Answer: The Connecticut Virtual Learning Center offers online supplemental courses to CT public high schools as a complement as well as an alternative to courses taken in traditional schools. The primary offerings are credit recovery, and courses that are not offered at all schools, such as world languages and Advanced Placement courses. Curriculum is highly interactive, driven by a Learning Management System (Blackboard). Students can expect the same rigor as any high quality high school course, and are advised to go through the Online Learning Orientation provided on the site, prior to taking an online course. All online courses are taught by CT certified teachers and adhere to CT and National standards of quality.

Answer: The CT Virtual Learning Center was to be funded for the first two years with state surplus funds, but these funds are no longer available. Therefore, we are moving to a pay-per course format one year sooner than anticipated. Costs for courses are $375 per semester based course and $750 per full year course. After a district allocates a spending level in the VLC system, their schools will be granted access to enroll students.

Answer: CT Virtual learning Center courses are semester based. Parts A and B are available to students that need a full year course. Credits earned will be compatible with those earned in your High School for each completed semester-based course. AP Exam Prep courses are not for credit.

Answer: Submit questions online to Gretchen Hayden, ghayden@ctdlc.org or Carolyn Caggiano, ccaggiano@ctdlc.org; or call 860-832-3891, 860-832-3930.

Answer: For technical support, please contact our help desk at E-mail Support
Call Support: 860-832-3887
Fax Support: 860-666-5828 Help Desk Hours of Operation:

• Mon-Thurs: 8AM-10PM EST
• Fri: 8AM-8PM EST
• Sat: 8AM-5PM EST
• Sun: 10AM-8PM EST

Answer: Classes are offered on a rolling enrollment basis across the academic calendar. Check the website for enrollment dates and deadlines.

Answer: Similar to a face to face class, students should plan on spending 6 - 10 hours a week across 16 weeks for each semester based course. While students have the flexibility of logging into their courses any time, from any Internet-connected computer, for best results they should be prepared to do their work weekly.

It may take longer for students that are just getting acclimated to the online course environment.

Answer: A wide-range of courses is available from the CT Virtual Learning Center. For a complete list of courses, click here.

Answer: Yes
Online Learning Orientation Tool – This tool is a complete overview of online learning and is highly recommended as a prerequisite for all students taking online courses. It may take 2-3 hours for completion. It is helpful for online learning coordinators and mentors to review this material as well.

Blackboard Users Guide – This documents will show you how to use your Blackboard course and is essential reading for all online students. You can get to different sections by clicking on the page in the Table of Contents.

Answer:: No. Credit Recovery in this program is meant to allow students that have fallen behind or are failing for some reason the opportunity to begin again during the school year, and to stay "on track" for graduation. Each semester based course contains a full 16 week curriculum, with the same rigorous expectations of their on-ground counterparts. While there is a certified online teacher to offer instruction and assistance and reinforcement to students as they learn, the curriculum is not designed to identify and reinforce specific content areas of need.

Answer: Once the Online Learning Coordinator at your school enrolls you in your course, your username and password will be sent to you via email. Please know that if you do not receive this email, and do not know how to log into your course that the Online Learning Coordinator at your school can look up your username and password for you in the Virtual Learning Center system under Manage Students.

Once you have logged in, your homepage will open providing a series of links to follow to enter your course/s. The first thing to do once you've logged into your course is to send your teacher a message through the Message tool of the course. Introduce yourself and offer additional contact information for the best way the teacher can reach you when needed.

For best results in an online course; you must begin by opening and reading the course Lessons. The Lessons will point you at the corresponding Assignments. If you begin with the Assignments without working through the lessons, you will have a very difficult time understanding the material and the work expected of you in each of the assignments. Skipping around in the course can also lead to confusion and difficulty. For best results, follow each lesson and assignment, in sequence.

Answer: Yes, a highly qualified, Connecticut certified teacher will be your instructor for the course(s). You will communicate with him or her via the course messaging system and telephone. Good communication with your teacher is needed for you to be a successful online learner.

Answer: Yes. Each high school participating in the program will have an Online Learning Coordinator. Contact your guidance office for help if you are not sure who this is.

