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Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about the Virtual High School. If you do not find what you are
looking for, please feel free to contact us. |
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Q. Who can take courses in the Virtual High School @ PWCS? A. Any 9th-12th grade student enrolled in an accredited Virginia school with Guidance Counselor permission. (Rising freshmen can also take a course in preparation for HS) Go to the Student Criteria page to see computer configurations and take a self assessment Q. How much does an online course cost? A. The tuition for students enrolled in a PWC school is $425 dollars and for students who are enrolled in a Non-PWC school the cost is $570 dollars. English 11 and HPE courses may have additional fees or special tuition costs. Q. How many courses can I take through the Virtual High School? A. Students are permitted to take ONE course per session. In some, extreme circumstances, such as not having a full schedule in regular school, an additional course MAY be approved in writing by the VHS Coordinator. Additional courses will not be approved for the six week summer session. The VHS is a supplement to the regular school schedule, not a replacement. Q. Who will teach the online courses and how do I communicate with them? A. VHS teachers are fully certified in their content area and most are employed with the Prince William County School System. Instructors have online office hours for daily contact. Q. Do students receive high school credit for courses taken? A. Yes, students will receive high school credit when a course is successfully completed. The credit is issued by their base school. Q. What grading scale is used? A. The Prince William County Public Schools grading scale. If you are an out of district student, a grade based on the PWCS scale will be submitted to your base school. They may choose to convert the % to their grading scale. Q. Can a student take the Virtual High School course in lieu of summer school? A. Yes, students must sign up with their base school guidance counselor. The online summer program runs concurrently with the regular PWCS summer school schedule and students may participate in the summer graduation ceremony in August. Q. Do courses count towards a student's GPA (Grade Point Average) for class ranking? A. Yes, the course will count towards a student's overall GPA. All grades are submitted to the base school guidance department to be placed on the student's transcript. Q. How does a student know his/her grade? A. The online gradebook helps students keep track of their grades. Grade reports are also provided four times during the semester. Q. How and where does a student take the end of course examination and/or state SOL (Standards of Learning) test? A. Students take their SOL exam via their base school. The SOL exam must be taken to earn the VHS course credit. Q. Can I work at my own pace in the VHS courses? A. Yes and no. The courses have deadlines (daily or weekly) established by the instructor. Students are expected to meet those deadlines. The courses are not self-paced, however, if you need to view a lecture a second time, or think about a question for awhile, you may do so without fearing that they will hold back the rest of the class. Students are not given a specific time to be online. You are expected to pace yourself to complete the work on time. |