We're rounding the corner into our last week prior to winter break. Read about this and more in the Charger Connects!
Charger Connects
Friday, Dec 10, 2021
Principal's Message
Well, we're getting there! There are officially six days left till winter break then fourteen instructional days until the end of semester 1 in January. We know for some staff and students, this is a relief as the 'end is in sight' while for others, it is anxiety inducing.
In our staff meeting this week, we discussed the different emotions that the holiday season can bring into our homes. If you're anything like my family, there are aspects of the break you're looking forward to and other things that you may not be. We are asking our staff to be extra patient with all the different emotions in our school over the next five days.
Speaking of patience, we also discussed our plans for the end of the semester. While final exams not running for our gr. 10 and 11 courses might have been a welcomed bit of news for the majority of our students, it puts more emphasis on the work that is being completed (or not) right now. Please bear with me while we go over a bit of math to help understand what I mean better.
Final exams in gr. 10 and 11 typically accounted for 20 - 30 % of the overall grade. This meant that students had a shot to really impact their grade based on how they performed on these exams. If a student is a strong test writer and worked hard to prepare, the difference between a 60% on a final weighted at 20% of their courses and an 80% would be 4 percentage points on their overall grade. So, a student could move their grade from a 72% to 76% by bearing down and nailing the final.
With student's not writing a final exam, the work they are doing throughout the semester counts for 100% of their grade. While it is great that students have the opportunity to be re-assessed on some assessments, the same impact on their grades will not be felt.
A student may choose to re-write a unit exam in mathematics.
The unit may be worth 7% of the overall course grade, with the exam being worth 70% of that unit.
A student choosing to re-write and doing significantly better could move their overall mark up by 0.5 to 1%, not the 4% as in the previous example.
Still with me?
Great!
So what is the reasoning behind not having final exams? The story told above of the student doing 20% better on their final exam and moving their mark up 4% would be more of an anomaly that the opposite happening - a student writing a final and seeing their mark drop by 2 - 4%. Cumulative finals are challenging and stress inducing in non-pandemic times, and many of our students express this to us.
So what benefit does not writing final exams have for our students in gr. 10/11 this year? It gives them a chance to work their hardest throughout the semester,stay on top of their marks, and be reassessed during the semester if they feel they did not perform to their best ability. Waiting for the end of the semester to redeem work not done throughout may not result in a significant boost to a student mark. However, it should avoid a significant decrease in the final mark that sometimes occurs from writing high stakes cumulative final exams.
To encourage you and your child, they should ensure outstanding work is handed in now so their PowerSchool grade is accurate and valid, not representing missed assignments.
Thank you for your continued support and have a great weekend,
Ryan Reed
Principal | Bert Church High School
The cast and crew of A Winter's Gift performed four times last weekend to sold out (1/3 capacity) shows. It was lovely to see the students on stage again telling a story about it being better to give than to receive! Thank you Mr. Goodyear for your continued leadership.
It is always fun to see our students learning in our mechanics and construction programs. We have seven full sections of mechanics running with five sections of construction. Thanks to Mr. Nannan and Mr. Redecopp for your leadership in these areas!
As winter break approaches and travel plans are being made, we wanted to ensure families are aware of current federal requirements for travel. For families considering travelling outside of Canada, please be aware that under federal travel requirements unvaccinated children under 12 (including those who have had their first of two vaccine doses) are not to return to school for 14 days once they return to Canada. Please see the full requirements outlined by the Government of Canada https://www.rockyview.ab.ca/school_2021/travelling-and-return-to-school
