From: Joanne M Ross <rossjoan@STUDENT.MSU.EDU> Date: Wed, 17 Aug 1994 09:54:57 -0400 (EDT)
I would like to shift our focus a tiny bit. I have encountered a distressing situation and hope some of you will offer advice or comfort. What does one do with students who refuse to do the WORK and then complain that you, the instructor, are too hard, too mean, insensitive, expect too much - whatever? I love working with students in almost any setting yet I often feel bloodied around the gills because I insist on certain behaviors and set rigorous standards.
I am teaching a summer course, off campus, an American survey to be exact. On the first night and the second I EMPHASIZED that attendance was mandatory (as participation represents 25% of the grade) in addition, I said I expected folks to be on time --- well you would think I promised to drown their first born. Unreasonable, after all they had summer vacations, job interviews, whatever. Several students indicated they would need to miss in excess of 3 class meetings (13 total) -- I suggested that they consider dropping the class. When a couple of students wandered in on the third class meeting I suggested they might be in a very deep hole. (One woman listen and acknowledged the uphill battle, dug in and has done very well . Another threw the syllabus on my desk and stormed out of the class.) Several dropped, one complaining to the department chair. I was a little nervous but held my ground. The class has come together well, we are a community and a great deal of learning has occurred.
Last week with three class meetings remaining I posted anonymous grades on the board - urging the students to get their assignments completed. One young woman has repeatedly reported to class with one excuse after another regarding her failure to complete her work. She approached me 25 minutes before class, while one other student was in and out of the room, with yet another excuse. I said I was not interested in excuses that at this particular point in the class she was failing. She had turned in approximately 1/10 of the required work. She stood her ground and said she would have it all in by the end of class (I do not mark down for late assignments) - I pointed out that by doing so she deprived herself of my comments and would undoubtedly suffer for such a decision. She continued to demand that I understand her "problems" - I was less than sympathetic and told her to get her work done or suffer the consequences. (This particular student has not been doing the work - she does not participate in discussions, there are only 11 students in the class, so her silence is felt.) Now she is complaining that I am unfair, cruel, I humiliated her - etc. Intellectually I know I am doing the "right" thing but darn this kind of stuff wears a person down. I have several peers who have given up
As a side note my daughter graduated from a liberal arts college 15 months ago and she is amazed at the behavior of the students I encounter. She said attendance was expected and when one failed to do the work there was nobody to "blame." Her advice is to go with the flow - she thinks I worry too much. I should hand out a syllabus on day one and let the students "hang" themselves. What do you folks out in Netland do? Is there a happy middle ground - someplace between benign neglect and paternal/maternalism?
Thanks,
Jody Ross
rossjoan@student.msu.edu
Michigan State University
Date: Wed, 17 Aug 1994 16:30:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Peter C. Holloran <pch@WORLD.STD.COM>
That message by Jody Ross refocused my attention from summer vacation (i.e., reading books in my field, library research, some writing) to the rapidly approaching Fall semester. I sympathize with her. If you have tenure, well-enrolled courses, supportive colleagues, department chairs and deans, perhaps you can dismiss her problems. The rest of us know exactly what she means. Too many ill-prepared, unqualified high school graduates enter our college classes, their shock at (reasonably) high and strict standards produces anger, whining, denial, tears and complaints. Some rise to the new academic standards, many do not. This is a universal problem, one we cannot hope to solve in this net, but one we should all discuss frankly. I wish I knew what to say. Low enrollments at many colleges prompts many of us to lower standards or lose our untenured, part-time jobs. It is a miserable situation!
Peter Holloran
Date: Wed, 17 Aug 94 15:03:59 CDT
From: jmw1@midway.uchicago.edu
In response to: Joanne M Ross's message of Wed, 17 Aug 1994 09:54:57
On the occasions where I have had to deal with students who operate like Jody Ross' students, I tell them that the standards of the class and the standards of holding a job are essentially the same. If you can't get the job done, everyone suffers. I and two others teach a large (150+) course in which it is crucial that the weekly writing get done and turned in on time. We simply say up front there are three rules: no late papers, no late papers, no late papers.
