RLS 111/0001--Judaism, Christianity, and Islam--Attendance Rules

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You are not signed up for a correspondence course. Class attendance from the beginning to the end of each individual class meeting is a course requirement that will strictly be enforced. Each unexcused absence will result in a two-point deduction from your final score and/or a score of "0" for a quiz you may miss. Moreover, you will not receive a passing grade for the course if there are nine or more absences (this includes excused absences). Coming late or leaving early are defined as absences, and subject to exactly the same rules (excuse rules; penalty rules) as missing an entire class.

A good reason and make-up work are required to avoid a point loss caused by an absence:

For many URI students, it seems to be a novel concept that make-up work must be done for absences due to legitimate reasons. (This is a sad commentary on the lax attendance rules prevailing in many URI courses.) I cannot emphasize enough that in my courses, for an absence to be considered as excused, it is not enough for you to have a good reason for missing class. You must also do a special assignment and submit it by the deadlines and in accordance with the rules set below. No exceptions to the deadlines and the rules will be made. Doing extra work to avoid a point loss is an option only in the case of an absence due to a good reason; if your absence does not have a good reason, you are stuck with the point loss.

Thus, there are two types of unexcused absences:

• First, absences for which there is no legitimate reason to begin with.
• Second, absences for which there is a legitimate reason, such as illness; but you fail to do the make-up work on time, and/or in accordance with the requirements specified.

Both types of unexcused absences do have the same negative consequences. In fact, it makes no difference to me which type an individual unexcused absence belongs to. It does not help you in the least if you tell me at the end of the semester about absences for which you did not do the make-up work, "I really, really was ill when I missed three times early on in the semester," or, "You told me prior to my absence that a job interview would excuse me." My reaction will be, "Well, you failed to do the make-up work."

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Procedures for assuring that an absence is excused:

General: For an absence to be recorded as excused, all of the following must be the case:

• First, there must be a legitimate and verifiable reason, such as illness attested to by a doctor's note.
• Second, you must study the material you missed. Information on the material you missed can be found on the Tidbits and Progress Page of the course website.
• Third, you must write answers to the study questions on the material you missed.
• Fourth, you must fill out a copy of the Absence Make-up Work Cover Sheet, and staple to it documentation verifying that your absence is legitimate (example: a doctor's note), as well as your answers to the study questions. Be sure to follow all the rules stated on that cover sheet.
• Fifth, you must hand me the packet at the beginning of the class taking place a week after the last absence for which you wish to be excused. (If you miss one or both of the final class meetings of the semester, your deadline is at the start of your final exam for this course.)

Proof that you are excused for an absence: If you comply with the requirements for having an absence excused, I will give you a written statement signed by me and attesting to the fact that you are excused. This statement will be written on the Absence Make-up Work Cover Sheet. In case of a later dispute about whether or not an absence was excused, you must present that statement to have the disagreement decided in your favor. There is no acceptable alternative.

Mistake to be avoided: The make-up work to have an absence excused consists in answering the study questions on the material that was discussed during the class meeting(s) you missed. A frequent mistake is that students write on the material they would have been responsible for at a quiz, had they been in class when they missed, and had there been a quiz. This mistake will result in rejection of your work; the penalty for the absence will not be waived.

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other points:

Anticipating three or more absences: If you could or should know at the beginning of the semester that you will have to miss three or more class meetings (game and/or practice schedule for athletes; business trips for students who have jobs; participation in a theater performance, etc.), you must see me in my office during the first week of classes to speak to me about this problem. Failure to do so makes you ineligible to be excused for the absences in question. Naturally, this does not relieve you of your responsibility to turn the required make-up work in by the deadline. [If you add this class after the first class meeting, you must see me during the first week of your attendance.]

No excuses for absences accepted after the final exam: No excuses for absences, including those resulting in missing of quizzes, will be accepted after the final exam.

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Negative consequences of absences:

Excused absences:

The maximum number of absences allowed is eight. If you miss nine times, you cannot expect a passing grade; the best you can expect is an Incomplete, which you will receive only if you do not have more than four unexcused absences, and if the other requirements are met which URI sets for receiving of Incompletes. (If you do have more than four unexcused absences, you will receive an "F" even if there is documentation that the remaining absences do have a justified reason.) An Incomplete received under such circumstances can be made up only by retaking the course and by complying with the course requirements which are in effect at that time. These requirements may differ from the ones that applied when you attempted the course for the first time.

The way I conduct my classes, "class is where the action is." It is important for you to understand that each absence, even if excused, has negative consequences for which no compensation is possible.

Naturally, excused absences do not cause an automatic point loss from your final score; neither do they lead to any of the disadvantages explained below for unexcused absences. (Remember, though, that nine or more absences, even if excused, mean that you will not be given a passing grade for the course.)

Unexcused absences:

Remember that an absence for which there is a legitimate reason but for which the make-up work has not been submitted counts as unexcused.

As stated earlier, each unexcused absence results in a loss of two points from your final score, and/or in a score of "0" for a quiz that you may miss.

In addition, unexcused absences do have other negative consequences, to be described as a progressive unwillingness on my part to give you the "benefit of the doubt." There are many situations in which it might be helpful for you to be given the benefit of the doubt; thus, it is impossible to give a complete description of the negative consequences caused by unexcused absences in addition to the automatic point loss and/or the "zero-quiz-score." Here are some examples:

One unexcused absence is enough to make you ineligible for the "mercy addition" which I use for students with no unexcused absences when determining final grades.

Two or more unexcused absences make you ineligible for being given "the benefit of the doubt" if you cannot present verifiable written documentation supporting your claim that an additional absence does have a legitimate reason. This applies not only to regular class periods, but also to the periods of the midterm and the final exams.

Five or more unexcused absences make you ineligible to get an Incomplete if additional absences due to illness "push" your absence total beyond eight; five or more unexcused absences also make you ineligible for being given any benefit of the doubt.

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