Should Attendance Be Graded? (Classroom Chronicles Part III)

Should attendance be graded?

        There are two schools of thought as regards the question. There are people who maintain that attendance should be graded, while those at the other side of the fence of opinion believe that it shouldn’t be. In one of my subjects in the graduate program before, I learned from my professor that attendance should not be graded, primarily because it is not indicative of a student’s cognitive ability. I cannot agree with her more! Hence, my personal take on this matter rhymes absolutely with what my professor said – attendance should not be graded.

         
        Attendance is not like a quiz that can measure the intellectual capacity of a student. One might argue though, that how can a student learn or how can learning take place if a student will not attend his or her classes. Point is well taken my friends. But kindly consider this: attendance only facilitates the learning process. Attendance is not learning itself.

        My take on this matter must be not taken too literally. I am not downplaying the intrinsic value of attendance. Attendance is important because it is through this that students learn inside the classroom. And so far, nothing can take the place of the classroom as far as structured learning is concerned. The teacher jump-starts with motivational activities, proceeds to teach armed with a suitable pedagogical tool, then evaluates the students with a prescribed criteria.

        I will reiterate my stand that attendance should not be graded. This does not mean though, that a student’s effort in religiously being present in his or her classes will be put to waste. Definitely not! The more you attend your classes, then the more opportunities that you will have in terms of gaining knowledge. This is not to mention the points or merits that you will earn since the more you attend your classes, the more that you are availing yourself of outputs such as quizzes, assignments, seat works, etc. Make sure though that you will receive good scores from them since such scores are vital in the computation of your grade. Good score or not, it is still a score anyway which is way better than zero (incurred due to a student's non-attendance).

        On a personal note, my students’ good attendance record is not left unnoticed. I use it as an antidote to soothe an ailing grade, thereby preventing it from going down the hill. There are instances wherein I have to look beyond numbers, for the purpose of freely appreciating a student’s humility, positive nature, and yes, good attendance record. Though attendance is not graded, it still pays to have a good one. You will never know when you’ll be in dire need of it.

                                                                    

                                                                                              - Tristan