ESchool & JupiterGrades: Commonly Asked Questions

How do I access my account for ESchool and Jupitergrades?

• JG: On the first day of classes, each student will be given a Log-In page with the student ID number and temporary passwords. A password is assigned to each student; two passwords are given for each parent/guardian. You do not need to remember the ID number; just use your/your child's name and the school (Pearl River High School) and the account should appear. You are to reset your password to something that you prefer. I (the teacher) am not able to see your password.

• ESD: The school district mailed you your user names and passwords. The portal is accessible from the district's website..

What if I forget my password?

• JG: If you forget the password you have created, contact Miss Arney and she will reset it for you and email or tell you the new temporary password.

• ESD: To get your password for Eschool, you must contact Assistant Superintendent Sue Wheeler's office (620-3913). You must personally pick up the password from her office or have her mail it to you.

How can I sign up for the email alerts provided by the teacher?

• JG: When you register your Jupitergrades account, I strongly urge you to include your email address and your child's email address (one that I am allowed to send memos to). This will ensure you receive (missing) homework alerts and any important information from me.

• ESD: Currently, I cannot email you directly through the parent portal or ESD.

I / My child was absent; why is the grade a 0 for the assignment / test missed that day?

• When a student is absent, I record a "0", "absent", or a "/" in Eschool. This is meant to be a very strong reminder to the student that he/she needs to make up the assignment as soon as he/she is able and according to the policies established in my opening day materials. Once the assignment has been evaluated, I will change it. See below for a few exceptions to this policy.

I / My child was absent; why is the grade a 0 for the assignment / do now/ quiz that day?

• Some assignments canNOT be made up if a child is absent. These include, but are not limited to: do nows, exit tickets, entry tickets, very few class assignments, and an occasional quiz. Some of these are meant to be "in the moment" assignments and it will not serve an educational purpose to have your child make up the work. However, at the end of the quarter, I will set Eschool to drop one/ a few of the do now or exit tickets to allow for the occasional absence. If a quiz cannot be made up, it is because I had to return the assignments to the class for their use before another quiz or the unit exam. This will happen very infrequently, however, provided your child is not absent regularly. Open-notes quizzes canNOT be made up.

Why aren't the grades updated daily?

• Very simply, Time. With so many students it is impossible to update all of the grading I do on a daily basis. If I have two hours and must decide between evaluating student work or entering grades on Eschool, I will opt to grade the assignments in order for my students to have as prompt feedback as I can provide. I DO, however, try to update every week (usually over the weekend); however, "real life" sometimes gets in the way. This program is a wonderful way to offer important information to my students and their parents, but it can be hard to stay on top of as regularly as I'd like. Even if the grades are not all there, look for patterns. If you are seeing a great deal of missing assignments (/) or 0's, or a number of failed homework / quiz assignments, please talk to your child about his/her study habits. And, as always, feel free to contact me at any time.

What does a 0 mean?

If you /your child has a 0 for an assignment, this means:

• a) the grade he/she earned for that assignment OR

• b) a missing assignment that is now past the deadline for late submission.

• c) the assignment was not submitted

• d) the student was absent and has not submitted it (or it cannot be submitted - see above). You should see "absent" in the portal.

• e) the assignment was not submitted on time and has not been evaluated yet (and is still in the late pile). This should appear as a "/".

• f) the assignment has somehow been separated from the other assignments in the class. Allowing students to submit assignments both early and late can cause some paper chaos at times. I am a hard worker, but I am human and sometimes a paper will be misfiled -- but I have not lost any student's assignment to date. All work IS graded by the end of each quarter - and that assignment WILL be found.

Once the assignment has been evaluated, the "/" code will disappear.

I / My child submitted an assignment late but it is still listed as missing. Why?

In order to encourage good time management skills among my students, I offer rewards for early submission of papers (+5 on the assignment); however, there is a penalty for late assignments. Since I DO accept early and late assignments, you can imagine how overwhelming the mountain of papers can become. Late work may not be graded as quickly as "on time" assignments are...and if other work has been submitted in between, those new assignments may have higher priority for grading. Please be patient. EVERYTHING is and will be graded.

There are very rare occasions for which I will not accept a late assignment. If I assigned something that was necessary for full participation in the next day's class, I will not accept the assignment late. For instance, if students were to take notes prior to a class lecture or activity, his/her grade will be 100 (for complete), a 65 (partially complete), or a 0 (incomplete). That grade will stand. I do, however, encourage the child to complete the assignment despite the grade since the assignment is the important thing.