Universities Are Digitally Tracking Students By Allie Townsend | @allie_townsend | August 31, 2010 | + Tweet Getty Images First School Day For Higher Education: ? Paper, Pencils, Tracking Device. Concerned with low attendance among university students, some universities have turned to electronic attendance programs – digitally tracking when and if students enter their classrooms. Northern Arizona University recently received $85,000 to fund a new tracking initiative which revolves around a series of scanners stationed outside auditoriums. According to NPR, the student must scan their ID card to be marked present for the day, effectively replacing a chorus of yawning "here's" with a hail of chirpy beeps. (See pictures of homeschoolers.) But all this robotic roll call is well-founded, NAU administrators say. According to research, even missing one lower-level class can lower a first-year student's GPA – and because 3 out of 10 college freshmen end up dropping out, many colleges are tightening attendance policies. But these high school - like strategies have some critics speaking out against universities that try to keep such a close grip on their students. "Instead of focusing on 'did the student go?' " says Linda DeAngelo from the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA, "the more important thing to think about is what are they doing in class, are they engaged?" Now, coming to class might help ensure you'll graduate on time. Related Topics Articles: [Links provided in the original query]