Attendance is up to students

Be it because of illness, fatigue or even a brutal hangover, let's face it: There are some days when making it to class is just impossible.

According to an article published last week by NPR, Northern Arizona University is installing electronic ID card scanners outside of several large lecture hall classrooms.

The purpose of these scanners is to record who is and who isn't showing up for class, specifically in large classrooms where it is too difficult to take attendance.

If you ask us, this technology is cool, but it's a bit too restrictive for college students.

Since graduating high school, we've all been given the freedom to govern our academic lives.

We're permitted to choose our own classes and professors, decide whether to buy textbooks and how much effort to put into the course, including whether or not we want to show up.

At UCF, individual professors have the ability to decide if attendance should be mandatory, a practice we think should continue.

Generally, most professors who don't make attendance mandatory do so because they think we need to take responsibility for ourselves.

Professors shouldn't have to keep tabs on every student in every one of their classes.

Instead, each individual needs to make it their own prerogative to show up do what is necessary to succeed in the class to get good grades.

Requiring students to scan their ID cards before every class relinquishes the students' ability to make their own decisions about their academic career.

For a few of us, learning outside of the classroom is actually easier than attending class.

Some students prefer to grasp the material on their own, or they find a professor's explanation confusing.

This is especially true since so many teachers post their course materials onto Webcourses.

Using online tools, students can access PowerPoint presentations, selected readings and other materials essential to understanding the course work and passing the class.

Another point to consider is that there are instances where students, although they may want to, can't attend class.

Life is full of mishaps like car accidents, illnesses and family crises, none of which a student should be punished for.

By putting in scanners, students might feel more pressured to defend their absences, which would also take up valuable time that professors need to grade papers or plan their next classes.

We're not saying students should always skip class.

We're saying we should have the ability to choose.

Basically, do what you need to do to ensure the best academic performance, even if that means skipping the occasional class.

As of now, we haven't heard any talk of UCF planning to implement the same technology as NAU, and we hope the university decides to stick with its current attendance policy.