Teacher: Ms. R. Vega
(e-mail: vegar@middletownk12.org )
To all parents / guardians of students currently enrolled in my photography classes at MHS North:
To earn a passing grade for a marking period a student must participate fully in all class time activities (that is, the student must respect and work well with other students in class and with the teacher, participate in class discussions, takes notes when instructed to do so, be actively engaged in class work through the entire period, etc.) plus earn a passing grade average for all the assignments given during the marking period in each of the following three categories:
- Written assignments,
- Quizzes and Tests,
- Photo Project assignments
It is not my policy to lower the standards for any assignment for any student; however, students struggling with particular learning challenges (or parents of such students) may elect to request alternate assignments that cover the same general learning tasks. If privacy is an issue, please feel free to contact me by e-mail by clicking on my e-mail link at the top of this letter.
Sometimes academic pressures or other circumstances make it difficult for a student to complete assignments as specified within the normal time constraints of a marking period. Sometimes extraordinarily stressful or difficult events happen in a student's life outside the classroom that make it difficult to focus on academic work as well as he or she would do normally. Also, sometimes a student's work or extra-curricular activities schedule makes it difficult for him / her to complete photo assignments on a timely basis.
Because so many factors can affect a student's grades, I believe that a marking period report card grade for any of the first three marking periods should not represent an unchangeable grade. I believe that any student who really cares about his or her academic performance should be given at least one "second chance." All students in my classes are, therefore, offered the opportunity to continue to work to complete work "in progress" that was not completed in time to be assessed before grades were due. When that work is completed and submitted, a new grade can be sent down to the Guidance Office and that new grade will appear on the next report card. (The reason a report card grade of "incomplete" cannot be given in these cases is that "incomplete" grades may only be assigned due to extended medical absences & the work must be made up within ten days of that absence.)
The only note of caution I would mention to parents is that students should be encouraged to do the current work first and only after that is complete should they work on make-up projects. Otherwise it would become easy to fall so far behind in the current marking period work that this grade would also be in jeopardy! I generally make it a practice to provide after school work time at least one day per week - varying the day so that students on fixed work or extra-curricular activities schedules would still have access to the work time and extra help. Although no food or drink is permitted in the photo room, students are also welcome to come and work on projects during their lunch periods if they cannot come after school.
Thank you for your understanding in this matter.
Sincerely,
R. Vega