Policies

Attendance Policy

Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School actively encourages and promotes regular attendance. Educational research has consistently shown that a student’s progress and academic success are closely related to good attendance and participation in the day to day activities of the school.

Notre Dame has a 5-10-15 Attendance System. All students are informed at the beginning of each course that 15 absences in a course may result in the loss or deferral of the credit. For half credit courses, such as civics or career education, 8 absences may result in a similar situation.

The 5-10-15 attendance system is for all absences (withdrawal from class due to lateness or for being out of uniform, illness, vacations, appointments, parent withdrawal, suspensions). Approved absences due to school activities (retreats, field trips, athletics) are not included in the 5-10-15 attendance totals for loss of credit. VACATIONS: Although trips and vacations may provide diverse learning experiences, the school does not support, academically, travel or vacations during class time.

The content covered in each course is important and requires daily attendance. While parents may choose to travel during the school year, the time missed from class is recorded as an absence and counted in the total absence record for the semester. A significant number of absences places a student’s credit in jeopardy due to course expectations not being completed and assessed. Prior to the trip, the parent/guardian must notify the school Administration and Attendance Office with specific dates of departure and return and the student must consult with his/her teachers and make notes on what will be covered in each course. Any assignments that are due while he/she is away should be completed and handed in prior to the trip to ensure they are accepted. A vacation period is considered an absence.

At 5 absences

In any subject, the subject teacher will contact parents/guardians to inform them of the attendance profile.

At 10 absences

In any subject, the teacher will contact parents/guardians to inform them of the attendance profile. An attendance profile, indicating that the credit is in jeopardy, may be sent home to the parent/guardian.

At 15 absences

On any subject, the administration will review, in consultation with the subject teacher, the attendance profile and make a determination as to credit loss or deferral. The parent/guardian will be informed of the situation.

Students with four (4) truancies or unexplained absences in any course may be removed from that course.

Student Absences

A phone call (or a note) from a parent/guardian to explain the reason for the absences is required for all absences. An answering machine is available for your convenience. If a phone message is not received (for full day absences only), we require a written communication from a parent/guardian on the day the student returns to school by 8:00 a.m.

All absences from school must be justified by parents or guardians, at the time of the absence, not days, weeks, or months later. The Attendance Office will not be accepting parental notes after the fact.

Students who are 18 years of age and older must complete the NOTE SIGNING PERMISSION FORM in order to sign their own notes with permission of the administration. Students will then be allowed to sign themselves into or out of school only if they have an appointment or are ill. NOTE: A limit of 8 S18s are allowed per semester. Administration reserves the right to remove this privilege if deemed necessary.

Sign Outs

Students who must leave school before the end of the day are required to sign out at the attendance office. Students, under 18 years of age, will require the permission of their parents/guardians in order to sign out. Students are to submit notes for early dismissal to the attendance office prior to 8:30 a.m. on the day of the appointment. Telephone calls/notes may NOT be accepted after the absence occurs. When students becomes ill while at school they must report to the Attendance Office. Students must not leave the school premises without reporting to the Attendance Office first.

Students who miss class without an acceptable reason from their parent/guardian, will be recorded as truant.

Missed Examinations, Culminating Activities, Tests and Assignments

Students are responsible for all course work and assignments while absent.

i) Any examination validated by a doctor’s note may be rescheduled.

ii) Any examination missed due to vacation or truancy may not be rescheduled, and may be assigned a mark of zero (0).

NOTE: Illness substantiated by a doctor’s note is the only acceptable reason for missing an examination. All notification of absence due to vacation or family trip must be submitted in writing to the Principal or Vice-Principal.

Lates

• If students are not in their period 1 class at the start of Morning Prayer they are late.
• Stop all movement and conversation in class and in the halls when the prayer begins remain still and quiet until the conclusion of the National Anthem 
• Persistent lateness will be dealt with in accordance with Notre Dame’s Late Policy
• If the student is more than 20 minutes late for any class, the class will not be disturbed, and the student will NOT be admitted. This will be marked as an absence. The student must report to the Attendance Office.
• At the 5th late in a particular class the student will not be admitted. They will be marked LATE – NO CLASS and the parents will be informed. Similarly, each subsequent late will also be LATE – NO CLASS and will be counted as an absence
• Persistent lateness could result in suspension from school

