Autauga County Schools issued the following announcement on July 22.
Part 1: Virtual Learning Classrooms FAQ
Who can enroll in the virtual learning classrooms? Students in Grades K-12 who are zoned for and enrolled in Autauga County Schools may choose the virtual learning environment.
Will Internet be provided for virtual learning classrooms? Parents or guardians are responsible for providing their own Internet service.
Will students receive a device for virtual learning classrooms?? Parents or guardians are responsible for providing their own devices.
How will attendance be taken for virtual learning classrooms? Virtual students must “attend” class daily in accordance with Autauga County Schools’ calendar. Students fulfill attendance requirements when they log in to their classes daily. Autauga County School students are required to abide by district and state attendance policies and procedures.
How will instruction be given in a virtual classroom setting? Certified teachers from Autauga County Schools will provide daily instruction via our virtual learning management systems. Students will access their daily lessons through Schoology and/or ACCESS. Teachers will interact with students during live and prerecorded sessions. Students will complete assignments and send them electronically through the virtual platforms. Students and parents will be able to contact teachers during regular school hours as needed. Parents may also request to speak with teachers after school hours if necessary.
How much time will students spend on the computer? It is expected that students in the early grades will spend approximately 50 percent of their time on the computer. Students will also utilize numerous print books, workbooks, and instructional materials. Older students could spend about 75 percent of their time working on computer-based activities with the remainder of the time being spent on project-based learning activities.
Are there times when virtual students will be required to go to school? Yes, students will be required to go to either their base school or a designated site within Autauga County to take state assessments, benchmark assessments, end-of-course tests or Answers to these questions are based on current information provided by the Alabama State Department of Education, the Alabama Public Health Department and other public health officials. Information is subject to change. other necessary assessments.
The times, dates and locations will be communicated well in advance.
Can virtual students participate in athletics and other extracurricular activities? Virtual students may participate in extracurricular activities and clubs at their base schools. Students must meet membership criteria as set by the base school organization in order to quality for participation in the club or activity. Virtual students may participate in athletic programs at their base schools.
If a base high school requires its athletes to take specific athletic or weight training classes, then participating virtual students will be required to take these classes on campus as well. Can virtual students participate in band? Yes. Students will attend band classes daily at their base school. They will also be required to participate in mandatory practices.
Will parents be allowed to change their child’s learning environment at any time throughout the year? Yes, but we will make every effort to have students continue in the same learning environment until the end of a grading period. Transferring from one learning environment to another in the middle of a grading period could adversely affect a student’s grade and overall success. School leadership teams will consider all requests to change learning environments and determine the best course of action for each individual student.
Are students required to complete virtual learning assignments daily? Students are expected to work a full school day. This could include online classes with teachers and classmates, as well as, offline projects and required readings.
Will students be assigned to one teacher for virtual learning or will there be multiple teachers? The grade level of the student determines the number of teachers each student will have. Younger students may have one or two teachers while older students (particularly high school students) could have multiple teachers for various content areas.
Will there be tutoring options for virtual learning students? Yes, if a student has a grade below 60%, they are strongly encouraged to go to tutoring. Times and locations of tutoring will be communicated as needed.
How will a virtual student receive help if they are falling behind or if they do not understand certain concepts? Students’ needs will be evaluated on an individual basis. If a student is falls behind in the virtual setting, school leadership teams will evaluate the student’s capacity to be successful in the virtual learning environment and make recommendations as needed.
Original source can be found here.
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