Attendance, employability and learning technologies: are we getting it right?

This short paper discusses the possible detrimental effects of low attendance on the achievement of important learning outcomes, in terms of "soft" employability-enhancing skills among undergraduate students in Business Schools, and explores how the use of learning technologies may contribute to high or low class attendance levels. The paper describes the exploratory results of a survey carried out among final year bachelor students attending a strategic management course, the findings of which suggest that a significant number of students view virtual learning environments as a substitute for lectures. Only very limited evidence is found that such students actually attend classes less than other students. It is found that reasons for non-attendance are similar to those reported in existing literature.