excuses that get you nowhere

Let me open with the disclaimer that I hate the genre of “you won’t believe the stupid things that students do these days!” It’s important to avoid becoming a cranky, embittered old professor who is outraged by lax student behavior. Don’t forget– we hated those people when we were young. Let’s never turn into them.

So, I tell this story only because it’s mildly funny. A recently received e-mail from a student who has missed at least five weeks in a class with a strict attendance policy went roughly like this:

“I’m writing to check on my attendance. I’m sure it’s OK, since I never received a warning.”