When the design team reviews the requirements for the PT application, a list of entities emerges. The application has users (individuals, evaluators, and auditors) that use the application to create and modify activities and to record individuals' achievements for the activities they perform. The individuals can be grouped into larger units, such as a class in the school arena or a testing facility in the testing and training arena, and the group can have a location. The following statements describe the role of each entity—individual, evaluator, auditor, activity, grade, and location—in the application. The nouns form the basic data model. The nouns in each statement are emphasized in uppercase letters.
In the school arena, an individual is a student; in the testing and training arena, an individual is a person who receives training or takes a test.
An INDIVIDUAL performs ACTIVITIES.
An INDIVIDUAL receives an GRADE for an ACTIVITY.
An INDIVIDUAL can be assigned to zero or more GROUPS.
An INDIVIDUAL can also be an EVALUATOR.
In the school arena, an evaluator is a teacher; in the testing and training arena, an evaluator is a person who scores tests or evaluates training results.
An EVALUATOR manages zero or more GROUPS of INDIVIDUALS.
An EVALUATOR can also be an INDIVIDUAL.
An EVALUATOR assesses ACTIVITIES.
An EVALUATOR creates ACTIVITIES for a GROUP.
In the school arena, an auditor can be any number of different persons, such as the principal of the school or the parent or guardian of a student. In the testing and training arena, an auditor can be the manager of the center or a person who verifies that the testing and training center meets official guidelines.
An AUDITOR can be associated with a GROUP.
An AUDITOR audits a GROUP of INDIVIDUALS.
An AUDITOR can also be an INDIVIDUAL.
The school arena has classes, which are groups of individuals, and the testing and training arena has testing centers, where individuals sign up to take a test or receive training.
A GROUP has INDIVIDUALS.
A GROUP has AUDITORS.
A GROUP has EVALUATORS.
A GROUP has ACTIVITIES.
A GROUP has a LOCATION.
A GROUP uses a set of GRADES.
Examples of activities in the school arena are tests, quizzes, assignments, and field trips. In the testing and training arena, activities might be CPR training, skills testing, or professional certifications.
An ACTIVITY has many INDIVIDUALS.
An ACTIVITY belongs to a GROUP.
An ACTIVITY has a LOCATION.
An ACTIVITY has an ACTIVITY TYPE.
An ACTIVITY uses a set of GRADES.
An activity type allows for grouping activities and implicitly sharing activity attributes. Activity types also provide a way to apply consistency to activities across the organization.
An ACTIVITY has an ACTIVITY TYPE.
An ACTIVITY TYPE uses a set of GRADES.
A grade is a mark that describes how successfully an individual completed an activity.
A GRADE is given for an INDIVIDUAL'S performance of an ACTIVITY.
A location is a physical place where the group resides or the activity takes place.
A LOCATION has many ACTIVITIES.
A LOCATION has many GROUPS.