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Everything you need to know about Dugsikaab School Management

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Admin Configuration & Setup

The Dugsikaab system is relational. You cannot create a Subject without a Grade, and you cannot create a Grade without an Academic Year. Follow this exact order to avoid errors:

Step 1: Academic Years
Go to Configuration > Academic Years. Create the current year (e.g., "2024-2025") and mark it as Active.
Step 2: Grades
Go to Configuration > Grades. Create levels (e.g., Grade 1, Form 4). Ensure the "Ordering" number is correct (1 for Grade 1, 12 for Form 4) so promotions work correctly.
Step 3: Classes (Sections)
In the same Grades page, add Sections (A, B, C) linked to those grades.
Step 4: Subjects
Go to Configuration > Subjects. Create subjects (Math, Somali, Arabic) and link them to the specific grades.

To make your Reports and Receipts look professional, navigate to Dashboard > School Settings.

A. Uploading Assets
  • Logo: Upload your school crest (JPG/PNG).
  • Digital Stamp: Upload a .png file with a transparent background. This will be automatically overlaid on all official documents.
B. Signatory Delegation

You can assign different people to sign different documents:

  • Academic Reports: Usually signed by the Principal or Head of Examinations.
  • Finance Receipts: Usually signed by the Head of Finance or Secretary.

Go to Students > Guardian Manager. This page manages the "Parent Accounts" that link siblings together.

Why is this important?
If you have 3 siblings (Ahmed, Ali, Fatima) in the school, they should all be linked to one Guardian account (e.g., their Father's Phone Number). This allows you to generate a single "Family Receipt" for all three children.
Key Actions:
  • Adding a Guardian: Use this if you are registering a student manually and their parent is not in the system yet.
  • Editing Details: If a parent changes their phone number, update it here. It will automatically update the contact info for all linked students.
  • Deleting: You can only delete a Guardian if they have 0 Linked Students. If you try to delete a parent with active children, the system will block you to prevent data corruption.
Admissions & Student Management

Go to Students > Add Single.

  1. Guardian Check: Enter the parent's phone number first. The system will check if the family exists.
  2. If existing, select the parent. If new, create the parent profile.
  3. Fill in student details. The Admission Number must be unique.

Use the Import Excel page to register many students into the Current Active Year.

Prerequisites:
  • You must have an Active Academic Year set.
  • All Grades and Sections in your CSV must already exist in Settings.
CSV Logic:
  • Guardians: The system groups siblings based on the Guardian Phone Number.
  • Admission No: Generated automatically during import.
Student Manager & Records

Go to Students > Student Manager. This is your central database.

  • Tabs: Use the tabs at the top to switch between Active, Alumni (Graduated), and Left (Dropout) students.
  • Filtering: Use the dropdowns to filter by Grade (e.g., Grade 1) or Class (e.g., Grade 1 - A).
  • Alumni Search: If you select the "Alumni" tab, a new filter appears allowing you to search by "Graduation Year" (e.g., Class of 2024).

Click the Edit button next to any student.

Updating Info:

You can change their Name, Class, DOB, or Status (e.g., move them from Active to Left).

Swapping Guardians:

If a student was linked to the wrong parent:

  1. Inside the Edit Modal, look for "Linked Guardian".
  2. Click the yellow Swap button.
  3. Search for the correct parent by Phone Number.
  4. Click "Search" and then "Save Changes".

The Student Manager is where you generate official leaving documents.

Viewing History:
Click Edit, then click the Academic History tab at the top of the popup. This shows every year the student has completed in your school.
Printing Transcripts:
If a student is marked as Graduated or Left, a new button Transcript appears in the list. Click this to generate an official PDF Transcript with your school's watermark and digital stamp.

To generate a full Transcript for students who joined years ago:

  • Go to Students > Backfill History.
  • Download the CSV Template.
  • Fill in data (Year: 2023-2024, Status: Promoted, Remarks: Excellent).
  • Upload the file.

This allows you to print transcripts immediately without waiting for a year to pass.

Finance & Billing Management

The Batch Generator is designed to create invoices for your entire student body in seconds. Instead of billing students one by one, you run this once a month.

Why is this important?
It ensures that every active student is billed exactly the right amount based on their Grade. It also prevents "Ghost Billing" by checking exactly when a student joined the school.
How to use it:
Step 1: Select Month
Choose the month you wish to bill for (e.g., March 2026).
Step 2: Run Generator
The system will automatically perform duplicate checks and enrollment validation to ensure accuracy.

