Credit Recovery: FAQs

Do students have to retake the EOC and what course code do I use?
According to State Board Policy effective July 2009, if students are repeating the course and previously scored Level III or IV on the EOC, the student is NOT eligible to take the test again. In other words, once a student receives the proficiency standard, the test must not be administered again. For this student, the EOC score on record in NC WISE will be used as 25% of the student’s final grade in the course and used for accountability purposes. Therefore, the only course code needed is the one provided on our main web page for Credit Recovery courses.

How much time will the student need to work everyday?
During the fall and spring semesters, 90 minutes a day will be required for students to complete the course. During the summer session, 3 to 4 hours a day will be required for students to complete the Credit Recovery course.

Are the summer school courses the full course?
Yes, the courses offered during the summer session are full courses. The content has not been compacted. It is the same course offered during the fall and spring in a shorter time period. That is why students must dedicate more time per day for a summer course.

Can a student take more than one Credit Recovery Course during the summer?
We highly recommend the student take one course at a time due to the number of hours it will take a student to complete the course. Since it will take 3 – 4 hours per day for a Credit Recovery course over the summer, if a student takes two courses , this would require about 8 hours a day for course work. The school knows the student , his/her work habits, and his/her schedule over the summer. The school will have to make the final decision.

How do you know it is the student completing the work?
Ensuring the student is completing the work is a joint effort between NCVPS and the school. The NCVPS Credit Recovery teacher and student develop a relationship during the semester. The teacher makes a synchronous contact every week with the student (phone call, Pronto or Wimba session) and keeps the school and the parent updated on the student’s progress. Since teachers are connected with the students and do meet with them every week, they can usually detect when the work being submitted and the knowledge shown during a synchronous contact do not match. On the school side, some schools decide to have a lab set up one or more days during the week and require the student to attend.

Why can't the student log on?
The Distance Learning Advisor should first check the registration system and verify the student is enrolled in the course. (You can do this by exporting a list of enrollments or by clicking on the magnifying glass to the right of the student’s name and scrolling to the bottom to view the enrollment information.) Second, the Distance Learning Advisor should verify the student is logging into the Blackboard course at this location http://ncvps.blackboard.com/webapps/login/ and is using the correct username and password. If after verifying this information the student is still having issues logging on, the student will need to contact the 24/7 Help Desk at 1-866-223-1028.

Why can't the student see all of the assignments now?
Credit Recovery courses use Adaptive Release. This means the pre-assessment for the first module/unit will be available at the beginning of the course but the rest of the assignments will not. Once the student submits the first pre-assessment, the next material will open. If the student does not master the pre-assessment, the notes and assignments for that module/unit will open. If the student does master the pre-assessment, the next module’s pre-assessment will open and the student can move on.

Why hasn’t the student received any emails from the teacher?
Teachers use the messaging system in Blackboard, not external emails, when sending messages to students. E-mail is only used to send Mastery Charts to DLAs. Status Reports will be provided for schools in the Reports section of the registration system.

Why can't I have a grade for my students for their report cards?
Grades are only given at the very end of the course and only for students who master the course. The reason for this is that we are a mastery based credit recovery program, and while we provide a final course grade to schools for students who master the course material, principals have final say as to what grade is awarded to students at the end of the course and placed on the student’s transcript. Since the course is self-paced, we would not have an accurate grade to provide during the session; one assignment could equal a 100 while the student has done no more work. This would be misleading to all stakeholders.

Why isn't the teacher available to grade the assignments immediately?
The majority of our NCVPS Credit Recovery teachers teach in the face-to-face classroom each day. They will log on each evening and be available to students to grade assignments, answer emails and messages, return phone calls, and work one-on-one with students.

Can students finish early?
The design of the NCVPS Credit Recovery courses allows for students to work at their own pace. The course is self-directed and is based on the student's previous knowledge. Some students may pre-assess out of several modules, while others may need to work in all of them.

What happens if students finish early?
If students are working in a lab setting and finish early, schools should have a plan in place. NCVPS will work with schools to help develop a plan as needed.

What happens if a student needs to drop?
The NCVPS drop policy applies to Credit Recovery courses. Distance Learning Advisors can drop students in the registration system up to the 10th day of class. After that, a drop request for medical or 504 reasons must be submitted to the Virtual Learning Consultant.