Frequently Asked Questions

This document includes the most frequently asked questions regarding the start of school, orientation, equipment and technical issues. Many answers can also be found at the school website agora.org and help.k12.com/s/article/The-Agora-Support-Corner. Email your Orientation Advisor if you have questions that are not addressed below.

When will the student begin school and orientation? Following completion of student registration, the Learning Coach will receive communication from K12- [email protected] and the Parent Engagement Team confirming the student’s enrollment and start date. Additionally, the Learning Coach will receive an email from [email protected] and the Orientation Advisor with important start of school and orientation information. All communication is sent to the email address provided during student registration.

Does the student have to attend school until their Agora start date? Yes, the student must continue attending their current educational setting until their official first day of school at Agora. Students who fail to attend school during the transition may be considered truant with the district of residence. Please communicate with your school district if you have any concerns regarding truancy and let the district know the student’s Agora start date. Agora will provide student enrollment documentation to the district within15 days of the date of approval.

What should I do to prepare for the first day of school? Review the Agora Cyber Charter School Preparation Checklist 2017-18, also provided in the welcome email, for a list of steps to prepare for the start of school and orientation. Some of the steps include, setting up a reliable internet connection in your home prior to the student’s first day of school and setting up the Learning Coach and student Online School accounts. More information is located at agora.org/academics/orientation/.

How do I create the Learning Coach and Student Online School accounts? Instructions and the Registration ID to create the Online School accounts are provided in the welcome email. Instructions are also included in the following video tutorial. Setting Up the Learning Coach and Student Online School Accounts

What equipment and materials are provided to the student? Every Agora student will receive a school-loaned laptop, headset and printer for the duration of their enrollment at Agora. Additionally, students will receive course materials. Course materials are automatically ordered once course(s) are assigned. Do not be alarmed if the student does not receive a lot of course materials. Students will complete most of their daily course work within the Online School or other online programs. Select the link below to view the course list for each grade-band. k12.com/k-8-course-list.html k12.com/high-school-course-list.html

When will equipment and materials arrive? Materials and equipment may arrive separately and on different days. Families should expect to receive the school-loaned laptop prior to the student’s first day of school. The printer and course materials will arrive separately and may arrive after the first day of school. The student only needs a laptop with a reliable connection to the internet to begin school and complete the Orientation Program. Frequently Asked Questions

An adult must be home to accept the delivery of the equipment. The learning coach can view which course materials were ordered and track material and equipment shipment status through their Online School account. Select the link for directions to Track Orders and Shipment Status for Equipment and Materials. Please email or call your Orientation Advisor and/or Family Coach if the Agora laptop hasn’t arrived by 5:00 pm on the Friday before the student’s start date

What do I do if the laptop doesn’t arrive by the first day of school? Students should attend school using another computer with a reliable internet connection until the Agora laptop arrives. Also, call or email your Orientation Advisor and/or Family Coach.

Do I need to download the Blackboard Collaborate Launcher? Blackboard is a web based program that serves as our online classroom and used by teachers to provide daily instructional content to students. The Blackboard Collaborate launcher allows students to access online classes or sessions. All Agora loaned laptops have the Blackboard Launcher already installed. If you receive a message to download the launcher, you can disregard and select Launch Blackboard Collaborate now. Then you will need to open the file, select Run in the Security Warning window and follow the prompts to attend live sessions. If you are using another computer, you are required to download the Blackboard Collaborate launcher to attend live sessions. Click the links below for directions or contact Agora Technical Support and Customer Service at 855-412-3712. help.k12.com/s/article/Blackboard-Collaborate-Launcher-for-Class-Connect help.k12.com/s/article/How-to-Download-Blackboard-Collaborate-Launcher

What are the expectations beginning the first day of school? All students are required to participate in the Orientation Program during their first three days of school. Each day the Learning Coach and student must attend all three online and live orientation sessions. If multiple students are enrolled, the Learning Coach should sit with and attend live sessions with the youngest student. Students will receive real-time interaction, participate in skill building activities and are instructed to complete orientation assignments during live sessions. Students are also required to complete daily orientation assignments as discussed during and after each session.

