In the duration of four years, it is almost certain that a college student will miss a class or two. However, it would be highly advised not to, considering students spend thousands of dollars per year to attend the university. Sometimes though, these situations present themselves as unavoidable, therefore requiring students to miss a class. Which is why the success of a student in the classroom should not rely on their attendance. Thus, a mandatory attendance policy should be rendered obsolete. 

Although many would offer a rebuttal, classroom attendance should not be obligatory if all necessary materials for a class can be found in a dorm room. A 10-20% inflation on a final grade should not exist based on attendance. Throughout our college careers, situations will arise that are indeed inevitable. A few for example are sickness, family issues, managing other classwork, or any other ubiquitous situation that causes absenteeism. Many arguments have been made for and against this claim while others have been made as a concession to the opposition. These arguments range from a variety of sources including college professors and students to research teams from all over the nation.

 In an article posted on JSTOR titled “Class Attendance in College: a Meta-Analytic Review of the Relationship of Class Attendance With Grades and Student Characteristics”, three researchers at the State University of New York at Albany conducted research on attendance and its correlation to grades. It was concluded in the article, that mandatory attendance policies have little positive effect on the final grades of students. However, the data shows that there is a slight positive relationship between general attendance and class grades.

It was then concluded that a slight positive and negative relationship was present when it came to attendance. Students who were receiving D’s and F’s in a class ranged around 12.6% when attendance was not mandatory. This percentage then dropped to 3.9% when attendance was mandatory. Although this number is significant, it was also found that the proportion of students receiving A’s, varied slightly between experiments (21.5% - 20.6%). Therefore, it could be argued that grades and attendance have a more negative correlation, whereas grades and a positive work ethic are more closely related.

Grades are not solely dependent on attendance. Attendance is dependent on motivation and grades are a result of that motivation. If there is a lack of motivation, then students clearly are not going to attend class. There are many factors that play into attendance, motivation being one of them. In a research study conducted by Karen St. Clair, she examines the relationship between attendance and academic achievement. By using Paul Pintrich’s model of “college student motivation in the classroom”, she was able to conclude that “attendance is linked to motivation and required attendance does not guarantee high achievement” and  “Low achievement in a course is usually due to a number of factors.” Other factors that contribute to classroom attendance are the environment of the classroom, how engaging the class is, the style of teaching and even the professor themselves. However, there are some classes that in order to demonstrate proficiency, the student must come to class. Lab classes would be an example of such, where most of the assignment is completed in class rather than online or at home. Otherwise, St. Clair finalizes that class attendance should not be compulsory.

 Elchanan Cohn, an economics professor at the University of South Carolina, composed a research paper on the attendance of his students and their achievements in his class. Cohn cites data found in an experimental trial led by Dr. Craig Jones, a professor of psychology and counseling at Arkansas State University. Jones conducted an experiment where he examined the relationship between attendance and grades using four models to explain the relationship. These models include the “motivation model”, the “ability model”, the “attendance model” and the “achievement model”. These models show the direct and indirect relationship between grades and attendance with perspective to their individual model. Jones concludes that “a negative correlation is shown regardless of the subjects’ sex or race” and that “the data shows the strongest support for the attendance model but the results are also consistent with the achievement model” (Cohn). Jones then finalizes his research by stating that these findings should be interpreted loosely, and it is possible for grades and attendance to also have a positive correlation.

However, an attendance based grade should not be implemented and defined by the “possibilities” named above. The argument that attendance and grades are correlated could be made but the decision is ultimately up to the student. If that is the case, then students wouldn’t hesitate to come to class and would be aware of the detrimental effects absenteeism has on their grade. This isn’t the case though. Many professors and students believe in the possibilities that attendance is directly related to classroom productivity. Steven Corbett for example, an assistant professor of English at George Mason University, states that “it’s all about professionalism” and “attendance is very important.”  He compares having a job and showing up to work, to a professional athlete not getting paid. “If you don’t show up you can’t play; or get paid.” Corbett explains the importance of attendance in his class by saying “it’s how I am able to connect with my students.” After continuing to talk about his methodology, Corbett says that he allows one week of absences, and every missed day after that is a mark off their final grade, only allowing the excuse of religious holidays. Being a college student, it is very difficult to manage 17 credits with all morning and night classes. Coming into college causes a drastic change in a student’s sleep schedule. Therefore some students will find it nearly impossible not to miss days of class. Adding on to the possibility they will get sick and observe religious holidays, it is almost guaranteed that many students will miss at least seven days in a semester. 

