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School FAQ’s

Q: Does the .5 credit mean that the course is a semester course?

Answer: The .5 credit does mean that it’s a semester course. The amount of school work and class time one can expect would be the same as one would expect in-seat. Since the online courses have been accelerated to an 11-week, 24-week and 16-week format, students can expect the following weekly work load (based on a .5 Carnegie Unit course with a minimum of 3600 minutes):

• 11-week course (.5 cr.) = 6 hours of weekly class time; homework and project time would be additional

• 16-week course (.5 cr.) = 4 hours of weekly class time; homework and project time would be additional

  Q: Will the AP students have to take two 16-week courses then?

  Answer: Yes. AP courses are split in two .5 credit sessions for 1 credit total. Students must take AP I prior to AP II—both courses are necessary for proper AP exam preparation. The beauty of the two 16-week courses is that the end of the second 16-weeks falls directly in line with the start of the AP examination schedule.

  Q: What are the 7-week courses?

  Answer: We have yet to determine which 7-week courses we will offer, we do not plan to offer any of those until next Summer (June ‘06). Those 7-week courses will probably not be .5 semester courses within a 7-week session (very difficult to condense a traditional 18-week semester course into 7-weeks without affecting the quality and integrity of the course). The courses we are looking at would be shorter courses. For example a .2 credit Criminal Justice course maybe offered, OR we have been working with a Christian College about offering some of their Interim courses in that 7-week format for students to take via a dual enrollment partnership.

  Q: Are the AP exam costs included in the price of the online course?

  Answer: The AP Exam fee is not covered in the course. The exam is a standardized exam developed by the College Board.

  Q: Would our students take the AP exam online?

  Answer: No. The AP exam process is very regulated. Each exam is offered at the same time on the same day once a year. We would work with the College Board group to help each student find a location as close to them as possible for the student to take the AP exam (in an online setting, it would work in a similar way as to how its handled for a home school student). See the following link as to this years schedule. http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/cal.html

  Q: Are you accredited?

  Answer: Yes, our accreditation is derived through a partnership with Grand Rapids Christian High School of Grand Rapids Christian Schools (GRCS) has is a member of Christian Schools International (CSI) and has been accredited by NCA (North Central Association) since 1926.

  Q: What are the credentials of Christian High Online teachers?

  Answer: All of our teachers are state high school certified with active teaching certificates. Many of our teachers have earned their masters degree. Teachers are also Christian High Online certified via our Online Teacher Training program. Our teachers have a love for Christian education and its students, and desire to use technology and new tools to reach students.

  Q: Do you offer a diploma?

  Answer: No. Christian High Online is designed to supplement high school education with high quality online courses taught from the Christian perspective. We are happy to partner with other schools by providing individual courses to the host school as a way to complement their existing program and course offerings.

  Q: Do students have to be online the whole time they are working? Can the student download the lesson resources for off-line viewing and work?

  Answer: No, they do not have to be online the whole time; much of the student’s work can be done easily offline.
  Some of the student’s time might be spent reading or completing assignments. Much of the required work can be done on a word processor program and saved. When it is time to hand work in or when it is time to post to the appropriate discussion board, work can be attached to the ‘dropbox.’ Most of the student’s time would be spent finding out their assignments, doing any online reading or research required, reading/replying to course mail, participating in online discussion boards, working on group projects or even joining a non-required chat session with their teacher and fellow students.

  Q: Do the students have interactions with other students?

  Answer: Absolutely. One of the best ways for students to learn is from each other. Students will converse with their classmates regarding targeted topics that the teacher will post each week. Students will then have to respond to those questions as well as respond to some of their classmate’s responses and thoughts. Students may also be involved in group assignments or projects.

  Q: What about time differences for chats?

  Answer: Chat times are frequently non-required activities. For example the teacher will post office hours within a chat room for any real time help that a student may need. The chat feature will be available for students to use when determining a strategy for conducting a group project. All of our instructors are aware of each student’s location so they can plan accordingly when considering student friendly office hours.

  Q: What grading scale is used and do you give report cards?

  Answer: Christian High Online utilizes the conventional A, B, C, D and E grading system. For more grading details, please view our student handbook.

  Q: Does the tuition fee include materials, books, etc?

  Answer: No. The cost of books and any related course materials are in addition to the course cost. Books maybe purchased thru Christian High Online’s bookstore with MBS Direct or any store you choose. MBS Direct ships directly to the location you choose, they offer book buy back and students may purchase their textbooks via phone, mail, fax or the Internet.

  Q: What forms of payment are accepted?

  Answer: Most schools have two options:

  1. The school covers the cost of tuition for the student out of the tuition the student is already paying you. For this method, Christian High Online will accept payment up front per our normal payment process OR schools may request deferred billing. With deferred billing, schools will be billed in full three weeks after the course began (following the last withdrawal date). Schools will then have 30 days to make payment.