Orientation live sessions occur as follows: Grades Kindergarten - 5th: 8:30 am, 10:30 am and 1:30 pm Grades 6th - 12th: 9:00 am, 11:00 am and 1:00 pm

 Live session attendance is required for the student to be marked present in school.  Click the link(s) below for directions to join live sessions.

Grades K-5 ow to Log into the Online School and Attend Live Sessions Grades 6-12 How to Log into the Online School and Attend Live Sessions

Frequently Asked Questions

When does the student need to log into the Online School? School hours are between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm. During the student’s first three days of school, the student and learning coach are required to attend orientation live sessions as listed in their Class Connect schedule. Students will also be expected to log into the Online School before, between and after live sessions to read and reply to emails, review course information and complete daily lessons and graded assignments.

What do I do if my student is absent from school? Students must attend live sessions to be marked present in school. During the student’s first three days of school, they are only required to only attend orientation live sessions to be marked present. In the event a student is absent from school, the parent or legal guardian must submit a Student Absentee Submission Form through their Sapphire Portal. Visit agora.org/pupil-parent-services/attendance/ for directions and additional information regarding the attendance policy. Contact your Family Coach if you need support.

What do I do if experience technical issues with the laptop, Online School or live sessions Call Agora Technical Support and Customer Service at 855-412-3712. Hours of operation (except holidays) are Monday-Friday 8 am to 11:59 pm and Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00 pm (noon) to 8:00 pm.  Follow the directions of the technician to troubleshoot the issue.  Write down the ticket number provided at the end of the call and update your Family Coach and Orientation Advisor through email or phone.

Why do I see orientation live sessions in Class Connect before my school start date? Students are assigned to their Orientation Advisor’s classroom a few days before their start date. As a result, they have access to the live sessions occurring at that time and recordings to classes that occurred earlier during the school year. Students will not begin orientation or attend orientation live sessions until their approved school start date.

Why do I see academic and orientation live sessions in my Online School Class Connect schedule? In some instances, students will have access to their academic courses (English, Math, Science, and History) and academic live sessions before completing the Orientation Program. If this occurs, it is important the student only attends their orientation live sessions and only completes orientation assignments during their first three day of school. This will ensure the student is marked present the first three days of school and equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to successfully transition to academic courses. Upon completion of the Orientation Program, the Orientation Advisor will instruct the student to begin academic courses and attend academic live sessions.

What do I do if my live session times are listed incorrectly in Class Connect ? Check if your laptop time zone setting. It should be set to ‘Eastern Time US and Canada’. Select the link for directions to update your time zone and internal clock. Update Time Zone Setting on the School Laptop

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the expectations to complete the Orientation Program for grades Kindergarten through 5th? 1. To attend and participate in only the 8:30 am, 10:30 am and 1:30 pm orientation live sessions as listed in Class Connect.

2. To complete the orientation video lessons when directed to determine mastery of daily instructional orientation-related content.  Email communication video lesson assessment  Blackboard Collaborate video lesson assessment

3. To complete the two Sapphire assignments listed in your Elementary Orientation Sapphire course when directed. Students who do not score an average of 80% or higher on the graded assessments will continue in the Orientation Program at least one additional day to receive one on one or small group support and/ or remediation.

What are the expectations to complete the Orientation Program for the grades 6th – 12th? 1. To attend and participate in only the 9 am, 11 am and 1 pm orientation live sessions as listed in Class Connect.

2. To read Units 1-6 in the ORN030 Online Learning course as assigned each day. The course is interactive and the student will explore all of the details, links, audio clips, videos, activities and resources within the course. On the first day of orientation the student will be instructed to read Units 1-4. On the second day of orientation the student will be instructed to read Unit 5. On the third and final day of orientation the student will be instructed to read Unit 6.

3. Additionally, the student is required to complete all daily assignments as listed in the course and assigned as the end of each live session. Please do not attempt to complete any of the graded assignments within the course until instructed to do so. The following assignments are graded and the student must score 70% or higher on each graded assignment to pass the ORN030 course and complete the Orientation Program. Students who score less than 70% on a graded assignment will have the option to re-take the assignment and continue in the Orientation Program at least one additional day for one on one support and/or remediation.  Day 1: Complete 4.01 Lesson Assessment  Day 2: Complete 5.03 Discussion and Contingency Plan  Day 3: Upload ad submit the completed Contingency Plan to the 6.03 Contingency Plan folder