A Formal Research Study on Correlating Student Attendance Policies to Student Success

Three years ago, members of our Engineering & Desig n Department began a study to determine the effects of class attendance on student success. Engineering technology students today have grown up in a very different environment from the s tudents of 20 years ago. They access information and engage in social contact through di ital media and they often have almost instant access to this digital media through portab le, wireless devices. There is a thought that with this greater connectivity they may not respond in the same manner to the teaching methods of past generations of students. More specifically, the students of today may not feel the same need to be physically present in their classes in o rder to be successful. Initial results presented a the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE ) Annual Conference in 2012 determined that attendance correlates with student success and the correlation changes during the progression of a student throughout their undergrad uate experience. This paper discusses if there is a significant relationship between student succe ss and different faculty approaches to attendance including incentives for attendance, pen alti s for lack of attendance, or no requirement at all. The study involves students in programs of Mechanical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering Technology, Manufacturing Te chnology, Design Technology, Construction Management, and a service course to th e general student body. Data comes from four different instructors teaching approximately 2 0 classes per year ranging from freshman to senior students. Additionally, the study provides t he ability to track an individual student over their entire undergraduate education. The correlati on between the faculty approach to attendance and success will be discussed in this paper in deta il.