BY MARIE VEILLETTE
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Marie Veillette
When I came to college, I thought that it was going to be nothing like high school.
Yes, I’d still be taking classes and doing homework, but with more independence. No one would be prodding me to do my homework or even making sure I got up in the morning to go to class.
While both these things were true, one thing I never expected to encounter in college has become a norm for all my classes: requiring attendance and giving points for it.
I’ve heard stories from relatives and even past teachers about how they only showed up to class for the midterm and and the final, and the professor didn’t object. I realize showing up to class is basically one easy way to boost grades, and I appreciate that professors care about having students succeed, but I am an adult now.
There is no employer that is going to offer a bonus to employees for showing up when they are already scheduled to work. Similarly, it makes just as little sense to require students to come to class and award them points for it when they pay for the class regardless of whether they are there.
As I said before, I am an adult. My classmates are adults. We can make our own decisions. I am not one to skip class, but every once and a while I’d like to be able to take a day without being penalized.
There are some classes that post everything online, so while missing a day is never good, it is very easy to catch up.
If students choose to not come to class and are able to pass, more power to them. Why should they spend valuable time in a classroom when they are capable of meeting the requirements without being there?
If they choose not to come and they fail, maybe a life lesson could be learned. If tuition costs or the threat of failing a class is not enough to bring students to class, then requiring attendance is not going to do it either.
Having an attendance policy in college is ridiculous. Students in college should want to be in class if they decided to spend the extra money to further their educations. Failing a class is a powerful lesson.
Professors should stop holding their students’ hands and let them face the consequences of their decisions, whether they are good or bad.
College should be a place of learning, not just of the curriculum in the classroom, but also of situations in adult life.