Does Missing Classes Decelerate Student Exam Performance Progress? Empirical Evidence and Policy Implications

Abstract

A total of 389 business students in undergraduate introductory microeconomics classes in spring 2007, 2009, and 2011, and fall 2012 participated in an exam performance progress study. Empirical evidence suggested that missing classes decelerates and hampers highperforming students' exam performance progress. Nevertheless, the evidence does not indicate that gender is a factor in determining whether missing classes impedes students' exam performance progress. Moreover, policy implications are discussed. For faculty, a mandatory attendance policy, daily motivational quiz, and incentive-stimulating attendance strategy are suggested. For school authorities, increasing campus employment opportunities is suggested. For the government, the author suggests that Congress should annually restore the purchasing power of federal grants by increasing the maximum grant awards and lowering federal student loan rates to half of present rates, but restrictions should be added on grant recipients to ensure that better attendance behaviors are achieved.The relationship between absenteeism (i.e., missing classes) and exam performance has been broadly investigated and discussed by education, psychology, and economics . Nevertheless, the relationship between absenteeism and exam performance progress has not yet been investigated and discussed. Performance progress is different from just performance. Performance progress shows a student's development or growth of performance over different periods. That is, performance progress is a dynamic perspective, while performance is a static perspective. For that reason, it is possible that these two perspectives could reflect different effects. The following example may explain their difference.For example, one student (Student 1), after missing three classes during the first exam period, scores 80 of 100 points on the first exam and receives a B grade, while another student (Student 2) never misses class during the same exam period yet only scores 70 of 100 points on the same exam and receives a C grade. Thus, Student 1 might argue that an excellent record may not necessarily translate into an excellent grade. While Student 1's argument may seem convincing, different conclusions may emerge upon a further examination of these two students' subsequent scores on all exams.Suppose that Student 1 then misses five classes during the second exam period and scores 82 points on the second exam and still receives a B grade; Student 2, still never missing class, scores 78 points on the second exam but still receives a C grade. Obviously, 82 (B grade) is definitely a higher score than 78 (C grade), so Student 1 could continue arguing that missing classes would not influence his/her grade. Student 1 may be smarter than Student 2, and Exam 2 may be easier than Exam 1, but the question here is, why did Student 1 only improve by two points while Student 2 improved by eight points? Although Student 1's performance is still better than Student 2's, Student 1's performance progress is slower than Student 2's. A...

Effects of classroom experiments on student learning outcomes and attendance

“…Since 'performance progress' is a dynamic perspective, while performance is a 'static perspective', these two perspectives could have different effects. Lin (2014) found that missing lectures decelerated students' (especially high-performing students') exam performance progress.…”

“…Although these researchers adopted different methodologies and used different datasets to examine this issue, all came to a similar conclusion: exam performance is positively and significantly correlated with student lecture attendance. In addition, Lin (2014) focused on a different but related topic: the relationship between absence from lectures and exam 'performance progress'. Since 'performance progress' is a dynamic perspective, while performance is a 'static perspective', these two perspectives could have different effects.…”

“…Although numerous studies have investigated the impact of classroom experiments (game-play experiments in classroom) on student learning (e.g., Cardell et al, 1996;Frank, 1997;Gremmen and Potters, 1997;Emerson and Taylor, 2004;Dickie, 2006;Cartwright and Stepanova, 2012;Lin and Dunphy, 2013;Emerson and English, 2016), none have explored whether classroom experiments can enhance students' lecture attendance. A number of empirical studies have demonstrated that student lecture attendance is one of the primary factors in ensuring student learning (e.g., Brocato, 1989;Cohn and Johnson, 2006;Lin, 2014). If classroom experiments can significantly improve students' lecture attendance, then engagement in classroom experiments may improve student learning as well.…”

An Investigation of the Relationship between In-Class and Out-of-Class Efforts on Student Learning: Empirical Evidence and Strategy Suggestion

“…The data used in this study are the same as the data used in Lin (2014). Please refer to Lin (2014) for a detailed description of the data and experimental design.…”

“…Although we have seen some higherperforming students who frequently skip classes still perform well in that class, we do not encourage this behavior. The empirical evidence studied by Lin (2014) demonstrated that even higher-performing students' exam performance progress may be significantly decelerated by skipped classes.…”