Summer School--OCR

Summer
School
Facilitator
Info

2014
This document contains general information for facilitating summer school courses using the APEX
Digital Curriculum.
Leyden H.S.
APEX 1

rev. May 2014

Apex Basic Guide
What Are My Main Responsibilities as a Facilitator? 2
What Are the Most Essential Items I Need to Know? 3-4
Common Questions Asked by Facilitators 5
What Do I need to Do When Students Finish a Course 6, 13-14
What are the Key APEX Icons I will Need to Know? 7
How do I Enroll New Students to a Course? 8-9
How do I Reset Student Quizzes? 10
How do I Progress Students Forward? 11
How do I Open/Unlock Assessments 12
Entering Final Grades in APEX 13-14





APEX 2

rev. May 2014

Facilitator Responsibilities

Monitor Students
Formally meet with each student weekly. Using gradebook data, determine whether each student is on-pace, just-off-pace or significantly behind pace.
o Together with student set small weekly goals and track the progress of these goals.
Informally monitor student progress by being seen and walking around the room.
Provide Support
Support students as needed addressing academic, social/emotional, and other areas as needed.
Determine root cause when a student struggles. Insert appropriate course of action addressing the root cause of struggles.

Assessments
Anticipate major student assessments such as unit tests and end-of-course final exams. Help make sure students are prepared for these assessments.
Monitor students taking major assessments to ensure integrity of assessments.

Grading
Score all written components of unit tests and final exams when applicable.
Informally examine students notes and course packet activities when applicable.
Communication/Reporting
Please ensure you clearly communicate to parents when their child is struggling and at-risk of not successfully recovering their course credit.
Take attendance daily
Complete summer progress reports
Student Course Completion
Enter final grade in APEX
Enter final grade in summer Google spreadsheet
Direct student to complete the end of course completion survey
Print out and provide student course completion certificate










APEX 3

rev. May 2014

Essential Items

General APEX Structure

Each APEX course is broken down between an average of 6-8 units of study. Each unit contains individual lessons addressing the skills and concepts
students are expected to master. The number of lessons per unit varies from course to course. At the end of each lesson, students are presented with a
formative quiz which averages around 10 questions per quiz.
The majority of units end with a test students take before they are allowed to move forward to the next unit. All students are required to take the CST
Test. CSTs stands for computer graded tests. Students enrolled in English courses must take both the CST and the TST Test. TST stands for teacher
scored tests.
The majority of courses contain two parts to the final exam. The first part is the CST Test. The second part is the written or TST Test. Students must
complete both parts. Facilitators must score the written portion of the final exam and manually enter the students score in the grade book.
By default, unit tests and the final exam are locked to prevent unauthorized student access and the integrity of major tests. Facilitators must unlock these
tests in order for students to access them.

Regarding Assessments (Quizzes, Unit Tests and Final)

Quizzes Unit Tests Final Exams

Passing % 70% or higher No threshold No threshold

#Of Attempts Two attempts prior to facilitator
intervention; one additional attempt
after facilitator intervention
One One
Access/Time Limit May access off-campus; no time-limit On-campus under your supervision
only. Time limit determined by teacher
discretion.
On-campus under your supervision
only. 90 minute time-limit.
Notes All notes allowed All notes allowed Front and back cheat sheet
Format Usually 10 questions comprised of
M/C, T/F, or Check Box
Usually 25 questions comprised of
M/C, T/F, or Check Box
Usually 25-35 questions comprised of
M/C, T/F, or Check Box
Special Situations May choose to lock student quizzes
off-campus.
All English students take the TST Test
or written test.
All math students take Leyden
traditional final exams in replace of
APEX Final Exams.

Final Exams account for 20% of
student grade.

APEX 4

rev. May 2014


Student Specifics

Navigating Through Course

1) Students engage in APEX lesson. While studying
the lesson, students take notes using the Cornell
Note-Taking Packet provided alongside other notes
according to their personal preference.
2) Math studentsComplete each lessons practice
problems as provided in their APEX Packet

English studentsComplete writing exercises as
provided in their APEX Packet
3) Students take quiz using notes if desired. If
students pass quiz, they move forward to the next
lesson in course. If student fails quiz two times, they
wait for their facilitator to take an appropriate course
of action.

