StudentsPolicies & Procedures Handbook

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Table of ContentsTable of Contents........................................................................................................................................2

Middlebury Interactive Languages..............................................................................................................4

MIL Mission Statement............................................................................................................................4

After Registration....................................................................................................................................5

Textbooks and Instructional Materials....................................................................................................5

Technical Requirements..........................................................................................................................5

Computer Specifications..........................................................................................................................6

MIL Courses.................................................................................................................................................7

Logging in to MIL Courses........................................................................................................................7

MIL Course Tutorials................................................................................................................................8

Announcements......................................................................................................................................8

Communication.......................................................................................................................................8

Starting Your Course Work......................................................................................................................9

Checking Your Grades..............................................................................................................................9

Powerspeak Courses..................................................................................................................................11

Logging in to Powerspeak Courses........................................................................................................11

Powerspeak Course Tutorials................................................................................................................11

Logging In, Announcements.................................................................................................................12

Message waiting for you Urgent message waiting for you..........................12

Communication.....................................................................................................................................12

Starting Your Course Work....................................................................................................................13

Checking Your Grades............................................................................................................................13

Managing Your Online Course...................................................................................................................14

Time Management................................................................................................................................14

Pacing Guidelines..................................................................................................................................14

Sample Student Calendar......................................................................................................................15

Student Grades......................................................................................................................................16

Credit and Transcripts...........................................................................................................................16

Grading Scale.........................................................................................................................................17

Retaking of Assignments in Teacher Supported Courses.......................................................................17

Code of Conduct & Acceptable Use Policy.................................................................................................18

Student Conduct....................................................................................................................................18

Academic Integrity.................................................................................................................................19

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Use of Copyrighted Materials................................................................................................................19

Plagiarism..............................................................................................................................................19

Source Citation......................................................................................................................................19

Monitoring E-mail and other Material..................................................................................................20

Acceptable Use Policy............................................................................................................................20

Netiquette.................................................................................................................................................22

Netiquette Standards............................................................................................................................23

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Middlebury Interactive Languages

Welcome to Middlebury Interactive Languages (MIL)! You have joined other students throughout the United States who are taking interesting and challenging world language online courses. And although you will be in an online class with others, MIL views you as an individual learner who will find support with appropriate pacing, go further into the mastery of content that is of particular academic and career interest and study with students from other regions and backgrounds. You will value these experiences as well as the personal attention you receive from your online teachers.

MIL Mission Statement

To offer access and opportunity for all students to gain culturally-authentic reading, writing, listening and speaking skills that students will need to become college- and career-ready in a 21st-century global marketplace.

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After Registration

If you are enrolled through a school, your school should provide you with the following information after your enrollment has been processed

-  course information-  course beginning and ending dates (if applicable)-  your username and password to log into your course

If you have enrolled through the website, you will receive an automatic email with the following:

- your username and password to log into your course- instructions on how to get started on your course

During the week that MIL courses begin you will also receive an email from your online teacher with specific course information.

Textbooks and Instructional Materials

You will not need any textbook for your class. You may use an online or hard copy dictionary to look up words, but may not use online translators to do word-for word translations of activities.

Technical Requirements

Students in MIL courses need regular access to an internet-connected computer, as well as access to various types of software and/or hardware. Because these courses are available to students on the Internet 24 hours a day, seven days a week, you have the option of working from school, a library, or from home.

If you are taking MIL courses as part of your regular school day, your school or district will provide technical support for the computer hardware and software you are using to complete your coursework.

If you are taking MIL courses from another location (such as your home), you or your parent/guardian must bear the responsibility for obtaining needed technical support.

You can send and receive messages with your teacher through your course. It is your responsibility to check your email regularly to see if you have messages from your MIL teacher.

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Computer Specifications

PC:Pentium III 1GHz or betterWindows XP or newer512 MB RAM256kbps DSL or better.Display resolution 1280x800 recommended (1024x768 minimum)Sound cardFirefox 3.5 or newer recommended; Internet Explorer 7.0Flash Player plugin (10.0 or better) Go to www.adobe.com Cookies enabledJavascript enabledHeadset/Microphone (MIL recommends: RadioShack Cyber Acoustics AC-201 Stereo Headset with Microphone (Model: AC-201  |  Catalog #: 55010858)

MACINTOSH:Power Mac G4 processor or betterOSX512 MB RAM256kbps DSL or better.Display resolution 1280x800 recommended (1024x768 minimum)Sound cardFirefox 3.5 or newer recommended; SafariFlash Player plugin (10.0 or better) Go to www.adobe.com Javascript enabledHeadset/Microphone (MIL recommends: RadioShack Cyber Acoustics AC-201 Stereo Headset with Microphone (Model: AC-201  |  Catalog #: 55010858)

*Please note that a slow internet connection will affect the performance of multimedia elements found in language courses.

