I enjoyed hearing many of your voices in Google hangouts this past week.  I was happy to be able to answer so many questions.  By now, all of you should have a good grasp of what is being required by your teachers to get credit  (G or A) for their course.

Speaking of Google hangouts, there have been some problems with it, so it is temporarily suspended until further notice.  In addition to my Monday blog, I will send out emails (many of you said you preferred that format) to let you know what the new format for class meetings will be starting next week. Please read the message from our superintendent below.

If you are in need of a Chromebook, or know someone that could use one to complete online class work,  Chomebooks will again be distributed this coming Monday and Tuesday (4/27, 4/28)  from 12-3:00 at the staff parking lot on the Horger side of the building.  Please pass the word along. Not much else to say except that I  did set up gradebook for the three assignments that I posted on 4/20.  These are 1.1,1.2,1.3.  You will see either a 0,1 or 2 based on completeness. I will start ‘grading’ this weekend.  A week after the due date you will receive an automatic ZERO.  For those of you that are using methods other than iLearn to submit assignments, that is ok for now, but I encourage you to give it a try….it will save you time! Instructions for submitting through iLearn can be found at the end of the 4/20 blog.

I enjoyed hearing many of your voices in Google hangouts this past week.  I was happy to be able to answer so many questions.  By now, all of you should have a good grasp of what is being required by your teachers to get credit  (G or A) for their course.

Speaking of Google hangouts, there have been some problems with it, so it is temporarily suspended until further notice.  In addition to my Monday blog, I will send out emails (many of you said you preferred that format) to let you know what the new format for class meetings will be starting next week.

If you are in need of a Chromebook, or know someone that could use one to complete online class work,  Chomebooks will again be distributed this coming Monday and Tuesday (4/27, 4/28)  from 12-3:00 at the staff parking lot on the Horger side of the building.  Please pass the word along. Not much else to say except that I  did set up gradebook for the three assignments that I posted on 4/20.  These are 1.1,1.2,1.3.  You will see either a 0,1 or 2 based on completeness. I will start ‘grading’ this weekend.  A week after the due date you will receive an automatic ZERO.  For those of you that are using methods other than iLearn to submit assignments, that is ok for now, but I encourage you to give it a try….it will save you time! Instructions for submitting through iLearn can be found at the end of the 4/20 blog.

Have a great weekend. Stay safe.

Have a great weekend. Stay safe.

April 24, 2020

Greetings,

Since our school buildings closed on Friday, March 13th there have been thousands of positive interactions between students and teachers via phone, e-mail, and on-line. This is why I am so deeply troubled and concerned about a few individuals who have taken advantage of our new school environment, made poor choices, and become disruptive to the learning process.   

These disruptions occurred at the middle school level while teachers were trying to provide instruction to students during a Google Meeting. Unfortunately, these disruptions crossed a line and became threatening and obscene. It has also been discovered that, in some cases, students willingly gave their user information and password to these individuals allowing them to gain access to the meetings.  Students are responsible to protect the confidentiality of their district issued accounts and passwords. It is a direct violation of district guidelines and protocol to share passwords with anyone and we will not tolerate those violations as we ensure the security of our network in order to protect our students.  

The behaviors that these students exhibited are not acceptable at any time but especially now, as we all deal with a worldwide crisis, the district will not permit this type of disruption to learning.  It is our responsibility to protect instruction and we will be enforcing every disciplinary action allowed by our Student Code of Conduct. For those individuals who violated the law, we will involve the Dearborn Police to issue tickets, and if needed, take further and more serious legal action.  

Although teachers and students have been safely using Google Meetings, I asked our Instructional Technology Department to temporarily suspend all student access to Google Meeting on the District network. We are also working to have staff use a platform for on-line meetings that has been used in the District for several years and is specifically developed for use in the classroom.  The software gives teachers more control over a meeting including ending if someone attempts to gain access without permission.   

I proudly started my career as a teacher and, like many of you, my wife and I are also adjusting to working at home and supporting the learning needs of one middle school and one high school aged child.  The actions that took place this week disrespects the efforts that all of you are doing to support your child’s education. As Superintendent, and as a father, I am sorry this occurred and apologize to the students who were the victims of these behaviors. 

