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CCPS to Launch Parent@School Website
CCPS Press Release
Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is launching an interactive website, titled Parent@School, to make it easier for parents to be informed of their child's activities and achievement at school.
The system will be available for use Nov. 1. The site will be available seven days a week from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Parents will be able to access the site from the CCPS website, www.ccboe.com.
Information available for elementary students includes student information, attendance records, class schedules, immunization records and links to other websites.
Information available for middle and high school students includes student information, attendance records, class schedules and immunization, as well as interim and end-of-quarter grades, graduation requirements, student transcript records and classroom assignment grades.
Information on lunch account balances and homework assignments for elementary, middle and high school students will be available in mid-January.
Informational open house registration sessions will be held this month at county schools. Schools are notifying parents of dates and times of open houses by sending emails to the addresses listed on student emergency cards and through phone messages.
Parents can also register for the service online. Once the registration process has been completed online, the parent will be notified by their child's school to obtain their user name and password. Parents must obtain their password in person from their child's school and will be asked to show photo identification.
Parents with more than one child attending CCPS only need to register once and will be notified by the school their oldest child attends to obtain their system password.
Starting Nov. 1, the system can be accessed by parents who have registered by following the steps listed below:
- Go to www.ccboe.com;
- Go to the Parents & Community section;
- Click on Parent@School under the Parent Links section;
- Click Login to Parent@School; and
- Sign on with the user name and password assigned to you.
Call your child's school for more information or for registration dates and times.
13 comments:
Thank you for this information, Mrs. Abell. It sounds like a great resource for parents, and I had not heard of it yet, so I'll be calling today! Thanks again.
I like the idea of being able to retrieve information.
I hope that no one in the administration would begin to believe that this would in anyway substitute for a parent being able to go into the school and observe their child's class and teacher at anytime.
It is extremely important for the parents to see how their child interacts with their teacher and how effectively the teacher is teaching the material.
Mr. Richmond's feet still need to be held to the fire and CHANGE this outrageously restrictive classroom observance policy.
Please Mrs. Abell, let's get in his face and get him to change this policy.
At the monthly Mt. Hope PTO we heard of the "upcoming initiative” for parents to access their child's information - relative to school, performance, homework status and assignments.
One parent had a pretty good question when she brought up the fact that the Mt. Hope School website has not been updated since last January - school year 2006.
The explanation given was that the person who is responsible for the website has gone from a volunteer position to a full time position with the School System and is now responsible for more than just the Mt. Hope School website.
Some parents wondered aloud whether the "new initiative" for parent/child access to information would be just as late with up-to-date substance. In other words wondering who is inputting the information and how current will it be. This could be an excellent tool as long as the information is valid, accurate and up-to-date.
As for the issue of changing the policy for parent visits I think while these type of subjects are in the "news" it presents a good opportunity for US parents to bring the issue before the BOE - again.
Mrs. Abell I think - and I am not trying to speak for her nor put words in her mouth - has her hands tied with both other Board members against doing anything different than what is in place, as well as with the Superintendent. Again, as I have heard from her (Mrs. Abell) she is but one person on the board and issues like the parent visitation policy will take a lot of public input and "getting in his face" to make something (positive) happen.
The next Board meeting is tomorrow evening with time for Public comment. Although OUR time is very restrictive, if enough people show up to speak to the issue we MAY get some type of response.
The administration will do "whatever it takes" to keep parents out of the schools.
Here's on for you...How about 5 teachers teaching social studies to 20 students in one classroom?
Money well spent, huh?
im1ru2
I would hope (fingers crossed) that keeping the information will not be a concern with this. I am optimistic because the system can only be as good as the people entering the information. I have not seen this system first hand as of yet and will reserve other comments until then. I think it's a great first step in the right direction. If parents are experiencing kinks after it is launched, please make us aware of them and we'll work through them.
As for the visitation policy...you are dead on. I am but one person. I AM convinced the policy should be altered. It's the other Board members and Mr. Richmond that need to be convinced. Every year it comes up, principals and teachers show up (in force) and voice their side, a few of the same parents (deemed squeky wheels) show up, usually there is even a petition with them, however they vote to keep it the same. My hands are tied with this one. Maybe instead of fighting to change the existing policy...(just thinking out loud here) if someone could put together some statistics, prices, etc on how much it would cost for the technology of the cameras with a live feed for an observatory room.
