. Setting up lessons as recurring minimises the re-entry work each period.

How far in advance can I create a timetable?

You can create a timetable with a Valid From date in the future. This lets you set up the next period’s schedule before the current one expires, so teachers always have a timetable ready to go.