Grading Policies and Information

General Grading and Evaluation Policies

The Children’s Ministries Institute is designed to offer personalized attention to students in order to enhance their future effectiveness as Christian leaders. Students are encouraged to strive for excellence in every aspect of their training so as to bring honor to the Lord and to develop to their fullest potential. Therefore, all assignments and must be submitted on time and each assignment will be graded according to the evaluation criteria set up by the Children’s Ministries Institute.

The following policies related to course grading and evaluation are found in your student handbook. Please refer to that document for further explanation or contact your online instructor with any questions.

CMI consistently evaluates all policies, procedures, content, instructors, and the delivery system. Students are encouraged to provide feedback about issues or concerns through surveys or personal communication.

Course Grading

During each module, there will be activities and assignments that must be completed. The course content and activities are designed to provide information needed to complete the assignments. Students may need to do additional research as well.

All assignments will be graded. Each assignment will earn points that will determine the final course grade. All assignments must be completed in order to pass the course.

Final Course Grade

Each assignment is weighted based on the percentage of this total grade.

Assignment	Percentage
Forums	30%
Journal Entries	30%
Personal Leadership Development Plan	40%

CMI Grading Scale

Percent	Grade	GPA
95-100	A	4.0
93-94	A-	3.7
91-92	B+	3.3
87-90	B	3.0
85-86	B-	2.7
83-84	C+	2.3
79-82	C	2.0
77-78	C-	1.7
75-76	D+	1.3
72-74	D	1.0
70-71	D-	.7

Assignment Due Dates/Times

It is expected that all assignments will be submitted on time. Failure to post all assignments in this course including forum items on time affects not only you but also your classmates and their learning. Due to this fact, failure to submit assignments on time will result in a reduction in the grade.

Please reference the various grading rubrics below that provide specific details about how each assignment will be graded.

In the case of an emergency, students should contact their online instructor and make arrangements for late submission of an assignment before the assignment due date.

All assignments must be posted or submitted by midnight Central Standard Time (CST) of the day the assignment is due. In cases where the student consistently misses assignment due dates, the student may be withdrawn from the class without remuneration.

Inclusion in Forum Posts

Be aware that CMI students represent a variety of denominations and cultures. CEF and CMI are inter-denominational. All denominations, national origins, genders, ages and races should feel welcome. Keep a multicultural, inclusive perspective when writing online. Provide assistance as needed to others in your group when English is not their primary language.

Any posts that are considered offensive to individuals or groups are subject to deletion by your instructor. Students will be required to resubmit their post making necessary changes. If the student submits their subsequent post after the assignment deadline, the student will receive a reduction in grade for late posting.

Any student who consistently posts things that are offensive or hurtful to others is subject to dismissal from the program without remuneration.

Student Complaints/Grievances and Grade Disputes

If a student believes that he or she has a justifiable concern about discrimination or unfair treatment on the basis of race, color, sex, age, or national origin or any academic procedure (class procedures, grades, evaluations, etc.), it is our desire that any grievance be resolved in an informal manner.

This would include discussing the problem or grievance with an instructor first. If the issue cannot be resolved with the instructor, an appeal may be made by following the procedure listed below.

Student grievances concerning grades awarded or the quality of instruction received are handled first by the instructor and then by the CMI Online academic committee. The following policies apply to all such grievances.

The student must dispute a final grade no later than 30 days after the end of the course in which the grade was awarded or the date the grade was awarded, whichever is later. After this time, the Children’s Ministries Institute will not evaluate grade disputes from the student.

The student must submit the grade dispute in writing to the instructor of the course in which the grade was received, including copies of any documentation that supports the student’s request for a change of grade. The instructor will then either explain the grade awarded by phone and/or provide a detailed written explanation that includes the final grade calculation.

Grades are subject to revision by the CMI Online academic committee only if they were awarded in an arbitrary and capricious fashion. Arbitrary and capricious means any or all of the following:
The grading procedures used to award the grade were not consistent with those used at the Children’s Ministries Institute at Chid Evangelism Fellowship’s World Headquarters.

The procedures used to award this grade were not consistent with the grading procedures used for other students in the same course.

The grade was awarded on a basis other than academic merit, such as blatant favoritism, discrimination of any type, or romantic or sexual relationships between the student and any faculty member.

If the instructor is unavailable or does not respond within ten working days, or if the student is dissatisfied with the response given by the instructor, the student should contact the CMI Online academic committee. (email [email protected])

The student must state in writing the basis of the dispute, provide relevant documentation, and, if necessary, submit the work when a particular graded assignment is in question.

The CMI Online academic committee will review the information submitted by the student, determine whether the grade was awarded in an arbitrary and capricious fashion, and send a detailed response to the student giving a response to the grade dispute. If the assignment in question involves a practicum, the student will need to work with the CMI Online academic committee to resolve the issue. The decision of the CMI Online academic committee is final.

Intellectual Honesty and Academic Misconduct

The Children’s Ministries Institute expects students to exhibit honesty in all areas of study and life. Academic dishonesty is a serious violation of the standards of the Children’s Ministries Institute and can result in denial of credit without remuneration and dismissal from the Institute.

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, plagiarism*, cheating, fabrication of research (inventing data or citations), the facilitation of academic dishonesty, or violation of copyright.

All Children’s Ministries Institute content is subject to U.S. Copyright laws and is restricted to use by enrolled students. Books and notes (in print or downloadable form) as well as CDs and DVDs may not be reproduced in any form, shared in print or by electronic means, or sold without the written permission of the publisher.

The only copying allowed is that which the student is required to make in order to complete his or her course. Streamed video lectures that are part of a full course should not be viewed on a regular basis by those not enrolled in the class. In addition, students should not attempt to gain unauthorized access to computerized academic or administrative records or systems. Any act of software piracy, hacking, constructing viruses, or knowingly introducing viruses into a system will be breaches of integrity.

*All written material submitted by any means should be the original work of the student. Group projects should be the combined original work of the group. Students should not at any time represent another’s work as their own.