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Distance Learning GuideFA I R F I E L D I N T E R N AT I O N A L A C A D E M Y
S P R I N G 2 0 2 0
Unchanged: Mission, Vision & Promise
OUR MISSION: OUR MISS ION IS TO BUILD A K INDER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE TOMORROW BY EMPOWERING STUDENTS TO BECOME COURAGEOUS AND COMPASSIONATE GL OBAL C IT IZENS. THROUGH A R IGOROUS AND HOLIST IC CURRICULUM, WE CHALLE NGE STUDENTS TO R ISE ABOVE L IMITATIONS AND TO ACHIEVE AMBIT IOUS GOALS WITH IN TEGRITY, INTELL IGENCE AND AN ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET.
OUR VIS ION: TO USE EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE TO INSPIRE GENERATIONS OF CONFID ENT CHILDREN WHO SEE NO L IMITS IN THEIR ABIL ITY TO CREATE THE L IFE A ND THE WORLD THEY WANT TO SEE.
OUR PROMISE: FAIRF IELD PROMISES TO EMBRACE DIVERS ITY AND INDIVIDUALITY IN OURSTUDENTS AND FACULTY WHILE PROMOTING SOCIAL RESPONSIBIL ITY AND N URTURING A COLLABORATIVE LEARNING COMMUNITY.
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All the Key Parts that Keep us Connected
Overview from Mr. Morse
Roles and Expectations of FIA Students
Roles of FIA Parents and the Home
Roles and Expectations of FIA Staff
Appendices: Links, Resources and Organization
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Dear FIA Students, Families, Staff and Extended Community,
There have been many sudden, recent changes precipitated by the outbreak of the COVID-19 or Coronavirus that have affected people, families, companies and institutions all over the world. At FIA, there are a few things it does not change: our mission, our vision and our promise to deliver a high-quality education to our students onsite or online. We add this Guide as a supplement to our Student and Family Handbook, not a replacement for it.
I am happy to report that these first weeks of online learning were remarkably strong, made better daily by student effort, parent support, community input by surveys, teachers’ experimentation, research and professional development, and most of all the FIA spirit to work together, achieve, being respectful, responsible and collaborative. By necessity, we have had to be more resilient, more innovative and better independent learners and instructors – all of which is very consistent with our mission, our vision and our need to be better with every day and every new challenge!
Excellent organization on everyone's part – in the home, in student’s work space, in our instruction, in student learning, in
planning our technologies, and in communication – is at the core of all our work, daily, weekly and for the entire fourth quarter. To that end, we: 1. Continue working primarily through Google Classroom, 2. Meet punctually on our new online schedule, 3. Maintain expectations for daily prep and homework in all scheduled classes, 4. Stay on the school calendar (included in Appendix 2 here), and 5. Complete work, check-ins with Miss Effs, and meet/complete all class schedules, including the Monday morning All-School Assembly via Zoom. We’re doing very well…let’s keep it up!
We thank all of you – students, parents, teachers, staff and family members – who are helping us seize this opportunity and find the strength to thrive in adversity and prepare for next year’s learning with a responsible completion of the current term in its entirety!
Griffin Morse, Head Principal
Roles and Expectations of FIA Students
We will cover these topics:
▪ How to work together online
▪ How to be yourself but perhaps learn differently online, alone and with others
▪ How similar distance learning is to onsite learning
▪ What is expected of you in these new conditions…
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Students are expected to…
•Be able to communicate through writing and with online apps. If struggling, ask for help! Send us an email!!
•Be self-motivated and self-disciplined, staying on top of your assignments daily.
•Be willing and able to commit to your regular workload of hours per week per course, which means in-class time + homework time.
•Be able to meet the requirements for each course without sacrificing your typical quality for each class.
•Accept critical thinking and decision-making as part of the learning process…not a test for your parents, but for you!
•Maintain access to your computer and the internet, or seek your parents’ help to do so.
•Take the situation and yourself seriously; ask for help if and when you need it.
•Make sure you should find a consistent, productive work spaceat home, free of distractions and interruptions.
•Log on to your Google Classroom and email every single day and you might need to catch up on weekends!
•During the school day (8:15am-3:30pm), you should check your email every hour, as there can be time-sensitive information!
•Look at your weekly schedule and be sure to maintain your pace and focus. Breaks are healthy but they should be planned and disciplined so they don’t run the schedule!