I know of other teachers who circulate what is in effect a contract between teacher and students. It lays out the conditions of the class ahead of time. Certainly, there are situations where we have to make exceptions, just as there are on a job. But just as on a job, when week after week someone asks for the exception, they can't expect to hold the job very long.
I've been teaching for, gasp, 30 years now, and I have been appalled at the way secondary education infantilizes students and then that infantilization continues in college. I am not talking about draconian rules applied inflexibly and mindlessly, but about treating one another as grownups.
Joe Williams
Department of English
University of Chicago
Date: Wed, 17 Aug 94 16:05:42 EST
From: AWIEMERS@UCS.INDIANA.EDU
Jody Ross, I too encourage you to hold to your standards as your head and gut are telling you to do. It might help to keep in mind that the difficult students, though they stand out, are in the minority and if you can develop a tough enough skin they, you, and the rest of the students will be better off. I have found students appreciate my holding the line against complainers and excuses (both in high school and college).
My school has a policy that a student who misses more than 30% of class meetings is automatically withdrawn. Students are notified when they hit 20%, 30%, and then dropped at the next absence. The policy is clear- cut and as far as I know, there is little complaint. Obviously such a policy helps the instructor. Insturctors are also free to withdraw any student who misses three consecutive classes. We are free to use whatever policy we like regarding late work. After initially accepting late work, with no penalty, and having several students dig themselves into holes (and I ended up nerve-wracked trying to keep track and nudge them into action), I now will not accept any work over a week late. (I would probably grant an occasional exception. . .) Clear guidelines and standards at the beginning, with a few reminders along the way, seem to help a lot. Also, offering individual help by phone or individual meetings goes a long way toward indicating that you really aren't an ogre and you really are interested in helping them learn. (I know class size might limit your availability and willingness. I teach part-time and have very small classes.)
It might also help to keep in mind that even though you see others giving up on integrity and standards, there are plenty who do not. I, for one, appreciated hearing your concerns.
Amy Wiemers
Bedford College Ctr.
Bedford, IN
awiemers@indiana.edu
Date: Wed, 17 Aug 1994 15:11:04 -0500 (CDT) From: KJEFFREY@CARLETON.EDU
I am a department chair, and I would back you up all the way. Setting clear and reasonable expectations and holding students to them could not possibly be construed as cruelty. When these students get jobs (assuming anyone will hire them), they are going to be held to expectations like yours every day. You are doing them a favor in preparing them for adulthood.
If a student came in promptly to report a problem or to request special permission to miss a class, to turn a paper in late, etc., that is something else. I might not accede to the request, but I would certainly consider it carefully. But when a student routinely misses class, misses deadlines, etc., and then requests some special dispensation after the fact, we are not really helping them by allowing them to get away with this.
Kirk Jeffrey
Carleton College
kjeffrey@carleton
From: "A. Pappas" <pappas@SCF.USC.EDU>
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 08:56:16 -0700 (PDT)
Hold your ground!
Our school (private art college) has a 3 absences = fail the class policy, 3 tardies = an absence. Instructors are free to make these tighter for their classes, and I do: here are mine: 2 unexcused absences = fail, 2 tardies (not in a desk when attendance is taken) = an absence. Make up exams given only with doctor's note on clinic letterhead or bail bond receipt. (same needed for an excused absence). Late papers are docked one full grade per day. Attendance and discussion count (usually) 10-15%.
