Academic Expectations
Though the curriculum is content-rich and expectations for student- scholars are high, we are not an exclusive school. A scholar’s desire to learn, in short, his or her curiosity, is the key to success and fulfillment at SJCA. While the Academy understands that some scholars are more talented than other scholars in certain subjects, every scholar who has passed the appropriate prerequisites, is genuinely curious, and applies him or herself diligently on a daily basis, will succeed at SJCA. Success is measured as a scholar’s growth in maturity, accomplishment, and understanding over the course of his or her years at the Academy and will finally be demonstrated in his or her character as a St. Johns Classical Academy senior and graduate, a truly impressive young man or woman.
As a key philosophical assumption, SJCA holds that every scholar can learn. As human beings, we are equal in that we all have the capacity to learn and grow. However, this equality cannot be confused with equality of capacity, and certainly not with equality of academic results. Just as individuals differ in their physical gifts and characteristics, we all have different gifts and challenges in the subjects of learning. SJCA is committed to helping each scholar achieve as much as he or she can. True excellence across the curriculum is a rare and worthy achievement, to be admired by all, but not to be unreasonably expected of all.
At St. Johns Classical Academy, we believe that every scholar deserves to have access to the richness of the curriculum, not just the gifted and talented children. Therefore, our teachers teach the class as if all of the scholars are “gifted and talented.” Not every scholar will absorb information at the same capacity, but they all should receive the best in terms of critical thinking and deepened learning.
Elementary School scholars will have a primary homeroom teacher, and they will travel together to resource classes. Sixth grade scholars will change classes three times per day among the sixth-grade classrooms. Secondary school scholars (middle and high school) will change classrooms individually to meet with subject-matter specialists. Having made that organization distinction, the curricular content is organized in the following way:
K-8. The K-8 curriculum will follow the Core Knowledge Sequence. Occasionally, the Academy will diverge from the Core Knowledge Sequence in order to raise the standards in teaching a particular skill or subject. The Principal will determine these instances. The Principal will ensure that all skill areas in the K-8 Core Knowledge Sequence are taught at some point in grades K-8. Teachers must develop their courses under the direction of the Principal, who is the chief academic leader and accountable to the Board.
As a key philosophical assumption, SJCA holds that every scholar can learn. As human beings, we are equal in that we all have the capacity to learn and grow. However, this equality cannot be confused with equality of capacity, and certainly not with equality of academic results. Just as individuals differ in their physical gifts and characteristics, we all have different gifts and challenges in the subjects of learning. SJCA is committed to helping each scholar achieve as much as he or she can. True excellence across the curriculum is a rare and worthy achievement, to be admired by all, but not to be unreasonably expected of all.
At St. Johns Classical Academy, we believe that every scholar deserves to have access to the richness of the curriculum, not just the gifted and talented children. Therefore, our teachers teach the class as if all of the scholars are “gifted and talented.” Not every scholar will absorb information at the same capacity, but they all should receive the best in terms of critical thinking and deepened learning.
Elementary School scholars will have a primary homeroom teacher, and they will travel together to resource classes. Sixth grade scholars will change classes three times per day among the sixth-grade classrooms. Secondary school scholars (middle and high school) will change classrooms individually to meet with subject-matter specialists. Having made that organization distinction, the curricular content is organized in the following way:
K-8. The K-8 curriculum will follow the Core Knowledge Sequence. Occasionally, the Academy will diverge from the Core Knowledge Sequence in order to raise the standards in teaching a particular skill or subject. The Principal will determine these instances. The Principal will ensure that all skill areas in the K-8 Core Knowledge Sequence are taught at some point in grades K-8. Teachers must develop their courses under the direction of the Principal, who is the chief academic leader and accountable to the Board.
Homework & Classwork
Homework is a fundamental part of our general academic program. It prepares scholars for high school and college and for entry into the working world upon graduation. It also helps develop a strong work ethic and habits of organization. Homework’s immediate educational purpose is as follows:
- to reinforce skills and concepts and knowledge learned in class;
- to develop good skills and habits of study;
- to practice skills and reinforce knowledge in ways that are not
readily accomplished in the classroom; - to work on assignments, such as the writing of papers, and
prepare for exams that require a great deal of sustained, individual
attention; - to prepare for the following day’s work so that the most can be
made of class time; and - to inform parents of what is being taught in the classroom.
