I am paying thousands of dollars to attend classes at Chico State. So when I choose to skip a class, why should it affect my grade if I am the one paying for it?
Most instructors now allow you a certain amount of absences without an explanation needed before it begins to affect grades. It can range from two to five classes, while for some instructors attendance is mandatory.
I understand professors wanting their students to actually come to class and learn. But if I am doing well in class and I do not want to go I shouldn’t have to worry about my grade being affected.
I am paying for the class so why is it that the teacher will take away points when I am gone? When I don’t want to go or cannot go it should not matter because then at that point it’s my responsibility for throwing away money on a class I didn’t go to.
When I was in high school I understood having to go to class because I was not paying for the class myself and I was not an adult yet. You accept a lack of autonomy with childhood. But even in high school teachers were more relaxed with missing class, usually just having some work for absent students to make up.
This is not the case in college. Some professors don’t even let you turn in work late if you missed a class. College is not mandatory. I don’t have to be here. I am here to get my degree and learn more, so I am paying for classes.
It is unfair that I could be given an automatic F as a grade if I miss 5 classes, even if I understand the material.
I believe that it is a power-trip from the teachers. One way professors can control students is by putting a grade on attendance. It feels like some instructors don’t even care if you know the material.
I have a friend who missed multiple classes, but she had a 95% in the class because she studied the material and completed the work. By the end of the semester, her instructor finally put in those absences and her grade dropped almost 10%.
If a student is competent in a subject and completing assigned work, their attendance should not affect their grade.
Some people may argue that college is also about social learning where we learn to work with others and show respect on a higher level than high school. And I agree with that but you are still paying for all of it. You pay for the material and the environment. Because of that, I do not think that argument really holds up.
And even if a student doesn’t understand the material and doesn’t go to class, then their failing is only their fault. A student’s grade should be decided on what they know, and not on how present they are.
Ultimately I just don’t understand why some professors put more focus on how present you are in class than how well you know the material. Especially when students are paying for these classes, to my understanding it does not affect the professor if people in the class don’t show up, because they will still get paid.
Owen Daniels can be reached at [email protected].