I have had students complain about workload, grading policy, difficulty of assignments etc. I tell them "you are in college now--and the standards get higher every year." I also remind them about getting to work on time in the real world. I try to remember that it is *not* my job to be their friend. I go over the syllabus carefully at the beginning of class and explain deadlines, etc. When students have a lame excuse for a late paper I tell them to get it in as soon as possible, but that they will be penalized as outlined in the syllabus--students are graded on their performance on tests and papers, and part of a test or assignment is getting it done in the time alotted. I have had better results when I strictly enforce deadlines--people know they can't put if off, and if I take the assignment seriously, they are more likely to, too. My late penalty policy lets them know I take their work, and mine, seriously.
Result: the deadbeats hate me, the middling students think I'm a fair grader and don't complain about my policies, and the bright, high achievers love me. *Don't* lower your standards. The deadbeats will promptly fail to meet the new, lower requirements anyway! There will always be some kids who only want a C in the course, but I see no reason why they shouldn't earn it--when I jack up the minimum threshold for a C, they usually rise to meet it...(strange that they won't do that much work if the reward is a B).
In the long run it is better to have students flunk out than drop out. Not every student belongs in college, and the sooner they find out, the better. It doesn't bother me to fail students for a substandard performance-- what bothers me is seeing bright, motivated students drop out because they are afraid of their rapidly rising student loan debt.
My two cents.
Andrea Pappas
Art History
pappas@scf.usc.edu
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 10:01:06 -0500
From: Gail.Bederman.1@ND.EDU(Gail Bederman)
Re: late assignments. I, too, grade down for late work--I take off one letter grade for every 24-hour period that a paper is late (so, an A paper which was due on Monday at 9:00, but which is turned in on Tuesday at 5: 30, becomes a B+.)
However, any student who wishes an extension on any paper can have one, for any reason (I don't ask), but s/he MUST request this extension during the first week of classes-- i.e. by the wednesday after the first wednesday we meet.
I announce this in the first class, and remind them of it on the deadline day for requesting extenions. When students ask me for extensions, that first week, they need to inform me when they plan to get the paper in, and that becomes the date after which I will grade down for lateness. All due dates are clearly written on the syllabus, so students can plan ahead and guage what conflicts might arise from other exams, weddings, intramural sports events, etc.
I find students appreciate the opportunity to plan their schedules like this, and it helps me avoid the situation where a good student turns in a bad paper because she had 3 other exams the same day. Also, I can be inflexible about lateness later in the term without looking unreasonable or "mean"--after all, I point out to students begging for extensions, you had the opportunity to ask for an extension earlier.
Gail.Bederman.1@nd.edu
History Department (219)631-7789
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 10:32:52 -0500 (CDT) From: SIMSG@BELMONT.EDU
In the immediate situation Jody described, I too would support her in her efforts to maintain appropriate standards.
However, I am not sure that the issue of standards and integrity helps us understand the situation completely. I was struck by the fact that Jody was describing a situation in a community college while several respondents made a comparison to student behavior at liberal arts colleges. These comparisons make me wonder if we are dealing with issues of class and socialization, in addition to dealing with the need for appropriate standards and discipline. The kind of attendance, punctuality, and diligence we expect from students may be habits that our middle-class students accept easily while our students from working-class backgrounds or from poor households find to be foreign.
My thoughts are really unformed on this--perhaps I should have waited before writing. Nevertheless, I am wondering if the situation Jody described is an example of the problem of socializing students to the assumptions of academic life. And if so, do you think we have a responsibility to make our college classrooms assessible to students whose previous experience (not their knowledge and intellectual capacity) makes the college class- room a foreign place.
--George Sims
simsg@belmont.edu
Belmont Univ.
