What do you Think of Attendance Policies?
I have a small class this quarter--18 students. It's kind of nice, except on days like today. A few days ago, I had a class period where 6 or 7 people walked into class late. Two of them were over 10 minutes late. And so I had a talk with them. I told them that even though I didn't have an attendance policy, missing class and coming to class late would impact their grade. Just a little heads up to try to get them to change their behavior. Well, it didn't do much good. Today, when I came to class, there were 4 people on time to class. FOUR! Four more arrived late. It's so frustrating. And I had this really fun Wiki assignment planned that went really well in the other section that I teach. I was sort of able to do it with the students who came, but mostly, I spent the rest of the class brooding in a corner.
Toward the end of class, I told my students that tomorrow we would be having another little chat about attendance. "This is me when I'm angry," I told them. Of course, I looked and acted pretty similar to how I always look and act, with some small differences.
And so as I left class planning my "Come to Jesus" speech, I thought about announcing to the class before handing back their latest writing assignment that "nearly half of you are failing, and it's all because you have missed class." Sure, it's a little over the top and statisical stretch. And sure it's really because of a technicality that will have no bearing on their final grade. Nevertheless, it's true in a certain sense.
But when I checked my email after class, I learned that one of the students at our college died this week. And so perhaps half of my class was attending a funeral. So I may back off a little on the guilt. I haven't decided yet.
Days like this remind me how hard teaching is. This day could come back to bite me on the ass. Later in the class, when students are lost and frustrated and angry with me because they don't understand what's going on, it will probably be because they missed a day like today when we worked on concepts integral to the class. And of course, they won't see that as the problem. Instead, they'll assume that it's my fault, that I don't know what I'm talking about and that I need to "make my expectations clearer."
I wonder if students skipped class today because they saw the activity that was planned and determined it wasn't important. It goes back to my diss. in a way because the activity has its foundations in a different theory of learning from what many students are used to. And so I wonder if students thought to themselves, "if it's not lecture and it's not my essay, it must not be important." Hmm. I still haven't figured out how to create that shift in perspective, though.
Maybe I need one of those attendance policies that reads, "miss X days, I lower your grade X amount." Hell, at least then, they'll show up. And if they don't, well, they're screwed. The problem is, I really like Jan's advice of not creating policies that will paint you into a corner.
Toward the end of class, I told my students that tomorrow we would be having another little chat about attendance. "This is me when I'm angry," I told them. Of course, I looked and acted pretty similar to how I always look and act, with some small differences.
And so as I left class planning my "Come to Jesus" speech, I thought about announcing to the class before handing back their latest writing assignment that "nearly half of you are failing, and it's all because you have missed class." Sure, it's a little over the top and statisical stretch. And sure it's really because of a technicality that will have no bearing on their final grade. Nevertheless, it's true in a certain sense.
But when I checked my email after class, I learned that one of the students at our college died this week. And so perhaps half of my class was attending a funeral. So I may back off a little on the guilt. I haven't decided yet.
Days like this remind me how hard teaching is. This day could come back to bite me on the ass. Later in the class, when students are lost and frustrated and angry with me because they don't understand what's going on, it will probably be because they missed a day like today when we worked on concepts integral to the class. And of course, they won't see that as the problem. Instead, they'll assume that it's my fault, that I don't know what I'm talking about and that I need to "make my expectations clearer."
I wonder if students skipped class today because they saw the activity that was planned and determined it wasn't important. It goes back to my diss. in a way because the activity has its foundations in a different theory of learning from what many students are used to. And so I wonder if students thought to themselves, "if it's not lecture and it's not my essay, it must not be important." Hmm. I still haven't figured out how to create that shift in perspective, though.
Maybe I need one of those attendance policies that reads, "miss X days, I lower your grade X amount." Hell, at least then, they'll show up. And if they don't, well, they're screwed. The problem is, I really like Jan's advice of not creating policies that will paint you into a corner.
posted by Brad Smith at 11:23 AM
2 Comments:
Hey Brad,
I don't like attendance policies, and probably the only one at FSU who doesn't have one. But, I strongly believe in students' taking responsibility for their actions and for their education. I think I've already shared my "evidence of engagement" section of the portfolio with you. Ultimately, it's up to them to "prove" that they have been engaged in the course, in whatever ways they choose to be. Probably doesn't solve your problem, but it's consistent with my teaching philosophy, which is, admittedly, imperfect. Can a teaching philosophy be student-proof? In an ideal world, maybe.
I'm a fan of the "professionalism clause" I include in all of my syllabi and have found that it works pretty well. Basically, it states that this course is about becoming a professional in every sense of that word and acting as a professional would. We discuss at the beginning of the semester what someone who is a professional is expected to do and how that corresponds to the class. Basically, I add in a note that says students's grades are affected by their level of professionalism they exhibit in the class. This way, I can use the clause as I see fit: for attendance/late arrivals. Usually, I say if a student is on the line between an A and B, if they've been a professional student, I will increase their grade to the A. If not, they will be stuck with the B. I also usually give them 2 free absence/late days for the semester. They can use them as needed and it will not affect their grade. Beyond that, it goes into their professionalism grade. It's worked pretty well for me. (Except in the Tech Writing Course where I had all senior ITK majors who were rather surly and didn't care about anybody or anything anyway as they were graduating that semester.)
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