Why bother thinking of a good excuse...

[Reverend_Smitty]

when all I said to my professor was, "I gotta miss class in 2 weeks because I've got this thing..." and before I could elaborate he said "ok, no problem, I'll call you or e-mail you if we have any homework"

Geez, what's with professors these days? :P

[DarkTirade]

1. Well, what was your excuse gonna be?

My dog's planning on dying that day? My left front tire should go flat on the way to school? :)

[Reverend_Smitty]

2. Well I was going to say I had a family obligation

that had been planned months in advance...which I do really, I'm going to see the Foo Fighters with my aunt and uncle. But if I sensed that he was going to be uptight about it I was going to tell him that I needed look after my little cousin while my aunt and uncle were out of town. But instead was never even given the opportunity to lie! Sheesh! x(

[MissMillie]

3. haven't you heard?

students aren't students anymore, they're "customers".... they don't have to earn their degree, they paid for it.

[Reverend_Smitty]

4. This happens every time I want to get out of a class

where's the third degree any more? I like to squirm a little bit and I spend a lot of time crafting my fibs...it just seems like a waste...lol

[harmonicon]

5. there's never any point in having any excuse

just tell the truth. honesty is always the best policy (except in break ups, in which case, it's nice to be nice). who cares why you're going to be gone in two weeks? your problem is yours, not their's - whatever your reason, it's all the same to them, I'd imagine.

[Reverend_Smitty]

6. I suppose you are right...

I guess it's a bit of lingering Catholic guilt, going somewhere to have fun when I should really be somewhere else being responsible. I can't shake the feeling that EVERYBODY else is judging me and in reality nobody cares.

[harmonicon]

7. yeah, I've taken time off of jobs just for the hell of it

granted, these were shitty jobs that I could afford to lose, but there's not much point in lying - if you're gone, you're gone. I remember in college I took a few days off of a job to go see Phish shows with my brother.... sure, they could have fired me, but it would have taken them weeks to find someone else and train them - it was far better for them to deal with me being gone some times than have to deal with replacing me.

[petronius]

8. Speaking as a professor, I'm not at all surprised at the disinterest in your excuse

Why should we care why a student is going to be absent? He'll either make up the work or he won't, will get the notes or he won't, and will master the material in time for the exam ... or he won't. Not my problem either way. Personally, I think it's cute when students tell me they're going to miss lecture - they'll get that innocence beaten out of them soon enough.

However, the whole "I'll call you if there's homework" part is shocking. Damn straight there's homework, and it's your job to find out what it is. Freaking coddler... :)

[MissMillie]

9. well, at my school

class participation is 50% of the grade, so missing class for something unexcused can make a big difference.

[petronius]

11. That seems really high - what department is that?

Or is it all department? :shrug:

IMO, students are adults who need to make their own decisions - if they choose not to attend class that's fine, but they won't do well on exams and exercises. There are courses where participation is important, but I have trouble imagining a situation where participation could be so important and beneficial as to be worth 50% of the assessment.

(Note: I'm not saying that grades based on attendance and participation are wrong. As long as I'm free to evaluate in a way I find appropriate, it's fine with me if others choose a different path...)

[MissMillie]

12. graduate school

we teach by the case method here at HBS.

[SOteric]

10. We're tired of being lied to,

and not creatively or in an entertaining fashion.

Even with 21st century family dynamics there are only so many grandmothers one has whose funeral absolutely must be attended.

And while it may not delight me that someone would rather blow off my class to attend a Trekkers convention, it doesn't surprise me.

I don't expect my students or employees to stop having lives just because they study/work with me. I appreciate a simple, direct, "I can't make it, I have another obligation."