Fall 2014
Clay Virtual
Academy
Student Handbook
2306 Kingsley Avenue, Bldg. #20, Orange Park FL 32073 / Office: 904-529-4804 / Fax: 904-272-8158
Table of Contents
Misson ........................................................................................................................................................................4
Vision ..........................................................................................................................................................................4
Commitments .............................................................................................................................................................4
Colors, Mascot & School Motto .................................................................................................................................4
Pace Information ........................................................................................................................................................4
2014-2015 School Calendar........................................................................................................................................5
Interim Reports and Report Cards to Parents ........................................................................................................6
Academic Information ................................................................................................................................................6
Rights of Parents and Students ...............................................................................................................................6
Grade 6-12 Advanced/Honors Selection ................................................................................................................6
High School Grade Classification and Student Progression Plan ............................................................................6
Guidance Staff.........................................................................................................................................................6
Student – Parent – Teacher ....................................................................................................................................6
Parent Responsibilities............................................................................................................................................7
Student Responsibilities..........................................................................................................................................7
Faculty Responsibilities Laurie’s Copy ....................................................................................................................8
Parent or Student Initiated Drop-Add Policy ..........................................................................................................8
No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy (Grades K-5)..................................................................................................9
No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy-Within Grace Period (Grades 6-12) ..............................................................9
No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy-Past Grace ....................................................................................................9
Student Attendance ................................................................................................................................................9
Concept Mastery.....................................................................................................................................................9
Discussion Based Assessments (Oral Assessments) ...............................................................................................9
Semester Examinations...........................................................................................................................................9
Requirement to Physically Travel To CVA Office ....................................................................................................9
Scoring Scale (Grades K-2 Only) ........................................................................................................................... 10
Grading Scale (Grade 3-12 Only).......................................................................................................................... 10
Academic Integrity................................................................................................................................................... 10
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Why Is Academic Integrity Important? ................................................................................................................ 10
What Are Some Examples Of Academic Integrity Violations? ............................................................................. 11
Plagiarism ........................................................................................................................................................ 11
Cheating........................................................................................................................................................... 11
What Will Happen If I Plagiarize or Cheat? .......................................................................................................... 11
Methods to Ensure Academic Integrity ............................................................................................................... 11
Turnitin.com .................................................................................................................................................... 11
Academic Integrity Database........................................................................................................................... 11
Discussion Based Assessments ........................................................................................................................ 12
Proctored Exams.............................................................................................................................................. 12
Electronic Network Use Guidelines ......................................................................................................................... 12
Acceptable Uses of the Network ......................................................................................................................... 12
Unacceptable Uses of the Network ..................................................................................................................... 12
Public Information ............................................................................................................................................... 13
Electronic Devices & Personal Property .............................................................................................................. 13
Bullying/Harassment ............................................................................................................................................... 13
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CLAY VIRTUAL ACADEMY
Clay Virtual Academy is a school choice as defined by Florida Statute 1002.37. If you select CVA as your school
choice, it is important to note all services previously obtained at a traditional brick and mortar school may not be
available in the virtual instructional program, to include certain special needs services.
Misson
To offer a virtual education experience which allows students to dream, achieve, and soar anywhere, anytime on
any path.
Vision
To provide students a learning path in an innovative online environment, where mastery learning is the outcome
of each child’s motivation, organization, and dedication, to prepare them to be leaders in a global marketplace.
Commitments
•
Offer individualized and challenging curriculum with academic integrity at all levels
•
Collaborate, plan and offer virtual learning experiences for our parents, students, and
community
•
Set aside time to plan, learn and cooperate as leaders and teachers weekly
•
Continue to work with our county schools and stakeholders to offer the best virtual solutions
for Clay County students
•
Strive to make virtual learning fun, engaging and prepare students for the next whether it be
junior high, high school, college, military, or work
•
Trust, share and offer solutions to problems verses barriers, fear, and complaints
•
Be proud that we are educational innovators…..we are pioneers of the virtual world
•
Make mistakes, admit our faults, re-adjust and move forward…..learning to become
better and stronger
Colors, Mascot & School Motto
CVA colors are maroon, white, and black. Our mascot is the Viper jet. Our motto is Dream, Achieve, Soar!
Pace Information
GRACE PERIOD = 21 DAYS
The Pace Chart = attendance. You must be on pace or you will be considered truant.
PRINT YOUR COURSE PACE CHARTS AND USE THIS INFORMATION TO SET YOUR SCHEDULE.
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2014-2015 School Calendar
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Interim Reports and Report Cards to Parents
Portal grades will only reflect semesters
NOTE: Access to grades are always available. Grades for all courses (Bb, VSA, Connections) are posted online at
all times. Virtual students may vary in pacing, a grade correction will be made if the student later completes
coursework as arranged with the teacher, principal, or guidance counselor.