In addition to regular classroom assignments, we would like each younger child to read, or be read to, at least three times a week and preferably every day. As cited in A Nation at Risk, “the single most important factor for determining whether children will go to college is being read to as a child.” Going to college is not necessarily a goal for everyone, but becoming a thoughtful reader should be if one hopes to be knowledgeable, wise, insightful, and competitive throughout one’s lifetime. We believe that becoming a competent reader is critical to being a good scholar and the first step to being able to explore the world. Reading to a child encourages the child’s growth and elevates and informs conversation within the family. In the upper grades, the extra reading time (roughly half an hour) allows for the increasing length of great works of literature.
Study habits are being developed during a scholar’s time at SJCA making it difficult to estimate the amount of homework time for any one scholar. The expected homework time allotment for each grade is as follows:
The designated times serve as guidelines and may vary depending on the work assigned on a given day, the schedule, the scholar’s organizational skills and study habits, the varying abilities of the scholars, and the nature of the assignments. Scholars are expected to learn how to use their time effectively to complete the required work at each grade level. Parents are expected to support their children in this endeavor. Advanced or honors classes may require additional homework time. It is generally understood that writing papers and studying for exams take more time than regular classroom assignments. For that reason, the end of a term does result in a peak in the homework load (followed by a break, fortunately). Nonetheless, teachers will make every effort to give assignments well enough in advance, and scholars will be encouraged to work on those longer assignments steadily, so that scholars are able to manage their homework along with other activities and adequate sleep. Weekends and breaks will, for the purposes of homework, be considered one day rather than two or more.
It is the responsibility of the scholar to make up missed homework after any absence, planned or due to illness, in a timely manner. If a scholar is unable to attend school and seeks his or her assignments, the parent or scholar should contact the teacher for that information, not the Academy office. It is wise to coordinate with a friend (perhaps one who lives close by) early on in the year so that homework handouts might also be collected for the absent scholar. For each excused absence, one day missed translates to one day allowed for makeup.
An absence on the due date of a major assignment or exam may not extend the due date of that assignment. The scholar should expect to submit the work and/or makeup the exam on the day of his or her return. Likewise, absences during the preparation time of a major assignment may not extend the due date. Please contact your child’s teacher regarding make‐up work following absences.
For poor or incomplete work, teachers may require scholars to redo an assignment. Whether such work is given any credit is left to the discretion of the teacher. Students should not be rewarded by not doing school/classwork.
It is the responsibility of the scholar to make up missed homework after any absence, planned or due to illness, in a timely manner. If a scholar is unable to attend school and seeks his or her assignments, the parent or scholar should contact the teacher for that information, not the Academy office. It is wise to coordinate with a friend (perhaps one who lives close by) early on in the year so that homework handouts might also be collected for the absent scholar. For each excused absence, one day missed translates to one day allowed for makeup.
An absence on the due date of a major assignment or exam may not extend the due date of that assignment. The scholar should expect to submit the work and/or makeup the exam on the day of his or her return. Likewise, absences during the preparation time of a major assignment may not extend the due date. Please contact your child’s teacher regarding make‐up work following absences.
For poor or incomplete work, teachers may require scholars to redo an assignment. Whether such work is given any credit is left to the discretion of the teacher. Students should not be rewarded by not doing school/classwork.
Grading Policy
Grading is not the endpoint of education. The grade a scholar receives in a class is subordinate to the knowledge the scholar acquires. Still, grades are a useful tool to evaluate the extent to which a scholar has mastered a particular subject. Therefore, grades will be assigned in all classes and subjects. St. Johns Classical Academy will assign grades in order to reflect accurately the range between true mastery and insufficient knowledge of a subject. Grade inflation will be discouraged. In relation to the scholar’s performance, the following letter grades have these meanings for grades 2- 10:
In addition to these general parameters, St. Johns Classical Academy uses a 4.0 grading scale. Parents and scholars should be regularly informed of the scholar’s progress. The letter and numerical grades for this system are listed below.
The grades used for primary scholars (K-1) measure academic performance and are used as a means of reporting achievement relative to Florida Standards and other curriculum objectives. Scholars in kindergarten through first grade are assessed using the following grading scales:
“Extra credit,” whether to make up for work not turned in on time or to increase a scholar’s grade, will be discouraged at St. Johns Classical Academy.
