We have all either heard about it or read it on our syllabus. Most of us were introduced to it on the first day of classes. I speak of the attendance policy that is incorporated into VSU’s curriculum.

 According to the policy, students who miss 20 percent of class for that semester will receive an automatic ‘F’. In other words, no matter how great you are performing in class, missing a few days will throw all of your academic accomplishments out the window.

 I completely disagree with this policy because in all honesty, it makes no sense. The point of even coming to college is to make that transition from a teenager to an adult. Being an adult means that you, and you alone, must come to terms with the consequences of your actions and your choices. If I am paying thousands of dollars to attend a college, it is strictly my business if I choose to skip class or not.   Let’s be honest, the money is already in circulation so whoever is getting paid for my enrollment will not lose a dime if I refuse to show up for a couple of days. This is just another attempt to tame us as wild teens, although we are supposedly young adults.

 Also, most teachers with enormous classes cannot even tell when a student doesn’t show up. The class is too large to take roll everyday so I am certain that some students are often missing in action. Using the logic of the policy, online classes should be nonexistent. 

 Another situation would be that teachers could count any student they do not remember seeing in class as absent. The student may very well be there, but in order to be present, one must be seen right? Following that case, the students who have missed well beyond 20 percent of the class will be able to keep the grade they earn because they came to class on days the teacher happened to notice them. This would be considered just as unfair as it is illogical.

 I think this policy is also unnecessary because of what actually counts in a classroom. If a student barely comes to class, yet they produce an ‘A’ average work, faculty should care less about how often they appear in class. In fact, I feel that a student who achieves an  ‘A’ without showing up for the majority of the class has earned it more so than they would have if they had been present every day. 

 The bottom line is this:  the only thing that speaks for you is the work you put into the classroom. While great attendance may be recommended, it is not required for an ‘A’.