Student Attendance Vs. Stormy Weather
As educational institutions prepare for the end of the fall semester, they foresee lost days due to weather conditions, and with that, their very reputations as institutions are put in jeopardy, as well as the education of the disciples is placed second, definitely not the message we want to pass along to the individuals we want to employ at some of the most traditional of the institutions, for instance:
The USPS (United States Postal Service)’s motto has been:
“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”
Logistics (to commercially deliver commodities and services to clients) is some of the most basic needs of individuals (retail approach) and institutions (wholesale approach).
If higher education institutions’ response to weather conditions continue to be missed days, to be determined if students will have replacement of lost classes or not, depending again on the weather, then:
– What type of message is to be passed along to students and society as a whole?
Are we to stay home when heavy rain and snow get on the way? The answer seems obvious, for many of us, there are no alternatives. We can only try to embark into the unsure public/private transportation system we have available, or, take no risks and call it in.
Many institutions (professional rather than academic) have instituted “work-from-home” alternatives.
Schools are still far from this workplace reality, and that is shame on educators. Of course this alternative would not be sufficient in the case of lab classes, for instance. But for many other classes, sciences classes included, a few days in a semester working from home would be a great opportunity for caretakers to work along with their dependents.
The question that remains is: If educators cannot trust their pupils will produce in their absence, then how can the prospective employer trust those very individuals not to slack off when the boss is not around?
If education has a purpose, and that is to train someone to acquire a skill for a particular trade, than it fails to prepare individuals for some reasons. One would be the gap between the time between when students learn of a particular skill that is already phased out in the market, and when they hit the market, with outdated knowledge.
Another is the ability to replicate work conditions as to best prepare individuals for the workplace. Some of the characteristics of the workplace have not been replicated successfully in educational environments, such as today’s standards for tardiness / punctuality and attendance – which are as old as the Victorian age – to say the least.
So, if we all agree that students should be responsible for their education, as well as workers, that they should be responsible for their own growth, personal and professional, then we should all agree that we as individuals may sometimes be late or not able to show for an appointment, due to weather or not, and that an alternative (this already exists, it is just not a norm) should be made available for people to be “officially present” even when they are not physically present.
In the case of CUNY, a pilot for RFID in students’ IDs is already in process. Students IDs as a requirement to enter the school grounds has been a requirement for a few years, and several electronic turnstiles have been placed in the schools, so that way the administration has been able to collect a great deal of data on students attendance.
Measuring attendance in real time is easily achievable, and the benefits to all stakeholders is clearly visible, as well as the negative consequences such as the loss of privacy that would come with student’s behavioral hegeist.
Changing the educational system so that it is prepared for students to work independently and from home if needed be, that is hopefully not far away.
Pablo Grossi
11.20.2014