Manual Entry

Transcribe paper notes or back-date observations into sight·line after the fact.

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Manual entry lets you add observation data to sight·line without running a live recording session. It’s useful when you’ve collected data on paper during an observation and want to transcribe it into the app later, or when you need to add a session with a date that has already passed.

Manually-entered sessions are indistinguishable from live sessions in results, charts, comparisons, and reports. Once saved, they appear in your session list with the same metadata (date, time, phase, duration) and can be analyzed alongside live recordings.

When to use manual entry

Manual entry is most appropriate for:

  • Paper-based observations. You ran a session in the field using paper and pencil, and now want to enter the data into the app to analyze it.
  • Retrospective documentation. A clinician reviewed video footage or notes after the session and wants to code it retroactively, or you want to add historical session data to a student’s record.
  • Correcting a session after the fact. You finished a live recording, but discovered an error in behavior definition or timing, and want to re-enter the session with the corrected data.
  • Sessions without live recording capability. You observed the student but didn’t have the app available at the time.

Entry points

Manual entry is launched from the Student Hub via the Manual Entry dropdown next to the Start Observation button:

  • Summary Entry — quick data entry for pre-calculated or summary metrics (one value per behavior)
  • Interval Grid — grid-based entry for interval recording methods (whole, partial, momentary time sampling, or frequency)
  • Detail Entry (new) — method-specific entry workspace for ABC, narrative, and interval recording with full timestamping

Summary Entry

Use this when you have already summarized the data — for example, you’ve counted occurrences by hand or estimated a percentage from a video review.

To enter a summary session:

  1. Tap Manual Entry > Summary Entry
  2. Fill in the session metadata:
    • Date — when the observation occurred (required)
    • Time — what time it started (defaults to 12:00 PM if left empty)
    • Duration — total observation time in minutes (required)
    • Phase — label the condition if applicable (optional)
  3. Select a Recording Method from the dropdown — all eight standard methods are available
  4. Add behaviors and values:
    • Name — the behavior you observed
    • Type — how the value is expressed: count (frequency), minutes (duration), percentage, or rate per minute
    • Value — the number (required)
  5. Add optional session notes
  6. Tap Save

The system suggests behavior names from this student’s prior sessions as you type. Duplicate behavior names are rejected.

Interval Grid

Use this when you have interval-by-interval data for an interval recording method or frequency count data organized by intervals (e.g., a hand-drawn grid of 10-second intervals with tally marks).

To enter interval grid data:

  1. Tap Manual Entry > Interval Grid
  2. You’ll see a configuration screen asking for:
    • Recording method — choose whole interval, partial interval, momentary time sampling, or frequency
    • Total intervals — how many intervals the observation contains
    • Interval length — how many seconds per interval (e.g., 10, 15, 30)
    • Behaviors — enter each behavior name
  3. The grid screen opens. For each cell:
    • For interval methods (whole, partial, MTS): click to mark an interval as occurred (✓), not occurred (–), or unscored (empty)
    • For frequency: click to increment the count for that behavior in that interval. Click the minus button below the count to decrement if needed
  4. Set the session metadata:
    • Date — when the observation occurred (required)
    • Time — start time (optional, defaults to 12:00 PM)
    • Phase — the condition label (optional)
  5. Add optional session notes
  6. Tap Save

Bulk actions: Use the toolbar buttons to fill or clear a row, or fill or clear all intervals at once. Shift+click to fill a range of intervals in the same row.

Detail Entry

Use this for fine-grained after-the-fact entry when you want to transcribe ABC events or interval data with precise timestamps. This is the most flexible method and supports all eight observation methods.

To enter detailed data:

  1. Tap Manual Entry > Detail Entry (new)
  2. The entry workspace opens. Choose a method by clicking a tab:
    • ABC Recording — enter each behavioral event with its antecedent and consequence
    • Partial Interval, Whole Interval, Momentary Sampling — grid-based entry or event-by-event scoring
  3. Fill in the session metadata strip at the top:
    • Date — when the observation occurred (required)
    • Start Time — what time it started (optional)
    • Duration — total observation time in minutes (required)
    • Phase — condition label (optional)
    • Setting — descriptive label for the environment or context (optional, e.g., “Math, guided”)
  4. Enter your observation data using the method-specific interface
  5. Once you have data entered, a Save Session button becomes enabled at the bottom
  6. Tap Save Session

Method-specific guidance:

  • ABC Recording: Each entry captures an antecedent event, the target behavior, and the consequence. Use the tag set selector if you want to choose pre-defined antecedent and consequence options.
  • Interval methods: Use the grid to score each interval. The interface mirrors live interval recording.

The method is locked once you start entering data — if you need to switch methods, clear all data first.

Timestamps and session time

Manual entry uses absolute dates — you pick the exact date the observation occurred. The start time is optional and defaults to 12:00 PM if left empty.

The session duration you enter (in minutes) is used to:

  • Calculate rates (frequency per minute)
  • Establish the full session timeline for later analysis
  • Display in session summaries

For interval recording, the number of intervals and interval length are used together to compute duration (total intervals × interval seconds = total observation time).

Editing and correction

Once you save a manually-entered session, it appears in your session list like any other recording. To edit it:

  1. Open the session from the hub
  2. View the results and identify what needs correction
  3. Currently, manual-entry sessions cannot be directly edited after save — you must create a new session with the corrected data and then delete or archive the original

This limitation is intended to preserve audit trails in clinical settings. If you need to frequently correct manual entries, consider using Detail Entry next time for more control during initial entry.

Comparing manual and live sessions

Manually-entered and live sessions are fully compatible in:

  • Results and charts — both appear in session lists, trend graphs, and result summaries
  • Phase comparisons — manual sessions participate in phase-level aggregations
  • Exports — manual and live data export together in PDF and CSV exports
  • Write-ups — both can be cited as evidence in FBA write-ups and reports

The only visual distinction is that manually-entered sessions have a “Manual Entry” badge in the session list. Otherwise, they are treated identically.

Limitations

  • Activity context is not supported — you cannot capture activity transitions (large group instruction, independent work, etc.) when manually entering data. Activity context is only available during live recording.
  • IOA linking is not supported — manual sessions cannot be linked for inter-observer agreement (IOA) calculations. IOA is for comparing two live recordings from independent observers.
  • Peer Comparison method is not available — manual entry does not support the Peer Comparison method. This method requires live, alternating interval recording between two subjects.
  • Real-time behavioral sequencing — if you’re transcribing ABC data and want to preserve the exact timestamp order of events from a video or detailed notes, use Detail Entry for the most control.

Best practices

  • Review your paper notes before entering. Make sure your tally counts and interval scores are legible and complete.
  • Use phase labels consistently. If you run multiple sessions for the same phase (e.g., “Baseline”), use the exact same label across sessions so they aggregate correctly in comparisons.
  • Double-check behavior names. Manual entry suggests names from prior sessions. Click the suggestion to reuse an exact match — this ensures consistency with past data.
  • Save session notes. Even though you weren’t recording live, jot down context: “Observed during transitions,” “Video review of morning period,” or “Student was absent first 5 minutes.” These notes appear in results and help you remember the session context later.
  • Validate your timing. Double-check that the interval count, interval length, and total duration are consistent. For example, 20 intervals × 30 seconds = 10 minutes.