2012 Student Handbook

Transcription

1 2012 Student Handbook

2 Policies defined in this Handbook are effective through the academic year. Changes in the content of the Student Handbook may be made, at anytime, by Career Online High School. Any revisions will be posted in the learning management system library. The Student Handbook is the governing document for all policy-related information. It is the responsibility of each student to read this Handbook and to comply with its terms. Failure to read this Handbook does not excuse students from the policies or procedures it contains. 2

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS WELCOME LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL... 4 SCHOOL OVERVIEW... 5 ADMISSIONS... 6 STUDENT SERVICES... 7 ACADEMIC POLICIES... 8 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS ACCREDITATION EDUCATIONAL RECORDS AND FERPA SCHOOL POLICIES

4 WELCOME LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL Dear Student: On behalf of the faculty and staff, welcome to Career Online High School. One of our main goals at Career Online High School is to help all of our students earn their high school diplomas. In addition, Career Online High School has developed a comprehensive credit recovery program aimed at helping our students earn high school credits in courses they did not pass the first time around. All Career Online High School courses are self-contained and self-directed, which will require you to complete your courses independently. It is important that you develop a schedule and devote the necessary time to complete your courses on time. Again, welcome to our school and please feel free to contact our office at anytime with any questions about your courses. Good luck! Sincerely, Howard A. Liebman, Ph.D. Principal 4

5 SCHOOL OVERVIEW OVERVIEW The Career Online High School online credit recovery program was developed to provide high school students with a flexible, convenient opportunity to make up credits or retake a course to improve their GPA. Career Online High school is a division of Smart Horizons Career Online Education (SHCOE), a private school district that has been granted District Accreditation from the AdvancED Accreditation Commission. This means that the SHCOE district and all of its schools are SACS accredited, and that SHCOE is recognized across the nation as a quality school system. MISSION Career Online High School is committed to providing high-quality, accessible, and supportive online education. GOALS To offer working individuals or home-school students an affordable, flexible opportunity to learn at their own pace To create a positive academic environment that helps all students reach their maximum potential To be at the forefront of providing online, career-based academics in the United States To maintain a dedicated team of faculty and staff dedicating to assisting all students 5

6 ADMISSIONS ENROLLMENT PROCEDURE Because every student is unique, a Career Online High School Admissions Advisor will work closely with you to answer any questions you might have about our program and to help you enroll in our school. Career Online High School has an open enrollment policy, and does not limit enrollment to specific dates. CREDIT TRANSFER Before enrolling and beginning your courses in the Career Online High School, it is critical that you confirm that you can transfer the credits back to your primary school. Submit the Credit Pre-Approval Form located on the Career Online High School website to your primary school to obtain written confirmation that they will accept your credits. By signing this form, you, the student, acknowledge your responsibility to confirm credit transfer prior to enrollment. WELCOME When you complete the enrollment process, we will send you an with directions on how to start your online courses. In addition, we will send you a Welcome Guide that shows you how to access your courses and how to get academic assistance when you need it. HIGH SCHOOL TRANSCRIPTS A high school transcript is an official copy of a student s academic record. It is different from a diploma, which is the document stating that you graduated from a school or program. A transcript lists every course you have taken and/or received credit for, and possibly any you have withdrawn from. You will need a transcript when applying to most career colleges, community colleges, and four-year universities. You will also need a transcript in order to transfer your Career Online High School course credits back to your primary school. TRANSCRIPT REQUEST During the enrollment process, you will indicate what school should receive your Career Online High School transcript. When you complete your courses, Career Online High School will send your official transcript with the SACS accreditation seal to your high school to transfer credit. 6

7 STUDENT SERVICES SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS Qualified, certified teachers answer your questions and provide help Self-paced online courses and resources always available to you Instant feedback on tests and exams Online gradebook to keep track of your progress Official transcripts sent directly to your high school when you complete your courses ACADEMIC SUPPORT Qualified, certified instructors are on hand to answer your questions by phone or . To get help with your coursework, go to the Academic Support page in the student portal and call or the instructor listed for course you are enrolled in. Instructors will respond to your request by the next business/school day. 7