To Contact the Help Desk:Email services@middleburyinteractive.com or dial toll-free 800-596-0910

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MIL Courses(Note: Please see “Powerspeak Courses” for information if you are enrolled in a Powerspeak course.)

Logging in to MIL CoursesOpen the internet browser and type in the address bar and type in your username and password.

After successfully logging in, go to the home page and click on your course.

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MIL Course Tutorials

An interactive student tutorial introduction to MIL course is available at the beginning of your course under view. If you are not familiar with MIL courses, it is strongly recommended that you follow this tutorial .

Announcements

Announcements can be seen above the name of your course. Your teacher will update this announcement at least once a week in order to keep you informed of upcoming deadlines activities. Be sure to read the announcements carefully and contact your teacher if you have any questions!

Communication

Your teacher will contact you at the beginning of the course, and your teacher will expect you to maintain prompt and frequent communication and interaction. You will be able to find your teacher’s contact information and their website in the welcome announcement.

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Starting Your Course Work

After you have received an email from your teacher, he/she will begin to guide you through the course. In general, your teacher will provide you with a pacing guide and due dates that you need to follow as you complete the course work. You need to follow this pacing guide closely. You can work ahead of the pacing guide AS LONG AS your teacher approves.

Checking Your Grades

Inside your course, click on gradebook on the top panel to see your grades. This page allows you to monitor your progress as your teacher posts all grades here for you to view.

The total number of points you have earned to date is displayed in the Final Grade button on the top

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panel. You may compare your points to the total number of points possible in the course. Check frequently to keep abreast of your progress.

Tests and quizzes will only be reopened at the discretion of your teacher.

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Powerspeak Courses(Note: Please see “MIL Courses” for information if you are enrolled in a Powerspeak course.)

Logging in to Powerspeak Courses

Open the internet browser and type in the address bar www.pglms.com. Type in your username and password.

Powerspeak Course Tutorials

An interactive student tutorial introduction to the Powerspeak course is available at the beginning of your course under view. If you are not familiar with Powerspeak courses, it is strongly recommended that you follow this tutorial.

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Logging In, Announcements

When you login to the Powerspeak course, you will see the message icon. If it is flashing orange, there is an announcement for you. If it is flashing red, there is an urgent announcement for you and it needs your immediate attention. You will not be able to go to the calendar until you have read the urgent message. Your teacher will update this announcement at least once a week in order to keep you informed of upcoming deadlines activities. Be sure to read the announcements carefully and contact your teacher if you have any questions!

Message waiting for you Urgent message waiting for you

Communication

Your teacher will contact you at the beginning of the course, and your teacher will expect you to maintain prompt and frequent communication and interaction. You will be able to find your teacher’s contact information and their website in the welcome announcement.

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Starting Your Course Work

After you have received an email from your teacher, he/she will begin to guide you through the course. In general, your teacher will provide you with a pacing guide and due dates that you need to follow as you complete the course work. You need to follow this pacing guide closely. You can work ahead of the pacing guide AS LONG AS your teacher approves you working ahead.

Checking Your Grades

Inside your course, click on grade book on the top panel to see your grades. This page allows you to monitor your progress as your teacher posts all grades here for you to view.

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Managing Your Online Course

Time Management

Online courses require serious commitment from you, the student. They require self-motivation, for often there is no one “bearing down” on whether you log in or complete an assignment or not. Online learning allows you the flexibility of working at your own pace; however, it requires time management. You should plan to schedule 10 -15 hours a week working in each course. Try to review and/or submit work on a daily basis. Contact your teacher if you have any concerns, questions, or need help. Try the calendar template in the section below for creating a schedule for study.

Pacing Guidelines

Important note: You are expected to spend at least as much time in a MIL course as you spend in each class during your school day. This includes time spent doing homework. If you are a student who works on online courses as part of your face to face school day and you do not finish your online assignment in class, you may be expected to complete it at home.