From: KenBie@AOL.COM
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 94 02:25:54 EDT
We have all been there, Joanne Ross. For those who do not have the protection of tenure, I have complete sympathy. It is indeed a deplorable situation. In nearly three decades of college teaching, I have tried every policy conceivable to deal with the kind of problems you describe-- even a policy of not having a policy! Nothing works perfectly. I now have a fairly brief and straightforward set of "rules" that are included in my syllabus handed out the first day of class. I read it to the little darlin's word for word, with emphasis where appropriate. I highly recommend that whatever policy you adopt, it be as unambiguous as you can make it, and that you make sure every student gets a copy when they join the class. My "rules" follow:
All Students Please Note:
Make-Up Exams and Deadlines: No "make-up" exams will be given. If an
emergency forces you to miss an exam, see or call the instructor as soon
as possible. Your Final Exam score will substitute for one missed exam
score.
You may arrange to take an exam early. However, all deadlines for
written assignments are absolute NO EXCEPTIONS.
Absences: Three consecutive or four total absences will result in your dismissal from the course with a grade of "W" or "WF" depending on the instructor's determination of your grade at the time of dismissal.
Each class begins when the instructor convenes it and ends when the instructor dismisses it. Failure to attend any part of a class session will in most cases be counted as a complete absence. No distinction is made between an "excused and "unexcused" absence. You are responsible for knowing your attendance status and for requesting adjustments to your attendance record.
Withdrawals: Inattention, nonperformance, or disruptive behavior in class are not permitted and will also be grounds for dismissal from the course. If you decide not to continue coming to class, you must initiate a drop at the Registrar's office. If you do not, and the instructor does not drop you, you will automatically receive an "F" for the course.
Building Policy: Smoking is NOT allowed in the building. Drinks and food are NOT allowed in the classroom. This policy is enforced.
That's it!
I have, and I enforce, a strict attendance policy because I use
Cooperative Learning groups and I will not have "part time" students
creating havoc with the work their group is trying to get done. The truth
is, since I have been using CL, the regularity of my students attendance
has improved dramatically.
For one, most students find CL both helpful and fun, and two, they are
under a lot of peer pressure to show up, show up prepared, and
participate. My classes meet just twice a week (MW and TT) for 80 minutes
each time, so four absences equal two weeks of class.
I truly do not give ANY make-up exams. If a real emergency occurs, the affected student simply gets a no-grade that can be replaced by his/her Final Exam score. This works wonderfully well! The Final Exam is comprehensive, so the student will have to study the material tested on the exam he/she missed in order to prepare well for the Final. I haven't given any make-up exams in years, and I have had no grievances posted. You can the lives of untol numbers of aunts and grandmothers this way :-)
The NO EXCEPTIONS statement for written assignments sounds a bit more
severe than it actually is. Written assignments are peer edited by two
classmates before they are due to me, and when due, they are graded as
A-full credit as is; AR- 85% credit or rewrite for full credit; or Rrequired
rewrite.
Students with rewrites have another week to hand in their revised paper.
So, if a student runs out of time, they hand in what they know will be an
R, but they buy a weeks time to get their act together. The rewrite
deadlines are absolute, NO EXCEPTIONS.
The second paragraph under Absences conveys the simple message that students are not welcome to come late or to leave early, and here they are told what happens if they make a habit of it-- they accumulate absences and will be dropped.
Throughout, the student is charged with the responsibility of behaving in a mature manner. This is an appropriate standard for establishing class rules. If we do not clearly convey the message that our students are welcome, needed, and expected to come to class and do the work, how will they get that message? I hope this is of some help to you.
Ken Weatherbie
Del Mar College
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 09:33:46 -0400 (EDT) From: Martin Ryle <RYLE@URVAX.URICH.EDU>
Jody raises problems most of us face. I have developed an attack that seems to work. When the student comes to me seeking special consideration, I first try to ascertain whether the request is based upon a genuine problem. If it does not, I point out to the student that she/he (or parents) is paying a lot of money to take advantage of my judgment about the subject; further, presence in the class implies that the student is paying me to tell him/her how to meet my standards of competence and excellence and to judge whether those standards are being met. If the request is for special treatment--too hard, too harsh, or whatever--I ask if the student is requesting that he/she be given less than full value for the money paid. If the issue is a grade change, I ask if the request is that I lie. Sometimes the student drops the course--that's fine with me. More often, the student shuts up and gets to work.
