Beginning September 14, the OCS virtual program is changing to better suit the needs of our students and teachers. One of the main concerns we have heard is how difficult it is for a classroom teacher to teach both in-person and virtual students and for both groups of students to receive the attention they need. The OCS leadership team believes that assigning teachers to either our traditional, in-person students only or our virtual students only will benefit both educators and students.
As a result of these changes, OCS will assign ten teachers within the district to teach our K-8 virtual students. While students will still be enrolled in their home schools, they will be assigned to a teacher who teaches students from all OCS schools and who may not be a teacher at the student’s school.
With the changes in the OCS virtual program, it is also necessary to adjust the district’s expectations for virtual students and families. In order to improve interaction between students and teachers, virtual students must view live, teacher-directed lessons. If a situation arises that conflicts with live lessons, it is the parent’s/student’s responsibility to notify the virtual teacher in order to make arrangements to view a recorded lesson so that students are not counted absent. Virtual students will be graded by his/her virtual teacher in the same way that traditional students are graded. Virtual students who do not participate in virtual classes or who do not turn in assignments or make satisfactory progress will need to return to the traditional, in-person setting.
Virtual students are expected to display conduct customary to the traditional classroom setting. The student should be visible on the chrome book monitor while family members should refrain from appearing on-screen. Students should be clothed in school appropriate attire. Inappropriate language should not be used by anyone in the virtual setting as microphones are on and often pick up conversations in the home.
OCS has extended the opportunity for students who are currently enrolled in the virtual program to resume in-person classes. Families wishing to make an enrollment change must notify their students’ home school no later than September 16 at 3:00 P.M.