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> Read the Powerschool Proposal as submitted to the MCHS School Board HERE <
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| Frequently Asked Questions |
| 1. "What kind of computer equipment do I need to view PowerSchool?" 2. "I can't seem to access the site with the provided login and password." 3. "What can I see on the PowerSchool site?" 4. "I have a question about my student's grade. Whom should I call?" 5. "Can other people see my child's information?" 6. "I try to log on to the site, but I keep getting an error message, 'login has expired' or ' cannot access site'. What is wrong?" 7. "My child's grades don't seem to add up right." 8. "I'm not getting my e-mail updates at all or on a regular basis." 9. "Why can't I see my student's GPA any more? 10. "My child will be a freshmen/is new to the district. How do get access to the Parent Portal? |
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| 1. "What kind of computer equipment do I need to view PowerSchool?" Almost any computer with an internet connection can access the system. It is recommended that you use Internet Explorer version 5 or above. Those folks with modems slower than 56K need not worry, as the site has smaller graphics, and load times are rather snappy. |
| 2. "I can't seem to access the site with the provided login and password." Make sure your caps lock key is set properly. Your login and password may be a combination of letters (upper and lower case) and numbers. If your student is new to the school, contact kturk@mchs.net for a login and password sheet. |
| 3. "What can I see on the PowerSchool site?" Parents and students can access the following information on the PowerSchool public site: a. Grades for current classes, as well as the assignments that make up those grades b. Attendance for the past two weeks or for the whole quarter, including a legend of attendance codes used by the school c. Teacher comments d. Reports via E-Mail, which allow parents to request daily, weekly, or monthly reports to be sent via E-Mail e. School Bulletin f. Online Course Registration (Will become available for registering in the future) g. E-mail link to teacher |
| 4. "I have a question about my student's grade. Whom should I call?" It's recommended that you contact the teacher directly using the handy e-mail link in PowerSchool. Here is a list of the individuals or departments that can help you with specific requests: Grading/Assignment questions: E-Mail the teacher or call according to the staff directory. For the directory, dial 467-2140, and press "9" for a staff listing. Schedule questions: Patricia Grawey-Beeler x129 (A-B) Bobbi White x188 (C-G) Cathy Smith x109 (H-Ma) Stanley Tischer x175 (Mc-R) Raymond Liberatore x130 (S-Z) Changes in demographic information (Home, address, phone number, etc.): |
| 5. "Can other people see my child's information?" Not unless they have your login and password. If you think it has been compromised, please call Ext. 183 as soon as possible. As for general Internet intrusions, the system itself uses the latest and best security protocols available. Also, all access is logged, showing the source of all access attempts. |
| 6. "I try to log on to the site, but I keep getting an error message, 'login has expired' or ' cannot access site'. What is wrong?" All browsers are not created equal, and some refuse to give up what they have in their cache. In Internet Explorer, make sure pages are set to update "always" (Under "Internet Options"). If that doesn't work, empty your cache. |
| 7. "My child's grades don't seem to add up right." The only requirement, based on board-authorized procedure, is that a semester grade is made up of 40% of the two quarters, and 20% of the exam grade. Computations for grading within the quarter are up to the teachers, who may have various methods. For instance, one teacher may weight a test much higher than homework, where another might make no distinction. Please contact the child's teacher if you have any grading questions. There is a handy link on your login page, just click on the teacher's name. |
| 8. "I'm not getting my e-mail updates at all or on a regular basis." Every day the PowerSchool server searches for those parents who asked for an update to be sent out via e-mail, and they are sent at midnight. There could be a few things holding up mail: a. The mailbox of the recipient is full. b. There is a filter in place on either the client server or their e-mail client that is dropping or re-directing the mail by identifying it as "junk" or "spam". c. The e-mail address is entered wrong. d. The server is "off" or "down" at the time of send. |
| 9. "Why can't I see my student's GPA any more? We normally show GPA's at semester's end. The reason for this is a bit complicated, but it has to do with how our data is calculated when you have different classes with different attributes. If your student has an "SC" or "GAVC" class, those classes use completely different scales, thus the information returned will "LOOK" inaccurate. You can calculate the GPA using the "standard" method if your student has no classes with this designation, that is A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F=0 (Add ONE to each for weighted classes), then divide the total number by the number of classes. Call the Registrar at extension 125 if you have any questions. |
| 10. "My child will be a freshmen/is new to the district. How do get access to the Parent Portal? Soon after the start of the school year (within 3 weeks) a sheet will be mailed home with logon info for you and your child/children. You can request a copy of that sheet at any time by contacting Karen Turn at extension 166 or sending an e-mail to kturk@mchs.net. |
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