Ms. Hughes

http://student.ccbcmd.edu/~shugh26
Biology I Honors/Forensic Science

suzanne_hughes@hcpss.org

Policies and Procedures: 2006-2007

Respect: Respect for each other, as well as for the classroom environment, is essential. I will respect each of you, and I expect that you will show respect for me, for one another, and for all of the materials and equipment that you use in this class.

Academic Integrity: Plagiarism and/or cheating are never acceptable. I expect that all work will be yours and yours alone, including homework and lab questions and conclusions. Copying from another student is considered cheating and both students will receive zero credit. In addition, any research that you do must include references and anything copied from another source, including the internet, without proper documentation, will receive zero credit. Please refer to the Academic Honor Code for more details on this policy.

Grading: Your grade will be determined based on the percentage of points you earn; grades will be rounded to the nearest whole number, i.e. 89.5% rounds to 90%, while 89.4% rounds to 89%. A=90-100%; B=80-89%; C=70-79%; D=60-69%; and E=59% and below. Assignments that will impact your grade throughout each quarter include labs (50-100 points; 1-2 per week), tests (50-100 points; 1-2 per quarter), quizzes (25-50 points; 4-6 per quarter), and classwork and homework (10-50 points; 3-5 per week).

Absences: According to Howard County policy, you have the same number of days that you are absent to make up the work that you miss. If you are absent on the day of a quiz or test, you should be prepared to make it up on the day you return. Labs are difficult to make up; if you miss a lab with an excused absence, you must make arrangements with me to make up that lab within one week. After one week, zero credit will be given. It is your responsibility to obtain and show me an excused note in order to receive credit for makeup work. If you do not have an excused note, the absence in considered unexcused and zero credit will be given.

Late Work: All students are expected to turn their work in on time. NO late work will be accepted in this class. If you have an excused absence, you may turn in your missed assignments according to the absence policy above. Please contact a classmate for missing work or check the homework listings for your class on my website.

Extra Credit: The most extra credit you may earn in any one quarter is 10%. Extra credit work must be proposed by the student by completing an "extra credit summary" sheet, and must be approved by me before work on the assignment begins. All extra credit proposals must be submitted to me no later than 5 school days before the end of the current quarter. Extra credit assignments will not be accepted if they are late, and I will not accept extra credit proposals if you have more than 3 missing assignments. Examples of possible assignments may include current events summaries related to class, research papers or posters on a class topic, or in class presentations.

Laboratory Safety: Safe conduct in the lab is extremely important. No horseplay will be tolerated. All students must read and sign a Howard County safety contract. No student will be permitted to participate in lab activities without a signed contract. If you demonstrate that you cannot conduct yourself in a safe manner while in the lab, then you will be asked to sit at your desk and you will receive zero credit for the lab assignment. For safety reasons, absolutely no food, drinks or gum are permitted. Water bottles are allowed in the classroom area only.

Discipline: Inappropriate activities that disrupt class are very distracting. I expect you to be in your seat when the bell rings. Consequences for unacceptable behavior (such as tardiness, class disruption, insubordination, and any disregard of class rules) are as follows:
1st offense: verbal warning
2nd offense: phone call home and detention (either 6:45am or after-school)
3rd offense: referral to administrator

Cutting: Cutting class is grounds for immediate referral to an administrator.

Supplies: You will need the following items on a daily basis in order to be successful in this class: an organized, 3-ring binder with 5 dividers and loose-leaf paper, #2 pencils with erasers, black or blue pens, a four-function calculator, and a small set of colored pencils. Dividers should be labeled as follows: Warm-ups, Homework, Labs, Notes, and Quizzes & Tests.

Computer usage: Students are expected to maintain academic integrity while using their computer privileges. Students violating the County computer usage policies will have those privileges suspended or revoked entirely. In addition, no student will be required to complete work on a computer unless class time is given for completion of the work.

I have read and I understand all of the above policies and procedures and I agree to abide by them throughout the school year. I will keep this page in the front of my notebook as a reminder of what is expected of me in this class.

Student name (print)

Student signature Date

Parent signature Date