"There is definitely a problem of studentapathy... There is a whole restructuring whichneeds to be done," DeFalco said.
Parker's committee felt giving more muscle tothe attendance policy would help reverse the"alienation."
Students countered that this would simply givemore arbitrary power to instructors.
Jake B. Zimmerman, a first-year law student,expressed his dismay at the proposal.
"I'm completely opposed," he said. "I think itdemonstrates an utter lack of respect for studentsand is an example of Harvard's paternalism at itsbest."
Raj K. Goyle, another first-year law student,argued the proposal was merely a "thinly veiledattempt to remove the warning requirement."
"All the talk about culture is valid, but it'snot germane to this proposal," he said.
Several students referred to a survey ofstudents at the Law School which claimed 89percent opposition to the proposal. Parker notedthat only 15 percent of students had participatedin the survey.
The only student support seemed to come fromthe committee.
"It's a student's responsibility to attendclass... [The proposal] is fairly liberal," saidDavid Stringer, a second-year law student servingon the committee.
Law School Registrar Steve Kane voiced anotherconcern.
"Students disappear," he said. "This concernsme because of the pressures people are dealingwith. If a student is not attending, we need toknow if that student is okay."
To help combat the perceived apathy at the LawSchool, the committee has created a system forstudent feedback and teaching assistants.
Parker said his committee found their proposedattendance policy "is in the mainstream,"comparing it to those of the law schools atStanford, the Universities of Chicago,Pennsylvania and of California at Berkeley.
But according to Zena K. Shaffer, registrar atthe Yale Law School, there is no attendance policyfor Yale Law classes. "We just assume everyonegoes to class," said Shaffer. "We don't takeattendance in classes."
As yet, the new rule is only a proposal. Thefaculty are expected to discuss the issue in theirmeeting this afternoon. If the proposal passes, itwill go into effect next fall