Una verdad simulada

When I initially started teaching, I didn’t the attendance. I believed — in fact, I still do — that it may be left up to the students to decide whether they want to attend my lectures or not. However, two things happened that made me change that view.

First, the so-called Class Committee (thats our mechanism for teaching audit during the semester) decided that due to the falling student performance — linked to apathy and absenteeism — we need to implement the minimum-75%-attendance rule.

Second, the number of complaints regarding grading dropped after I started taking attendance. I don’t know if this is because enforcing attendance made students take me more seriously. An alternative reason might be that those who missed a lot of classes performed worse than their expectations in assignments and quizzes; they also tended to be “whiners”. Sitting in the class made them realise exactly where they erred and that it was unlikely that I would change their grade.

But compulsory attendance has its own downsides.

This class, more than the previous ones, I have noticed students to be quite indifferent. At the start of every class, there often are no more than ten students in a class of 23; the rest walk in a few minutes late. Worse still, at times there are one or two, sometimes up to five, students who walk in almost 15 minutes late into a 50-minute class. When someone walks in and sits down late, I make it a point to look at my watch, hoping that they take cues that I notice how late they arrive. However, they don’t seem to take the cue.

One of the things I loved about my stay in GaTech was that my professors treated us as adults that we are. In my own way, I am trying to treat my students in the same way. I have mentioned it (late arrival) once in the class about this; I will mention it no more.

This is what I plan to do. Next class onwards, I’ll reach on time, but will start teaching exactly as late as the latest entrant in the previous class. I will still cover the same amount of material as planned. I just wonder whether doing that is a reciprocal action or just me throwing a hissy-fit.

Tags: General //