generic email from school - could apply to either sibling

[Hrafnkel]

I received a generic email obviously sent to several (20ish) email accounts. Your child has been nominated for something, please come to an assembly on Friday.

I'd already mentioned it to older dd and praised her up, when it occurred to me that it might be dd2. I didn't think of dd2 straightaway as she is in year r so wasn't sure if they were doing the same stuff with them.

I emailed to clarify, pointing out that naming the child where there are sibs is pretty important. The response was that 20 emails take too long to personalise.

Aibu in thinking that it should be personalised to avoid confusion? I could have waited until the assembly tomorrow, I know, but since dd1 hasn't got a lot of individual recognition from the school, it's something I like to praise her for in advance.

YANBU.

I know the staff are busy and it takes more time to personalise e-mails (although you wouldn't think that much time for 20 e-mails, especially if they cut corners by saying your Year R/1/2/etc child), but surely if there's a lot of siblings in the school, they're just creating more work for themselves by putting themselves in a situation where parents are contacting the school and asking "but which of my children is this e-mail about?"

Our school didn't even bother to email us. Annoyed me so much. I couldn't always get to assemblies and repeatedly missed mine getting awards because no bastard saw fit to warn me! They knew a week in advance but never told the kids.

It's just a bloody mail merge - hardly the most complicated of Word tasks.

Of course it's important to know which child it's regarding, they're only making work for themselves by not telling you so that you have to ask, vs. 2 more minutes putting the name on.

Actually thats rubbish.

How do they manage to differentiate between classes on school trips and other important emails.

YADNBU

That's crap of the school. Sorry but their job is to educate each child and sometimes that means sending emails about individual children not children generically. We've all got lots to do - that doesn't give me an excuse to email my clients generically about things that apply to some of them specifically because I'm too busy to take the time to differentiate.

I know some schools fight shy of this comparison - but this school really needs a different attitude.

I've had similar, a generic text saying 'your child has had first aid today for a minor head bump' fine and dandy but I have 3 children at the school. None of whom thought they'd received a head injury that day! On closer questioning, the eldest had taken a rugby ball to the shoulder/chin so I deemed it to be her. Adding a name would have helped greatly

YANBU

There are lots of school communications which don't need to be personalised - nit letters and so on - as they apply to all children.

This one is about specific children so it DOES need to make it clear which child it is.

I really don't think that's a big ask.

Although, YWB a bit U in praising straight off before thinking it could be either...

YANBU. My school does this with texts. I have 3 dcs at the school. 'Please ensure your child has PE kit in school on Friday' 'Please send empty boxes in with your child for art'. If they would at least put the class it would help.

It would be helpful to at least include a class - most of ours go "Dear KS1 parents, blah" or "Class Y3XX will be doing blah, please bring xyz"

Then there's the ones that say "Please bring your child in PE kit tomorrow for Sports Day", so as nursery child doesn't have PE kit, supply older child in PE kit.
Next day you could tell all the kids in his year with younger siblings as it was supposed to be Early Years only. Fortunately the staff didn't mind. Better than the end-of-term show where only a few parents/childminders etc attended as the message to parents to supply costume and see the show never got sent at all!

I wish you could just give a generic permission for everything the school wants to do. In 7 years I have never actually wanted to say no to anything.

Why is it when someone dares to call a school or teacher on something they immediately get jumped on with shouts of how busy they are etc?! It really gets on nerves! Like those of us who don't work in a school or as a teacher, wouldn't have a clue because we couldn't possibly be as busy!!
I agree with you OP. I've had the same, texts from school about "your child". Knowing which one would be extremely helpful!!
Wind your neck in teachers and school workers, you've got 6 weeks off coming up!!

Even if you don't mail merge - it'd be just as easy to say "your Y4 child" and less work from parents with siblings at school.

Ocelot, I agree, which is one reason why I didn't say I was a teacher in the op

I fully accept that had I praised the wrong daughter and inadvertently upset her by assuming the wrong 'winner' it would have been completely my fault.

OP - YABU. It wouldn't matter which of your kids it was - you'd go, right?

Imagine one of the sibs being off school ill one the day of the assembly. By knowing which child it was, you'd know whether to try and arrange emergency care so you could go to the assembly, or not. There are any number of reasons why it's important to know which child the email refers to.

I found primary school often assumed that parents (usually mums) had unlimited free time to sort stuff out with the school, or to attend assemblies, etc. When in actual fact, I had to take time off to do anything in the daytime, so knowing which child, or having the right details was important.

yanbu - DS school uses Parentmail which puts the name of the child in the subject so its not something difficult to implement.

It's quick and simple to mail merge and would save parents contacting the school to check which child it is, which in turn creates more work for school.

Could it be data protection possibly?? Ordinary emails are not secure.

YANBU

How do you know it was sent to 20 emails? The school should not be showing email addresses, it should have been sent with addresses in the bcc field - breach of data protection.

Texts for each of my children come from a different number. High School but only one year apart. So I've beamed each number per child. It's fine. I agree that OPs scenario is frustrating, but I wouldn't expect 20 individual texts. This is a case where a note home with the applicable child would have been better.

Could it be a class assembly type thing? In which case, it's not too hard to have email groups for each class so you would get the email along the lines of 'your child from X class has been chosen'.

Can you work it out from the surnames of other recipients in the email? (all supposing you got a group mail and they didn't send out 20 individual ones)

creampastry Because the school told her when she contacted them that '20 emails take too long to personalise' so they told her they'd sent 20. 😊

Another teacher complaining about schools. Seems to be a rash of them

Do you do the admin. at your school, OP?