Academy
Academic Regulations
Contents:
Report Cards and Progress Reports
Report cards are issued four times a year, Quarter 1, Semester 1, Quarter 3, End-of-Year Final Grades. Report card grades indicate the faculty’s evaluation of the progress of the student over the previous nine weeks. Only semester grades are recorded on the student’s transcript/permanent record. Quarter grades are informational and give the student an opportunity to improve before a grade is placed on the formal transcript. Each quarter grade counts for 40% of the semester grade: semester exams count for 20% of the semester grade. In year-long courses, final grades are calculated as the average of the two semester grades.
Grades are dynamic and are typically available at any time through Skyward’s Family Access. ACS Athens will limit parent access at various times during grade-posting. ACS Athens faculty follow the practice of entering the grade earned on or close to the due date.
Progress Reports will document students’ progress in achieving Approaches to Learning outcomes, as well as subject-specific learning objectives. Please keep in mind that the Progress Report grades and Quarter Grades are intended to be a “snapshot” of student progress. These grades will not be changed after the dates listed above because they do not appear on official transcripts. All grades can be printed by parents through their Skyward Access.
Report cards will be available on Skyward approximately 3-5 school days after the end of each quarter, and in June at the end of the school year. Should parents not be able to access progress reports or report cards on these dates, they should contact the Office of Student Affairs.
Assessment Policy
ACS Athens students are challenged to become architects of their own learning who reach their unique potential – academically, intellectually, socially and ethically – to thrive as responsible global citizens. The school’s approach to assessment is designed to support these elements of the school’s vision and mission.
ACS Athens faculty and administration believe that assessment is formative and summative and seeks to:
Discover and enhance students’ knowledge, attitudes towards learning, understandings and abilities;
Inform, improve and facilitate teaching and learning;
Inspire students to reach their full potential.
At ACS Athens, our goals for assessment include the following:
To provide purposeful, meaningful and useful feedback to students about strengths, weaknesses and observed potential in the process of learning;
To evaluate final student performance against clearly stated standards of quality;
To guide instruction, and as a spur to further learning;
To inform students, parents and the professional staff of individual and group/school achievement and progress;
To measure the success of programmatic/curricular initiatives and to guide the development of new programs;
To ensure that learning is aligned with standards.
ACS Athens faculty and administration are committed to implementing assessment practices that exhibit the following characteristics:
holistic
authentic
flexible
meaningful
a product of/allows for student choice
encouraging of self-reflection and peer review
differentiated to account for learning differences
contextual
ethical
reliable and fair
aligned with clearly articulated curriculum standards
engage students in intellectual activities of analysis, synthesis and evaluation in addition to recall of knowledge
encourage creativity
draw upon individual and collaborative student effort; independent and guided learning experiences; and classroom, on-line and fieldwork study (i2flex)
promote problem-solving, project-based, inquiry-fueled learning
take a wide variety of forms in a wide variety of media and performance modes
encourage reflection and revision
inspiring
ACS Athens faculty and administration are committed to developing an assessment program that values the most accurate demonstration of student performance over the averaging of grades in a reporting period.
Faculty is currently engaged in documenting assessment practices, and creating a bank of departmental assessment rubrics, as part of our work (grades JK-12) to create a portfolio of teaching strategies and practices that promote students’ learning in all aspects of the Learner Profile/ACS Portrait of a Graduate, and which represent research-based best practices in constructivist, inquiry-based teaching and learning.
Incomplete Grades
A grade of I (incomplete) may appear on a quarter report card when the student has not completed the quarter assignments, usually because of illness or other severe extenuating circumstances. A student must complete the coursework within a predetermined time period designated by the Principal, at which time the I changes to a regular grade. If the work is not completed within this time period, the I automatically becomes an F. Students with I’s cannot be considered for any academic awards.
Transcripts
The Academy will provide two copies to each senior of official transcripts free of charge. Also, a final transcript will be sent free of charge to the college or university that the student plans to attend.
For additional transcripts, there will be a charge to cover the cost of reproduction and postage.
If additional transcripts are needed after a student leaves Greece, a check for payment should accompany the request. Payment must be made to: ACS Athens.
Grades and Weighted Grade Point Average
The Academy uses letter grades: A-Superior, B-Above Average, C-Average, D-Below Average and F-Failing, P-Passing. Faculty may give a plus or minus with the letter grade (except in the case of an F or P). The + or – will appear on the transcript. Modification for ESL/OLP students may apply on an individual basis and will be so indicated on the transcript.
Letter grades are earned on the basis of the averages shown below.
Grade Conversion Chart
The following weighted Grade Point Average will be applied in classes taken in Grades 9-12 and will be used to determine the Valedictorian* and Salutatorian*candidates for the ACS Athens commencement ceremony. Additionally the chart on the right will be used to convert assessments.
