School Agenda

Academic Policies

Prior to instruction in a unit, course, or program of study, students shall be provided with:            

• a list of learning expectations which they will be expected to achieve;
• appropriate samples of assessment items or expectations which will be used to measure achievement of the learning outcomes;
• an outline of the components, criteria, and mark value for all elements of the final grade.

Formal Examinations

A formal written examination, oral presentation or culminating activity may be a compulsory part of a course. A student may be excused from these final assessments ONLY with a medical certificate and/or approval of the Principal. Any student who fails to take a compulsory final assessment without formal approval shall receive a mark of zero for that assessment. If Board of Education transportation is cancelled or school is closed due to inclement weather, scheduled examinations for that day will be rescheduled to the next school day. The balance of the examination schedule will be advanced accordingly.

Examination Length
Grade 9 - one hour minimum (90 minutes if needed)
Grades 10 & 11 - 1.5 hours
Grade 12 - 2 or 2.5 hours

Plagiarism – It is a serious offence for students to hand in work that is not their own or that has been “borrowed” from books, journals, or other sources such as the Internet without proper documentation and credit given. Paraphrasing or direct quotations must be properly acknowledged. Such dishonest submissions will be assigned a mark of zero and may lead to other consequences such as disqualification for scholarships.

Cheating – The receiving and giving of answers during a quiz/test/exam is strictly forbidden. Those involved will be assigned a mark of zero for that assessment and may receive other consequences as well.

A formal Report Card shall be provided to parents/ guardians, or students who are of the age of majority, at the middle and end of each semester. In addition, Grade 9 students also receive a Progress Report after 4 weeks of classes in each semester. Gr. 10 to 12 students who are having difficulty will also receive a Credit at Risk Notice at this time. A parent-teacher conference will be held following each interim (mid-semester) reporting period to allow parents to meet with teachers.

Full Disclosure on Transcripts
As of September 1999, the following applies for all courses attempted at the senior level (3, or 4):

(1) If a student withdraws from a senior level course after 5 instructional days following the issuance of the Interim Report Card, a “W” is entered in the credit column and the student’s mark at the time of withdrawal is expressed as a percentage in the achievement column of the transcript,
(2) If a student repeats a senior level course, each course attempt and its mark will be recorded on the transcript, however only one credit will be granted. The course with the lower mark will receive an “R” entered in the credit column,
(3) Senior courses with failing grades will be recorded.