I require attendance. Attendance is helpful to you and to everyone else because my classes are oriented around discussion of the readings. Given class sizes, though, it’s not always possible for me to take roll. However, I will likely pass around a sign-in sheet whenever class attendance drops too low, and I will use these sheets to gauge your overall attendance for the semester. Don’t get caught napping!
I require attendance for good reason – those who come to class grasp the material better and are able to engage the class on a much higher level. In fact, the few semesters I took attendance I found that grades and attendance were highly correlated (around .81).
NOTE: If you are going to miss a class, THERE IS NO NEED TO LET ME KNOW. I don’t excuse absences, and there’s no reason to draw attention to the fact you’ll be missing class. Tests are different though, so see my policy on late papers and missed tests (in another post).