Frequently Used Terms

Definitions of frequently used terms. 

AP Class-Advanced Placement Class. A class a student can take to get college credit, so long as the student passes the AP test given in May.

ASB-Associated Student Body. The student government.

Assistant principal (AP)-For some reason, we don't have vice principals in the schools in the district. 

Buyout-At the CHS-During any full school week (no holidays), the students who were at school, on time, and productive all week can get Friday off.  To do this, they must get a slip of paper signed by all of their teachers. 

CAHSEE-CAlifornia High School Exit Exam. Full explanation here.

Combined day-At the CHS-A minimum day.  All students attend morning classes until about noon.  These are usually on Fridays (any Friday of a full school week), and they may happen on other special occasion days (such as the last day of school). 

Continuation High School (CHS)-A school where students who are in danger of not graduating get sent.  It is a place where students can make up all the credits that they are missing. 

ELD-Stands for English Language Development. It's a class of students for whom English is a second language. The purpose is to teach the students English. There are three levels: beginning for those that barely speak English; intermediate; and advanced for those that are almost fluent.

Extra Period Assignment-Most teachers have a conference period during which they have no students. Subs are frequently given another class taught by another teacher to cover during this time.

Instructional Aide (IA)-An adult assistant to the teacher.  Generally, the term used is aide, but IA is a bit more precise. 

Isolation seat-Most classrooms have a seat that is off of the normal grid.  It can be off in a corner, right up near the teacher's desk, or over on the side of the room.  The student who is put there generally needs to be kept from the rest of the class as he/she tends to talk too much or is easily distracted.

SSR-Silent Sustained Reading. Most English teachers have a day (usually Mondays) where they have their students just read.

Standards-Writing lines. Minor consequence for misbehaving students, one step below detention (although sometimes accompanying detention). They can be simple, as in writing, "I will listen to the teacher," 200 times, or then can be long, complex paragraphs.

Tardy Sweep-When a student is late to class, that student doesn't get to go to class. Instead, they go to a sort of in house detention for the period, a place called tardy sweep. The idea is that students shouldn't disrupt the beginning of class by arriving late. And it's an impetus to get students to hussle to class.