Martin Ryle
University of Richmond, VA
ryle@urvax.urich.edu
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 11:05:25 -0700 (PDT) From: <crjackson@UCDAVIS.EDU>
Bill Cecil-Fronsman raises an interesting question about the nature of the students who take classes in summer school (and other non-traditional venues). Do they expect to take it easier? I taught identical courses at UC Berkeley in the fall and in the summer, and the students (with a coule of notable exceptions) were simply not as good. I think attitude has soemthing to do with it, but there are a couple of other factors that contribute to the lower quality:
Christopher R. Jackson, UC Davis
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 14:41:25 -0500 (EST) From: 00aoedmonds@BSUVC.BSU.EDU
A thought or two on the standards/integrity discussion. Absolutely, we must have high standards in our expectations of our students. When class discussion and cooperative/collaborative learning are part of the requirements, attendance should be made mandatory. When we have hundreds of papers and exams to grade, late paper/make-up exam policy should be stringent. Above all, we should have the compassion and flexibility to VIOLATE these standards when appropriate! Showing our students that we are human will help them learn more than all the stern, "you lazy barbarian ingrate" lectures in the book. I used to have no attendance policy at all. "You're adults," I'd say. "If you're too stupid to come to class, so be it. If you pass my tests without showing up, that's my problem." Seldom had a lot of absensces. This past year I revised the policy a little. Gave bonus points for perfect attendance! Even a few for those who only missed thrice. (I can hear the virtual gasps now!) Maximum of 20 points (out of 1200). Almost perfect attendance in a class of 80. BTW, no-one got a higher letter grade because of the bonus points. BUT even fewer missed class. This semester I'm giving bonus points (a few, mind you) for EARLY PAPERS!! Watch the late ones disappear Carrots, folks, not sticks, at least in my view. Gee, after 30 years of teaching, I thought *I* was a hard-nosed old f**t :)
Tony Edmonds
History
Ball State Univ.
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 16:43:58 -0500 (CDT) From: SIMSG@BELMONT.EDU
Gee, y'all. Most of our responses to Joanne's question about standards and integrity sound defensive. Does it demean our students if on openingday we read the riot act to them?
In a class of 35 or 40, I'll always have a couple of students who need to test the limits with regard to tardiness, absences, late papers, and missed exams. And it is absolutely necessary that I do not equivocate about the rules and expectations that were clearly stated in the course syllabus.
But that means I also have 33 to 38 students who make a good faith effort to observe the standards I've set for the course. For those students, aggressiv e open-day warnings to "the little darlings" are insulting. And if I begin the course with that kind of tone, I will have even greater problems than usual in convincint them that their participation in collaborative learning exercises is valued.
--George Sims
Belmont Univ.
simsg@belmont.edu
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 20:27:35 -0400 (EDT) From: peter c holloran <pch@WORLD.STD.COM>
The posting by Jody Ross has produced several well-intentioned responses urging her to be firm and set high standards. This is easy for tenured faculty to say. But what about untenured, part-time faculty who may not be rehired if too many students complain about them to the chair or dean, or in student evaluations? What if low enrollments are seen as the fault of the faculty member and he or she is not rehired next semester? Let's get real, colleagues. The problem is the admissions office sends too many unprepared students into our classrooms. Too many parents send under-prepared or incompetant kids to college for social reasons. We are supposed to teach them without ruffling any feathers? An impossible job.
Peter Holloran
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 1994 9:12:03 -0400 (EDT) From: HSIUNG@JUNCOL.JUNIATA.EDU
I would like to second Tony Edmonds's distinction between history majors and those non-majors taking our survey courses. I think of my intro surveys as courses where I have a chance to win over some students from the sciences or other divisions. I hope the students leave my course wanting to take another history course (not just from me), resisting the urge to sell back the course readings, and PERHAPS considering majoring in history. And so I assign readings that may have a better chance of connecting with the students, and largely keep the monographs to the upper-level courses. To repeat Tony Edmonds's final words, high expectations, yea; unreasonable ones, absolutely not. I look forward to your thoughts on what might constitute "un- reasonable expectations" at your particular institutions.
