Engineering Students’ Performance in Communication Skills Classes: Does Attendance Really Matter?

Abstract

Compulsory attendance in communication skills classes offered at colleges of engineering seems to be a problematic issue for many students because it prevents them from performing well in such courses. Many students believe that time spent on these classes comes at the expense of focusing on core courses and worsens their overall performance in these courses. As such, the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between attendance and students’ overall performance in communication skills classes for the sake of providing suggestions that would enhance students’ performance as well as allowing them to allocate more time to the core courses they are enrolled in. Making students’ life easier would not only improve their status at the educational level but would also create a feeling of comfort and satisfaction in their surroundings, particularly among family members and friends. Participants in the study are university students enrolled in the college of engineering at a Middle Eastern university. The study yields significant results showing that compulsory attendance has no significant relationship with students’ overall performance in communication skills classes. Relaxing attendance regulations might provide some margin of freedom for students to focus more on the core courses while still performing well in communication skills classes. The researcher makes significant recommendations to help stakeholders encourage students to value and perform well in communication skills classes while addressing any concerns they might have regarding the core courses they are enrolled in.