Just as my wife and I have taken an active role in our own children’s learning and on-line activities, I ask all parents to use this experience as an opportunity to talk with your child about proper behaviors while on-line including protecting your personal information such as usernames and passwords.

Since March 16th, I have heard many encouraging stories of student learning taking place at all grade levels.  This past week has been a shift for all of us as we transitioned to the new learning plan. Of course there has been a learning curve for everyone involved including staff, students, and parents. We understand this transition to “Continue the Learning” is going to create frustrations and questions. Please know that our teachers, principals, and administrators are here to help all of our families during the weeks ahead.  Our continued goal is to be supportive during this very difficult time.  Remember, we are all in this together and together we will become an even stronger Dearborn community.   

Stay home. Stay safe. Save lives.

Regards,   

Glenn Maleyko, Ph.D.

Superintendent 

In case you still had questions about how all this online learning works and how you will be ‘graded’, here is a learning plan just for Fordson. Please be sure to click on the video link at the bottom.

FHS Remote Learning Plan

As of Monday, April 20, 2020 – ALL classroom activities for ALL students COUNT towards earning credit for each class. All activities will be assessed through STUDENT engagement and STUDENT participation. STUDENTS who are having difficulty with the activities or participation are to reach out to their teachers for additional support. Teachers will be logging contact with students as well as maintaining records of STUDENT engagement and participation. 

In the Governor’s Executive Order, it is mandated that students are to continue their education to prepare them to transition to the next phase of their education and complete the Michigan Merit Curriculum for graduation. That means that the answer is YES, ALL STUDENT assignments and participation counts for every student at Fordson High School.

Here’s a few highlights for online learning:

• Starting this Monday April 20th, students need to check in with their teachers twice a week and submit their work each Sunday (see below) to get credit for 2nd semester.
• Students who are checking in regularly and passing 75% of their assignments have the ability to earn an “A” on their report card for 6th card marking and semester 2. Go get those A’s!
• Teachers will list new assignments for the upcoming week every Monday by 11:00 am.
• Students need to participate in Google Hangouts with teachers each Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday according to the Weekly Check-In Schedule listed in the chart below. Please schedule your personal lives around this schedule.

• Assignments for the week are due by 12am (midnight) on Sunday. 
• There will be no end of semester finals.
• Seniors last day will still be May 21st for classwork.
• Teachers will be using their existing platforms for communication as before.
• Chromebook distribution – we will notify you via robocall when we will pass out Chromebooks.
• Please communicate with your teachers or counselors if you’re unable to check-in or complete any work.
• The expectation is that students should be completing 30 minutes of work per subject per day. 
• If you need support, please reach out to one of the administrators. Our priority is on the safety and health of all staff and students. We must continue to support each other, our students and parents socially and emotionally at this time. Many of our families are dealing with significant financial issues.
• Message from Mrs. Alcodray: https://drive.google.com/file/d/19Kdr-ECZgQcXDqFbPfsBaKkCIkFDws6/view  

Weekly Check-In Schedule

Day of the Week	Class Period	Time	Mode of Delivery
Monday	—-	11:00 -2:00	Office Hours (email, Remind, phone call)
Tuesday	1st2nd	1:00 – 1:402:00 – 2:40	Google Hangout
Wednesday	3rd4th	1:00 – 1:402:00 – 2:40	Google Hangout
Thursday	5th6th	1:00 – 1:402:00 – 2:40	Google Hangout
Friday	—-	11:00 – 2:00	Office Hours (email, Remind, phone call)

I hope that all of you had a relaxing weekend as for many it is time to get serious about your online class work as the district now has an official plan that has been approved by the state.  Hopefully you have already seen a copy of this as well as Dr. Maleyko’s video.  This plan allows students to get credit, move up a grade, graduate, and provides funds to districts as long as specific criteria are met.  This will be a lengthy blog as I want to fill you in with as much information as I can as it applies to this class.  You may want to reread this a few times!

GRADE VS. CREDIT

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY

 1.  To receive an ‘A’ for the class, you are required to complete a minimum of 75% of my assignments properly.  Do your best and take them seriously.  Student athletes are expected to do this if they want to play sports next fall.

