Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

Get your kid into private services. You cannot rely on MCPS.

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

Anonymous wrote:I've never understood what Canvas is. I get the messages, but nothing happens when I click on any links. I have to log into ParentVue to see grades.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

It gets better. Not dramatically so, but quite a bit better than where you are now. This was the easiest first two weeks I’ve ever had in two decades in MCPS because I was finally able to anticipate some of the pre-service crap and do it over the two months of summer.

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

Anonymous wrote:My son's 7th grade foreign language teacher has posted literally nothing on Canvas. No notes, modules, schedules, or homework assignments. Only a link to a translator app. And his planner usually comes home blank. He missed a homework assignment last week because of this (and was told he could not make it up). He has no friends in the class.

My son has severe ADHD and a 504 plan; potentially relevant accommodations include: Provide assignment directions in writing as needed; Repetition of directions; Breakdown large assignments into manageable parts; Teacher check-ins for organization and supplies with planner checks.

He still needs a lot of support with planning and organization to stay on top of his school work; I'm happy to do as much of that as I can, but when there is literally nothing on canvas or in his planner, especially for a language class I do not speak, there is very little I can do to help him.

But, I recognize it's only the second week of school and I am reluctant to make a fuss yet. Is there any requirement or even guideline as to what teachers need to put on Canvas? My son has a difficult time speaking up/asking for help, so it's extremely unlikely he would approach the teacher himself. Should I ask the teacher directly about Canvas or planner checks, or go to the counselor (new to us this year so no existing relationship, or I'd have asked them already)?

(And for anyone who thinks the answer is "he *just* needs to get better about writing stuff down or remembering it" - if he could do that, he wouldn't have a disability and a 504.)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teachers are not required to post to Canvas now that in-person learning has resumed. This is something you need to work out with the teacher and the guidance counselor who is in charge of the 504 if access to teacher slides is something your child has a specific accommodation for. Canvas has nothing to do with accommodations. It's just a place to house learning materials if a teacher chooses to utilize Canvas for that. Otherwise, many assignments are outside of Canvas (paper, StudySync, Desmos, ect). They won't be posted there.

The official gradebook is Synergy (Teacher/Parent/StudentVue). All graded assignments (in either the 10% or 90% category) must end up there. The teacher should be communicating in advance, in some way, what the assignments are and the due date and deadlines, beyond just saying it out loud in class or having it written on the class board. This could be in the syllabus (e.g. the deadline for HW is the day after it is due), a hardcopy of the quarter plan, via Canvas (as an assignment, or on the home page, or using the calendar, via Synergy assignment, etc. I would start with asking the teacher how this information is being communicated, besides directly to the students during class time. If there is no way to find the information using the approved platforms (Canvas or Synergy), then you should raise that concern to the department head.

-MS teacher here

Thank you - very helpful. The bolded above is what is not happening. I don’t actually mind that nothing is on Canvas as long as we can find the information some other way, but I can’t. He brings home tons of handouts and worksheets but it’s never clear what needs to be completed by when, or when quizzes/tests are, and my son cannot remember.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teachers are not required to post to Canvas now that in-person learning has resumed. This is something you need to work out with the teacher and the guidance counselor who is in charge of the 504 if access to teacher slides is something your child has a specific accommodation for. Canvas has nothing to do with accommodations. It's just a place to house learning materials if a teacher chooses to utilize Canvas for that. Otherwise, many assignments are outside of Canvas (paper, StudySync, Desmos, ect). They won't be posted there.

The official gradebook is Synergy (Teacher/Parent/StudentVue). All graded assignments (in either the 10% or 90% category) must end up there. The teacher should be communicating in advance, in some way, what the assignments are and the due date and deadlines, beyond just saying it out loud in class or having it written on the class board. This could be in the syllabus (e.g. the deadline for HW is the day after it is due), a hardcopy of the quarter plan, via Canvas (as an assignment, or on the home page, or using the calendar, via Synergy assignment, etc. I would start with asking the teacher how this information is being communicated, besides directly to the students during class time. If there is no way to find the information using the approved platforms (Canvas or Synergy), then you should raise that concern to the department head.

-MS teacher here

Anonymous wrote:Teachers are not required to post to Canvas now that in-person learning has resumed. This is something you need to work out with the teacher and the guidance counselor who is in charge of the 504 if access to teacher slides is something your child has a specific accommodation for. Canvas has nothing to do with accommodations. It's just a place to house learning materials if a teacher chooses to utilize Canvas for that. Otherwise, many assignments are outside of Canvas (paper, StudySync, Desmos, ect). They won't be posted there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can always email and ask them. At my child’s Little school everybody uses canvas and modules.

Maybe this teacher is using Google classroom.

I thought MCPS no longer permitted teachers to use Google Classroom. They were rolling out Canvas in summer 2020, right? The teachers were only supposed to be on Canvas.

Is that different now that we're not in virtual learning?