Examining Factors Affecting Classroom Attendance and Performance

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between four class attitudinal variables and how it affects class attendance and performance. A questionnaire was administered to 134 undergraduate students at medium sized college in Taiwan. The data included questions about the participant’s rating of the level of difficulty of the course (Difficulty), the topics covered in the course (Topics), their motivation towards attending the course (Motivation), and whether or not the participants felt that the course is practical and useful to their future (Practicality). The results of the Pearson correlation coefficients showed that 4 out of the 15 correlations were statistically significant. The negative correlation found between motivation and topics; and practicality and topics suggest the attitude that when choosing courses, students tend to choose courses that they think would easy to pass. The finding that none of the variables were significantly correlated to course attendance and course performance suggests that the strongest predictor of success of a course is based on the student’s level of attendance. This lead to the discussion in the conclusion about pedagogical implications for what teachers can do in their classrooms.