Missing classes due to work
I had a student who had missed several classes. Her excuse was that she has not been able to leave work and get on time, however she was willing to catch up. I asked her to have a meeting and discuss her questions and ways for her to catch up. She did not come to the meeting and she argued she had a unexpected problem at work. While I made it clear about the deadlines, seems that she does not know about them. She did not drop the class and she submitted a great final project, although it was not enough for her to pass the course.
While she was an adult learner and assuming she knows about commitment (because she has worked for an important company for so many years),
How do you communicate the idea of commitment to a class to an adult learner who has been out of school for some many years and yet she works in a very important company which requires a lot of commitment?
Thank you David, I think your suggestion is great to increase commitment for future classes.
Hi David,
I've experienced this as well. Most of our students are working students. I try to be as understanding as possible, but my students know they will be repercussions.
Patricia
Hi Hector,
It sounds like you did the right thing...met with her to discuss the problem and provided guidance for how to complete the course. It appears that she did not meet your standards for completion and I commend you for maintaining your standards. I teach military adult learners and often face students that have work, family, health...etc commitments during a course. I believe most of my students are sincere in their commitments that cause them to miss class. However, the line needs to be drawn and communicated to them. Feedback to the company, or in my case the individuals military command, may also bring additional motivation for a student to complete a course. I think that maintaining your standards also sends a signal to other students and will make your student, who you referenced above, more likely to have a stronger commitment to future classes she takes.
