Policies
The topics listed below are also discussed in the Welcome Letter for Families distributed during open house and on the Student Syllabus.
Tutoring
Extra help is available Monday through Thursday from 3:45-5:00 p.m. If you need one-on-one help, you should sign up for a time on the door. In addition, National Honors Society offers tutoring one morning per week.
What can I do to improve my grade?
You can rewrite any paper or project that scores a grade you are not happy with for a new grade within one week of its return. I believe that if you put in the effort to learn (or relearn) a topic, you should be rewarded for it. Mastery is our goal, and even if it takes you a few tries to master the work, your grade should show mastery.
Come to tutoring for extra help; we can discuss ways of improving your grade.
Absences
Students have three days to make up work after an absence. It is the student’s responsibility to check the class website to print off assignments missed during an absence. If you have to leave early for sports or an appointment, stop by on the day you leave to pick up work or check the website after school.
Plagiarism
Copied papers get zeros and all students involved in copying or aiding in it will be sent to detention, in accordance with DSA’s Honor Code. If you did not do the assignment, you should talk to me before class or hand in your incomplete assignment. You will have more dignity, a higher grade, and a cleaner record.
Late Work
Late work is not accepted. If you earn below 70% on three homework assignments, you will be required to come to tutoring after school or during lunch. If you earn below 70% on a reading quiz, you will be required to come to reading remediation at lunch. If you don’t come to tutoring or reading remediation when assigned, you will serve detention.
Late homework: No credit unless completed in tutoring.
Late projects, essays: You lose a full grade (7 points) for turning it in late unless a parent contacts me about a family emergency or other reason you were not able to do your work.
Broken Printer?
This is not an excuse for late work. Get the assignment to me on flash drive, email, or pen on paper. If you email, make sure the document is attached and pasted into the body of the email (I cannot open some document types via attachment), send it to yourself and to me, and then print it before school in the media center or my classroom. You must wait for a confirmation email from me to ensure I received your email. If you don’t get a confirmation email, I did not get your email. Check to see if you’re spelling my name correctly. I do not allow printing essays during class on the day they are due. If you need to handwrite an essay, it must be in blue or black ink, written on every other line.
Honors vs. Standard English I
Each student has the choice to complete the course at the Honors level, which adds extra weight to your GPA. In my class, these students will have extra reading, additional components to projects, and more competitive grading. For example, a paper that earns an A in regular English will earn a B in Honors English. Likewise, quizzes and tests for Honors and Standard English I are different.
If enrolled in Honors, the grade on your first progress report must be 77% (C) or above; if 76% (D) or below, you will be automatically switched to regular English, where you will be more successful. Only a parent petition at a conference can stop this process. In addition, any student who has not completed the summer assignment will be automatically enrolled in regular English. If enrolled in regular English and you would like to switch to Honors, your first progress report grade must be 85% (B) or above.
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