How much unresponsiveness to email do you tolerate?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How frequently do you email the teacher?

OP here. I do not email excessively. I find it odd that when I contact her about a logistical matter with DC's schedule I often receive a message back quickly with a comment or two. When I have emailed about therapy services or curriculum I am getting no reply.

Why would you email a classroom teacher about therapy services? Curriculum question should be discussed at parent teacher conferences or directed to the principal.

Sounds like she is answering those things that are straightforward / within her control quickly. The answers to the other sort of questions you describe are probably more complex and require coordinating with other people. IMO if you are emailing more than 2-3 times per month it is probably excessive.

I find that where I e-mail a teacher, counselor or other school personnel about things they deal with, I get quick answers. If I inadvertently ask the wrong person, the e-mail gets forwarded and might end up on no one's radar. So, I agree with PP - make sure you are asking the question to the right person. If I am not sure, I will usually put a few people on the e-mail, including the principal, so that it gets to the right person. But, really, only occasionally do I not get a response and when I follow up, I usually am told they forgot. We're all human so I'm ok with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Less than 10 kids in my DC's class and I'm getting so tired of his teacher not responding to emails. She never works off the clock. Emails are sent only during her planning period or at the end of the day if at all. I've sent a few--direct questions--that have been totally ignored. School has in general been resistant to putting a communication plan in the IEP. She is always super friendly to your face.

You know she may be traveling for the holidays right now, correct? It is almost Christmas.

I am floored repeatedly at emails from my students and their parents over breaks, and the sense of entitlement. For example, I had a mom come ask me on the last day of school before break, "Will you be available to email and check Larlo's college essays over the break?" She seemed very miffed when I said that no, actually I am not able to do this over Christmas break. Yesterday the family emailed me three long college app essays anyway, asking me to "please look over these as soon as possible because we need to wrap up the application process before we go skiing for New Year's." I'm not even a guidance counselor, just one of his teachers.

Your child's teachers have families and obligations over the holidays, too, OP. Does YOUR boss email you the day before Christmas, asking you to do something that he should/could have asked you about weeks ago?

[Anonymous]

I wait two days, then resend with SECOND REQUEST added to the subject line. If no response for a week (earlier if it is time sensitive), I resend a third time ccing their supervisor and put THIRD REQUEST in the subject line. The third has always been responded to within the day.

[Anonymous]

For all the teachers on her quick to judge--the lack of response has been a pattern and the most recent email was sent early this week with break not starting till yesterday. Of course I don't expect a response during Xmas vacation. I've been waiting 5 days to get her opinion on an issue about my child that is directly related to school. So sick of this. Last year we had a teacher who was great with email. I really think she's just collecting a check.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For all the teachers on her quick to judge--the lack of response has been a pattern and the most recent email was sent early this week with break not starting till yesterday. Of course I don't expect a response during Xmas vacation. I've been waiting 5 days to get her opinion on an issue about my child that is directly related to school. So sick of this. Last year we had a teacher who was great with email. I really think she's just collecting a check.

Request a meeting after the break then. But it sounds like your expectations are a bit out of whack.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For all the teachers on her quick to judge--the lack of response has been a pattern and the most recent email was sent early this week with break not starting till yesterday. Of course I don't expect a response during Xmas vacation. I've been waiting 5 days to get her opinion on an issue about my child that is directly related to school. So sick of this. Last year we had a teacher who was great with email. I really think she's just collecting a check.

Request a meeting after the break then. But it sounds like your expectations are a bit out of whack.

NP. No acknowledgement of receipt after 5 days is unacceptable. While the teacher may not have an answer within 24 hours, receipt of emails should be acknowledged within 24 hours. If that is not the expectation of the school, that needs to made clear to parents up front.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For all the teachers on her quick to judge--the lack of response has been a pattern and the most recent email was sent early this week with break not starting till yesterday. Of course I don't expect a response during Xmas vacation. I've been waiting 5 days to get her opinion on an issue about my child that is directly related to school. So sick of this. Last year we had a teacher who was great with email. I really think she's just collecting a check.

