Excuse Letter

From time to time a student would come and tell me that they have an excuse letter to miss class to attend some program. Usually I don’t think much about it; extra-curricular activities are important. Besides, university students are supposed to be considered adults who know what they are doing. And I appreciate the courtesy of the heads-up.

“Sir, I have an excuse letter for next class.”
“Wow, you do? Awesome!”
“Huh?”
“What is it for?”
“I am in the committee for the [whatever] program next week.”
“What do you do, in this committee?”
“I’m in the committee, lah.”

However, sometimes a student would come and tell me that they have a forthcoming excuse letter to miss a quiz I just announced. Now, that is *annoying*.

As full-time students, part of their full-time ‘job’ is to attend classes. Even when they are no longer directly held responsible for it, class attendance is still compulsory. There are of course exceptions like family and medical emergencies, court appointments, etc. but having an excuse letter does not automatically and necessarily mean that one is excused.

Often the so-called excuse letter isn’t really an excuse letter at all. They just state that some programs are being organized at some dates, with a list of names attached; nothing at all in the letters about how the listed names are involved and asked to be excused. What am I suppose to do with them, wrap fried bananas? And the students often never even bother to highlight their names. They always assume I know who each and every one of them is.

You want to skip class to visit an orphanage, help organize an event, welcome a big shot VIP, or even watch an elephant dance? Go ahead, go crazy. Excuse letter or no excuse letter doesn’t really matter to me. Just don’t ask me to reschedule a quiz or otherwise bend over backwards to accommodate your personal day off.

“Sir, I cannot sit for the quiz on Monday. I will have an excuse letter.”
“Huh?”
“I will be away for a musical theatre till Wednesday...”
“Huh?”
“... so, can you arrange for me to take the quiz later? I promise I won’t ask the others; I don’t think they’d tell me anyway.”