Weekly Update: Dec. 4 – Jan. 4th, 2021

Tim Chute | December 3, 2020 | Weekly Update | No Comments

HCMC is experience a resurgence in cases of COVID-19. As a result SSIS has increased the level of safety protocols. All students and staff must wear a mask at all times while on campus (even when writing their assessments and exams). Be sure to use hand santizer frequently and when entering new rooms. Students need to be using disinfectant to clean their desks at the end of each block. Try to maintain social distancing the best you can in the hallways. Students can still work together in classrooms if they have their make on.

Please sure to take home your computer and charger every night in case the government closes schools in the city.

We are still planning for exams next week to be written in classrooms. If your students are writing an exam for you then please be available to answer questions. This may mean going between classrooms if you teach multiple sections.

Invigilators: please note the dates and times that you have been assigned to invigilate exams. Show up 10 minutes early if you will be starting the exam. Please be sure to read the exam rules to the student prior to starting the exam.

Friday, Dec. 4th
Day 6 – GHEF

Saturday, Dec, 5th
SAT Exam 7:00am – 1:00pm

Sunday, Dec. 6th

Monday, Dec. 7th
Day 7 – DAB Adv C
Advisory Calendar 2020 – 21
New Faculty Meeting with Dr. Moran in MPR2 at 3:30pm

Tuesday, Dec. 8th
Day 8 – HEFG

Wednesday, Dec. 9th
Day 1 – ABCD

Thursday, Dec. 10th
Semester 1 Exam Schedule 2020 FINAL Nov 25

Friday, Dec. 11th
Semester 1 Exam Schedule 2020 FINAL Nov 25

Saturday, Dec. 12th

Sunday, Dec. 13th

Monday, Dec. 14th
Semester 1 Exam Schedule 2020 FINAL Nov 25

Tuesday, Dec. 15th
Semester 1 Exam Schedule 2020 FINAL Nov 25
HSLT meeting 3:15pm

Wednesday, Dec. 16th
Semester 1 Exam Schedule 2020 FINAL Nov 25

Thursday, Dec. 17th – Early Dismissal
HS Assembly in Auditorium at 10:15am

Winter Break, Dec\ember 18th – January 4th

On the Horizon

Staff Action Needed:
Chaperone Sign-Up HS Teacher Chaperone signups 2020-2o21

Assessment Calendar: Be sure to use the Assessment Calendar for all major assessments and IB due dates. These items should be on the Assessment Calendar two weeks prior to the due date or assessment date.

Semester 1 Grades and Comments [IMPORTANT]

Below is important information about completing your Semester 1 grades and comments in PowerTeacher Pro. Please read carefully as there are some nuanced details, especially for those teachers who will be overriding grades. If you have any questions, need assistance with the process, or want me to check your gradebook, please let me know.
The deadline for S1 grades and comments is Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 8am.
Currently, if there are any empty, incomplete, or missing assignments in your gradebook, change them to zeros at this point so the students can see the impact not completing the assignment will have on their grade. Give the student a final warning and a final deadline by which to complete the work. By Dec. 16, there shouldn’t be any empty/incomplete/missing assignment grades. If the student does not complete any work by the agreed-upon date, you will need to enter a zero. Empty and incomplete assignment scores do NOT equate a zero and do not impact the grade (this benefits the students and gives them a higher grade). If a student is receiving an “Exempt” on an assignment for whatever reason, be sure the “Exempt” option is chosen (Exempt = they are not required to complete the assignment).
The last date for Semester 1 assignments is Dec. 10. Be sure all final semester assessments are entered by this date and contain a date no later than the 10th. Assignments entered with a date of Dec. 11 or later will not be counted in the semester grade.

COMMENTS

Write your comments on a Google Doc or MS Word document. Get your comments proofread by a colleague. Paste them into PowerTeacher no earlier 48 hours before the Dec. 16 deadline.
Comments go in the S1 Bin.

IF YOU HAVE A 20% EXAM

Student 20% exam grades go in the E1 bin.
Set your exam assignment date only for Dec. 14 even if your exam doesn’t occur on that date.
The 20% weight for the exam is already set in the system (and it cannot be changed). You do not need to do any weighting for your exam when putting the score in the E1 bin.
If your final exam has multiple parts, it’s ok to have more than one assignment in the E1 bin. Just be sure all are dated Dec. 14. If any part of the exam is going to have more weight, it’s best to weight by changing the total points available.
Be sure all other semester grades are entered by Dec. 10 and ensure assignments are properly labeled.

IF YOU DON’T HAVE A 20% EXAM

Do not put any grades in the E1 bin. That 20% will not be calculated as long as nothing is put in that bin.
Be sure all grades are entered by Dec. 10.

Final GRADES with NO OVERRIDING (i.e. not changing the averaged grade)

You don’t really need to do anything except make sure all of your individual assignment scores are accurate and updated. If a student has a zero/incomplete/missing/absent as a place holder, but they submitted the work, be sure those assignment grades are updated. Don’t leave any summative assessment blank. A blank/incomplete/missing grade does not calculate in the grade. If a student didn’t submit something by an agreed-upon date, it should a zero on Dec. 10

Final GRADES with OVERRIDING (i.e. you will change the averaged grade)

If you are NOT giving a 20% final exam, you will need to override the letter grade AND percentage in BOTH S1 and C1. Even if you aren’t working with a percentage in overriding the grade, you still need to enter a percentage that matches the letter grade on the traditional grading scale in both S1 and C1. You decide what that percentage will be.
If you are giving a 20% exam, ONLY OVERRIDE C1. Do NOT override S1. In this situation, it is critical that you enter a percentage that matches the letter grade on the traditional scale in the C1 override. If you don’t enter a percentage in C1, the system can’t do the 80-20 calculation with the exam grade (E1) to calculate the final grade in S1 properly.

Again, please let me know if you have any questions about these details or if you want to talk through them in person.
Best,
Thomas

Counselors:
University counselors (Kelly and Sam)
School counselors (Julia and Chris P)
caseload is based on the four Houses to balance out the workload.