The shrill bell that rings before first period is enough to make any student cringe. The blaring noise can only mean one thing; the start of another monotonous day at school. For 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, students face confinement inside of school walls with little chance of escape until the final class of the day is released.

Although many students say they would rather be anywhere besides school, attendance is crucial. As little as one missed period can lead to extra hours of homework that all pile up.

“Unless you’re learning stuff by yourself or your teacher is a vegetable, you’re not going to learn the stuff yourself, especially for AP classes,” junior Kevin Zhang said.

Students must abide by the 10/20 rule. Miami-Dade Country states that students should have no more than 10 absences and 20 unexcused tardies per semester. Failure to abide by these rules gives teachers the right to withhold students’ grades.

“I think [the rule] is pretty generous considering you’re missing school,” junior Alexandra Sklavounos said.

The administration constantly reminds students of the importance of attendance, especially with more rigorous courses. Subject matter taught while students miss class creates problems not only for students, but teachers as well. When students are absent, teachers must backtrack to reteach any lessons missed.

“You have to be in the building in order to learn. Teacher and student accountability at this site is imperative to enforce the attendance policy,” said assistant principal Ms. Bridgette Tate. “When kids are absent they have to make up work and teachers take up time because teachers have to explain what they missed.”

Certain reasons allow students to receive excused admits from the attendance office. The lengthy wait before school or during lunch to obtain a pass convinces many students not to miss school. Teachers have the right to refuse students from makeup work, tests or quizzes if they don’t get their absence excused.

“Since every class is everyday,” sophomore Kayla Springmyer said. “If you’re not in class for one day, you miss a whole lesson.”