Important Online School Vocabulary

August 4, 2023 byConnections Academy

As a Connections Academy online Learning Coach, or any trusted adult hoping to help a student just starting out in online school, you’ll come across words and terms that may be new to you. To help you feel more comfortable and succeed in your role, here are some definitions of common terms:

Helpful words for Learning Coaches to know

Assessment

A way to evaluate if a student understood the lessons. Some assessments are used to determine grades.

Examples include class participation, discussions, quizzes, tests, exams, and portfolios.

Learning Coach

The person, typically a parent or other trusted adult, who works closely with the student while they attend school at home to support them in their day-to-day learning. Learning Coaches make sure their students understand and complete their lessons, take attendance, and can be a point of contact for teachers to check in on the student’s academic performance. Unlike in a homeschooling environment, Learning Coaches are not teachers, but rather support systems and those who supplement their child’s education as active partners in their student’s learning experience.

LiveLesson®

LiveLesson sessions are live, online classroom meetings with a teacher and students, similar to a virtual classroom. Teachers can use a variety of interactive tools to enhance instruction and communicate with students. Students can ask questions and collaborate with peers through the microphone, webcams, and chat.

Pearson Online Classroom

This is the main hub for the Connections Academy learning experience and is a comprehensive way for the entire team — including you and your student — to communicate, learn, and check their progress and grades. Here, students can access their lessons, communicate with teachers, connect with other students through the school directory, and much more.

We invite you to take a tour of our online classroom.

Portfolio

One type of assessment. In general, portfolios are assignments or projects students must complete and submit to their teachers for grading.

Examples include written compositions, lab reports, essays, and book reports.

Rubric

A guide teachers provide to help students understand the expectations for a paper, project, or other assessment. A rubric can take many forms, but often looks like a checklist or step-by-step instructions. It will also explain the criteria that will be used for grading.

Have any questions?

Look for Learning Coach Essentials on your To-Do List in Pearson Online Classroom. The link connects you to training videos and helpful checklists for Learning Coaches.

Connections Academy families can find many other helpful resources in Learning Coach Central (from the link on the lower-left side of your home page) and by reading the Learning Coach Link e-newsletter.