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Students are also expected to…
•Check-in with Miss Effs every morning between 8:15 and 8:30, and attend All-School Assemblies Monday morning at 8:30.
•Be able to think ideas through before responding…live, in-class conferencing can be more challenging than regular class time. Jot down notes of what you want to say!
•Be polite, organized, prepared and respectful, as you would in classes on campus.
•Sit up at all times and keep your microphone muted, to reduce background noise, unless you are speaking.•You are expected to remain online and with your video ON during a live, in-class conference.
•First-period classes that meet for live, in-class conferencing will start at 8:30 am; all others will meet at their regularly
scheduled time, according to the new online school schedule, and the Weekly Schedule each classroom teacher provides to indicate the meeting times.
•Students must be seated at a desk or table, with appropriate background, for ALL live, in-class conferencing.
•Exhibit normal classroom behaviour for all live, in-class conferencing.
•Dress appropriately…even though uniforms are not required.
•Adapt your learning strategies to be sure you are working at your best – it might well be VERY different from how you normally learn in a classroom!
•Be patient with yourselves and others – this IS different!!
Roles of FIA Parents and the Home
We will cover these topics:
▪ How families and the home play critical support roles
▪ What we rely on from you in these new conditions
▪ Some key academic information and pacing
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Families are expected to…
•Help ensure that your student can remain online with a functioning device for all live, in-class conferences.
•Help ensure that your student is awake well before 8:30 amto check-in with Miss Effs, with the day ahead fully organized.
•Provide a quiet space where your student can be seated at a desk or table, with appropriate background, for ALL live, in-class conferencing. It should also serve as the regular study space!
•Have periodic chats with your student to be sure s/he is willing to “speak up” (by email or conferencing with teachers) if problems or misunderstood topics arise.
•Remind your student that high-quality learning can take place without going to a traditional classroom and staying up with the class and completing all work on time is critical.
•Check that your student is, in fact, completing work and
attending scheduled class conferencing and participating! Absences are recorded, as they are at school, and students and parents will be contacted by Miss Effs.
•Consult with the Grade-specific folder each week to see what is planned. Knowing that order and the live conference schedules each week can help your home and your student find order, pace and harmony in completing class demands!
For your information:
•We remain committed to keeping the momentum of your learning skills and progress on content as we all face the challenge to complete the academic year on- and/or offline.
•Records for the Fourth Quarter, the second half of the second semester, start Tuesday, April 14th, and end the third week of June. The remaining calendar is posted in this Guide in Appendix 2.
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Families are expected, for internet health/safety, to…
•Have conversations about pace, good health habits and reasonable breaks.
•Remind your student that the increased time on the internet introduces many distractions, contacts and exchanges that can be counterproductive or dangerous.
•Have candid conversations about cyberbullying, sexting, pornography, anonymous contacts, unhealthy or inappropriate gaming, and phishing schemes.
•Model and explain the healthy habits and cautions that will help your student understand the risks inherent in heavy internet time [filters, spam, trash, allowing cookies, filling out forms, taking surveys, giving out email or passwords]
•Help your student follow the schedule (five-minute breaks between live classes) to ensure proper stretching and physical movement to break up the day.
•Question unusual screen activity and confront it with your student. It might also be on the phone but insist that the phone be put away as much as possible during school hours and all school work be done on the computer.
•Accept the emotional roller coaster of anxiety, frustration, cabin fever, on-and-off relationship ties with regular friends, or mood swings, and stop to have those talks.
Recommended Sites for Information on these Delicate but Important Topics are Provided as Links in a Few Slides.
Roles of FIA Faculty and Staff
Assumptions of Distance Learning:
▪ Our work online is as legitimate as onsite work
▪ Academic skills and habits are being developed as much as or more than content
▪ We recognize the need for students to feel school online is still in tact, with the same people, materials and energy as at school.
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Faculty and Staff are expected to…
•Lead their classes online with the same authority, imagination, creativity and rigor as their classes onsite.
•Communicate school/homework early each week for use by parents and students and consistent with the class syllabus.
•Use online and offline resources that reinforce and support homework and individual student progress.
•Encourage and maintain the typical partnership with family and students that promotes timely, regular communication and supports families in the learning process.
