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As you read these messages think about them in terms of "credibility."
Then, write your comments about what you learned.
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People can be clowns. Bad excuses make you look like a total fool. If I was the professor, I would feel extremely insulted when a student lies to me and thinks that I am too gullible to recognize that they are trying to pull a fast one. There are some absences that can be excused with a proper a proper doctor’s note (dated) or funeral program/obituary. At the end of the day excuses only make you look foolish.
ReplyDeleteIt is really sad to see adults making horrible excuses to hand in an assignment late or not come to class. It is not only disrespectful towards your family member who "passed away", but it is disrespectful to the professor who may feel for you and send condolences to you and your family when nothing even happened. What shocked me the most is the fact that most of these students would make up these stories thinking the professor would believe them with no proof. Every time I ever missed a class for whatever reason I always brought my professor a note to excuse my absence.
ReplyDeleteCredibility refers to the quality of being trusted and believed in, as per Webster's Online Dictionary, and the examples listed did nothing to even remotely inspire those characteristics. Reading through them, I felt a growing sense of distaste with each and every email, in that students went so far as to invent diseases, sicknesses, and misfortune for themselves AND others as well, just to attempt to save face and miss class that day. I cannot imagine ever going to the depths that these students traveled to, and it makes me worry a bit about human nature, too.
ReplyDeleteThese are possible situations that someone can come across. Last semester I experienced a severe stomach flu but of course I had proper documentation to provide my professors with and thankfully I was able to make up any missed work. People that make constant excuses for missing class may be perceived as students that are not fully committed to the discipline of a college education. College prepares students for careers and the real world. Therefore, punctuality and attendance are essential skills that college students gain through the mandated deadline of assignments and attendance policy. In order to obtain a job a person must have these skills.
ReplyDeleteCredibility is such an important aspect to possess. Using excuses such as being sick when you are not is extremely played out. It is very easy to get written documentation proving that you visited a doctor, hospital, or whatever the case was, so it is very obvious who is being credible or not based on who gives proper proof. Personally, I think using excuses of deaths in the family when it is not true is disgraceful and not something to joke about. We are all adults here in college, and should all be able to be honest and responsible about showing up to class and doing classwork.
ReplyDeleteA lot of these excuses are valid reasons to miss class or request a postponement on an assignment, but all should require evidence. It's unreasonable to think that a professor should simply take the word of everyone that presents an excuse. By showing that you are telling the truth, one establishes a level of credibility and respect with the professor.
ReplyDeleteI find the excuses quite sad. Frankly, some of them I don't believe. A lot of them weren't able to bring a letter to show why they were absent when they had a funeral or had to travel.
ReplyDeleteWhen you're in college, you need to be in college, not keep on being absent. Of course, there are valid excuses why a student had to be absent, but they should show some sort of proof as to why they had to be absent. Professors take absences seriously. If there is no proper communication, and I mean truthful, it can have a big impact on your grade.
When I think of the term "credibility", I think of the actions and words people use when trying to justify what they are saying. Some of these exchanges just seemed liked excuses, lame excuses at that. Especially the one's when people claimed they had a funeral to go to, or they did not know they could get proof from a funeral home. Even with the excuse of someone suddenly dying, and they could not make class, why could assignements not be completed? Most of the time, students know ahead of time about all assignments they have throughout the semester, so there is no excuse to not hand it in.
ReplyDeleteI believe that things come up, I have a 2 plus hour commute when I was going to Brooklyn college full time, work full time, and have a almost 2 year old. Things do come up, and I do know I have had to miss class due to circumstances out of my control, but I always have assignments done ahead of times because even if you have to be absent, there is no excuse for you to have to ask for a postponement for assignments we have known about since opening our syllabus' the day we received them.
After reading the messages, and keeping the term credibility in mind, a lot of it seemed to be excuses delivered in a sugar coated way and because of that, the senders expected validation. There are times where unfortunate situations may occur in which we have no choice, but as an adult with responsibilties one should be prepared to do their ultimate best to work professionally through a situation. If a situation occured that could not be avoided, you should be able to present that to the professor and if it is not a lie, the professor should not have a reason to doubt the student. I learned through these messages that students should know what to expect out of a situation, if you send an email that proves no justification for the action you're trying to explain, make absolutely no sense, do not be surprised if the professor does not acknoweledge, or accept your "excuses".
ReplyDeleteIn order to be credible, one must be able to provide proof. I think that it is clear when people aren't telling the truth. The excuse "Death in the family" is the oldest excuse in the book. Although this has happened to me, I have been able to provide adequate proof, which has made my "excuse" credible. I don't think people realize the severity in which their lies will affect their overall grade. It does not only affect your grade for the assignments in which you missed, but it affects your participation grade as well. If you lie about why you missed an assignment, were late in handing in an assignment, then when something really does happen, where you need to be excused, the professor will not believe you. "The boy who cried wolf" is not the person you want to be known as.