8 ACADEMIC POLICIES ACADEMIC SCHEDULE When you enroll, you will receive a Pacing Guide that shows you how to complete the course in four weeks. We recommend that you set aside 6-8 hours per week per semester course. There are no extensions. TEXTBOOKS All of your reading materials are online. Some Language Arts courses may require books that can be purchased or checked out of your local library. To find the closest library click here. RESUBMITTING ASSIGNMENTS All Career Online High School courses allow students to resubmit an assignment when the student scores lower than a 70% on that assignment. The replacement assignment will not be the same as the one the student did not pass. The student will be given different questions and assessment items related to the lesson to ensure they understand the lesson before moving on to the next one. EXAMS All online courses have an end-of-course semester exam. Students must pass this exam in order to pass the online course. If a student scores lower than a 70% on the end-of-course semester exam, they will be given a different exam to ensure understanding of the course content. GRADES Grades for assignments and exams are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in the student s gradebook, which is located on the homepage of each course. (This is not an official transcript.) GRADING SYSTEM AND SCALE You will be given instant feedback (electronically) about your progress regularly throughout the course. This feedback helps you identify what you have learned well and what you still need to work on. More time will be allotted for the areas you still need to work on. As soon as an assignment or exam is graded, you can see your score in the gradebook. At the end of each semester course, a final numeric grade will be assigned based on your overall average in the course. 8

9 Your transcript will show both a numeric grade and a letter grade. Only grades of "A", "B", and C are given (no pluses and minuses). The Career Online High School grading system is as follows: Percentage Grade A B C 69 or below Incomplete NOTICE OF INDIVIDUAL COURSE COMPLETION When you complete a course, you can find your final course grade in your gradebook, which is located on the homepage of each course. STUDENT CODE OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY The Academic Honor System at Career Online High School is an essential part of our online program. If evidence exists that a student has plagiarized or submitted someone else s work, the student may be given a failing grade for the course without the option to withdraw or receive a refund. As members of the Career Online High School learning community, students are expected to conduct themselves with honor and academic integrity. Students must understand that plagiarism is an act of intellectual dishonesty and that it is academically unethical to do any of the following: Give work to another student Submit another student s work Allow another individual to impersonate the student Plagiarize on assignments or exams by sharing work electronically Download an essay from the Internet without acknowledging the original source and placing quotation marks around the quoted text Students are also expected to treat other students, teachers, and all staff with respect. Profanity is not acceptable and students using profanity also may be given a failing grade in the course without option to withdraw or receive a refund. 9

10 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS The checklist below covers the minimum software and hardware requirements. It is the student s responsibility to ensure that any additional demands on resources made by either third party software or hardware not listed below is taken into account when assessing a system. To check your system, click here. MICROSOFT WINDOWS REQUIREMENTS Intel Pentium GHz, Athlon or faster processor (or equivalent) 128MB of RAM 128MB of graphics memory Windows 2000, XP, Vista or 7 Internet Explorer 6.0 or greater Apple Safari or greater Google Chrome version (including update) or greater Macromedia Flash Player version 8 or greater (version 10 for test assignments) Sun JVM version 1.4 or greater (for select courseware) Adobe Reader (viewing and printing certificates) MAC OS X REQUIREMENTS Intel Core Duo 1.33 GHz or faster processor 256 MB of RAM Mac OSX version 10.5 or greater Internet Explorer 6.0 or greater Mozilla Firefox 3.0 or greater Apple Safari or greater Google Chrome version (including update) or greater Macromedia Flash Player version 8 or greater (version 10 for test assignments) Sun JVM version 1.4 or greater (for select courseware) Adobe Reader (viewing and printing certificates) HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS 1024x768, 16 bit (thousands of colors) color display or better Standard Mouse and Keyboard Speakers and Soundcard (Select Courseware) 10

