Recent instruction from the district forces teachers to adopt new attendance policy

Recent instruction from the district forces teachers to take more time away from their classesIn an email that Dr. Shelton forwarded to the Samo teachers, the district explained that attendance should now be taken and submitted electronically within the first 15 minutes of each period.Until now, teachers were given the whole school day to submit their attendance sheets. But upon the district’s demand, they will now be documenting it each period via computer. And considering the increase in frequency, it will also increase the time and effort the teachers put in each day. Ceramics teacher Laurie Ann Gutierrez explained that taking attendance can be time-consuming and it is unfortunate to lose instructional minutes due to logging in tardies. “It’s not easy taking attendance because there are so many kids who walk in late, and I don’t want to have to stop the class,” Gutierrez said. On the other hand, Gutierrez, along with other Samo teachers, are willing to abide with the policy if it is state-mandated. “Attendance is a legal requirement and one of the main priorities of a teacher is to take attendance,” Gutierrez said. “I want to do my part as a teacher on this campus but I would like some clarification first.”Being a large school, Samo is susceptible to attendance inconsistencies. English teacher Marla Schwartz sees why the district finds the new system more effective, but notes that it comes with a strain. “I understand the policy but it’s difficult to comply with,” Schwartz said. “I do my best to put it in, but things come up and it’s hard to do every single period.”Since the district is responsible for the students during the hours they are in school, the new policy would presumably reduce the chance of mistakes. At this point, the teachers are trying to adjust and accurately report the attendance of their students. “Once the students come in, they work on what they’re supposed to be doing while I take attendance. So that gives me about five minutes to put the attendance in,” Schwartz said. Technology is usually supposed to reduce the amount of work done by individuals. Paradoxically, in this situation, the technology has created more. It is possible that in the future, technology could greatly improve the way attendance is taken, as well as the accuracy. For now, teachers will be submitting it electronically at the start of each period.