As a third-year student at ACU, I have experienced the full range of teaching styles: there have been classes that were a complete waste of my time (i.e., I learned nothing that I could not have gotten from a book – would that such a loss were never the case at the university level!), while others were a pure pleasure to attend: I was glad to be there. Of course, I have skipped classes before, always conservatively and usually for a better reason than “I’m tired,” knowing from the beginning that I had leave to do so only a couple times. There have been classes that I never skipped, either because I did not want to get behind or I enjoyed them. Education is a privilege that I have always regarded very highly: I did as much in high school (for me, it was less a “breeding ground for adolescent drama” than a genuine “place of learning,” a training area for that which was to come). As an education usually represents a considerable financial investment (on your part and/or your parents’), you had as well make the most of it while you’re there. It is not an onerous burden of “impending doom;” if it is, perhaps college life is not right for you. I understand there are those who are very heavily burdened with necessary responsibilities (work and otherwise); they have my sympathy and understanding, at least more so than the whiny freshman who aren’t self-disciplined enough to curtail their social commitments and adhere to a schedule. Still, I think the attendance policy plays an important role, particularly in the first few semesters of one’s collegiate career: it keeps one from getting unfocused or off-track and prepares for the class or classes that demands attendance by its very difficulty (not sure I’ve had one of those yet, but there’s some that I have come close). It’s something to anticipate in your junior or senior year. Those who attend class regularly and volitionally do so for the “positive incentive” of the better grades and satisfaction that accompany a thorough understanding of the material.

Morgan Philpott, ACU student