In one experiment, students were given the choice to make their own attendance mandatory. Contradicting common faculty beliefs, 90% of students in the initial study chose to do so, committing themselves to attending class reliably or to having their final grades docked.

Under this “optional-mandatory attendance” policy, students came to class more reliably than students whose attendance had been mandated.

The pattern has held true. In additional studies across five classes that included 60–200 students, 73%–95% opted for mandatory attendance, and at most 10% regretted their decision by the semester’s end.

Why Greater Autonomy Improves Student Attendance

“Like Ulysses, students know they will face significant temptations. By making their attendance mandatory, they exercise self-control over their future behavior,” says first author Simon Cullen, assistant professor in the philosophy department at Carnegie Mellon University.

“We are born curious, and we naturally enjoy mastering many challenging learning tasks, but controlling course policies like mandatory attendance can undermine that motivation.”

According to Cullen, the findings challenge widely held beliefs about student behavior. He continues that many educators worry that given the choice, students would opt for the easiest path possible. However, this study paints a starkly different picture.

“Anytime in a class that you give freedom to choose, you give students the feeling of control over their education,” says Danny Oppenheimer, a professor in the social and decision sciences and psychology departments and coauthor of the article. “It puts the learning in the students’ hands and increases their motivation.”

Keeping College Students Motivated

A second experiment indicated that when given the option to switch to an easier homework stream at any time before midterms, 85%–90% of students chose to tackle the more challenging work.

The “optional-mandatory homework” policy led students to spend more time on their assignments and to learn more over the semester compared to students who were compelled to complete the same work. Cullen gauged the improved understanding of the material by examining how well students did on the problem sets throughout the semester.

Read the full article about improving student attendance by Stacy Kish at Futurity.