From: twdavis@WHALE.ST.USM.EDU(Theron W. Davis III) Date: Fri, 19 Aug 1994 10:45:16 -0500 (CDT)
As a Ph.D. student I still exist in that in-between place where the
instructor is still receiving formal instruction; and this perspective has
opened my eyes about a few things.
First, as teachers we unnecessarily alienate ourselves from the kids in
our classes when we go into a classroom *expecting* resistance or
indifference. That knowledge influences---no, dampens---our enthusiasm
for what we're doing. He or she would be a rare bird indeed who could
deal with that knowledge and still approach a class with zest. Yet I
think it too often leads us to think of the experience as one that we and
the class just have to wade through as best we can.
Second, for non-majors I agree that the expectations should be
different. Not lower, just different. Know your audience! Here I'm
speaking primarily of survey courses. I've heard a several different
ideas about how World History surveys should be approached, for instance.
One professor insists they learn the rudiments of Western and non-Western
cultures---their own heritage and others'. Another claims the survey
should introduce them to the rigors of college-level work *and* teach them
their heritage and others'. Still another suggests that we need to show
them through these surveys what it is that historians do---model for
students how the discipline works. And finally, one professor just
recently told me that the freshman survey is the only chance we have to
grab them and interest them in history, so we should keep that idea at the
top of the long list of goals we all have for our classes.
All these approaches are valid ones, but the last two make the most
sense for classes geared more toward non-majors, *particularly* the
freshman survey. The classroom is just the forum we need to win back the
popular audience that we so often lament we've lost.
I'm not sure how all that translates into your classroom; I'm still
working out how it applies to my own. I think it boils down to
this---know your audience.
All this begs a question that I'd like to throw out for discussion:
Should we have two sets of requirements for majors and non-majors in the
same class? We do this when a class has graduate students and
non-graduate students. Would it be unreasonable to implement this idea
with regard to majors and non-majors? It doesn't necessarily mean a lower
standard for non-majors, but more likely a lighter work load. I'm not so
sure that kids object to the standard so much as the work load.
I'd really like to know what you all think about this. I admit to
having a lot to learn about teaching and am eager to learn.
Theron W. Davis
U. of Southern Miss.
From: twdavis@WHALE.ST.USM.EDU(Theron W. Davis III) Date: Fri, 19 Aug 1994 10:45:16 -0500 (CDT)
As a Ph.D. student I still exist in that in-between place where the
instructor is still receiving formal instruction; and this perspective has
opened my eyes about a few things.
First, as teachers we unnecessarily alienate ourselves from the kids in
our classes when we go into a classroom *expecting* resistance or
indifference. That knowledge influences---no, dampens---our enthusiasm
for what we're doing. He or she would be a rare bird indeed who could
deal with that knowledge and still approach a class with zest. Yet I
think it too often leads us to think of the experience as one that we and
the class just have to wade through as best we can.
Second, for non-majors I agree that the expectations should be
different. Not lower, just different. Know your audience! Here I'm
speaking primarily of survey courses. I've heard a several different
ideas about how World History surveys should be approached, for instance.
One professor insists they learn the rudiments of Western and non-Western
cultures---their own heritage and others'. Another claims the survey
should introduce them to the rigors of college-level work *and* teach them
their heritage and others'. Still another suggests that we need to show
them through these surveys what it is that historians do---model for
students how the discipline works. And finally, one professor just
recently told me that the freshman survey is the only chance we have to
grab them and interest them in history, so we should keep that idea at the
top of the long list of goals we all have for our classes.