NON AP Courses: If you have not logged in for 72 hours, or if you fall to 70% or below on an end of the week assessment (PGLMS), your teacher will message you inside the course with "email" checked each day for up to three days. If no response is forthcoming from you within 24 hours of the third message, your teacher will escalate the problem to the MIL administrative team who will contact your school or parents or both.

AP Courses: If you have not logged in for 48 hours, or if you fall to 70% or below on an end of the week assessment(PGLMS)/end of week average for AP French, your teacher will message you inside the course with "email" checked each day for up to two days. If no response is forthcoming from you within 24 hours of the third message, your teacher will escalate the problem to the MIL administrative team who will contact your school or parents or both.

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Sample Student Calendar

Monday

Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

Example: Time

7p.m-8 p.m.

4 p.m. -5 p.m.

4p.m.-5-p.m.

6 p.m.-7 p.m.

Work Plan Read ch.2

Do ex. 3 &4

Study for quiz

Take Quiz

DUE 1st quiz

Week 1: TimeWork PlanDUE

Week 2:TimeWork PlanDUE

Week 3: TimeWork PlanDUE

Suggestion: Start by filling in due dates for all assignments using a different color.

Student Grades

Students receive frequent, timely feedback on homework assignments, tests and quizzes, projects and participation, as well as other activities as assigned by the MIL teacher. Information about students’ progress is available through the online gradebook. By reviewing the gradebook regularly, parents and counselors can help students meet their goals. In addition, schools can arrange to have regular progress reports sent from MIL to the school contact.

Depending on the teacher’s pacing guide, any work that should have been completed by the due date but has not been turned in may become a 0. Your teacher may enter these 0’s in the grade book by midterm and final exam periods.

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Credit and TranscriptsMiddlebury Interactive Languages (MIL) may grant credit and issue an official transcript to students completing Course + Credit + Teacher course; MIL does not award credit or a transcript to students who complete a Course Only course.

MINIMUM CREDIT REQUIREMENTS: To qualify for a transcript the student must meet the minimum requirements for earning credit. The minimum requirements include:

Completing 60% of the total possible points showing on the progress bar Participating in the mid-term and final exams Completing course with a passing final grade of 60% or higherNOTE: If the student has not met the above minimum requirements, no transcript will be issued.

TRANSCRIPT REQUEST: To receive a transcript, the student must send notification of course completion by submitting a written request to services@powerspeak.com. The student must provide the following information:

Name Title of the completed course Date of course completion Address to which the transcript should be mailed

SEALED TRANSCRIPTS: Parents and students—Do NOT open your transcripts if you are going to be sending them to an academic institution. Please note that ONLY sealed transcripts are considered official documents.

TRANSCRIPT TIMELINE and COST: Delivered within two to three weeks of request.1st transcript FREE. $5 per extra transcript

The following units of credit are offered:    .25 = one semester middle school course    .5 = one semester high school course; one yearlong middle school course    1 = one yearlong high school course.

Grading ScaleThe grading scale that will appear on MIL treanscripts is below. Note: Local schools may override the letter/percentage equivalents:

90-100: A 80-89: B 70-79: C

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60-69: D 0--59:

Retaking of Assignments in Teacher Supported Courses

Reopening of assignments occurs at online teacher's discretion, subject to the following suggestions:

Multiple choice computer graded assessments can only be taken once Teacher-graded assessments can only be taken 3 times

Adherence to reasonable pacing parameters may or may not take precedence over local school policies on retakes. Teachers should contact the Director of Online Instruction for support in resolving assignment issues with individual clients/schools.

 

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Code of Conduct & Acceptable Use PolicyAs a Middlebury Interactive Languages (MIL) student, you are subject to the rules and restrictions implemented by your school and the Student Code of Conduct and Acceptable Use Policy.

This document describes the policies and guidelines for the use of the MIL courses and exists to ensure that all MIL students are aware of and understand their responsibilities when accessing and using MIL resources.

MIL reserves the right to update or alter this agreement at any time. Such revisions may substantially alter access to MIL instructional resources.

As a student enrolled in MIL courses, you should be aware of the following guidelines and expectations. Any activity that is not listed here, which violates local, state, or federal laws, is considered a violation of the Acceptable Use Policy.