11 ACCREDITATION SACS ACCREDITED Career Online High School is a division of Smart Horizons Career Online Education (SHCOE), a private school district that has been granted District Accreditation from the AdvancED Accreditation Commission. AdvancEd is the national commission that confers the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI) accreditation seal. This means that the SHCOE district and all of its schools are accredited, and that SHCOE is recognized across the nation as a quality school system. AdvancED is the unified organization of the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI) and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI). AdvancED provides nationally recognized accreditation for school districts and individual schools and represents 27,000 public and private schools and districts across the United States and in 65 countries worldwide, educating 15 million students. 11

12 EDUCATIONAL RECORDS AND FERPA FERPA The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, commonly known as FERPA, is a federal law that protects the privacy of your student education records. You have specific, protected rights regarding the release of such records and FERPA requires that Career Online High School adhere strictly to these guidelines. EDUCATIONAL RECORDS FERPA gives students the following rights regarding their educational records: The right to access educational records kept by Career Online High School The right to demand educational records be disclosed only with your consent The right to amend educational records The right to file complaints against Career Online High School for disclosing educational records in violation of FERPA Such records may include: Written documents (including student advising folders) Computer media Microfilm and microfiche Video or audio tapes or CDs Film Photographs Any record that contains personally identifiable information, which is directly related to the student, is an educational record under FERPA. This information can also include records kept by the Career Online High School in the form of student files, student system databases kept in storage devices such as servers, or recordings or broadcasts. RELEASE OF INFORMATION During any phone calls, in order to be in compliance with FERPA, Career Online High School will need to verify the student s identity (school user name/password) before releasing any individual identifiable or educational information. 12

13 SCHOOL POLICIES NONDISCRIMINATION POLICY Career Online High School will not engage in discrimination or harassment against any person because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation including gender identity, unfavorable discharge from the military or status as a protected veteran and will comply with all federal and state nondiscrimination, equal opportunity and affirmative action laws, orders and regulations. This nondiscrimination policy applies to admissions, employment, access to, and treatment in all Career Online High School programs and activities INTERNET ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY Internet access is required for students enrolled at Career Online High School. While on the Internet for school-related work, Career Online High School students must adhere to the following: Respect and protect the privacy of others: Use only assigned accounts. Not view, use, or copy passwords, data, or networks to which they are not authorized. Not distribute private information about others or themselves. Respect and protect the integrity, availability, and security of all electronic resources: Observe all network security practices, as posted. Report security risks or violations to a teacher or network administrator. Not destroy or damage data, networks, or other resources that do not belong to them, without clear permission of the owner. Conserve, protect, and share these resources with other students and Internet users. Respect and protect the intellectual property of others: Not infringe copyrights (no making illegal copies of music, games, or movies). Not plagiarize. 13

14 Respect and practice the principles of community: Communicate only in ways that are kind and respectful. Report threatening or discomforting materials to Career Online High School administration. Not intentionally access, transmit, copy, or create material that violates the Career Online High School code of conduct (such as messages that are pornographic, threatening, rude, discriminatory, or meant to harass). Refrain from using profanity. Not intentionally access, transmit, copy, or create material that is illegal (such as obscenity, stolen materials, or illegal copies of copyrighted works). Not use the resources to further other acts that are criminal or violate the Career Online High School s code of conduct. Not send spam, chain letters, or other mass unsolicited mailings. GRIEVANCE POLICY If a student has a complaint about any aspect of their courses, or how they are being treated, they should immediately contact the school Principal. If an equitable resolution is not reached, the student may file a formal complaint. To submit a formal complaint, the student should submit in writing the cause of their concern to the school s principal. If an equitable resolution is not reached, the student may request a hearing with Career Online High School Board of Directors. At that time, the student s concern will be submitted to Career Online High School Board of Directors, which will review the case and make a final decision. 14