 2.  To simply receive credit for the class ,’G’, you are required to complete a minimum of 60% of the assignments.

 3.  In addition to the assignment in iLearn (NOT GOOGLE CLASSROOM) you are also expected to participate regularly in Google Hangouts.  (You will get an email with the link)

4. For the handful of you that submitted work prior to 4/20 in iLearn, I will count that toward completing the minimum of 70%, kind of like extra credit, so don’t think you wasted your time.  I may repost some of those assignments again. If you did it already, you need not do it again. Reread #4. I already recorded those assignments in MiStar however it had no current effect on your present grade; simply a record of doing it.

5.  Three (3) assignments will be posted every Monday, with the expectation that they are done and submitted by the following Sunday.  Likely 2 short videos, alternating weeks between tech math and a writing assignment.  I plan to simply put a number ‘1’ or ‘2’ in MiStar to show you that I got your assignments and checked the completeness as well as the accuracy or your answers.  

6.  Below is the schedule that FHS teachers are following to assist you with your online learning.  I will be emailing you the link to Google hangouts as well as the enrollment codes for iLearn classes again if you still need to enroll.

Weekly Check-In Schedule

Day of the Week	Class Period	Time	Mode of Delivery
Monday	—-	11:00 -2:00	Office Hours (email, Remind, phone call)
Tuesday	1st   2nd	1:00 – 1:40   2:00 – 2:40	FaceTime Google Hangout  Phone Call
Wednesday	3rd   4th	1:00 – 1:40   2:00 – 2:40	FaceTime Google Hangout Phone Call
Thursday	5th   6th	1:00 – 1:40   2:00 – 2:40	FaceTime Google Hangout Phone Call
Friday	—-	11:00 – 2:00	Office Hours (email, Remind, phone call)

I am not concerned about what day you show up in a hangout especially if you have a question about an assignment.  I realize that due to work, family needs, etc. you may not be able to meet on the day that your hour does.  Yes, I will continue to make calls to those of you not doing any work that did work prior to 4/20.

SUBMITTING ASSIGNMENTS IN iLEARN

The assignment page in iLearn for each week will show three assignments as described in #5.  To submit answers as Online Text, you simply need to click the box ADD SUBMISSION at the very bottom of the page. A text box will appear that you can type in. You need not type the questions but please do me a favor by typing the identification number of the assignment. To submit assignments, simply click SAVE CHANGES and it will be submitted to me.  I would prefer if you could submit just once with any assignments you did as it will make checking and accurate record keeping easier.  This is why I am asking you type in the titles in case you do multiple submissions for one week.

For those of you that may want to hand write the answers, take a picture, and email it to me, that is acceptable as well for credit.

THE FINAL WORD

It is important to know that if you choose to do NO WORK AT ALL, even though you had a passing grade up to 3/13/20 you will likely receive no applied art credit for this class.  Please do your work.  J I am here to help directly at the times noted above. For those of you that like sending emails at 3 am, that is fine but I won’t respond to them until the next day.  I can understand your frustration and anxiety as this is an adjustment to me as much as it is to you.  We will get through this together!  Hope to see you in a Hangout!

     Hello guys.  First off, a big thank you to those of you that have been checking in with me via email, whether it was a question that you had about assignments or just to check on how I was doing. I am doing well and staying busy in my shop and around the homestead with projects, some big some, some small.  In fact, I get out to Fordson twice a week to help package meals for distribution to Dearborn families.

     Now for the school-related stuff.  As I am typing this, Dearborn schools administrators are finalizing an online learning plan that we will formally follow once it is approved by Wayne county and then by the state.  This is expected to happen next week. For this week, there will be two new assignments by Friday to work on.  Currently you can submit your answers using the online text format in iLearn and I will correct the work that way. At this point there are no due dates (that might have to change) so if you have not started any of the assignments, please do to.  I added all present assignments and the point value into Student Connect (MiStar) last week. If you are a third hour student, please check your email for a short survey that I sent to you. Our district needs this information to help with the online learning plan mentioned earlier.

     Things could change slightly next week and your teachers will let you know when they have more details.  For now though, ALL WORK COUNTS!!  Whether the work will graded or for pass/fail credit remains to be seen, but to get official credit for a class, you MUST be doing work.

Okay guys, some important stuff to go over today concerning events of the past few weeks and things to come….