Unless the opinion is about a very discreet issue and can be conveyed in three sentences or less, you should be requesting a phone call to discuss the matter.
Writing an opinion sounds like a potentially time consuming task.

[Anonymous]

The policy is that a teacher has 48 hours to respond to an email. It is unrealistic to expect a busy teacher with 10 special needs students who require all of her time and attention to be posted up on email all day. She has IEP meetings, staff meetings, trainings, and ho hum a personal life to attend to. Your child is not the only child in her class. I say take a breath and give her the time she needs to respond to you in the best manner. Next you will be complaining that her emails were terse and impersonal. Please, give her a moment to collect her thoughts.

[Anonymous]

It really depends on the type of email.

[Anonymous]

I think it's interesting to see the teacher responses. Here. The OP has made it clear she did not email over break. She does not email often. Automatically some people on here got defensive and shared stories of parent entitlement that are not comparable to OPs email. If you are forwarding an email, just email OP and say "I'm forwarding this to Ms. Larla who is the best person to answer."

You can avoid so many problems with prompt and professional communication. OP is not asking anyone to email over Christmas Break or stay up late emailing. Just reply with a business day or 2.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's interesting to see the teacher responses. Here. The OP has made it clear she did not email over break. She does not email often. Automatically some people on here got defensive and shared stories of parent entitlement that are not comparable to OPs email. If you are forwarding an email, just email OP and say "I'm forwarding this to Ms. Larla who is the best person to answer."

You can avoid so many problems with prompt and professional communication. OP is not asking anyone to email over Christmas Break or stay up late emailing. Just reply with a business day or 2.

I am not a teacher but so many of you sound like unhinged demanding nightmares. It's so OTT that it kind of boggles the mind

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CC'ing the principal after only 24 hours is kind of intense

And makes you look like a whack job. It might be wrong- but we laugh about parents like you.

[Anonymous]

I usually get an immediate response whenever I text my kid's Sp Ed teacher who is also his case manager about anything including stuff like I'll be late picking DS up so he needs to go to aftercare.

If a matter is not urgent, I email but I've never had to wait longer than the next business day for a response if I email after school hours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's interesting to see the teacher responses. Here. The OP has made it clear she did not email over break. She does not email often. Automatically some people on here got defensive and shared stories of parent entitlement that are not comparable to OPs email. If you are forwarding an email, just email OP and say "I'm forwarding this to Ms. Larla who is the best person to answer."

You can avoid so many problems with prompt and professional communication. OP is not asking anyone to email over Christmas Break or stay up late emailing. Just reply with a business day or 2.

+1, and this is the SN board. Not all of our kids can effectively communicate what is going on at school or what is expected of them. We get random stuff home in the backpack with no directions. (I now just choose not to do them if I don't know what they are for). Our teacher generally replies but often doesn't answer the question which makes it very difficult. This isn't about college essay's, this is about basic communication about your child's needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Less than 10 kids in my DC's class and I'm getting so tired of his teacher not responding to emails. She never works off the clock. Emails are sent only during her planning period or at the end of the day if at all. I've sent a few--direct questions--that have been totally ignored. School has in general been resistant to putting a communication plan in the IEP. She is always super friendly to your face.

You know she may be traveling for the holidays right now, correct? It is almost Christmas.

I am floored repeatedly at emails from my students and their parents over breaks, and the sense of entitlement. For example, I had a mom come ask me on the last day of school before break, "Will you be available to email and check Larlo's college essays over the break?" She seemed very miffed when I said that no, actually I am not able to do this over Christmas break. Yesterday the family emailed me three long college app essays anyway, asking me to "please look over these as soon as possible because we need to wrap up the application process before we go skiing for New Year's." I'm not even a guidance counselor, just one of his teachers.

Your child's teachers have families and obligations over the holidays, too, OP. Does YOUR boss email you the day before Christmas, asking you to do something that he should/could have asked you about weeks ago?

Yes, my old boss would do that to set me up to fail. I always made sure to check my email and usually stayed late before the holidays and often worked the holidays while she was at home with her kids. I say old boss as she wouldn't be even remotely flexible so I could get my child to his therapies and I had no option but to quit. Working is a luxury many of us on this board don't have due to our kids needs.