•Design assignments that clearly articulate purpose and expected learning outcome, while recognizing the difference in learning platforms that distance learning imposes.
•Develop course materials and homework that are directly related to learning goals and consist of clear, purposeful and engaging activities.
•Reach out to students and their parents to communicate missing or incomplete work, as well as outstanding work that celebrates student learning.
•Provide support for students and family in ensuring that there is open communication on all relevant topics in a timely, transparent way that helps us all optimize the online learning experience.
•Ensure that students are clear about expectations and will continue to provide guidance, instruction, and reflection to reinforce academic and intellectual honesty.
•Seek to inspire their students to use online sources well with legitimate and appropriate citations.
•Find inventive, differentiated ways of instruction that bring out different creativity from what onsite instruction cannot achieve, individually and in collaborative group activities.
The Faculty Requests…
▪ That students continue to complete and check their work with the same rigor, pride and commitment that was expected of them at school.
▪ That students, recognizing the importance of independent learning, will contact (email preferred) the teacher about any concern or confusion resulting from daily work. If needed, request a video explanation.
▪ That this important time be a maturing time of growth using the internet and your own personal skills to develop and improve yourselves as citizens.
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Technology and Organization must be easy to find!
Online Resources
First Place to LookAll detailed class content is delivered to students primarily through Google Classroom, our platform since the start of the year.
Second Place to LookOur shared folders, updated weekly and sorted by grade and week, are easily accessed by hyperlinks that require no passwords.
Live, In-class ConferencingAn important medium of class work is the live conference, and we use the most user-friendly and reliable conference services, Zoom and Google Meet/ Hangouts.
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Technology – FIA’s critical Links…Open them from here!
Grade 7 Folder. Open this folder for the most current materials by Week # and topic.
Grade 8 Folder. Open this folder for the most current materials by Week # and topic.
Grade 9 Folder. Open this folder for the most current materials by Week # and topic.
Grade 10 Folder. Open this folder for the most current materials by Week # and topic.
Zoom Video Conferencing Instructions
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Policy and Counseling Support for Families
Acceptable Use Policy. This standard FIA policy covers all aspects of
computer use at FIA – online or off – for everyone’s safety.
Cyberbullying. This can be a good learning time, especially for girls
Sexting. This is a difficult but especially important topic.
Phishing Schemes. First defined and then explained, this is key to learn
Zoom Security. Read here about Zoom’s online security on all fronts.
Thank You!While we are all learning to accept this new reality as “the new normal,” we are also endeavoring to protect the stability, ethics and values of our community and your homes. We thank you for your collaborative support, vision and efforts to help our FIA children thrive in the face of these challenges!
Appendix 1: Emails
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Latoya Briscoe - Social Studies, Grade [email protected]
Roashima Campbell - Spanish and Robotics Club, Grade [email protected]
Danielle Effs - Executive Assistant and Admissions, Grade [email protected]
Delano Foster - Music, Physical Education, Grade [email protected]
Jodi Gay-Cummings - English, Health, Key Club, Grade [email protected]
Debbie Louw - Business [email protected]
Tom Macjchrowitz – Sciences, Chess Club, grade [email protected]
Griffin Morse - Head [email protected]
Andre Saunders - [email protected]
Tracy-Ann Smith-Williams, Grade [email protected]
Kerrian Thompson - Visual Arts, Genius Hour, Robotics Club, Grade 8 [email protected]
Appendix 2: The Spring Calendar
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April Fri, 3 End of Quarter 3 / Early Release at 11:30am
Mon-Mon, 6 -13 School closed for spring break
Tue, 14 Classes resume online
May Fri, 1 Teachers’ Appreciation Day!!
Tue, 5 Cinco de mayo celebration, ¡Spanish Immersion Day!
Thu-Mon 21-25 No classes, Jamaican Labour Day observance
Tues, 26 Classes resume
June Mon, 8 World Oceans Day celebration, clean-up and field trip
Wed-Fri, 17-19 Semester exams (grades 7-10)
Sat, 20 Save the Date for an evening of art and entertainment!
Wed, 24 End of Quarter 4; Last day of classes
Recognition Assembly; 11:30 close
Summer School at FIA
June
July Mon-Fri, 6-10 Session #1 of Summer School, 9:00-3:00
Mon-Fri, 13-17 Session #2 of Summer School, 9:00-3:00