I do something similar, but make it nonpunitive: students receive points
for being in class (not many - but enough so that they are persuaded to
attend regularly). My rationale is that much student learning goes on in
the classroom that isn't assessed through exams - e.g. some interesting
discussions - so they should be rewarded for being present.
Abigail A. Fuller
Associate Professor of Sociology and Social Work
MC Box 178
Manchester College
North Manchester, IN 46962
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
260-982-5009
As far as I'm concerned, being any gender is a drag.
- Patti Smith
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On
Behalf Of Robert Hironimus-Wendt
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 9:29 AM
To: 'Teaching Sociology'
Subject: TEACHSOC: Re: 8:00 Classes
Hi Folks
I responded to this conversation a few weeks ago, albeit privately (to
Eby,
I think).
My approach to attendance is to simply tell my students that they are
entitled to miss one-tenth of the course without penalty. On a Tu/Th
schedule, I allow 4 absences. On a MWF schedule, six. After these
limits,
each additional absence is associated with one letter grade being
deducted
from their final grade.
In the syllabus I explain something about certifying all students as
college
educated and ready to assume leadership roles in the labor force, and I
also
explain that excused/unexcused is not important to me. I also link
attendance to participation - if you are not attending, you are not
contributing to the learning process,...
As you can see, my approach has been in the realm of punitive, with a
legitimate rationale.
The results? Last semester (which is typical), I have five or six
students
(out of about 130) who were notified early that they were on the cusp.
At
the end of the semester, two students had missed more days than
permitted.
In each of those two cases, a letter grade was deducted.
Another result is that my student evaluations have been very high over
the
past three or four years. My hunch is, most students appreciate high
expectations, just as the Wisconsin School studies (Haller, Hauser,
Portes,
Otto, etc.) told us three decades ago.
Yes, some of my students on any given day are weary, and "not really
there"
in spirit. But they are there physically, and are learning more at 8:00
than
students who would otherwise be sleeping in.
Finally, in my personal note to Eby, I said I also feel compelled to
make my
classes entertaining, so that they might actually want to come to class.
My
favorite model is to say "its like being on the Letterman show, and I
get to
be Dave!" I drink lots of coffee while I am in my office prepping, I
come
into class running, I am loud and bounce around for a while. In other
words,
I work to wake them up, and to engage them as best I can, knowing they
would
prefer not to be there.
So while my policy is punitive, I try to make sure the learning process
is
not.
Peace to all
Robert
Robert J. Hironimus-Wendt, Ph.D.
Sociology and Anthropology
Western Illinois University
1 University Circle
Macomb, IL 61455-1390
phone: (309) 298-1081
fax: (309) 298-1857
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can,
in all the ways you can, in all the places you can,
at all the times you can, to all the people you can,
as long as ever you can." -- John Wesley