Answer: Local schools or districts will decide the attendance policy for students enrolled in CT Virtual Learning Center courses. Check with your Online Learning Coordinator and/or guidance counselor to see if you are required to be present at your school for any part of your online coursework.

Answer: Students will be expected to keep up with their course pace weekly, however, time is available in your pace charts to accommodate for vacations. Students following their pace charts will not be required to work during vacations unless they have chosen to complete their work in less than 17 or 18 weeks. In this event, as long as students have access to an Internet-connected computer each day, they can have access to their coursework.

Answer: CT Virtual High School defaults to the discretion of your high school or school district. They have the authority to require that exams be taken in a supervised school environment.

Answer: The student will be granted a 30 day drop period beginning on the student's course start date. Schools may drop a student for any reason during that time period. After 30 days, schools will be invoiced for that student enrollment. The CT Virtual Learning Center staff will no longer drop or withdraw students from the system. This must be done by the District Online Learning Coordinator or guidance counselors at the participating schools.

Answer: Online Learning Coordinators can look up students' user names and passwords, by logging into the Virtual Learning Center system from our website. Click on Main Menu, then click on Manage Students. Click on the grey search bar toward the bottom of your page, this will bring up a listing of all your students including their user names and passwords.

Answer: If you forgot your username or password, you can click on "Forgot My Username/Password?" under the login area (bottom left-hand corner) of the VLC website www.ctvirtuallearning.org. Your Online Learning Coordinator has the ability to look up your username and password.

Only YOU will be allowed to change your password, and this MUST be done by logging into the VLC website: www.ctvirtuallearning.org, not in the Blackboard System. To do so, log into the site using your username and password. Under Student Tools, select Edit Account Information. This is where you can change your PASSWORD.
If you change your password in the Blackboard system (where your course lives), it will revert to you old password within the next 6 hours.

Answer:
If you have a dual role of OLC and Mentor, follow the Mentor instructions.

If you are an OLC:
Log into the site (www.ctvirtuallearning.org)
Under Course Management, click Progress Reports.
This will bring up a search screen.
Either selects the term (to see progress reports for one term) or leave the search area empty (and all progress reports will come up), then click the gray search key.
This will bring up your students, click on the Icon under Action to view their Progress Reports.

If you are a Mentor:
Log into the site (www.ctvirtuallearning.org)
The courses you have students in will be listed on your homepage under My Course Activities. Under ACTION, click on the Icon next to View Progress Report.
This will bring up a search screen. Either selects the term (to see progress reports for one term) or leave the search area empty (and all progress reports will come up), then click the gray search key.
This will bring up your students, click on the Icon under Action to view their Progress Reports.

If you are a Student:
Log into the site (www.ctvirtuallearning.org)
The courses that you are in will be listed on your homepage under My Course Activities.
Under ACTION, click on the Icon next to the progress report you'd like to see. If you are in more than one course, you can only view one course at a time.
This will bring up a screen listing all of your progress reports in that course.
Under ACTION, click on the Icon to download the report.

Answer:
Core Curriculum courses are offered on a per semester basis with a flexible enrollment schedule in order to assist students that have fallen off track to graduate high school on time. This option for credit recovery does not mean that students will be enrolled in remedial courses. Each semester based course is a full-rigor 16 week curriculum. While students can begin any time, a pacing schedule must be worked out between the school administration, the teacher and the student. Students will be expected to be working weekly or they will be considered inactive and risk failing the course. Prerequisites must be strictly adhered to.

Advanced Placement courses are meant for students that may not have access to such opportunities as a part of their regular High School schedules. These will be available as full 32 or 18 week curriculums depending on whether they are full year or half year courses. Because Advanced Placement courses should be completed prior to the exam dates, these courses have strict beginning and ending dates. Students will be expected to begin working on the first week of class and to be actively working weekly or they will be considered inactive and risk failing the course. Prerequisites must be strictly adhered to.

Mandarin Chinese I and II will be offered. These are full-year 32 week curriculums with strict beginning and ending dates. Students will be expected to begin working on the first week of class and to be actively working weekly or they will be considered inactive and risk failing the course. Prerequisites must be strictly adhered to.