But is this a fair and just system? Many like Corbett would argue in favor of that statement. He says “Harsh? Maybe. Heartless? I don’t think so.”  

If teachers are going to demand that their students come to class, at least make the class semi-enjoyable. For example, have exercises that require students to be engaged in the classroom so that they are not drooling on themselves, or do not lecture for an hour with no break in between. Spend time talking with the students and connecting with them, like Corbetts precious method suggests.

Although there are more harsh attendance policies, there are more casual ones that present themselves as a concession to the opposition, in the fact that it offers a medium between the two. Sarah Griffin, a sophomore at Indiana University believes that “professors should not allow students to get away with missing a large number of classes.” She also states that a requirement for students to come to all classes is also not an ideal system. By the time students are in college, they should know how to prioritize their own time and work in the most beneficial way possible. If that means missing a lecture here and there then so be it. Griffin says “I think it would be unfair for a student to be penalized if they, for instance, chose to forgo a lecture in favor of working on a semester project.” And indeed it would be, because a semester project in every case weighs much more heavily on GPA than an attendance grade in a lecture. 

As college students, we want more independence and to be able to prioritize our responsibilities on our own time. Being able to organize assignments and manage out of class time, shows how well developed a student truly is. Not by the amount of class time he/she misses. An omnipresent argument that is frequently discussed by college students is, as tuition payers, why should they be punished by something they are already paying for? Sam Artley, now a graduate of Michigan State University, posted in an article on USA TODAY COLLEGE about her perspective as a tuition paying student. Artley notes that many professors believe general attendance impacts the success of students and their grades are a direct byproduct of that attendance. However, the analytic review and the data produced in Table 1 say otherwise. 

Many teachers also have the same ideology as Artley. Kelli Marshall for example, a professor at DePaul University does not implement an attendance policy. Rather, she offers participation credit through quizzes and discussion questions. She says “since most students want to earn their participation points, they generally come to class, even when attendance is not mandatory.” This way there is no argument on excused and unexcused absences plus the professor does not have to catalog the attendance of every student in the class. This is more of an ideal system because everyone can benefit without having to compromise.  Michelle LaFrance, also an assistant professor at George Mason University believes that coming to class is important. Not only does it bond her and her students, but it allows her to fine tune the material covered in lecture to each individual student. LaFrance explains that “some students miss class because they have jobs, families, debt, and obligations” but she prefers to think that they are consistently weighing and reweighing their priorities. Although she is confident in her methods and beliefs, the teaching style she portrays is very similar to that of Marshall in the fact that she rewards her students for coming to class on time without actually having to take roll. 

Grant Hendrickson also believes that paper shuffling for attendance is an inefficient system. Hendrickson is an assistant principal at Interlake High School in Bellevue, Washington and states that “the 90% of students who cause little trouble to the attendance policy, shouldn’t be burdened by a system which wastes time and imposes unnecessary restrictions.” The enforcement of attendance is ultimately up to the student not the school. Therefore, if the student chooses not to come to class then that should be their prerogative. And that is exactly what Bob Blaisdell explains in his article titled a Chronicle of Higher Education. Blaisdell taught English at the University of California at Santa Barbara and says he never took roll in his 10 years of teaching there. “How or why the college gets money from attendance I don’t know or care. I am a teacher.” 

 A columnist by the name of Courtnay Sellers, posted an article on The Collegiate Times which expressed how college attendance is an inequitable system. Sellers makes a statement in her writing that does a good job of summing up the attendance policy at most universities; “No one buys a gym membership under the impression that their attendance is mandatory”. And furthermore, students don’t need to pay thousands per semester to have their grades lowered, because they are made to attend class.

Savannah Haas, a columnist from Appalachian State University, posted on The State Press, an argument from ASU teachers, who believed their school’s attendance policy hurt their students success. “Let students discover what squandering their money looks like. Allow them to feel the effects of failure. Success isn't decided by attendance, work is. Let's judge our students by that” (Haas). 

Don’t force students to attend lectures where the notes are posted online. Many students are involved in much more than a one hour long lecture hall. Athletics, personal life, family relations, whatever the situation may be, all play a role in the life of a college student. College students are adults, not young men and women. Treat them as such, and incorporate every aspect of their life when determining whether you are going to penalize them or not, for missing class. After close analyzing, everyone can see that this is not a fair system. It just depends on if everybody wants to admit it. 
