A school has come up with a novel way to capture true class attendance by photographing every lesson as proof, Yangtze Evening Post reported.

The School of Arts of Nanjing Normal University has adopted the new method on Feb 22 to monitor students' attendance by photography and use it as part of a student's final scoring criteria, the paper said.

A student takes a 360 degree panoramic photo of a classroom at Nanjing Normal University. [File photo/Yangtze Evening Post]

According to the new rule, a 360 degree panoramic photo of a classroom will be taken before a class begins instead of calling students names one by one.

"Taking pictures is much faster than calling their names", said Zhang Peng, a teacher with the School of Arts who first came up with the idea.

Some students and teachers believe the method is an inappropriate way to prevent students from skipping classes, the paper said.

"A good lecture will attract students easily and you do not need to check attendance," a student said.

"There will be less absence if a teacher can provide more helpful and interesting classes," a teacher told the paper.