CTYOnline The Johns Hopkins University
Parent/Guardian Information about Writing and Language Arts
Š The Johns Hopkins University, 2009
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PARENT OR GUARDIAN: Please read SAVE FOR FUTURE REFERENCE
Information for Parent or Guardian Parents or Guardians: Please read the Course Guide with your child and put a copy of it with this information in a safe place. If you have questions about the course, please contact the program managers: Steven Barish at 410-735-6140 (sbarish@jhu.edu) Kathy Thurlow at 410-735-6144 (kthurlow@jhu.edu) Ben Reynolds at 410-735-6149 (ben.reynolds@jhu.edu)
Although the materials accompanying your child's information packet are addressed to your child, they are also intended to familiarize you with the program. The following information is particular to Writing and Language Arts courses. Advice About Parental Involvement In general, you should monitor three aspects of the course: 1)
That assignments and instructor comments are coming and going according to schedule.  In web-based classrooms, dates and times are stamped on each posting by every participant. You can view your child's classroom by logging in as your child. Please see page 1 of the Course Guide for instructions.  For email courses, messages and files carry date and time stamps also. You are welcome to email the instructor if you have questions. Please review Satisfactory Progress, Late Assignments from Students, and Audit Status in Course Information. See also Reports to Parents, below.
2)
That your child is spreading the work over a number of days on a fairly regular schedule, rather than rushing to finish the night before the assignment is due.
3)
That your child is maintaining a hard copy portfolio of course work (email, completed assignments, instructor critiques, and so forth) in one place safe from technological disasters and other sources of loss or damage. Students should be urged to file a hard copy of each assignment before it is posted in the classroom as insurance against viruses, power surges, and damage to files.
Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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Supporting Your Child GRADES 2 - 5 Although it is important for parents to read the instructor’s feedback delivered at the end of each lesson, it is a family decision whether parents should read the child’s work before it is submitted. Please see page 4 of Course Information, "Your Thoughts and Work Only." We realize that many young children have limited experience with a keyboard and may be very slow typists, to the point of discouragement, because their minds are going so much faster than their fingers. In this case, it is appropriate for a parent to act as secretary. We have no objection to parents typing their children's work, but please include a note [Typed by Parent] at the end of anything typed by someone other than the child. Also, if parents decide to edit their child's work before submission, it is essential to explain to the child why a grammatical or spelling change was made. That is, parents can act as teachers, but not as revisers or ghost writers for their child's work. GRADES 5 + Whether parents should read exercises, assignments, and critiques is a family decision. In general, parents are asked not to involve themselves in composing, correcting, or typing essays. Student writing improves only when the student does the writing. A command to write on a specific thesis is not helpful. A dinner table conversation about possible topics for an assignment probably is helpful. Correcting a child's punctuation is not helpful. Computerized grammar and spell checking programs that let the child choose whether to make a correction can be helpful. Note that courses for upper elementary students often have checklists at the end of the assignment. Especially at the start of a course, it is helpful to go through the checklist and have your child show you which piece of the assignment matches the checklist. Middle schoolers seek more autonomy as they get older. Nevertheless, our experience is that parents are justified in asking to see that work has been done on time (see the previous page). Do not hesitate to ask the instructor how things are going. Maintaining Communication with Your Child's Instructor CTYOnline courses work best when instructors and students stay in close contact with one another. The sooner a breakdown or delay in communication is addressed, the better for all concerned. Most problems can be quickly and easily resolved with a short phone conversation between the instructor and parent or student.
Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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Reports to Parents The frequency of reports decreases as students grow older. YOUNG/YOUNGER READERS' SERIES AND LANGUAGE RULES: BUILDING BLOCKS Your child can expect instructor feedback on his/her work for each of the lessons about two days after the lesson is due. The feedback is posted at the bottom of each lesson block. Please confirm that you have read the feedback by scrolling down to and clicking the Edit button. If your child does not receive feedback within one working day of when it is expected, the child should notify parents and phone the instructor. If the instructor has not responded within one working day, please contact the instructor’s supervisor, whose name and contact information will be sent with the instructor’s introductory letter. Midway through the session, the instructor will contact parents of any students in academic difficulty. These Midterm Reports for students in academic difficulty are sent via e-mail and the U.S. Postal Service. THE PROCESS OF WRITING & WRITING FOR AN AUDIENCE With the critique of the 4th and 7th assignments, instructors send a progress report to the student to share with their adults. Please send the instructor a message saying that you have read it. ALL OTHER WRITING AND LANGUAGE ARTS Students receive a mid-term report to share with their adults. Please send the instructor a message saying that you have read it. FINAL EVALUATIONS About six weeks after the course’s end, students receive a detailed descriptive evaluation of performance via postal service. This evaluation focuses on academic performance, progress, and effort. The evaluation is addressed to the student and written in a formal tone. Topics discussed in the evaluation are content-centered and are specific. Educators are able to recognize the high level of work and to measure student achievement by their own standards. Accompanying the final evaluation is a Certificate of Participation, a course description, and advice about credit and placement. The Center for Talented Youth is accredited for grades 5 through 12 by the Commission on Secondary Schools of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (215-662-5603).
Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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Grade Requests We usually provide final evaluations in lieu of grades. However, grades may occasionally be necessary for school credit. Requests for grades and/or credit must be made by a parent/guardian in writing. This can be done via email or post. The request should be made to the attention of Susie Maynard, Registrar Email: ctyregcde@jhu.edu Fax: 410-735-6105 Address: CTYOnline Registrar, Center for Talented Youth, Johns Hopkins University, McAuley Hall 5801 Smith Ave, Ste 400 Baltimore, MD 21209 USA Phone: 410-735-6108. Academic Jeopardy If work is late, the instructor notifies the student. When the student is in jeopardy of completing less than 80% of the course work, the instructor's supervisor notifies the student and family. When the student has not completed 80% of the course work, the supervisor places the student on audit status. Please see Audit Status in Course Information. Typically, about 2% of students go on audit status. Official Academic Record An Official Academic Record listing all CTY courses successfully completed is available. The Record is printed on security paper suitable for inclusion in school records and college applications. A $5 charge covers postage and handling. The request must be made by parent or guardian in writing and signed. Letter grades can be provided for a school if the request is signed by a parent. Contact the CTY Registrar (410-735-6108 or ctyreg@jhu.edu) for Official Academic Records or letter grades. Please include the student's full name and CTY Student ID Number. \ The Center for Talented Youth is accredited for grades 5 through 12 by the Commission on Secondary Schools of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (215-662-5603). CTY cannot negotiate for credit and placement with schools, but can provide documents for parent/school discussions. Visit http://cty.jhu.edu/ctyonline/credit.html for help with credit and placement. Please Also Download Use your student's CTYOnline login to go to http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu and click on "Welcome: CTYOnline Student Information." In the top section, download Important Parent/Guardian Information (about all CTYOnline courses) In the Writing and Language Arts section, click the appropriate link to download Course Information and other student support materials, if any. MyCTY An integrated online service giving you access to all your CTY information, MyCTY enables you to:
Download support documents for your student's course
Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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Apply for courses online View your student's unofficial academic record at CTY Verify your child's Student Contact Information and update if necessary Participate in selected Forums to discuss various topics with parents of other gifted students Make a payment to or check the status of your CTY account
To login to MyCTY, go to http://ctyjhu.org/mycty, choose Type: Parent, and enter your Login ID (your student's CTY ID number) and password. If you have forgotten your login information, follow the instructions below the login box. MyCTY is the best, quickest way to update contact information. Put Email from CTY on Your Safe List Please see http://www.cty.jhu.edu/ctyonline/support/webmailsettings.html for more information. If you do not put CTY email addresses on your safe list or filter them into a specific folder, messages may go into your bulk mail directory and/or be deleted before you see them. Pizza Party Pizza Party is an online discussion group where CTYOnline students can talk about books, movies, music, and philosophy— whatever. Gentle monitoring is provided by CTY Staff to enforce reasonable rules of good taste and appropriate behavior. Please see Course Information for more about Pizza Party. Billing Information Inquiries regarding accounting or billing should be directed to Student Accounts. Email: ctyar@jhu.edu or Phone: (410) 735-6063. Refund Policy Parents/guardians can receive a 50% tuition refund by submitting a written withdrawal request that is received by CTY no later than two weeks after the course start date, provided that software and course materials (if provided by CTY) are returned in satisfactory condition. The application fee is non-refundable. Refunds take approximately four to six weeks to process, or longer, pending receipt of the courseware. Send withdrawal requests to ctyonline@jhu.edu Students who withdraw or fail to participate after the two-week withdrawal period is past do not receive refunds. Students who violate the Student Code of Conduct may be withdrawn from the program without refund. See Student Code of Conduct in Course Information. Students with Disabilities CTY provides reasonable accommodation for qualified students with disabilities. We must know as soon as possible if your child has a disability that requires accommodation. Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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Please call the CTYOnline Program Managers to discuss your child’s needs. Steven Barish 410-735-6140 (sbarish@jhu.edu) Ben Reynolds 410-735-6149 (ben.reynolds@jhu.edu) The privacy rights of each student with a disability are honored to the fullest extent possible. Students whose special needs have not been clearly and fully described before assignment to a instructor and whose needs therefore cannot be reasonably accommodated may be withdrawn from the program.
We hope your child enjoys this course!
Download a copy of this document with your student's CTYOnline login at http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu
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