Failure to follow these guidelines could result in the: removal of your access to MIL instructional resources your removal from the course restriction from social networking anywhere in the MIL system involvement with law enforcement agencies and possible legal action.

Student Conduct

Respect for the law and for those persons in authority shall be expected of all students. This includes conformity to your school rules as well as general provisions of law affecting students. Respect for the rights of others, consideration of their privileges, and cooperative citizenship shall also be expected of all members of the school community.

Respect for real and personal property; pride in one's work; achievement within the range of one's ability; and exemplary personal standards of courtesy, decency, and honesty shall be maintained in MIL courses.

Academic Integrity

All work submitted is assumed to have been completed on your own. Students are responsible for observing the standards on plagiarism and properly crediting all sources relied on in the composition of their work. Failure to abide by these standards will be reported to the appropriate

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administrative authorities and may result in loss of credit and revoked access to course(s) and additional disciplinary action. The use of digital, printed, or live translators is strictly forbidden.

Use of Copyrighted Materials

All materials in the courses are copyrighted and provided for the exclusive use by enrolled students. Enrolled students may print or photocopy material from the website for their own use but distribution to others is prohibited unless expressly noted. Unauthorized copying or distribution may result in revoked access to course(s) and disciplinary action.

Users shall not upload, download, transmit or post copyrighted software or copyrighted materials such as MIL curriculum, materials protected by trade secrets or other protections. This includes copyrighted graphics of cartoon characters or other materials found that may appear to be non-copyright protected. Unauthorized copying or distribution may result in revoked access to course(s) and disciplinary action.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the act of submitting someone else’s work as your own original, creative production. If you use another person’s writing or original work, you must cite their words using an appropriate manuscript style in the Works Cited page, Endnotes, or in a Bibliography. The exact wording should be in quotation marks or paraphrased in the paper and referenced as such in the paragraph in which it appears. You may not copy and paste directly from the Internet without giving appropriate credit to the author. Plagiarism is a serious academic violation. Plagiarism may result in no credit and will also be considered as a disciplinary issue and may result in removal from MIL courses.

Source Citation

Many courses require written work in which you will need to cite sources. Any direct quotations from your textbook can simply be cited as (Author, Page Number). Any quotations from outside sources require full citations, including author, title, publisher, date of publication, and page number. If you're citing information found on a Web site, provide the complete Web page or site title, URL, author if known, page number if applicable, and publication date of the site, if available.

Monitoring E-mail and other Material

MIL reserves the right to review any material transmitted using MIL instructional computing resources or posted to an MIL instructional computing resource to determine the appropriateness of such material. MIL may review this material at any time, with or without notice. E-mail transmitted to MIL is not private and may be monitored.

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Acceptable Use Policy

You understand that all information, data, text, software, music, sound, photographs, graphics, video, messages, tags or other materials ("User Content"), whether publicly posted or privately transmitted, are the sole responsibility of the person from which such User Content originated. This means that you and not MIL are entirely responsible for all User Content that you upload, post, email, transmit or otherwise make available via the Services.MIL does not control the User Content posted via the Services and, as such, does not guarantee the accuracy, integrity or quality of such User Content. Under no circumstances will MIL be liable in any way for any User Content, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in any User Content, or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any User Content posted, emailed, transmitted or otherwise made available via the Services.

By posting information in or otherwise using any interactive service that may be available to you on or through the Services, you agree that you will not upload, post, or otherwise distribute or facilitate distribution of any content—including text, communications, software, images, sounds, data, or other information—that:

Could be harmful to minors; is unlawful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, libelous, deceptive, fraudulent, invasive of another's privacy, tortious, contains explicit or graphic descriptions or accounts of sexual acts (including but not limited to sexual language of a violent or threatening nature directed at another individual or group of individuals), uses vulgar language in the creation of a username, or otherwise violates these Terms or any applicable School policy;

Victimizes, harasses, degrades, or intimidates an individual or group of individuals on the basis of religion, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age, or disability;

Infringes on any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, right of publicity, or other proprietary right of any party;

Constitutes unauthorized or unsolicited advertising, junk or bulk e-mail (also known as "spamming"), chain letters, any other form of unauthorized solicitation, solicits passwords or personally identifiable information, or any form of lottery or gambling, sweepstakes or advertising;

Disrupts the normal flow of dialogue, cause a screen to "scroll" faster than other users of the Services are able to type, or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects other users' ability to engage in real time exchanges where available;

