Arkansas Department of Education Division of Elementary and Secondary Education New Field on Student Instructional Option added to eSchoolPLUS and SIS

Memo Information

Memo Number
RT-21-006
Memo Date
8/11/2020
Memo Type
Informational
Unit
Research & Technology
Regulatory Authority
Response Required
NO
Attention
Federal Programs; Superintendents; Assistant Superintendent; Principals; Technology Coordinators; Curriculum Coordinators; School Counselors; Data Stewards (SIS; eSchool; eFinance; TRIAND); District Coordinators (ALE; Homeless; ESOL; SDFS & Foster)

Primary Contact Information

Secondary Contact/s Information

Memo Text

UPDATE: As of 09.28.2020

Friendly Reminder: DESE extends timeline for dropping students until September 30, 2020

 

The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) temporarily earlier extended the period for dropping students who have not reported to school as expected, either in-person or virtually, or for whom the district has no other information to verify the reason for non-attendance. These students (typically referred to as “no-shows”) should remain enrolled in the district until Wednesday, September 30, 2020, unless the district receives verification that the student should be dropped for a reason other than “no-show.” Under the authority of Executive Orders 20-06 and 20-16 issued by Governor Hutchinson, DESE suspended Ark. Code Ann. § 6-18-202(e)(1) thus allowing school districts to keep enrolled students who do not attend school for ten (10) school days or more. Usually, a student determined to be a ‘no-show’ is dropped on the 10th school day, but DESE is extending the deadline to drop and is encouraging each district and charter school to utilize the strategies below to locate these students and enroll them in the appropriate learning environment (instructional) option:

  • Code 1: on-site/traditional learning,
  • Code 2: virtual/remote learning,
  • Code 3: hybrid/blended learning, or
  • Code 4: NA (No Show/No Activity -- This is not the official No Show drop)

These codes are listed below and are outlined in the SIS Handbook (ST0317 Student Instructional Option).

 

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In an effort to provide additional information for local, state, and federal reporting, a new field has been added into eSchoolPLUS and SIS (Statewide Information System) called Student Instructional Option that will identify the student’s selected learning environment because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each student record will identify one of the three options for instruction (see below).  The designation should reflect the selection by parent or student at any point during the school year that the district allows.

The new codes are as follows:

  • Student Instructional Option – Indicates which type of instructional setting chosen for the student.
    • 1 – Onsite/Traditional Learning: Student attends full-time (100%) on-campus/on-site instruction  during the typical school week.
    • 2 – Virtual/Remote Learning: Student attends full-time (100%) off-site/remote utilizing technology resources for instruction.
    • 3 – Hybrid/Blended Learning: Student attends a combination of on-site and remote learning utilizing technology and blended learning resources (for students that do not fit option 1 or 2).

The eSchoolPLUS menu access to this new element is as follows: Registration > Entry & Reports > Student District Defined > SIS/Misc Items. Correspondingly, this data field will be pulled/reported in Statewide Information System (SIS), Cycle 2 through Cycle 7 period using the Student table in SIS.

If the district eSchoolPLUS Administrator needs assistance, please contact the district’s APSCN Field Analyst or the APSCN Help Desk.

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