Course Syllabi
Students can access their course syllabi on Canvas or they will receive a copy from their Instructors on the first or second day of classes. The syllabus states the course policies, class requirements, learning outcomes, and grading procedures. The Instructors will also indicate his/her email address, office number, and office hours.
Skills Classes
Students who pass a skills class but fail another class in their level, will be required to retake Grammar, Listening/Speaking, Reading, and Writing, but may take a different skills class.
A copy of the final transcript will be sent to each student’s embassy or sponsor, where applicable.
Academic Progress
F-1 students are required to make academic progress in order to stay in status. Academic progress is defined as completing assigned work on-time; actively participating in class; and attending classes regularly. If a student does not meet any of the aforementioned requirements, s/he may be placed on Academic Probation. If a student is placed on probation for any reason, a Letter of Probation detailing the terms, length, details, and consequences of the probation will be given both to the student and to the student’s sponsor (if applicable). In addition, if a student fails two or more classes, s/he will be placed on Academic Probation and will have to retake all of the courses again; if the student fails to pass any class the second time, s/he will immediately be dismissed. A student who fails one class must go through an appeal process to see if they will repeat and therefore be put on Academic Probation, or continue to the next level.
Academic Dismissal
If a student does not meet any of the requirements within the specified period of time during the academic probation period, s/he may be dismissed and unable to enroll in subsequent terms. Students who do not meet the objectives of the class the first time are eligible to repeat the same level once. If a student does not meet the class outcomes a second time, s/he will be dismissed from the ESL Academy.
New Students
During orientation days, students will be taken by a Student Assistant to the campus book store to purchase textbooks for the term. Books are required for the first day of classes. Students who have not purchased the required texts for class may be dismissed by their Instructors and not allowed to return until books have been bought.
Continuing Students
Returning or continuing students will receive a book list on the last day of classes (registration and graduation day) prior to the following term. Students must have all the required books on the first day of classes. Students who have not purchased the required texts for class may be dismissed by their Instructors and not allowed to return until books have been bought.
University of Colorado Denver
Academic integrity (honesty) means that cheating or plagiarizing homework, quizzes or exams is not permitted. A student must also not help others to cheat or plagiarize. In short, do not copy and paste text found on the Internet or any other source into written work without referencing the source. All students must write their own assignments. Only an Instructor should edit written work. If there are any questions or concerns about what constitutes plagiarism, speak to an Instructor or the Director. The Academy follows the university’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Penalties for Violation
If a student is caught unintentionally plagiarizing, s/he will be sent to the Director for a verbal warning. A second violation (intentionally plagiarizing) will result in the student being placed on Academic Probation. A third violation will result in immediate dismissal. If a student is caught cheating or intentionally plagiarizing, s/he will immediately be placed on Academic Probation. A second violation will result in immediate dismissal. If a student feels that s/he has been treated or evaluated unfairly by an Instructor, s/he should speak to the Director.
Attendance Policy
This is an intensive English program, so students must be in class on time every day. Attendance will be marked daily in the Roll Call/Attendance grade sheet on Canvas, so students will be able to see if they have been marked tardy or absent. Attendance is directly tied to the In-class Engagement (Attendance) grade on Canvas. This counts for 5% of the overall grade in each course. The attendance mark is determined as follows:
- Students who are not in class at the scheduled start time will be marked tardy.
- Students who are more than 10 minutes late or who leave class for any period longer than 10 minutes will be marked absent.
- Students may leave to use the restroom during class. However, if a student leaves class more than once per hour, they may be marked tardy or absent.
All absences and tardies count toward the Roll Call/Attendance and In-class Engagement (Attendance) grade, whether they are because of a medical emergency, travel/flight plan, or some other reason that the student could not be in class. However, you may have up to 3 of your absences excused, but only if it is for a medical reason (this does not include routine visits to the doctor or dentist – those should be scheduled outside of class meeting times) OR for a personal emergency. Students should keep their medical records and any other documentation of the situation in case they are needed to review your absence. You must submit the request to have an absence excused within one week of the absence, and proper documentation should be provided to the Program Manager. The documents may also be given to the instructor in order to request to make-up missed in-class work or quizzes/exams. Please refer to the Make-Up Work Policy for more information on the make-up process. Do not come to campus if you are ill, especially with a fever; however, you must provide medical documentation if you try to have the absence excused.
All Roll Call/Attendance grades are reported to ESL Academy administrators who maintain an attendance record for all classes. ESL Academy administrators will be notified if any student misses 2 classes in a row. Any student who has a Roll Call/Attendance grade of less than 80% in any class at midterms will receive a warning letter. If the student is sponsored, the sponsor will also receive a copy of the warning letter. These warning letters may also be sent at any other time during the term. Sponsored students who have a Roll Call/Attendance grade of less than 80% at final exams will have their attendance record reported to their sponsor, who may require partial repayment of sponsored funds.
At the end of the term, if a student fails a class and has a Roll Call/Attendance grade of less than 75% in that class, they will not be allowed to appeal to advance to the next level.
Note: A student can request exceptions to some of the policies outlined above if the student has a documented emergency or a chronic medical condition. Exceptions must be approved by both the instructor and the Academic Director, and is not to exceed 3 absences. It is the student’s responsibility to provide documentation such as a doctor’s note and request exemptions in a timely manner (This means within one week of the absence). If the student does not communicate in a timely manner, the exception may not be approved. Exemption requests are never guaranteed to be approved.
If a student is not in class at the scheduled start time, s/he will be marked tardy.
If a student is more than 10 minutes late or leaves class for any period longer than 10 minutes, s/he will be marked absent.
Attendance is recorded daily in Canvas.
- All new students will take a writing and speaking placement test along with the Accuplacer® test to determine initial placement at the ESL Academy
- No level promotions will be made until Friday of week 1.
- In the first week of classes diagnostic tests will be given to all students. Students who exceed the level objectives will be considered for a level promotion.
- A student may challenge his placement; however, s/he must demonstrate ability to function at the next level in all skill areas in order to be moved up.
- It is the policy of the ESL Academy that if a student fails one class, he or she must repeat the entire level. This is because the curriculum is criterion-based and a student will not be permitted to move to the next level if s/he lacks proficiency in a discreet skill area.
- A student may submit an appeal in which case a committee will reevaluate the decision.
- Recommendations for promotion to the next level must be unanimous from the section Instructors.
- The Director or Academic Manager will avoid overriding promotion decisions.