Grades + Communication

• Grades will be entered once a week in Infinite Campus.

• It is the responsibility of the student and their adult(s) to check assignment grades in IC weekly.

• Most of the time I will send a message via IC Messenger to let students and their adult(s) know that I am updating grades or have updated grades - this is NOT a promise - just a courtesy.

• If there is a reason I am not updating grades during a particular week, I will send a message via IC Messenger letting students and their adult(s) know.

• ONCE A GRADE IS ENTERED IN IC IT IS FINAL. Barring a mistake on my part (which happens, I am human), grades posted to IC are final.

• If an assignment is marked as *M (missing) in IC will usually have a final date in the comments that students must turn their assignment in by in order to receive credit.

• Missing assignments or work from absences will be entered when weekly grades are updated.

I pride myself on communicating with students and their adult(s) in the same manner as I desire my own children's teachers to communicate with me. I would rather over-communicate with you than have you unsure of any important information.

• My main form of communication with students and their adult(s) will be through IC Messenger. That said, it is the responsibility of the student and their adult(s) to do the following:

  • Download the Infinite Campus app (parent portal or student portal)

  • Create and save your username and password information

  • Turn ON notifications for the app in the settings on your phone and within the app itself

• I will also use my HCS email if I am sending information to individual students and/or their adult(s). Thus, it is the responsibility of the student and their adult(s) to check their email daily. Students should check their HCS email and their adults should check the email address provided in IC.

I am a very flexible teacher and I will do my best to communicate with students and their adults in a timely manner, however, I have noticed a recent increase in communication with adults and their students during the school day, related to grades entered in IC.

Please note that all of the teachers at WHS have different planning periods. We also multi-task throughout the school day. Please do NOT call and/or text your student about grades entered in IC and then direct them to come see me (or any of their other teachers) outside of their class time. We teach 6 classes each day with upwards of 150 students. We cannot both teach our class and address grade concerns simultaneously. Instead, do the following:

• Create a "send later" text for your student about their grade - that grade will still be in IC when they finish their school day.

• Teach your student to compose buisness-style emails to their teacher regarding their grade concern.

• If you email teachers outside of school hours (7:45am-3:45pm), please do NOT expect an immediate response. Your student's teacher will get back to you within 1-2 business days.

If a student comes to me outside of their class period and says, "My adult told me to come see you about my grade," I am going to tell them to email me their concern instead.

Once an assignment is CLOSED for submissions in Google Classroom, it is closed. I am not reopening it. A few things that GC provides teachers that curb the "I did my work, you just didn't check it" excuse:

• GC shows the date and time students submit their assignment.

• Google Suite tracks changes to a document with timestamps.

• GC shows how recently a student has accessed a file attached to an assignment AND also shows if the assignment has never been opened/viewed by the student.

• GC has an originality checker - checking for AI use, plagiarism, etc.

• The use of AI on assignments in my classroom will result in a ZERO for cheating.

• Students who use AI will not be permitted to redo an assignment.

• I employ multiple AI detection sites to review student work for generative AI.

• There is a place for AI in academics - for instance, "Please check over my writing for conciseness" or "Help me rephrase this sentence for middle school readability."

• If students are allowed to use AI on an assignment, I will include that in the assignment instructions.

• My courses are not academically taxing, but they are highly rigorous in the way of critical thinking. AI cannot think critically. AI cannot speak to an individual's nuanced or lived experiences.

The moral of the story? Stop trying to find the easy way out of everything. Use your brain, think critically, manage your time, put your tiny screens away and complete your assignment. The information in my classes is really good information to help you as you grow into adulthood, to help you with your family now and even if you have a family of your own as you get older. Do the work. Gain the knowledge. Feel proud of yourself.

PLEASE READ THIS SECTION THOROUGHLY!

I will NOT police cell phones, head phones, ear buds, etc. during the class period. I am NOT spending instructional time fighting with students about their technology. It is the responsibility of the students and their adults to understand and adhere to the district policy.

Each student in HCS is issued a ChromeBook. Unless your student's ChromeBook is in for repair, there is not reason they should need to use their own technology (Macs, iPads, etc.). That will largely elimiate issues within the classroom.

If your student's technology gets in the way of their learning - that is a conversation you need to take up with them, not with me. By time students get to high school they should be able to manage their technology use. If you are concerned that your student will be too tempted to use their devices, I would suggest employing the parental controls offered through both iOS (Apple) and Android to limit your student's access to their phones during school hours.

*** HOWEVER *** Students who come to class on their phones (ie: on a FaceTime call, on a phone call, etc.) or who are interrupted during the class period by phone calls, FaceTimes or text messages will be given one warning. Subsequent missteps will follow the WHS discipline policy regarding technology use. That means, adults, you could be complicit in your student receiving disciplinary actions if you opt to call and/or text them during the school day regarding grades, etc. You can email your student's school email account or call the school directly, if you need to communicate with your student immediately.