BEFORE MOVING FORWARD, PLEASE READ THE SCHOOL POLICIES, STUDENT AGREEMENT, AND CODE OF CONDUCT AND AGREE TO THEM BELOW.

DROP / WITHDRAWAL

Pasco eSchool sets high expectations for the success of its students. We are committed to meeting the needs of all students and will work tirelessly to facilitate student success. To maintain instructional momentum, students are required to submit assignments in their course on a weekly basis and to maintain regular contact with their instructors.

Any student who does not make progress in the course for a period of 14 days and has not made prior arrangements with his/her instructor, will be referred to their zoned school for additional support and progress monitoring.

The Virtual Learning Lab staff and school counselor will work with the student, parent, and the course instructor to create a Success Plan for the student.

Failure to respond to the school’s attempts to contact the student, or failure to adhere to the Success Plan created by the student and family may result in Administrative Removal from the course without credit for work completed.

CODE OF CONDUCT

Internet access is required for all Pasco eSchool students, but access must be used in a responsible, safe, efficient, ethical, and legal manner. With expanded access to electronic information, the availability of inappropriate material is not uncommon. Some sites contain illegal, defamatory, inaccurate, or offensive information. Although it is impossible to control such misuses, we believe that with responsible use, the benefits of the Internet as an educational tool outweigh the negatives. We especially appreciate partnering with parents to teach responsible Internet use.

Please review the following etiquette rules and Pasco eSchool expectations carefully:

Students are responsible for good behavior on the Pasco eSchool network, just as they are in a traditional school building. Always use a computer in a way that shows consideration and respect. It is illegal to use obscene, profane, threatening, or disrespectful language. (f.s. 847.001 Obscene Literature; Profanity).

We take integrity and authenticity of student work very seriously at Pasco eSchool. Do not cut, copy, or plagiarize Internet content or the work of your online classmates. Pasco eSchool instructors do utilize technologies to check for authenticity. Copying, knowingly allowing others to copy from you, and/or misusing Internet content could result in removal from our courses.

Security is a high priority, especially when the system involves many users. If you can identify a security problem in the school’s computers, network, or Internet connection, notify a system administrator.

It is illegal to create harmful computer viruses. (f.s. 815 Computer-Related Crimes).

Email is not private. Never say anything via email that you wouldn’t mind seeing on the school bulletin board or in the local newspaper.

Beware of emails from anyone, particularly adults you don’t know asking for personal information, attempting to arrange meetings, or engaging in personal contact. Alert your teacher or other Pasco eSchool employee of any message you receive that is inappropriate or makes you feel uncomfortable.

Email with your online classmates should be course-related. It is prohibited to send unsolicited email to your online classmates.

Email addresses that use profanity or may be construed as offensive, shall not be permitted for Pasco eSchool correspondence. Pasco eSchool administration reserves the right to determine if student email addresses are inappropriate. When necessary, students will be asked to use an alternative email address or be refused for participation in Pasco eSchool courses.

Protect your password. Keep it secret from anyone except your parents.

Inappropriate Texting/Messaging: Photographs or videos sent via computer, cell phone, or any other electronic device which depict nudity or any other inappropriate content are prohibited (f.s. 847.001 Sexting)

Dress Code Policy: When attending any meeting or student gathering affiliated with Pasco eSchool, clothing that exposes underwear or body parts in an indecent or vulgar manner or that disrupts the orderly learning environment is not permitted. Students must comply with the dress code policy for Pasco County Schools during school events and for video conferencing or submissions used within online courses.

Pasco eSchool administrators will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials in any investigation related to any illegal activities conducted through Internet access. In the event there is a claim that you have violated this policy, you will be provided with notice of the suspected violation and have an opportunity to present an explanation. Any violations may result in removal from Pasco eSchool course(s), as well as other disciplinary or legal action.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Academic Integrity is one of our core values and one of the most important areas of focus as a learning organization. Students demonstrating academic integrity make decisions based on ethics and values that will prepare them to be productive and ethical citizens.

How is academic integrity maintained in online learning? Pasco eSchool and its curriculum providers take the subject of academic integrity seriously. Teachers use a variety of monitoring tools:

Plagiarism Detection Software: This Internet tool compares student work against a variety of databases. Our learning management systems are integrated with Vericite.com and/or Turn It In.com, and most work is automatically uploaded to the system. This database compares student work against work found on the Internet.

Academic Integrity Report Database: Pasco eSchool and Florida Virtual School maintain databases of student integrity incidents. This database is used to monitor the number of student integrity issues. Incidents in Pasco eSchool courses are logged within this database, as well. This information may be shared with Pasco schools, as well as Florida Virtual School when a student is co-enrolled. Violations of the Academic Integrity policy may result in disciplinary referrals and consequences according to the Student Code of Conduct and/or the Florida Virtual School Academic Integrity policy.

Discussion Based Assessments: Each teacher regularly conducts discussion-based assessments with his or her students. These conversations occur at specific intervals as well as randomly in a course and are included in the assessment component of each course. The teacher discusses individual student work and extends the conversation to allow the student to demonstrate mastery of the content and to verify the authenticity of the student’s work.

Proctored Exams: As a condition of enrollment, students taking online courses with Pasco eSchool agree to participate in proctored exam administrations as required by the school administration. Such requests may be randomly assigned or may result from a pattern of Academic Integrity incidents. In addition, teachers can request a scheduled proctored assessment at any time for a student. Students who are required to take a proctored exam must report to the school site scheduled for the exam administration and must earn a score of 60% or higher on their first attempt. Students who refuse to sit for a proctored exam forfeit the opportunity to earn credit for the course.

GRADING & FINAL EXAM

A = Outstanding performance 100 – 90
B = Above average performance 89 – 80
C = Average performance 79 – 70
D = Below average performance 69 – 60
F = Failing 59 and below

W Withdrawn- No grade (No academic penalty) Note: Student must withdraw during the 28-day grace period to receive no penalty. This status will not be reflected on the student’s academic history (transcript).

W/P – Student withdrew with satisfactory performance (on pace with a passing grade) after the 28-day grace period. This status IS recorded on the student’s academic history (transcript).

W/F Student withdrew with unsatisfactory performance after the 28-day no-penalty grace period. This status IS recorded on the student’s academic history (transcript).

FINAL EXAM POLICY

The purpose of the final exam is to assist in validating that students have demonstrated mastery of key course concepts and standards. The final exam, unto itself, is not the sole determiner of student achievement; however, students are required to take and successfully pass a final exam in all Pasco eSchool courses.

In order to maintain the integrity of all Pasco eSchool grades, instructors may choose to facilitate random oral assessments and/or face to face exams.

©Pasco eSchool, Pasco County Schools