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🎉 Tiger Grades v0.0.1 - Foundation Release

· 4 min read
Spencer Powell
Spencer Powell
Lead Developer, Tiger Grades

We're excited to announce the foundation release of Tiger Grades! Version 0.0.1 marks the beginning of our journey to revolutionize educational grade management with intelligent technology and seamless integrations.

🚀 What's New in v0.0.1​

DevOps & Infrastructure​

Automated Deployment Pipeline

  • Introduced comprehensive deploy workflow with GitHub Actions
  • Added development deployment script for streamlined testing
  • Implemented manual workflow dispatch for flexible deployment control

Release Management

  • Set up Changie for automated changelog generation
  • Established semantic versioning and release processes
  • Created structured release documentation system

Error Handling & Reliability​

Robust API Error Management

  • Enhanced error handling in fetchReportCard method
  • Comprehensive error logging for client credentials authentication flow
  • Detailed error tracking for Microsoft Graph API integration
  • Improved debugging capabilities with verbose error logging

Academic Features​

Semester Support

  • Added semester handling for multi-term courses
  • Implemented tab functionality for two-semester course navigation
  • Enhanced grade tracking across academic periods

Enhanced Report Cards

  • Link integration to login page from unauthenticated message
  • Improved user experience for grade access
  • Better navigation flow for students and parents

Technical Improvements​

Database Management

  • Enhanced DatabaseManager to process SQL @variables in PHP
  • Improved migration handling and database setup
  • Better seed and teardown scripts without hard-coded IDs

UI/UX Enhancements

  • Refined tab styles for better visual hierarchy
  • Improved grade handling logic (IOU → exempt, empty, completed, zero grades)
  • Case sensitivity adaptations for grade types
  • Enhanced styling for multi-semester course display

Security & Authentication​

Microsoft Integration Security

  • Strengthened client credentials authentication flow
  • Enhanced error logging for Azure integration
  • Improved authentication token management
  • Better handling of Microsoft Graph API responses

🔧 Technical Highlights​

Repository Restructuring​

One of the major changes in this release was restructuring the repository to align with our deployment strategy:

# New structure moves application code into src/
tiger-grades/
├── src/           # Main application code
├── migrations/    # Database migrations
├── scripts/       # Deployment and utility scripts
└── docs/         # Documentation site

This restructuring improves deployment reliability and makes the codebase more maintainable.

Database Variable Processing​

The new variable processing system allows for flexible database configurations:

// Example of @variable processing in migrations
$variables = [
    '@wp_prefix' => $GLOBALS['wpdb']->prefix,
    '@charset' => 'utf8mb4',
    '@collate' => 'utf8mb4_unicode_ci'
];

Grade Processing Logic​

Enhanced grade handling now supports multiple grade states:

  • Exempt (E): Excluded from grade calculations
  • Empty: Assignments not yet graded
  • Completed: Assignments with recorded scores
  • Zero (0): Explicit zero scores vs. missing work

🐛 Bug Fixes​

Shell Scripting​

  • Fixed shell if syntax in deployment scripts
  • Improved error handling in automated workflows

Database Cleanup​

  • Removed db_version option in deactivation hook
  • Eliminated unnecessary uninstall.php file
  • Incremented JavaScript file versions for proper cache invalidation

Grade Type Handling​

  • Adapted API and shortcode for case sensitivity in grade types
  • Updated seed and teardown scripts for STEM grades in science classes
  • Improved grade type consistency across the system

📊 Development Environment​

Release Environment Support​

Added support for multiple deployment environments:

# Example deployment configuration
environment: release
deploy_path: /var/www/production
installation_path: /wordpress

This enables smooth transitions between development, staging, and production environments.

🔮 Looking Ahead​

Version 0.0.1 establishes the foundation for Tiger Grades' powerful feature set. Coming in future releases:

  • Enhanced Microsoft Integration: Deeper OneDrive and Excel connectivity
  • Advanced Analytics: Comprehensive grade tracking and trend analysis
  • Mobile Optimization: Responsive design improvements
  • User Experience: Streamlined workflows for teachers and parents

🏆 Community & Support​

Tiger Grades is built with educators in mind. We're committed to:

  • Open Development: Transparent development process
  • Community Feedback: Regular incorporation of user suggestions
  • Educational Focus: Features designed by and for educators
  • Reliable Support: Comprehensive documentation and assistance

📥 Getting Started​

Ready to try Tiger Grades v0.0.1?

  1. Download the latest release from our GitHub repository
  2. Install following our Installation Guide
  3. Configure your Microsoft integration per our Configuration Guide
  4. Explore the features with our First Setup Tutorial

🤝 Contributing​

We welcome contributions from the educational technology community! Whether you're reporting bugs, suggesting features, or contributing code, your involvement helps make Tiger Grades better for everyone.

Download v0.0.1: GitHub Release
Documentation: Getting Started Guide
Support: GitHub Issues

Happy grading! 🐅📚