1. If you still do not have the enrollment code for the Welding course, it was resent to your email yesterday from me. Check your spam if you do not see it in your inbox. If you type it in and get an invalid code response, I don’t know what to tell you except make sure you have entered the code from the main iLearn page and are typing in lower case letters. Many students have already enrolled, so I know it is valid.
2. ALL WORK YOU ARE DOING RIGHT NOW WILL COUNT!!! HOW GRADING WILL LOOK REMAINS TO BE SEEN, BUT TO PASS AND GET CREDIT, YOU MUST BE WORKING, JUST AS YOU ARE EXPECTED TO IN THE CLASSROOM.
3. In reference to #2, once I know exactly how grades and /or credit will be done, I will likely be making changes to the iLearn courses to make it easier for you organize and for me to grade. Instructions for this will be in the blog the week of 4/13 when break is over.
4. Since we are not returning to the building, here are two options for you to submit work that you have already done. I plan to update Student Connect Gradebook next week: You can transfer answers from your paper and submit it via online text in iLearn or take a picture or pictures of your assignments and send the image through iLearn or send it to me via school email.
5. My apologies if this sounds like extra work, but if you recall it was thought we would be returning to school on April 13 or 14. Again, check my blog after break for updates to the grading. Enjoy your break! Stay safe! I miss seeing and working with you guys!

Videos this week focus on robotic welding. A rapidly growing field that can pay $30-$50/hr is concerned with the maintenance of such robots in the manufacturing fields. If you are up to date with assignments in iLearn, you should have completed 4 sets of video questions and 1 tech math. If you have yet to enroll in the class, there is a good chance that you will be contacted as to why you are not participating. I have a list of those of you who have enrolled. If you are having problems enrolling, send me an email and I will resend you the enrollment code with instructions that all of you received in an earlier email from me.

With the uncertainty of what lies ahead, the past two weeks have seemed like two months to me. Hopefully you are making good use of the extra time at home as I am. I encourage you to keep up with the assignments that I am posting in the Home Technology iLearn class as well as assignments being posted by your other teachers. Blogs and emails are a great way to communicate if you have issues or questions. Speaking of issues, several of you have stated enrollment codes are showing ‘not valid’. I know the codes are good as so many of you have already enrolled in the classes without help. I would appreciate hearing from those of you that had issues with the codes and how you solved it so that I can share ideas with other students. Feel free to leave feedback here about this, activities in iLearn, or future video suggestions. I check this blog daily and my email several times a day. HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND & STAY SAFE

While surfing YouTube this morning, I came across this video from the owner of the WelderUp shop in Las Vegas. He shares some interesting perspectives on a career in welding. As I watched this, so much of what Steve said can be applied to most any skilled trade out there today. Remember, there is a HUGE DEMAND for young people wanting to enter the skilled trades today and MAKE GOOD MONEY! Enjoy the video!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5p57lsVh2o

Welcome to Monday! I met many interesting people over the weekend that either are working in the skilled trades or recently retired from it. I have new stories and first hand information to share from them when we return. If you are having trouble with the enrollment codes that were sent to you in an email, make sure that you don’t have CAPS on and that you are properly typing it in. I know they work as dozens of you have already enrolled in the courses that I have set up. THANK YOU!!! As a reminder, the video questions may be answered on a separate sheet of paper and I will collect them much like bell work when I see you again. Starting this week I will also have short TECH MATH assignments for you to complete in addition to the video questions. The emphasis this week will be on TIG welding.  Unfortunately we will likely not have time to do it , but will get to see first hand what the welder looks like and how it works.

Please check your school email for enrollment codes for the classes I have set up for you in iLearn. As stated in an earlier blog, I plan to post at least two videos a week there with questions to be answered and turned in upon our return to school. These questions may be answered on a sheet of paper and I will collect them when you return. Please email me with any questions or problems that you encounter. Please read Mrs. Alcodray’s message below:

I just wanted to update you on the fast-moving situation regarding our online classes. This afternoon, Governor Gretchen Whitmer expressed her “dismay” about the Michigan Department of Education’s statement, releasing her own statement assuring educators and parents that this time could possibly count. The MDE released its original statement because in order for our time to count, the Michigan legislature must change the law; the MDE has no power here. So what does that mean for us? *It is very possible—even likely—that our time online will count. So keep working.* Our state lawmakers do not want to anger parents and educators across the state. So let’s keep our momentum going.