ReplyDeleteTo be credible, one must first, at least, seem sincere. A few emails on that list did seem sincere, and I hope they were. But, most of those emails were obviously fake excuses. My favorite was the one that ended with "so you don't think I'm doing everything last minute." My grandmother passed away over this winter break, but if I had to miss any school, I definitely would have handled it differently and more professionally. Everybody grieves differently, but I think it doesn't take much to send a quick email to a professor instead of emailing at the last minute. The students that seemed to be telling the truth were the ones who wanted work in advance or who were sending the work regardless if they thought it would be graded or not.
ReplyDeleteMany of the excuses provided here are valid excuses to miss class, provided that you have documented proof of these tragic events. It is very easy to make up stories to tell to a professor just to slide your way out of the class without failing. The excuses that were invalid were the ones that were about vacation. A vacation is not really a valid reason to miss class or work. Even if the student claims their family planned the trip a year in advance, the student must have known they would probably be in school. The Death in the Family excuse is pretty old and should not be one that has to be questioned. Unfortunately people lie about these things and make others who are actually going through the hard time of dealing with a passing family member, go through the process of having to ask your family for death certificates to bring to school.
ReplyDeleteI had a grandparent pass away last spring towards the end of the semester and did not let my professors know last minute before finals. I had e-mailed all of them while I was in the hospital informing them of the situation and they had all given me make up dates. Of course I also provided proof when that time came. There really is no excuse to giving an excuse without any proof. Being truthful also shows your character and make you a more trustworthy person. While I had provided proof of the funeral most of the professors except for one had said that they did not require the documentation. If you are a person who constantly has excuses you may not get the same level of trustworthiness from a professor or employer, if any.
I completely agree with you Stephen, and am sorry for your loss. Losing a family member is something that is out of anyone's hands. One thing that we can control is the manner and professional way we inform our professor as well as provide proper documentation in a timely fashion. Without this requirement, people may start "killing off" family members left and right as an excuse for not doing an assignment or attending class.
DeleteWe are all human beings and we all experience situations and hardships that sometimes force us to miss classes. If the situation is real and not a lie to just be excused from class, a student should try to make the best possible arrangements in the matter. Last semester, I had to miss a few classes in September because I was 8 months pregnant and was set to be in labor at any moment since they were twins. I wanted to do the responsible action of informing all of my professors of my absence in advance. They were completely understanding. When I returned to school a few classes later, I provide my professors with proof from the hospital. We all go through tough experiences and may miss classes but it is our responsibility to be reasonable and always provide proof of our circumstances.
ReplyDeleteSome of the excuses people give are a little ridiculous. Although, we can definitely make a case that a portion of these excuses are credible, I believe that most of the excuses were made up. My personal favorite was the email where the student said he was traveling abroad and he "believes" that there might have been a wifi issue. Another email I enjoyed was the email where the student said he couldn't submit the assignment because his brother was leaving for basic training. What even is basic training and what does it have to do with your promptness on submitting your school assignments? On a more serious note, a student's credibility when they say someone in their family has passed away is a very controversial topic. It is a controversial topic because it is very difficult for a professor to be able to decipher if that student is telling the truth or not. It is horrible to pretend someone in your family died just because you missed an assignment, but that just goes to show the length some people will go to get a due date extension.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading all of these excuses people have made about missing class, I find it sad how almost everyone used sickness and death as an excuse. Sure, these things do happen but the professors can't just take your word for it since it is such a serious issue. In order for some to fully believe you, giving proof is the best way to go. But of course on the other side, sometimes people do get sick like a fever, or stomach virus, or flu, but an absent is still an absent an you just have to suck it up. I'm kind of conflicted because part of me wants to believe that those words are true and that they really do have emergencies because you can't really get proof of something like a fever or stomach virus unless you go to a doctor for and note. But the other part of me also wants to tell them to stop making excuses because it is just ridiculous. For example, the person that said he/she is going on a vacation/ traveling. Even though this is an online course, you are still in school. Who schedules a vacation for the middle of the school year anyway?
ReplyDeleteA lot of these excuses are the opposite of what credibility means. It means believable and they seemed like made up stories to get out of class or handing in work. Some students did have valid reasons, but of course wouldn’t be completely valid without actual proof. Obviously if they have documentation that they were sick or death in the family the professor should excuse it. If they are just sending an email stating they are sick with no doctors note that can not be proved that you were really sick. That would not be fair to the other students that ARE coming to class and handing in work on time.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the learnersdictionary.com, credibility is quality of being believed. After reading all of the emails of student that missed class or assignment I can say that not all of them were giving the best quality of truth. I was wondered that so many students choose death as their excuses. I hope that all of this is true but if not I do know how their conscience let them to use other people’s death in their lie. Good way for those people tis to show proof of their emergency if this is true. Part of me wants to believe that all of those deaths are true and part of me not.
ReplyDeleteCredibility in the professional world and beyond is really one of the most important qualities to have. Credibility does not come automatically - it is something that is earned over time. It is earned through honest and sincere exchanges as well as through being yourself at all times and not changing despite the circumstances. Credibility allows us to gain people's respect and willingness to engage in continued interaction with us. In the exchanges cited by the Professor, one thing that stands out is the lack of respect. We don't always have to agree but we must always respect each other's positions and through open communication, we can get through most issues.
ReplyDelete