Anonymous,
Do what? 5 teachers...1 room...20 students... please elaborate
Check on Piccowaxen 8th grade social studies.
Ask why we can't hire qualified people to teach (can't afford it, huh?), but we can afford 5 teachers in a classroom of what, 20?
Anonymous,
Checking on it
Mrs. Abell,
Again, having "cameras" in the classroom is not and has not been what I have said nor mean. If it has come across that way, I apologize and would like to clarify.
My suggestion is that with all the technology currently in our school systems - meaning PCs - we need only provide a central location for parents to come and view classrooms. Having a PC in each classroom -which is how I understand things are now and if they are not, should be - we only need to apply PC video (most newer PCs have this installed right on/in the PC standard hardware configuration) from the classroom to the "central location".
This is accomplished via an internal network or using the intra-net capabilities we currently have in our technology make-up. Schools have intra/internet capabilities now, we just need to build on this and install the "live feed" capabilities. Not rocket science in today’s tech world.
But, if you feel that someone should help out with identifying how this could work, what it would cost and how it could be implemented, that is possible with internal information provided. Since we know how the majority of the Board and the superintendent feel about sharing information I am not so sure this would actually happen.
One would need to know the current inventory for each of the schools (PCs) and what the intra/internet capabilities are for each school, just to get started.
Again, applying enhanced technology to what we already have is what I think should happen utilizing PC based video and live feeds operated only when a parent would like to observe classroom instruction. I am not suggesting we substitute this for actual physical parental visits nor am I suggesting that we place “cameras” in the classrooms. However, I do feel this is a real good tool we could take advantage of and it would at least improve upon the current parental visitation policy. I really don’t see a down side to this and I think it fixes a lot of the complaints the administration and some teachers and the lobbyist have with parents physically coming into the classroom more often or unannounced. This proposal would not disturb the classroom, the teacher or the students since it is technology based and I believe this to be the biggest/loudest complaint from “insiders” with having more or unannounced visits by parents.
im1ru2:
I agree with you regarding the technology being available. Yes, and it is no rocket science.
I think it boils down to this:
1) The person(people) working on implementing the system HAS to be part of the good ole boy network(no pun intended) of the administration.
2) We have major paranoia going on with the thought of having cameras in the classrooms.
3) If Richmond is going to supress extremely valuable information such as (Should my child have this teacher as an AP Language teacher?) , then I doubt that the cameras will ever be implemented. Mr. Schwartz will probably come up with some line that "The children's identities must be protected". And of course, that's gibberish. Classrooms get videotaped all the time, along with buses, etc. It only straightens up the activities of the teacher along with allows the parents to see what is going on in the classroom. Of course, parents with open relationships with their children know of the shenanigans that happen in the classrooms.
I think that it's pretty plain and simple. Put the heat on the County Commissioners to demand an open door, information sharing policy or else. Look at the in-fighting and criminal activity of the PG County School System. There have been so many changes, but yet no real positive direction.
I think the state of the CC schools is close to pertubating around the philosophy of the PG Schools.
What do you think?
IM1RU2 - Yes, I know what your asking and it's NOT cameras, I just keep misusing the term. I will mention your ideas to our technology department.
Anonymous - In response to the 5 teachers per one class at Picco. I immediately suspected what was happening but wanted to confirm before answering.
8th grade Social Studies at Picco consists of
3 enrichment sections (1 teacher)
3 grade level sections (1 teacher)
1 Inclusion section. (2 teachers; 1 aide)
The class you are referring to is the inclusion class and includes 50% special education students. As you can see from above this class has two teachers and one aid. The school also implements a "drop-in program" whereas other teachers may be assigned to assist during their planning times. This particular class has a drop in teacher assigned on "B" days. That makes four adults. Please let me know if you have any further questions
Thanks for the information Mrs. Abell:
I think that inclusion is one of the worst things to happen to education, along with open-space classrooms.
Special Education Students need to be separated and taught by an expert.
Including them in a normal classroom is a very bad idea.
However, I don't have my Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, so I would not be qualified to teach these children.
Seriously, I feel sorry these kids that are taught in the same classroom with other students with normal IQ's.
This may be one contributing factor as to why the county has trouble meeting specific goals and objectives with these students (as well as the lawsuits that follow). Parents of these children deserve to have experts teaching their children.
What light can you shed on this?
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