to say i can't attend this meeting about DS2s attendance?

[velvetspoon]

Letter received Monday evening asking me to attend a meeting at 1pm on Thursday.

I can't take a day off work with 48 hours notice. And it would have to be a full day due to timing of the meeting.

I replied to that effect, and asked for another day with at least 7 days notice but got a very snippy reply back saying it was a serious matter, and such meetings were important, etc, etc...

Emails for all the subject teachers which are available with all reports and attendance - which is all online and only available on line.

Emails are sent directly to the teachers involved and often they reply with in hours.

This also proved very helpful yesterday as I had to send a letter from the hospital to dds head of year and could do so by email do it was done within an hour and sent to exam board. DDS teacher got in contact with me later in the afternoon but as I had emailed already had the answers yo the questions I had asked. This has always been the case, a school not using email as communication tool is lagging behind in 2015

We can email teachers directly too and view homework, attendance and behaviour records online. However not all teachers reply although I find complaining to the Head of year works!

DS1s school publish email addresses for all the teachers, and most stuff is done online, reports, exam grades, etc. DS can submit his homework by email. They also email me, and respond promptly to anything I send them. The teachers also give their extn no on messages so you can call them straight back.

DS2s school unfortunately isn't like that. You can't speak to anyone directly, just leave a message. I have got the head of years direct email, but the others are a closely guarded secret it seems! The school has my email address but never sends me anything,not even a newsletter.

LOL at the idea of parents knowing individual subject teachers' emails! I'm guessing you haven't ever worked in a school.

Guess again! I've worked in three different primary schools since 2002.

In my current school, parents are given teachers' school email addresses, but are warned that if any parent or carer sends an abusive email, they will be blocked from contacting any teacher by email and must go through the HT.

DC school have every teachers email on their website and teachers answer emails within a day

That means he is missing a day and a half in every two week period. Surely you can see that is too much time off school. It is your job as his mum to make him go.

Another one here who has all emails for teachers. Think it's starting to become fairly standard now. It's their preferred method of communication.

All teachers email addresses are accessible on the school website and even my DS can email them if need be.

Good luck with the meeting. Is it tomorrow?

Have you been able to get a list of dates?

The meeting has now taken place. It was very informal, and I wasn't asked to sign anything. The advisor basically just asked for the reasons for absences, I explained the ones I was aware of. She's made a note to only accept a sick report from me, and of my details. If DS is feeling ill, he's to come in but I will notify a specific teacher (whose contact details I now have for this purpose) who he's to go and see if he feels poorly, she will then find him a quiet place to work and contact me. I explained I leave before DS so don't know if he's left for school or not, which she accepted.

So far as they're concerned provided he shows an improvement next term that should be the end of it.

Presumably by doing that they will more easily be able to identify any issues of feigning illness to get out of certain lessons.

You would have to watch out for one problem being swapped gradually for another though. We have had issues with pupils having this arrangement and using it as an excuse to work in the nice relaxed library environment instead of the focussed work of a classroom. Or not "manning up" and expectig to go to the quiet place for something like a cold. They end up doing it far too often, not doing much work and sometimes just sitting off or falling asleep. It would have to only be used if the teacher suspected he really did have a bad headache. And they would have to monitor instances of use of the quiet space carefully.

Do they say what they will do if he continues simply not turning up for school even though you have verbally told him he has to go in?