Late Policy Occurrences

• 1–3 – Subject teacher speaks with student
  • First 20 minutes student admitted to class
  • After 20 minutes student NOT admitted to class and late treated as a truancy. Student reports to the Attendance Office.
• 4 – Teacher contacts home
• 5 – Referral to Vice-Principal with Late Record form Student not admitted to class Parental contact
• 6 – Student not admitted to class. Parental contact by Vice-Principal. Report to the Attendance Office
• 7 – Student is withdrawn from all classes for entire day
• 8 – One day out-of-school suspension
• 9 –  Two day out-of-school suspension
• Subsequent Incremental suspensions out-of-school

Attendance Letter to Parents – September 2022

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Duty to Report –  September 2022

Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting Guidelines

Late/Missed Assignments and Academic Dishonesty & Plagiarism

The following are Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting Guidelines for use at Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School. These guidelines are consistent with the HCDSB’s Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting Guidelines for Secondary Schools, 2007 and Late and Missed Assignments 2011. It is the expectation that all students of Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School comply with these guidelines, in an effort to improve student learning and promote continued excellence in Catholic education.

Expectations and Responsibilities

Teachers should understand that…

• Staff have an obligation to fully discuss with students late and missed assignment guidelines and procedures;
• Regular and meaningful communication with parents and students, and when necessary, administration, will take place;
• The return of student work needs to be timely in order to provide the students with feedback to promote growth and learning;
• Professional judgment should be used when assessing and evaluating overall student progress and achievement;
• There should be logical consequences for late or missed assignments. The consequences should not significantly affect the final mark.

Students should understand that…

• They must take responsibility for their own learning, which includes time management and organization;
• It is never acceptable to submit work late
• All assessment and evaluation activities must be submitted on the assigned date, unless the teacher has agreed to an alternative date prior to the final submission date;
• Some deadlines are absolute, as teachers need to report on student progress by a given date (reporting periods);
• Failure to submit an assignment may ultimately result in a mark of zero being assigned if there is insufficient evidence of achievement;
• They should take initiative to seek assistance, which is always available to them, when they are not confident about concepts or skills;

Parents should understand that…

• Open communication regarding student progress and assignment/test guidelines between parents, teachers, and students is a key factor in developing a culture of responsibility for assessment and evaluation;
• Students must assume responsibility for their own learning;
• Assistance is available for students who experience difficulty or when they are not confident about concepts or skills.
• Certain deadlines are absolute because of professional responsibilities and timelines and, therefore, failure to submit an assignment may result in a mark of ‘zero’ being recorded if there is insufficient evidence of achievement;
• Planned absences must be clearly communicated to the administration and teachers in a timely manner;

Missed In-Class Evaluation Policy

** An in‐class evaluation may be a test, quiz, lab, oral seminar or presentation, culminating task etc.**

Absences Notified in Advance

1. If a student knows in advance that s/he will be absent for an in‐class evaluation (e.g. due to a field trip, retreat, athletic event), it is the responsibility of the student to notify the teacher prior to the absence. Arrangements will be made for an alternative in‐class evaluation date at the teacher’s discretion. This alternate date may be either before or after the original date, and may or may not be during class time.

Unplanned Absences

Legitimate

1. If a student is away unexpectedly and misses an in‐class evaluation for a legitimate reason (e.g. illness), it is the responsibility of the student to approach the teacher about the missed in‐class evaluation on the day that they return to school. The in‐class evaluation may be completed on this first day back or at a time/date arranged with the teacher.
2. Students may be given a Missed/Late Assessment Contract, which must be completed and signed by a parent/guardian, indicating the parent’s awareness that an in‐class evaluation was missed. The form must be returned to the teacher on the next school day.
3. In lieu of the contract, a documented phone call home may be made by the teacher to a parent/guardian to communicate the missed in‐class evaluation and re‐schedule an alternate date and time for the evaluation to be made up.
4. Should the student fail to comply with the above, the teacher will involve the administration and disciplinary consequences may ensue, as well, the teacher may record a mark of ‘zero’ for that evaluation.

Truancies

1. Students who leave school on the day of an in‐class evaluation (i.e. become ill during the school day), should make every effort to see both their classroom teacher and a member of administration before doing so. Failure to do so may be considered truancy.
2. If it is determined that a student was truant during the period of an in‐class evaluation, the teacher will notify the parent/guardian and refer the student to administration for disciplinary action. The evaluation may not be rescheduled and may impact the student’s final grade.