The Fee Manager (index.php) is the daily workplace for the school cashier. It shows who has paid and who is still in debt.

Real-Time Analytics:
  • Total Expected: Total value of all bills generated for the selected month.
  • Total Collected: The actual cash received so far.
  • Collection Rate: A progress bar showing how close the school is to its monthly target.
Filtering:

You can view bills by Month or by Class. Use the "Reset" button to return to the current month’s full list.

Dugsikaab uses "Smart Search" to simplify family payments. When you search by a Guardian's Phone Number, the "Family Action Bar" appears.

Why is this important?
Instead of clicking on each child separately, the system calculates the Total Debt for the entire family (all children + all months). This allows the cashier to tell the parent exactly what they owe in one sentence.
Family Shortcut Features:
  • Total Debt Alert: Instantly see if a family owes money from previous months.
  • Past Receipts: Access a dropdown of the last 5 payment dates to reprint family statements.
  • Bulk Pay: Click "Pay Total Debt" to settle all siblings' bills in one transaction.

Sometimes you need to adjust a specific student's bill or fix a wrong entry.

Applying Scholarships:

Click the icon next to the scholarship percentage. You can set a discount (e.g., 50%). The system will instantly recalculate the amount due for that month.

Undo Payment:

If a cashier accidentally records a payment on the wrong student, use the Undo button. This will delete the payment record and restore the student's debt.

Note: You should only use "Undo" for immediate corrections. For old errors, check the Financial Reports.

Use the Collect page when a parent pays for one specific child's monthly bill.

The Family Debt Alert:
When you open a student's bill, the system automatically scans the entire family database. If the guardian owes money for other children or past months, a yellow alert will appear.
Steps to Collect:
  • Amount: Enter the cash received. The system will not allow you to collect more than the current balance.
  • Method: Select the payment channel (Cash, EVC Plus, eDahab, etc.).
  • Receipt: Once saved, a "Print Receipt" button appears. This generates a professional PDF for the parent.

The Family Payment page is used when a guardian wants to settle all debts for all their children in one single transaction.

Why is this important?
It saves time for both the cashier and the parent. Instead of processing 4 separate payments for 4 children, you process 1 transaction and provide 1 consolidated statement.
Workflow:
1. Review List: The page displays a list of all unpaid bills across all siblings, sorted by date.
2. Transaction Safety: When you click "Pay Full," the system uses Database Transactions. This means either all bills are marked paid, or none are—preventing errors if the internet disconnects.
3. Family Statement: After payment, click "Print Family Statement". This generates a single PDF listing all students and all months cleared today.

The Financial Reports page provides a bird's-eye view of your school's income. It is divided into three key analytical sections:

Section 1: Cash Flow (Real Income)

This shows the total "Real Money" that touched the school's hands during a specific period. It groups income by Payment Method (e.g., Cash, EVC Plus, eDahab) so you can reconcile your digital wallets and cash boxes.

Section 2: Collection Performance

This table compares Expected vs. Collected revenue for every class.

  • Green: Most parents in this class have paid.
  • Red: This class has high outstanding debt.

Section 3: Critical Defaulters List

This is the most important tool for debt recovery. It lists only students who owe more than one month of fees.

Call-to-Action:
The list includes the Guardian’s phone number and a "Pay Now" button. If a parent visits the school, you can immediately see their total debt and clear it right from this report.
Printing & Exporting:

Use the "Print Report" button. The system automatically hides filters and navigation buttons to provide a clean, professional printout for school board meetings.

Academics, Exams & Promotions

The Enter Marks page allows teachers and academic staff to record student performance directly into the system. It is designed for speed and historical accuracy.

The "Time-Travel" Logic:
This is a unique feature of Dugsikaab. If you select the Current Active Year, the system shows you live students. If you select a Past Year, the system automatically reconstructs the class list from the student_history table. This ensures your past records never change even after students graduate.
Key Features:
  • Progress Tracking: A completion bar at the top shows exactly how many students in the class have received marks so far.
  • Visual Cues: Input boxes turn Green once a mark is saved, helping you identify missing entries at a glance.
  • Tab-Key Navigation: To enter marks quickly, type the number and press Tab on your keyboard to jump to the next student instantly.
Important Note for Past Years:
If you select a past year and the list is empty, it means "Promotion" was not performed for that year. To fix this for old records, use the Import Legacy History tool in the Students tab.