All these approaches are valid ones, but the last two make the most
sense for classes geared more toward non-majors, *particularly* the
freshman survey. The classroom is just the forum we need to win back the
popular audience that we so often lament we've lost.
I'm not sure how all that translates into your classroom; I'm still
working out how it applies to my own. I think it boils down to
this---know your audience.
All this begs a question that I'd like to throw out for discussion:
Should we have two sets of requirements for majors and non-majors in the
same class? We do this when a class has graduate students and
non-graduate students. Would it be unreasonable to implement this idea
with regard to majors and non-majors? It doesn't necessarily mean a lower
standard for non-majors, but more likely a lighter work load. I'm not so
sure that kids object to the standard so much as the work load.
I'd really like to know what you all think about this. I admit to
having a lot to learn about teaching and am eager to learn.
Theron W. Davis
U. of Southern Miss.
Date: Fri, 19 Aug 1994 15:52:01 -0500 (EST) From: 00aoedmonds@BSUVC.BSU.EDU
Theron Davis asks about different requirements for history majors and nonmajors in survey classes. I agree with Peter Halloran: there aren't usually many history majors in survey classes (at least they don't know it yet!) When I teach the survey, I find out who the few majors are, then find a time when we can all meet, maybe for an extra hour every week or two, to talk about "history major stuff" that arises in the course, i.e., historiog- raphy, document interpretation, additional reading (perhaps an article or two). We do this for the "fun" of it--I get no extra pay, obviously, and the students get no extra points (although I might consider that next time). We all enjoy the additional learning.
Tony Edmonds
Ball State University
PS: Please give my regards to Neil McMillen and inform him that I am still a better tennis player than he.
Date: Sun, 21 Aug 1994 23:51:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Susan J Mulley <smulley@uoguelph.ca>
At the risk of being a sole dissenting voice on this topic, I would like to interject another opinion. The reality of post-secondary education has changed drastically for most students in the past few years. As professors, I think we must recognize this changing dynamic. (Perhaps this change is unique to Canada, but that seems unlikely) Two factors seem to me to be the major components of this change.
I think too often we are out of touch with the reality of these students lives. Many of us went through the system at a time when it was MUCH more accessible financially than it is at present. Of course there are always some students who will attempt to scam us - but why tar the entire class with the same brush when many students are just trying to do the best they can in a difficult situation.
Why is flexibility such a bad thing? I am very uncomfortable with the idea of ABSOLUTE rules for a class. Perhaps I have not taught long enough to become jaded with the excuses, but I think that I would rather err on the side of empathy. Maybe I will miss some "chancers", but at least the students who need the encouragement will get it. I haven't found that being flexible means a decrease in student respect - I don't take late papers unless students speak to me first, but I am willing to listen to the fact that LIFE sometimes gets in the way of school. Perhaps because of this attitude I NEVER get the 'my aunt died' excuse, students just say 'I screwed up and didn't start this in time - here's a note from my boss saying I have to work'.
As far as class attendance goes, I agree with poster who said that non-attendance is a student's own funeral. I tell students "I expect you to come to class. If you do not come to class you will not get the information I am teaching. Some of the background material is covered in the text, but I am not following the text verbatim. You will be examined on everything that is taught in this course: text, lectures and seminars." Then I leave the choice up to the students. I chose to spend 6 extra years getting a doctorate not a high-school qualification because I didn't want to have to take attendance or to deal with parents. ( Well, not just because of that, but it was part of the decision :) ) Students need to be treated as adults - if they choose not to come to class, they need to accept the consequences. If they can ace my course without attending class - well, good for them! As adults (or proto-adults perhaps for first year students) we also need to recognize that they have lives that may sometimes impinge on how they treat our course.
If we treat students with the RESPECT and EMPATHY they deserve, we can not go far wrong.
Susan J. Mulley
University of Guelph
smulley@uoguelph.ca
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