Interferes with or disrupts the Services or servers or networks connected to the Services, or disobeys any requirements, procedures, policies or regulations of networks connected to the

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Services;

Provides material support or resources (or to conceal or disguise the nature, location, source, or ownership of material support or resources) to any organization(s) designated by the United States government as a foreign terrorist organization pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act; “stalks" or otherwise harasses another;

Contains software viruses or any other computer code, files, or programs that are designed or intended to disrupt, damage, or limit the functioning of any software, hardware, or telecommunications equipment or to damage or obtain unauthorized access to any data or other information of any third party; or impersonates any person or entity, including but not limited to any employee or representative of MIL. You also agree that you will not harvest or collect information about the users or Users of the Services or use such information for the purpose of transmitting or facilitating transmission of unsolicited bulk electronic e-mail or communications.

You further agree that you will not knowingly solicit or collect personal information from a minor (anyone under 18 years old) without appropriate prior verifiable parental consent. Personal information includes but is not limited to name, address, phone number, or name of their school.

MIL generally does not pre-screen, monitor, edit or remove User Content. MIL and its agents, however, have the right (but not the obligation) at their sole discretion to pre-screen, monitor, edit or remove any User Content that, in MIL’s judgment, does not comply with these Terms or is otherwise harmful, objectionable, or inaccurate. MIL is not responsible for any failure or delay in removing such User Content. You agree that you must evaluate, and bear all risks associated with, the use of any User Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such User Content. In this regard, you acknowledge that you may not rely on any User Content created by MIL or submitted to MIL.

You acknowledge, consent and agree that MIL may access, preserve, and disclose your account information and User Content if required to do so by law or in a good faith belief that such access, preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process; (b) enforce the Terms; (c) respond to claims that any User Content violates the rights of third-parties; (d) respond to your requests for customer service; (e) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of MIL, their users and the public; or (f) utilize Your usage and/or assessment data associated with the Services for internal analytic statistical, development, educational or quality control purposes.

You understand that the technical processing and transmission of the Services, including your User Content, may involve (a) transmissions over various networks; and (b) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks or devices.

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NetiquetteWhat does the word “etiquette” mean, you ask? Well, it is a French word that refers to a set of rules either dictated by authority or by what has been deemed culturally acceptable to function in social or professional life. Netiquette is a combination of the words: network and etiquette. It is defined in the dictionary as the informal code of behavior on the Internet. In other words, Netiquette is a set of rules for behaving properly online.

Why do we want standards or rules for how we communicate digitally? We want standards because, like in school, everybody needs to act appropriately and realize that there are consequences for refusing to do so. It also helps us to understand the boundaries of what is acceptable behavior. As a student of World Languages, you already know that to communicate in another language than your own, you need to learn more than the vocabulary and/or the grammar. You also need to learn the culture so you don’t commit social blunders. Cyberspace also has its own culture. Nobody really wants to offend someone or to be offended because they misunderstand how to act in a given situation. It is the same online. You should always remember that you are interacting with real people not just avatars like in video games. You should give them the same attention and respect that you would give them in real life. The tricky part is that online you need to be more careful because you cannot immediately see the damage you are causing by careless words.This document will help you reduce misunderstanding by explaining what proper behavior is like in cyberspace, thus reducing the chances that you will make someone mad without meaning to do so. The list of rules below will help you remember what is acceptable; therefore, it would be a good idea to post them next to your computer so you can easily refer to them when you are communicating with people online.

Netiquette Standards● Please address your teacher appropriately by using Ms., Mrs., or Mr. as a title

unless they have directed you to do otherwise.● Use appropriate language: curt, rude, or profane language will not be tolerated

and will be reported immediately to your school administrator. ● Use appropriate Standard English when communicating. This is not the place for

using “texting language”.● Use proper lower case when appropriate. Do not write in all capital letters – this

has the appearance of yelling when communicating online. ● Use a font and color that your teacher can read easily. We recommend Times

New Roman 12-pt font since this is what you will use in college.

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● Always use a proper subject line when writing to your teacher. ● Include specific Unit and Assignment names when referencing a problem.● Be patient. Do not send several emails within a short period of time and think

that your teacher will respond immediately.● Always identify yourself by your full name. Do not expect your teacher to

remember you by your email address. They can often be very confusing.● If your teacher contacts you, be polite and answer back.

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