An explanation of how Reserve choices work in Options :
To use Reserve Choices, choose "1" or "2" Reserves on the Populations Screen.
When you do this, an extra button appears at the bottom of the "Current Pattern" screen, labelled "Reserve Choices".
If you click this and choose "Use 1st Reserves", then Options re-populates the pattern using the (first) Reserve choices, to show you if the Reserves would improve the satisfaction.
Un-doing the swapping-in of Reserve Choices:
If you don't like the changes, you can undo them by clicking "Reserve Choices" again, and choosing "View or Undo".
Alternatively, you could close the pattern without saving your changes.
Notes:
Note-1: you will see that you are actually offered 2 different ways of trying the Reserves:
... one swaps the last choice only (for those schools where the last choice really is the least important to the student)
... the other progressively works through the Choices (last to first) to find which swap would achieve the best satisfaction.
Note-2: if your students have made a 2nd Reserve choice as well, then if the 1st Reserves don't help you enough, you can click "Use 2nd Reserves".
Reviewing what Reserve choices have been swapped-in:
If a Reserve choice is swapped-in for an initial choice, then a note is made of this swap ... you can View this note in either of 2 ways:
- a) Go to the Students Screen, and click "Choices". If this student has had a Reserve swapped-in, it will tell you in red on this screen.
- b) On the Current Pattern screen, click "Reserves" then "View or Undo". You are shown any Reserve swaps and afforded the opportunity to swap them back.
Review & Counsel students:
And if after using the reserves, you still need to talk to some individual students who can't get all their choices, then this is best done using the "Review & Counsel" feature in Options ... click on the "Review & Counsel" button on the Main Menu and you are taken to the "Student Inspector" which helps you to sit down with an individual student and help him/her to find a choice that fits the pattern.
See also:
-- this article on entering Reserve Choices and
-- this article on prioritising Choices
By the TimeTabler Team