High schools have logos, mascots, school colors, and the like. Putting the school’s logo on the sign-in sheet for that school might help students avoid signing the wrong one.
Students could use some other means to authenticate their attendance to their teacher — such as taking a selfie at the lecture (with the date on a piece of paper) and sending it to their teacher. Doesn’t work for all students, though — not everyone can afford a phone.
Take a big group picture of the students in attendance and mail the picture to the teachers; let the teachers work it out. “Everyone who wants credit, stand up by the whiteboard with your classmates.”
The late arrivals problem could be fixed by having the sign-in before the lecture. “If you would like to receive extra credit, you must show up 10 minutes early. If you don’t, you will not get extra credit.”
Hand out index cards (a different color each month) at the entrance. Each student who wants credit puts his or her name, school, and teacher’s name on the card, then at the end of the lecture puts it in a box at the exit. (If there are several exits, have several boxes. If you’re worried about box tampering, station a host at each exit if you have enough hosts. And yes, you have to bin the cards by school and teacher afterward.)
If the students have class the next day, stamp their hands with a hand-stamp with long-lasting ink. Then they just show up to class the next day and show the teacher they got the stamp.
Enlist one trustworthy student from each class to report their classmates’ attendance.
Hand out index cards (a different color each month) at the entrance. Each student who wants credit puts his or her name, school, and teacher’s name on the card, then at the end of the lecture puts it in a box at the exit. (If there are several exits, have several boxes. If you’re worried about box tampering, station a host at each exit if you have enough hosts. And yes, you have to bin the cards by school and teacher afterward.)
This is, indeed, essentially the solution I had considered myself. I feel as though I still like it the best even after giving due consideration to your long list of ideas, which did include several ideas I had not thought of. (For instance, I really like the stamp idea; unfortunately our lectures are Saturday mornings at 10 a.m.) I like the cards because they penalize both late arrival and early departure. (Whereas putting the sign-up before the talk only reverses the problem.) And it makes it challenging to slip in the names of students who are not in attendance, because each student receives only one card.
Some issues and possible solutions, for further consideration:
Students will not know what to do with an index card handed to them at the door.
Possible solution: Use preprinted slips with labeled blanks for name, teacher, and school rather than blank cards.
Possible solution: Large instructions on the board indicating what to do.
Many students will not have a pen or pencil.
Possible solution: A box of 144 golf pencils looks to be very cheap.
It is more inconvenient to photocopy the attendance records before mailing them back when the names are all on individual cards.
Anyone who leaves the room and comes back in again (e.g. to go to the bathroom) before the lecture starts can get a second card.
And two things which are not problems individually, but are sort of tricky in combination:
There’s an obvious exploit if the cards are identical every month. This is the reason you suggested different colors.
Requires a sufficient surplus of cards that we don’t run out if attendance one month is much higher than average.
Not a problem by itself, but combined with the necessity of making them different every month, this leads to a lot of waste, since last month’s leftovers can’t be reused.
There’s an obvious exploit if the cards are identical every month. This is the reason you suggested different colors.
Requires a sufficient surplus of cards that we don’t run out if attendance one month is much higher than average.
Not a problem by itself, but combined with the necessity of making them different every month, this leads to a lot of waste, since last month’s leftovers can’t be reused.
After thinking about this problem a while, I thought of the following idea. Instead of making the cards unique every month, simply number the cards consecutively. When handing them out each month, take note of the number of the first card handed out and the last. Then if there are any suspicions of fraud, we can check quite simply that there are no duplicate or errant numbers on the cards we got back.
Anyone who leaves the room and comes back in again (e.g. to go to the bathroom) before the lecture starts can get a second card.
Possible solution: Hand out the cards as the students enter the building, rather than as they enter the lecture hall. (Easy in this case because the lectures are on a weekend and the building doors are locked except the one we open.)
Some thoughts —
High schools have logos, mascots, school colors, and the like. Putting the school’s logo on the sign-in sheet for that school might help students avoid signing the wrong one.
Students could use some other means to authenticate their attendance to their teacher — such as taking a selfie at the lecture (with the date on a piece of paper) and sending it to their teacher. Doesn’t work for all students, though — not everyone can afford a phone.
Take a big group picture of the students in attendance and mail the picture to the teachers; let the teachers work it out. “Everyone who wants credit, stand up by the whiteboard with your classmates.”
The late arrivals problem could be fixed by having the sign-in before the lecture. “If you would like to receive extra credit, you must show up 10 minutes early. If you don’t, you will not get extra credit.”
Hand out index cards (a different color each month) at the entrance. Each student who wants credit puts his or her name, school, and teacher’s name on the card, then at the end of the lecture puts it in a box at the exit. (If there are several exits, have several boxes. If you’re worried about box tampering, station a host at each exit if you have enough hosts. And yes, you have to bin the cards by school and teacher afterward.)
If the students have class the next day, stamp their hands with a hand-stamp with long-lasting ink. Then they just show up to class the next day and show the teacher they got the stamp.
Enlist one trustworthy student from each class to report their classmates’ attendance.
This is, indeed, essentially the solution I had considered myself. I feel as though I still like it the best even after giving due consideration to your long list of ideas, which did include several ideas I had not thought of. (For instance, I really like the stamp idea; unfortunately our lectures are Saturday mornings at 10 a.m.) I like the cards because they penalize both late arrival and early departure. (Whereas putting the sign-up before the talk only reverses the problem.) And it makes it challenging to slip in the names of students who are not in attendance, because each student receives only one card.
Some issues and possible solutions, for further consideration:
Students will not know what to do with an index card handed to them at the door.
Possible solution: Use preprinted slips with labeled blanks for name, teacher, and school rather than blank cards.
Possible solution: Large instructions on the board indicating what to do.
Many students will not have a pen or pencil.
Possible solution: A box of 144 golf pencils looks to be very cheap.
It is more inconvenient to photocopy the attendance records before mailing them back when the names are all on individual cards.
Anyone who leaves the room and comes back in again (e.g. to go to the bathroom) before the lecture starts can get a second card.
And two things which are not problems individually, but are sort of tricky in combination:
There’s an obvious exploit if the cards are identical every month. This is the reason you suggested different colors.
Requires a sufficient surplus of cards that we don’t run out if attendance one month is much higher than average.
Not a problem by itself, but combined with the necessity of making them different every month, this leads to a lot of waste, since last month’s leftovers can’t be reused.
After thinking about this problem a while, I thought of the following idea. Instead of making the cards unique every month, simply number the cards consecutively. When handing them out each month, take note of the number of the first card handed out and the last. Then if there are any suspicions of fraud, we can check quite simply that there are no duplicate or errant numbers on the cards we got back.
Possible solution: Hand out the cards as the students enter the building, rather than as they enter the lecture hall. (Easy in this case because the lectures are on a weekend and the building doors are locked except the one we open.)