Case 2: Oversleeping

Class Absence Excuse Discussion, ECE400, Spring 2012

A student missed a lecture because he overslept. He asks for his absence to be excused. He confides that he had to stay up all night because the child of his girlfriend was in the hospital all night, and he had to be there for moral support. When he finally came home at 8am, after the child's condition finally stabilized, he was totally exhausted and fell asleep.

• Shicheng Guo, Response
  • I would ask that the student brings a copy of any hospital documentation. Although this is a very good reason to skip class, it's simply too easy to make up without proof.
    • Unfortunately, privacy concerns prevent an instructor from demanding such documentation. -pm

• Artyom Melanich, Response
  • Include oversleeping into the policy and zero tolerance no matter what. Therefore, If it was there I would say that I can't give you your attendance point back. This is the only choice for you or at least if he notifies you through the email in advance saying that he was in a hospital and that child was sick or anything what will be strong enough to proof his innocence.

• Cody Cusic, Response
  • The student should have some official record to prove that they were at the hospital that night with the check in and check out times listed. The reason that they were there should not have to be listed as it could possibly want to be kept confidential. This could just be a photo-copy of the official document, as the original would not be necessary.

• Seth Strege, Response
  • In everyday situations, I would not classify oversleeping as a valid excuse to miss class. However, in this case, if the story is actually true then I would accept it as a valid excuse. Since privacy concerns prevent an instructor from demanding proof of documentation, I would give the student a bonus opportunity to make up for the missed class.

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