The Bulk Upload tool is the fastest way to record marks for an entire class at once. It uses a 2-step process to ensure data integrity.

Step 1: Download the Template
Select your Class and click "Download CSV Template".
  • The system creates a custom file with all students in that class.
  • All subjects assigned to that grade will appear as columns.
  • Note: Only "Active" students are included in the template.
Step 2: Upload the Data
After filling in the marks in Excel:
  1. Select the correct Academic Year and Term.
  2. Select the Target Class (Must match the downloaded template).
  3. Upload the file.
Critical Rules for Success:
  • Do not edit Admission Numbers: The system uses the ADMISSION_NO column to identify which student gets which mark. If you change this number, the upload will fail for that row.
  • Subject Names: The system matches marks to subjects based on the column headers. Do not rename the columns in Excel.
  • Numeric Only: Only enter numbers (0-100). If you enter text like "Absent" or "Fail", the system will skip that specific mark.
Smart Processing:
The system is smart enough to handle partial data. If you only enter marks for Math and leave English blank, it will only update Math and leave the existing English marks untouched.

The Master Sheet is the most important document for the Examinations Office. It provides a "Birds-Eye View" of an entire class's performance in one table.

Why is this important?
It allows teachers to compare students across all subjects simultaneously. It also automates the difficult task of Ranking (Position) and calculating Averages, which prevents human errors in final results.
Advanced Features:
  • Automated Ranking: The system automatically sorts students from highest total marks to lowest.
  • Fail Highlighting: Any mark below 50 is automatically colored Red, helping you quickly identify struggling students.
  • Calculations: The average is calculated by dividing the total marks by the total number of subjects assigned to that grade, ensuring a fair standard for all students.
Printing Instructions:

This sheet is designed to be printed. When you click "Print Master Sheet":

  1. The page layout automatically switches to Landscape.
  2. Unnecessary buttons and filters are hidden.
  3. An official Signature & Stamp box is added to the bottom.
Pro Tip: For the best look, ensure your printer settings are set to "Landscape" and "Simplify Headers/Footers" is unchecked.

The Promotion Manager is used at the end of the academic year to move students to their next level. It handles the transition of their current profile while permanently archiving their performance in the history logs.

The Three Action Types:
  • Promote: Moves students to a higher grade (e.g., Grade 1 to Grade 2). The system automatically filters for classes with a higher "Ordering" value.
  • Repeat: Keeps students in the same grade level but moves them into the new academic cycle.
  • Graduate: Officially completes the student's journey. Their status is set to "Graduated," they are removed from active class lists, and they appear in the Alumni section of the Student Manager.
Exam Integrity Check:
To prevent administrative errors, the system highlights students with No Exam Marks in Red. These students are automatically locked and cannot be promoted until their exam data is recorded.
What happens to the data?
  1. History Archive: A permanent record is created in student_history, saving their year, grade, and final status (Promoted/Repeated/Graduated).
  2. Profile Update: The student’s main profile is updated with their new Class ID.
SaaS Safety Note:
This process uses "Database Transactions." If the system encounters an error halfway through (like a power cut), it will roll back everything to ensure no student is "stuck" between two grades.

If you are a new school using Dugsikaab, you likely have years of student marks stored in Excel or old paper files. This tool allows you to import that data so it appears on the Student Transcript.

Prerequisite:
Before importing marks, the student must already exist in the system and you must have already uploaded their "Academic History" (which defines what grade they were in during that year).
Smart Subject Mapping:

You don't need to know the "Subject ID" numbers. The system uses Smart Mapping:

  • If your CSV says "Mathematics" and "Grade 1", the system automatically finds the specific math course for Grade 1.
  • If it says "Mathematics" and "Form 4", it finds the advanced math course.
Common Issues & Fixes:
  • Spelling Matters: If your subject is named "Math" in the system but you write "Mathematics" in the CSV, the row will be skipped. Ensure the names match exactly.
  • Duplicate Prevention: If a student already has a mark for "English - Term 1 - 2023", the system will skip that row to prevent doubling their marks.
  • Float Marks: The system supports decimals (e.g., 85.5).
Success Tip:
Check the Error Log after uploading. It will tell you exactly which rows failed and why (e.g., "Student not found" or "Subject misspelled"), allowing you to fix just those rows and re-upload.