Because I am a fairly laid back person who tends to sleep in when she has the chance and nearly always wastes time when she has any time to waste, I requested an 8am teaching slot this term. I had heard horror stories about how difficult 8am classes were to teach, but I figured that if my schedule forced me to get out of bed and use my mornings wisely, I wouldn't waste time. As it turns out, 8am classes are incredibly challenging (and I still find time to waste later in the day to make up for the time I didn't waste in the morning).
Last term I had a few people missing each class period, but all in all, the classes felt like an actual "unit." The students got to know each other, I got to know them, and I felt like we made some real progress. Each of my afternoon classes last term had their own "character" and some (not all) of the students actually seemed to enjoy being there.
This semester, most of the semester I've had nearly perfect attendance in my 10 am class. But from week 2 or 3 at least half of my 8am class has been absent every class period. I've only got 2-4 faithful students who I can count on to attend on a regular basis. The rest of the class rotates. I've emailed several students and asked them to come back. I've sent out e-mails to the entire class reminding them how important attendance is to their grades. Yet, I haven't had more than 10 people in class since probably a fourth of the way through the term. A few students even show up only on days when rough drafts or final drafts are due.
This attendance issue makes developing a safe house and an overall classroom atmosphere quite difficult. What's more frustrating, though, is that it makes teaching incredibly difficult. I never know who will be in class for what lesson, and then when subsequent lessons or activities are built on earlier lessons or activities, they tend to fall flat or be less effective than intended because none of the students (save those 2-4) had been there for the earlier lessons.
And now I'm receiving an influx of e-mails offering explanations (perhaps legitimate ones, perhaps not) as to why individuals have not been in class since before spring break or asking if I can still work with them if they start coming back to class now or begging for me to e-mail them all of the handouts and assignments so they can just turn everything in at the final. And I have to say, it's getting more than a little annoying.
I'd say I'm probably going to end up failing about half of the 8am bunch, and to be honest, I don't feel all that bad about it. If they had attended class, they wouldn't be failing. If they had contacted me before 2 weeks before finals to ask me to work with them in the face of difficult health or family situations, I would have worked with them. But they didn't. They rolled over in bed, turned off their alarms, and told themselves they would go to ENG 110 next time.
From now on, I think I will work an attendance policy into my syllabus. I think it would benefit the students and the class as a whole.
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Ah yes. The 8 AM fallout. Please don't think that this happened because you did not make the consequences crystal clear. You did. They simply made a choice, and in the 11th hour, realized that the choice was not particularly sound, thus the pleading emails. Ask yourself this: why are the pleas in email rather than in person in your classroom? Answer: Because they are still not in class and still believe they can hustle and turn in the "products" on the last day, or if that's too troublesome, in your mailbox--either email or in Pummill 301. Just say no. It's too late in the semester to catch up. If they take 110 successfully the next time, the F will be covered by the better grade for their grade-point average.
I must say, you're much braver than I am for volunteering for the 8 AM class section (I too am not what you would call a morning person, prefer sleeping late, etc.). As for the attendance thing, don't feel too bad about that. In my 11 AM class, I'd say that I've had an average of about 12 or 13 kids out of a possible 20 in class on any given day. I've had several days where only 8 people show up (naturally, the most populous days are the due dates). Again, this is at 11 AM, so don't feel too bad if people aren't showing up for your class. I think it's more of a Spring Semester-type situation. For whatever reason, a lot of the students in ENG 110 this semester just aren't as studious as the students we all had last semester. I also agree that you shouldn't feel bad about giving half your class F's either, especially if they've "earned" them (as long as you don't like giving them F's either, of course). I've been getting those frantic emails too, and to be honest I'm feeling a bit like Tommy Lee Jones's character in The Fugitive ("I missed the last three papers because my cousin broke his leg!" "I don't care!"). The bottom line is that your students, much like mine, knew what was going to happen if they didn't apply themselves, and now they've got to accept the consequences. That's certainly not your fault.
I can feel your 8 AM pain! I don't mind teaching a class that early, but I wish I had a core group of students that would be there to learn!
I have quite a few students who will be failing and some that will receive lower grades for only showing up on due dates. Who do they really think they are kidding?? And it definitely sounds like you've went above and beyond what you had to, you've reached out, they've ignored the class. At that point, it all becomes extremely clear: They've earned that F.
I teach an evening class and have the same problem. The trouble is that they have worked all day and really just don't want to come. When they do show up they are extremely lethargic. I was really excited about teaching in the evenings because I thought that students would be more motivated but I was wrong.
Concerning email, I WILL make it a policy in my future syllabus that I will NOT accept assignments through email. They somehow got the idea that they could simply email all of the assignments to me in lieu of attending class. The grades for my class this semester will be much lower overall.
I've had a very similar problem with my 110 class and it's at 12:30, for crying out loud! What are they doing, skipping class because they're too hungry to miss lunch? Hell, I don't know and, to be honest, I've ceased caring. Invoking the rule of reciprocity, I will invest in them (beyond my basic responsibilities as an instructor) as much as they invest in me/the course. (And I tell them this very early on.) Right now, off the top of my head, there are only two students to whom I can even fathom giving an A. The majority of them will likely receive C's and worse. So be it, I suppose, even though I strongly suspect I'm going to take a hit on the class evaluations because of this. Hmph.
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