OCR ClassroomSuccess
1. Consistency, firmness and effective communication from the onset
1. Everyone needs to implement similar procedures, guidelines and rules
2. FIRST WEEK IS CRITICAL!
1. The Harry Wong"ism's" still apply.
2. Coaching role v. managerial/policing role
1. Many of these students have probably been referred to as lazy, unmotivated, or having a poor work ethic throughout their entire academic
career. Therefore, we need to re-build relationships with them, show them we care and develop a deep level of trust in order for them to be
successful in this learning environment.
2. Get to know your students and allow them to get to know you. Although this is not a traditional learning environment, this does not mean you
cant create a collaborative, inviting and positive atmosphere for students to experience. Take time each day to address your students as a large
group alongside engaging in brief individual chats with each student on a daily basis.
3. Have to be seen
1. More time away from desk the better
2. Desk-sitting will increase student inappropriate computer usage, increase cheating and increase overall poor classroom behavior.
4. Refrain from getting trapped inside "student vacuum"
1. Can't mirror student lack of motivation with yours
2. Maintain high level of enthusiasm
3. Students will want easiest path to receive credit. We can't allow this.
5. Maintain high levels of course rigor and integrity
1. Use resets sparingly and do not simply pass students along to next activity without inserting a viable course of action



APEX 5

rev. May 2014

Common Facilitator Questions

Do I have to performoutside of summer
school instructional planning?
The simple answer is no. All the curriculum is created and delivered by APEX Digital Learning.
What sort of grading is expected of me? You will be required to grade the written portions of English Tests and Final Exams where applicable. APEX
provides teacher-scoring rubrics which you may use to guide you in your grading.
Are students allowed to listen to music? The simple answer is no. Headphones are only to be used for students to listen to online media directly related to
their course. You are welcome to allow students to listen to music on certain days, times, or as a small reward for
working on-pace or ahead of schedule. However, listening to music or viewing YouTube videos absolutely should
not be allowed as part of a students daily routine.
What do I need to knowabout student
note-taking?
Note-taking is vital to a students enrollment in summer school. This is a non-traditional style of learning where
students progress through courses at their own independent pace. Therefore, note-taking is essential in order for
students to process the content studied.

You should check notes for fidelity of completion before you are not grading the notes. If you feel students are not
taking adequate notes, you should not unlock their end of the unit exam until they create quality authentic notes
demonstrating their engagement in the lesson.

Each student will be provided a medium-sized packet filled with Cornell Note-Taking Templates. Students should be
encouraged to use this style of notes. However, each classroom will be filled with other note-taking organizers such
as two-column vocabulary and other various graphic organizers. Students are allowed to take notes using a style
and preference of their choosing.

Can students access final exams prior to
the end of summer school?
The simple answer is yes. Each student progresses through their course at their own individualized pace.
Therefore, students will be completing their courses at different dates throughout summer school. Once a student
completes their course, they no longer need to attend the remaining days of summer school. Please note, students
must complete all course quizzes and unit tests before they are allowed to access the final exam. No final exam
may be administered unless all previous coursework is completed.
Howdo I handle academic dishonesty? Academic dishonesty will be dealt with in a similar manner to that in a traditional setting. Ultimately, we want
students to be successful in summer school and recover their course credit. Therefore, we will strive to handle
academic dishonesty in an educational manner not a punitive manner. Please notify the summer school Deans
when you observe a student engaging in academic dishonesty.





APEX 6

rev. May 2014

Course Completion Procedures

Grade Written Final Exam Use teacher provided rubric to manually score written portion of final. Enter written grade in APEX.
Remember, any student enrolled in Math will take the Leyden finale exam not the APEX Final Exam.
Verify Grades in APEX Confirm all student scores are accurate. (Pull up "Course Activity Scores Report" and check for any scores that stick out
such as "0%").
Compute 80/20 Grade Using the "Course Activity Scores Report", compute 80% of the student's grade based on all scores prior to the final and
20% of the student's grade based on the final exam score.
Enter Grade in APEX Manually enter the final grade you calculated into the Final Grade Column in APEX. (Remember to select the "Save" Icon
before you change screens).
Course Evaluation Instruct student to complete Course Evaluation Form found on student site. (Students must complete form for each
course they finish). Form may be found by selecting Course Completion from the navigational menu.
Print Grade Certificates Print two copies of final grade certificate; one for student and one for you. Record student id # and counselor on your
copy. Clip student written final exam and notes packet to your copy of the certificate. Place in crate for recordkeeping.
Update Final Grade Google
Spreadsheet
Use information recorded on your copy of final grade certificate to complete the spreadsheet. Most of the columns have
drop boxes with pre-loaded options for you to select.
E-Mail Steve Greb Let Steve know the name of the student that finished alongside the session enrolled. Therefore, he may remove this
student from your attendance roster.