Academic Information
Rights of Parents and Students
•
Parents have the right to know that Clay Virtual courses use accredited curriculum taught by certified
and highly qualified teachers.
•
Students and parents have the right to be treated with courtesy by all members of the staff.
•
Students and parents have the right to be treated fairly regardless of race, creed, national origin,
economic status, gender, or age. Each child will be treated as an individual.
•
Students and parents have the right to know that they can approach a staff member with a concern and
that the staff member will listen carefully and do everything possible to address the issue.
Grade 6-12 Advanced/Honors Selection
Students have the option to select honors or regular level coursework. There is a different course code for the
honors level courses, which affects how report course completions are reported to the state. There is also a
different weighting applied to the grade point average (especially important for high school students). To change
course level, contact the guidance counselor who change the student’s Focus course code and notify the
classroom teacher.
High School Grade Classification and Student Progression Plan
See our website at http://www.clayvirtual.net to view the high school student requirements for graduation
which vary depending on the year of graduation.
Guidance Staff
Counselors are available to meet with students regarding their educational, personal and social concerns.
Counselors provide discreet and confidential counseling as well as referrals to outside agencies. They also
provide career and post-secondary guidance for all students. Counselors meet with students and parents by
appointment or immediately when needed.
Student – Parent – Teacher
Contact and Conferences
The communication between the school, teacher, parent and student is crucial to the success of a virtual school
student. Teachers are required to have regular communication with both parents and students, beginning with
Orientation. In addition, students and parents are required to confer regularly with the teachers concerning
academic progress during the scheduled monthly call/email. Formal conferences may be scheduled by
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contacting Tara Key. Contact information is posted on the Clay Virtual website. CVA students and parents must
return a phone call/email from CVA staff within 2 school days.
Parent Responsibilities
Clay Virtual Academy parents play an important role in helping students be successful in online learning.
Therefore, parents should:
•
Expect academic integrity
•
Monitor/track their child’s performance and pace
•
Be aware of the 21 day grace period
•
Ensure that CVA has updated contact information for you and your student
•
Check email at least daily
•
Maintain clear, courteous communication with instructors at least monthly and respond to teacher
communication within 2 school days of receipt
•
Set up a parent account for FLVS courses at:
https://vsa.flvs.net/Registration/GuardianApplication.aspx?pageID=141&AID=273&fn=Apply-for-ParentGuardian-Account
•
Elementary Parents are responsible for turning in student workbook pages a minimum of 3 times per
quarter, at teacher’s discretion. This can be done by emailing a scanned or photographed copy of
assignment or by dropping off pages at CVA.
Student Responsibilities
Create a work schedule
A schedule allows dedicated time for each subject. Once your schedule is created, stick to it. Time
management is a large factor at succeeding at your online course.
Print pacing guide and determine your mode of organization
Refer to your pacing guide often to ensure timely completion of your assignments.
Speak up!
Be an advocate for yourself. If there are too many distractions while you are trying to focus on your
school work, make sure to let other people know what your dedicated school work hours are.
Keep in contact with your teachers
Schedule all Discussion Based Assessments (if applicable) in advance. Check email at least daily. Return
all calls and emails within 2 school days. Set up tutoring with your instructor as needed.
Have academic integrity
Be sure that all of your work is your own.
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Monitor your own progress and performance - Be aware of the 21 day grace period (if applicable)
Check grades and pace chart on a regular basis for each course.
Elementary students
Attend Elementary LiveLesson Classrooms either live or recorded session.
Secondary students
Utilize Collaborate sessions and group activities shared by instructors.
Faculty Responsibilities
Clay Virtual Academy employs full-time and adjunct instructors. All instructors abide by Florida Teacher Code of
Ethics. In addition, all instructional staff members adhere to the following policies:
• A full-time CVA instructor is not expected to work beyond the standard number of instructors’ daily
hours as specified in the teacher contract.
• A full-time CVA instructor must check email and voicemail by 9:00 a.m. each workday and respond to
messages and email within 1 workday.
• To accommodate a flexible schedule through advance mutual agreement between the administration
and faculty, a full-time CVA instructor may arrange for a colleague to cover times during the weekly
schedule.
• All instructional staff (full-time and adjuncts) are expected to have a publishable business telephone
line.
• Full-time and adjunct instructors are expected to talk personally with each student once a month and
the student’s parent/guardian once a month and log the details of this communication. During this
monthly call, they may complete a Discussion Based Assessment (DBA).