1. The student covers the cost of the tuition. In this setting payment should be made online via Pay Pal. Via our Christian High Online Pay Pal site, we can accept payment via the web with credit card or via check. Payment must be made no later than 1 week prior to the start of the online course. Students will not be given access to their course until payment is made.

   Schools must inform us no later than two weeks prior to the starting date regarding which option they intend to use.

   Q: What is the withdraw policy?

   Answer: Students who officially withdraw from their courses through the Christian High Online Office may receive a refund of tuition according to the following schedule

2. A full refund will be granted if withdrawal occurs prior to the first day of the course.
3. A 80% tuition refund will be granted if withdrawal from the course occurs after the course began, but prior to the start of the second week of the course (starting on Monday).
4. A 50% tuition refund will be granted if withdrawal from the course occurs prior to the first day of the third week of the course (Monday).
5. No tuition refund will be granted after the end of the designated drop periods listed above.

1. No tuition refunds will be granted if the participant is dropped from the program due to non-attendance or lack of participation.

   Students are required to complete a withdrawal request by sending an email listing your name, date, course(s) you wish to withdraw from and a reason for the withdrawal to the Christian High Online email address: registrar@ChristianHighOnline.org. We are not responsible for a delay in messages or lost messages—you will receive a confirmation from us within 1 business day of the message being received.
   Students that drop the course after completing 50% of the class requirements and fail to take the final exam will receive an “E” for their final grade.

   Q: Is course work submitted through the mail, or email (or both)?

   Answer: All work is submitted online. Within our online environment, there are many ways to turn in assignments – an online “drop box”, discussion board, email, online quizzes and exams, just to name a few. Each teacher will provide you with a detailed course learning plan which will provide you with all of the details regarding how you will be evaluated and turn in assignments for their course. Only in rare occasions will U.S. Postal mail be used.

   Q: What are the age limits for Christian High Online? What grade levels does the online program offer?

   Answer: We do not have a specified age limit, but Christian High Online courses are intended for High School students. Each course offered does have a recommended audience which may range from the 9th grade to some courses which are intended primarily for 12th graders. For example the AP courses are generally intended for students in their final year of high school. Exceptions may be made on a per case basis.

   Q: What curriculum do you use?

   Answer: We do not use a pre-packaged curriculum. All our courses are proven courses that have been taught in a classroom in-seat format and then converted into an online format. Our curriculum goes through a review process and evaluation by the Grand Rapids Christian School’s Curriculum Council. The curriculum used meets or exceeds the standards required by the department of education and NCA (accreditation body).

   Q: What do you believe?

   Answer: Our statement of Faith can best be expressed by our Enduring Understandings.

   Q: What is the best way for one of our mentors to contact the teachers?

   Answer: When a student is enrolled with Christian High Online, the student receives a username and password to enter the course system? The mentor will receive an email with the teacher”s information and contact information for Christian High Online. Via that information mentors may contact the student’s teachers any time or contact Christian High Online directly.
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   Q: Does Christian High Online support both Macintosh and PC users?

   Answer: Yes. Please see our minimum computer requirements.

   Q: Do Christian High Online teachers have split schedules between traditional classroom and their virtual classrooms?

   Answer: No. Our teachers come from a variety of different settings and schools. Christian High Online teachers may be full time online teachers or teaching online courses in addition to their teaching load at their base school.

   Q: Will all schools accept my credits from Christian High Online?

   Answer: The transferring of credits depends on the school you are transferring the credit to. Since Christian High Online pays special attention to ensuring we meet or exceed the expected standards for our teachers, curriculum, department of education and accreditation bodies, students should not have trouble transferring credits; yet students should get written verification from the school they wish to transfer the credits into to ensure acceptance. Our staff will work with you and your student to make sure the accepting school has all of the information they need in order to make their transfer credit decision.

   Q: When do I have to do the work?

   Answer: Each course has specific start and stop times (for example Fall ‘06 14-week courses begin September 22 and end December 16). Each week your teacher will post assignments, reading, projects, discussion questions, etc. with posted due dates for that week or future weeks. The beauty of Christian High Online courses is that students will know their assignment due dates and they will get to choose what works best for them. For example a project due Friday at midnight; students may choose after school on Monday, during lunch on Wednesday, and Thursday night at 9pm, fulfilling our motto: Your days, your times, around your schedule

   Q: Who will be in the online class?

   Answer: Students will come from many different settings that include Christian Schools, public schools, and home schools from around the United States, Canada and from countries around the world. All students must be proficient in the English language. We cannot guarantee that students from the same school will be in the same section of a particular course since.

   Q: What is the class size?

   Answer: Our courses will have 8 to 20 students in each course. Courses will be caped at 20 students to ensure quality and a student/teacher ratio for success.