> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.zionapp.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Report cards overview

> Compile per-term academic and character data into report-card PDFs and distribute them to parents

Report cards compile a student's per-term data into a single PDF: PACE grades, test scores, attendance, Goal Check completion, and parent-safe character notes. Administrators, supervisors, and monitors generate report cards for their students. Parents view and download the ones published to them.

## Who can do what

| Role          | Access                                                                           |
| ------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Administrator | Generates report cards for any centre, manages templates, distributes to parents |
| Supervisor    | Generates and distributes report cards, restricted to their assigned centre(s)   |
| Monitor       | Generates and distributes report cards, restricted to their assigned centre(s)   |
| Parent        | Views and downloads only the published report cards for their own children       |

Teaching staff and students do not have access to report cards.

## What a report card contains

Every report card is built from five sections. A section shows "No data for this term" if there is nothing to display for that student.

| Section            | What it shows                      | Scope                                                                                                                  |
| ------------------ | ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| PACE Grades        | PACEs and their percentages        | Completed counts are labelled "Completed (overall)" because they are all-time totals, not limited to the selected term |
| Test Scores        | Finalized test scores for the term | Term-bounded                                                                                                           |
| Attendance         | Present, absent, late for the term | Term-bounded                                                                                                           |
| Goal Check Summary | Goal Check completion for the term | Term-bounded                                                                                                           |
| Character Notes    | Parent-safe notes only             | Term-bounded                                                                                                           |

<Note>
  Character notes only ever show the public note on a student. Private notes are never included in a report card.
</Note>

## Report card statuses

A report card moves through two states.

1. **Generated.** The PDF has been compiled for the term but has not been sent to parents.
2. **Published.** Distribution has run for that card. The card now appears in the parent's report-card archive.

## Term-readiness warnings

Before generating, each in-scope student is checked for possible gaps in their term data: no finalized grades, incomplete grades, no attendance, no Goal Check activity, or no character notes.

Only the no-grades warning blocks generation. If a student has zero finalized test scores for the term, the generating staff member must check an acknowledgement box before proceeding. The other warnings are informational and do not stop generation.

## Generating and distributing

Administrators, supervisors, and monitors generate report cards for a term, optionally scoped to one centre, then distribute them by downloading a ZIP or sending them to parents by email. See <a href="/features/report-cards/generating-and-distributing">Generating and distributing report cards</a> for the full workflow, including delivery-status meanings.

## Templates

Administrators control what a report card looks like: a logo, a default template, and which of the five sections appear and in what order. If a school has no template configured, Zion uses a built-in default automatically. See <a href="/features/report-cards/templates">Report card templates</a>.

## What parents see

Parents only ever see published report cards for their own linked children, grouped by child. A report card that has not been published, or that belongs to a student outside the parent's linked children, never appears. Each report card downloads through a short-lived link generated on demand, not a permanent public URL.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Generating and distributing" icon="paper-plane" href="/features/report-cards/generating-and-distributing">
    Run term readiness checks, generate report cards, and send them to parents.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Report card templates" icon="file-lines" href="/features/report-cards/templates">
    Configure the logo, sections, and default template for your school.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Permanent record" icon="book" href="/features/report-cards/permanent-record">
    View a student's multi-year academic history separate from term report cards.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Grading overview" icon="chart-line" href="/features/grading/overview">
    See how PACE test scores are entered and finalized before a term is generated.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>