• Full-time and adjunct instructors are expected to perform Discussion Based Assessments as scheduled,
and additional as needed, and log the details of the discussion.
• Elementary instructors will conduct a minimum of 2 LiveLessons (virtual classrooms) weekly. Students
are required to attend or view the recorded session.
• Elementary CVA teachers grade/score assignments and provide feedback on or before one week after
the posted due date.
• Secondary CVA teachers grade assignments within two school days of submission and provide feedback.
Parent or Student Initiated Drop-Add Policy
Students enrolled in a full-time CVA virtual school course have 10 days to make a change on their schedule.
Students who are withdrawn after their first 21 days active with a passing overall grade of 60% or higher will be
issued a WP (Withdrawn while passing) and students who are withdrawn after their first 21 days active with a
failing overall grade will be issued a WF (Withdrawn while failing). All fulltime students withdrawn after 21 days
will transfer with a 55F.
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No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy (Grades K-5)
See Pupil Progression Plan at http://oneclay.net
No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy-Within Grace Period (Grades 6-12)
See Pupil Progression Plan at http://oneclay.net
No Contact/Auto Withdrawal Policy-Past Grace
See Pupil Progression Plan at http://oneclay.net
Student Attendance
Your pacing determines your attendance. If you fall behind in your pacing, you will be called in for a mandatory
meeting with administration.
Concept Mastery
Some students take longer to master a concept. Therefore, an instructor may ask a student to re-submit
assignments that do not demonstrate mastery. In addition, CVA reserves the right to re-quire a student and/or
parent to attend a virtual or face-to-face conference, lab, or tutoring session to assist with concept mastery or
maintaining pace.
Discussion Based Assessments (Oral Assessments)
The purpose of a Discussion Based Assessment (DBA), or Oral Assessment, is to assess student understanding of
major concepts and to identify misconceptions. DBAs may be performed via phone or Collaborate session.
Students must schedule a DBA with the instructor in advance and complete all prerequisite assignments prior to
the DBA. Unless permission is granted by the instructor, skipping a DBA is strictly prohibited and may result in a
contact instructor hold being placed on a student’s account. If this occurs, the student will not be able to access
his or her course until the DBA is complete.
During a DBA, the instructor will ask the student questions about course content and review the student’s
progress. The instructor will also answer questions, identify misconceptions, clarify concepts, and provide exam
passwords if necessary. This contact may serve as a monthly call, and details of this contact will be recorded by
the instructor in Focus and/or VSA.
Semester Examinations
Semester examinations are required in all non-elementary virtual school classes. While the final grade in all
online courses is determined based on a total points system, students are required to complete all required
assignments and discussion-based (oral) assessments.
Requirement to Physically Travel To CVA Office
CVA reserves the right to require a student and/or parent to attend a face-to-face conference, lab, meeting, test,
or tutoring session. Reasons for such a requirement include, but are not limited to:
1. School, county, or state mandated testing
2. Progress Monitoring/Assistance with Pace
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Scoring Scale (Grades K-2 Only)
Scoring is not completed as an “average grade” on assignments. It is based on the tasks and skills which are
intended to be demonstrated for the assignment. Keeping this in mind, below you will find Number Codes you
will receive from your teacher in response to your assignment completions.
Code 4 = The target task was demonstrated in the virtual classroom or a face-to-face situation and the
corresponding assignment does not need to be completed.
Code 3 = The target task was completed in a satisfactory manner.
Code 2 = The target task was not fully demonstrated.
Code 1 = The target task was not demonstrated. Please contact your teacher any time you see a Code 1. There
can be many reasons for a Code 1, for example: not following directions related to the assignment or the
teacher was unable to view your submission.
With Codes 1 and 2, you are encouraged to resubmit the assignment. The purpose of each assignment is to
demonstrate your level of skill development. If at any time you are not sure how to complete an assignment or
are experiencing difficulty with the concept, please contact your teacher. Your teacher welcomes the
opportunity to assist you.
Grading Scale (Grade 3-12 Only)
GRADE
PERCENT
GPA VALUE
A
90-100
4
C
70-79
2
B
D
F
Academic Integrity
80-89
60-69
0-59
3
1
0
(Adapted from the Florida Virtual School’s Academic Integrity Policy)
Academic integrity means that all work you submit is created by you and is an original representation of your
work. It means that the work you submit really is your work.
Why Is Academic Integrity Important?
When you submit an assignment that is not your own original work, you represent something in-correctly. There
are two issues involved:
1. You are earning credit for learning material that you have not demonstrated mastery.
2. You may be violating the law.
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What Are Some Examples Of Academic Integrity Violations?
There are two kinds of academic integrity violations: plagiarism and cheating.