APEX 7

rev. May 2014

APEX Key Icon/Symbol Guide

Icon/Symbol Purpose




By default all Unit and Final Exams are locked which is
displayed by the red padlock inside the gradebook. To unlock
these assessments, simply click once on the red padlock.
Whenever making gradebook changes, always select the
save button in order to process the change.

This icon clears a students last assessment score from the
gradebook and provides students with one additional attempt to
pass the assessment.


Moves student forward to the next course activity even though
they didnt master the assessment with a 70% or higher score.


When students complete their course, please enter the final
numerical grade in the Final Box and print off two copies of
their Grade Letter Certificate Report. One copy for the student
and one for your records




Click Pencil Icon to edit classroom settings
such as enrolling new students

Click Gradebook Icon to access student
grades including resetting quizzes and

APEX 8

rev. May 2014

Enrolling Newor Existing Students

1. Select Home tab from course ribbon






2. Locate the name of the course student needs to be enrolled in by selecting the Pencil icon next to the course name



3. Select the Student Enrollments Tab


















APEX 9

rev. May 2014

4. First, check to see if the student you need to enroll is already present in the APEX Database System by entering the students name in the Search Box. If the
student is already present in the system, simply select the blue Enroll link in the same row as their name to add this student to that course. If the student isnt
present in the APEX Database System, you will need to manually enter this student by selecting the Create Student icon.
























5. Finally, you need to provide your student with their username and
password. Select the Students Tab and locate the name of the student you
just enrolled using the search box.







Select this icon if the
student is not present in
the system
Select enroll if the
students name already
appears in the system
APEX 10

rev. May 2014

Resetting Student Quizzes

1. Open the grade book for the student whose quiz needs to be reset. Navigate to the specific course unit where the quiz is located. (Note, this quiz should
be easily identifiable as it will have a red stoplight border around its score identifying that the student has not passed the quiz).
2. Select the Reset control icon in the students activity cell and hit Save Changes in the upper right corner of the page.
3. Student will now have one additional attempt to pass this assessment.






























Red Stoplight Border
APEX 11

rev. May 2014

Progressing Students Forward




































NOTE: This feature should be used sparingly as it fails to motivate students to
master course content. If they know their facilitator will continually move them
forward when they havent passed the assessment, they have little motivation to
set higher expectations for themselves.
Before moving students forward, look to remediate in other ways such as
supplemental materials, extra review and individual student assistance.



APEX 12

rev. May 2014

Opening/Unlocking Assessments

Remember, by default all unit exams and final exams are locked. Therefore, when the student is ready to take these exams, you must unlock them from the
gradebook. Students are not allowed to take these assessments off-campus. However, they may use their notes on all assessments and cheat sheet on final.

1. Open the course gradebook for the student whose assessment needs to be unlocked

2. Navigate to the specific unit where the assessment is located. This assessment will be found at the far-right side of the gradebook as it is the culminating
activity for this unit. Locate the unit test that needs to be unlocked and click on the Red lock icon. The red lock will now change to a green lock that appears
open. Remember to select Save Changes in order for this action to be processed.

3. Note, sometimes after unlocking the final exams, students receive an error message. This is most likely because this student is finishing their course early and
the dates in the APEX System need to be manually changed. Therefore, select the calendar icon and enter in a current date.










Remember, for students
who are finishing their
course early, you will
have to update the date
of the final exam to the
current day. This is
performed by selecting
the calendar icon.
APEX 13

rev. May 2014

Closing out Students fromAPEX

The majority of courses in APEX have two parts to their final exams. The first part is scored by the computer and the second part is scored by you, the facilitator.
Before you close a student out from APEX you must first enter their final exam score for the written portion of the final. To assist you in grading the students
written portion of their final exam, please refer to the rubric provided by APEX. See picture below.













After grading the students written final exam assessment, navigate to their last unit of study and manually enter in the percent they earned.


















Double-click in the
activity cell and manually
enter in the total number
of points this student
earned on the written
portion of the final exam.
Remember to hit save
changes.
APEX 14

rev. May 2014

Finally, navigate back to the students summary page in the gradebook and enter their final overall score in the column marked Final.


Still Confused?

1) APEX Support Page



2) APEX Support Number
800.453.1454


3) Credit Recovery Google Site
https://sites.google.com/a/leyden212.org/online-credit-recovery/

4) Email Pygman