Academic Dishonesty & Plagiarism

Academic honesty is an essential part of teaching and learning.  The Halton Catholic District School Board is committed to assessment and evaluation practices that are grounded in the belief that all students will demonstrate their learning in an environment that reflects the Catholic values of fairness, equity and respect for all.  Notre Dame’s procedure on academic dishonesty is consistent with the guidelines established in:

• HCDSB Procedure VI-55- Assessment and Evaluation: Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism
• Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools
• Learning for All – A Guide to Effective Assessment and Instruction for all Students, Kindergarten to Grade 12

It is the responsibility of students to be academically honest in all aspects of their schoolwork so that the marks they receive are a true reflection of their own achievement. Academic dishonesty is a serious offense and it is imperative that students understand what it entails and its potential consequences.  It is the responsibility of school staff to communicate to students that academic honesty is required in all aspects of their work.

Terms & Definitions:

Term	Definition
Cheating	Is the attempt to gain an unfair advantage in an academic evaluation which may misrepresent the demonstration of a student’s learning or the learning of others. This includes but is not limited to: Using apps to translate your work (i.e. for French class or definitions)Using math apps that provide you with the answer. Accessing unapproved materials (cheat sheet, computer, phone, etc.) during a test.
Plagiarism	Refers to representing someone else’s ideas, writing or other intellectual property, whether published, unpublished or posted electronically, attributed or anonymous, as one’s own without proper acknowledgement, reference or citation.
Collusion	Refers to supporting academic misconduct by another student, for example allowing one’s work to be copied or submitted for assessment by another. Examples-Copying someone else’s coding. Copying and submitting someone else’s homework questions and submitting them as your own. Helping another student by providing them a copy of your work.
Duplication of Work	Is the presentation of work for multiple assessmentsSubmitting the same work/assignment in multiple classes for multiple evaluations.

All stakeholders have a responsibility to ensure a common understanding of the concepts and definitions embedded in the procedure, the range of supports available to promote academic honesty, the skills and strategies used to prevent cheating and plagiarism and the continuum of responses and consequences for academic dishonesty.

Cheating is academic dishonesty. Any student found cheating during an in‐class evaluation may receive a mark of zero. In all cases of cheating, a parent/guardian will be contacted and the student will be referred to the administration for disciplinary action.

Student will:

• Seek clarification from teachers about what constitutes plagiarism;
• Seek help when their research skills are deficient;
• Ensure that all work is original and that they cite sources accurately and consistently.

Teacher will:

• Define and explain plagiarism and academic dishonesty;
• Instruct students on appropriate research and citation practices;
• Monitor student’s work and provide ongoing feedback;
• Ensure that student work completed within a group is evaluated individually;
• Ensure that assignments for evaluation, tests and exams are completed under their supervision;
• Inform parent/guardian and Administration of any serious incident of academic dishonesty.

Teacher may:

• Require the student to do supplementary or alternative work;
• In consultation with Aministration assign a grade penalty up o the full valueof the work to be evaluated.

Administration may:

• Meet with the student, parent/guardian and teacher;
• Assign consequences;
• Limit the student’s eligibility for school awards;
• Suspend the student.

Late and Missed Assignments

1. Assignments assigned in class where time is given for completion during class time are due at the end of class. Where the assignment is not completed, the student may be required to stay after school or during lunch in order to complete the work. Failure to comply will be dealt with by administration.
2. If a student has a non‐school related absence on the day an assignment is due, they must submit the assignment directly to the teacher on their first day back at school or at the discretion of the teacher. If a student has a school‐related absence, students are required to hand in the assignment either to the office or the teacher prior to leaving school.
3. Should there be extenuating circumstances (i.e. long term illness, funeral etc.), the student’s parent or guardian must notify the school and/or teacher and alternative arrangements will be made.
4. The Missed/Late Assessment Contract must be completed for ALL late or missing assignments and assessment pieces. In lieu of the Missed/Late Assessment Contract, teachers may contact parents directly by phone. Written documentation of the contact home should be kept by the teacher.
5. Vacations: All assignments must be submitted prior to leaving, or other arrangements must be in place with the teacher one week prior to departure.
6. Please be advised that the Missed/Late Assessment Contract is binding at Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School. Students who contravene the terms of the contract and fail to submit the assignment by a specified date may receive mark of ‘zero’.
7. Plagiarism is academic dishonesty. Students are expected to do their own work. Ideas borrowed from other sources must be properly referenced. Failure to do so may result in a mark of ‘zero’ being assigned. Administration must be contacted in instances of plagiarism for assessment pieces.

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