Plagiarism
According to Merriam-Webster online dictionary, plagiarism is “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of
another) as one’s own: use (another’s production) without crediting the source.”
Some examples are, but not limited to the following:
•
Copying and pasting a report from the internet and representing it as your own work
•
Copying any other work and not properly citing authorship
•
Using online translators for foreign language classes
Cheating
According to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, cheating is defined in multiple ways. But for the purposes of
CVA two definitions are particularly relevant:
•
To influence or lead by deceit, trick, or artifice
•
a: To practice fraud or trickery b: to violate rules dishonestly
Some examples are, but not limited to the following:
•
Providing questions/answers/work to another person
•
Receiving questions/answers/work from another person
What Will Happen If I Plagiarize or Cheat?
A variety of consequences will be administered when you are caught cheating or plagiarizing. These
consequences range from resubmission of an assignment for reduced credit up to expulsion from Clay Virtual
Academy and FLVS coursework for up to one year. Additionally, final grades may be rescinded if you are found
to have cheated or plagiarized.
Methods to Ensure Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is one of our core values. It is one of the most important things we do as a learning
organization. There are a variety of tools that we use in ensuring the integrity of student work:
Turnitin.com
This Internet tool compares student work against a variety of databases. Clay Virtual Academy and FLVS
Learning Management System is integrated with Turnitin.com, and most work is automatically uploaded to the
system. This database compares student work against work found on the Internet and against work submitted
by other students.
Academic Integrity Database
CVA, in conjunction with FLVS, maintains a database of student integrity incidences. This database is used to
monitor the number of student academic integrity issues.
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Discussion Based Assessments
Each teacher regularly conducts discussion based assessments with students. These conversations occur at
specific intervals as well as randomly in a course and are included in the assessment component of each course.
The teacher discusses individual student work and extends the conversation to allow the student to
demonstrate mastery of the content and to verify the authenticity of the student’s work. Coursework grades
and DBAs should reflect equally as a measure of academic integrity.
Proctored Exams
Each teacher can request a scheduled proctored exam at any time for a student. FLVS may also require
proctored exams of students, randomly or intentionally. As a franchise of FLVS, we must comply with their
request.
Electronic Network Use Guidelines
The use of the network is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate use will result in disciplinary action by school
officials. A student's activities while using the network in this school must be in sup-port of education and
research, and consistent with the educational objectives of the School District of Clay County. In addition, a
student accessing the network from a school site is responsible for all online activities, which take place through
the use of his or her account. When using another organization's network or computing resources to and/or on
the Internet, the student must comply with the rules appropriate for that network.
Complete Guidelines available at:
http://oneclay.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/student_technology_guidelines.pdf
Acceptable Uses of the Network
All activities that support learning and teaching in the School District of Clay County. Users are encouraged to
develop uses which meet their individual needs and which take advantage of the net-work's functions:
electronic conferences, bulletin boards, data bases, and access to the Internet.
Unacceptable Uses of the Network
The following are considered unacceptable uses of the network. Violations will result in disciplinary
consequences.
•
Using impolite, abusive or objectionable language
•
Using the network in ways that violate federal, state or local laws
•
Causing congestion of the network or otherwise interfere with the work of others
•
Using the network for commercial purposes or gain
•
Sending or receiving copyrighted materials without permission
•
Using the network for sending, receiving, or viewing obscene or profane materials
•
Circumventing security and/or authentication measures to access unauthorized websites
•
Unauthorized access to another's resources, programs, or data
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•
Vandalizing network resources, including uploading or creation of computer viruses
•
Falsifying one's identity to others while on the network
•
Using the network resources to commit forgery, or create a forged instrument
Public Information
Electronic communications should never be considered completely private. The School District of Clay County is
subject to Florida Statutes regarding public information access. As such, all electronic messages are a matter of
public record.
Electronic Devices & Personal Property
The School District of Clay County accepts NO responsibility and will not provide restitution for personal
electronic devices or property that are brought to school. A disruption caused by the use of an electronic device
may result in disciplinary action and the temporary confiscation of the electronic device(s) or personal property.
The principal’s decision on the appropriateness of the use of a wireless/electronic device is final.
Bullying/Harassment
Bullying/harassment can take many forms even in a virtual setting. It may include spoken, written, or physical
conduct that’s severe, persistent, pervasive, and offensive so that it makes the victim not want to participate in
school activities.
We encourage students to report to an adult at school as well as to an adult at home, events such as a written
note or discussion board posting that hurts feelings, or other events that make students feel uncomfortable.
Students should be prepared to give details of who, what, when, where, and how.
Please also refer to the Code of Student Conduct.
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