Stupid rule about sending school an email

[Winebomb]

So preparing to write an email to my sons school about snack times (see my other thread) but just remembered we got a newsletter the first week of school stating:

"If you want to email the class teacher it must be sent between the hours of 8am and 5pm, any emails sent outside of this time will not be responded to"

Now I get there are some parents who are batshit, and think that if they email the teacher at 11pm they will have a response personally at the school gates the following morning, when they drop off their precious little snow flakes.

But isn't sending emails like writing a letter. I will write it at a convienient time, it may have been written at 11pm at night. But I am not batshit and expect it to be read either the next working day or at least the next working day afterwards after it's been delivered.

I work in the private sector and receive/send loads of emails post 5pm, and the same rules apply. Who are these parents who are just being bonkers???

All I can think of is writing my email and timing it in Outlook to be sent within the allotted time. But it just seems pointless.

Sorry probably answered my own AIBU and this is turning into more of a rant! But really!?!? Who are these people...

I honestly do! Ffs I once started a thread complaining about parents who stated that their kids are more important than everyone else in the universe. But I can still expect a response to an email from my dds school headteacher . The time it takes will be determined by things out of my control.

I agree @TheFallenMadonna - the timings do sound like they are implying that if you email within these times you will get a response pretty much immediately.

You have a magical way of agreeing with me while appearing to disagree Peng

I don't need to convince you of anything so I will stop.

That does sound bonkers. There is such an easy to set up automatic reply to tell people that emails will be responded to during normal office hours. Maybe the letter was simply badly worded?

Otherwise, just save the email in draft and send it during normal office hours. Simples.

I have notifications switched off so that's not my issue. My issue is logging on to school email at 9pm to do a couple of hours of planning, only to find ten emails from parents. Just seeing them induces anxiety for some teachers, particularly if you know it is a nasty parent and it won't make for pleasant reading or will get personal.

I had five emails today. And since several posters have asked what parents email about I'll tell you :

1. My child left their coat on the field why didn't you let them get it after lunch (I didn't know).

1. My child put a half eaten yoghurt back in their lunch box yesterday and it was very messy to clean, please ask her not to do that.

1. My child didn't get a raffle ticket for reading every day even though they had read, just forgot to fill out their record, so unfair, sort it out.

1. You only did PE once last week, why?

1. My child didn't make the football team and is upset. This happens every year. You always pick your favourites. Sort it out.

I think op's school should go back to saying all emails should be directed to the central office, as happens at many schools, then parents can stop grumbling about only being able to email teachers directly 8-5 because they won't be able to email them directly at all.

It is understandable why some parents get ignored.

It is indeed, but it's not right to "punish" the majority of parents due to the actions of the minority. It's up to the schools/teachers to manage the few idiot parents rather than bring in blanket rules which are detrimental to everyone else.

Just like the car parking on the zigzags. Our school constantly sent out reminders to all parents in the weekly newsletter telling them not to park there, i.e. effectively "blaming" everyone, whereas we all knew the 5 or 6 actual culprits who did it every day. The school should have challenged the problem parkers directly but instead hid behind a generic warning to everyone.

Yes I always reply, and politely too.

From experience, failure to do so usually results in another email, a complaint to the head or an angry parent at the classroom door.

There was a sixth email from a parent volunteer apologising for not being able to come in this week, which is exactly the sort of thing direct email should be used for imo.

Badbadbunny, how are parents being punished exactly, by being asked only to contact teachers directly 8-5?

Many schools don't have direct contact at all.

Parents who need to email after 5pm can autosend or email the school office.

As a Head I would send a firmly worded letter:

Hopefully only to the serial offenders!

RainyApril some of those are insane. Tell your own child about yoghurt in the lunch box, FFS! Who is assuming that their actual class teacher is standing over them while they eat said yoghurt, anyway? You have my sympathy.

No, to everyone,

Which is why these things don't work. The culprits take no notice of "round robins" as they don't realise it's directed at them as they're so far up their own bums to realise they're the problem! The innocent take it personally and it puts them off making perfectly acceptable and reasonable emails.

Far better to make it personal, a copy & paste of that wording in an email directed back to the parent(s) responsible in reply to their unreasonable email, so there's absolutely no doubt!

If you send an email through Outlook with a delay on it,

Oohhh... I like the sound of that. Didn't know such a thing was possible. How do you do that?

Yes, sadly some parents obviously are ridiculous. You have my sympathy, I had to deal with that type of client when working as a legal secretary. I used to feel like saying, 'would you want to be interrupted by another client's call during your appointment?'

At our DDs' school, all emails are sent direct to the school office, we don't have the teachers' personal email addresses.

In this instance, though, why not type the email and save it in drafts, and then send it the following morning? It isn't an issue.

Yes, RainyApril and OP's email would fit in neatly as:

1. My child is really hungry at night, replace the fruit that you feed 500 others with an egg especially.

None of that nonsense should ever make it into the teacher's inbox, irrelevant of the time of day. Limiting the hours probably reduces the stuff that makes it through, thereby making it 6 rather than 12 such emails.

I think that the rule is crazy. But agree that an 'is my email necessary?' flowchart might well be helpful for parents.

But agree that an 'is my email necessary?' flowchart might well be helpful for parents.

But the idiots wouldn't bother to find and read the flowchart would they? They'd just fire off an idiotic email because that's what idiotic people do.

Today I will be sending two emails to teachers.

1. Teacher asked for volunteers for an event. I'm saying I'm available.

1. Need a meeting with teacher to discuss how something outside school is affecting DC who may need additional help as a result.

As a rule I assume teachers have non-contact time once a week, so I wouldn't expect them to reply before that rolls round again.

I tell you what we should be emailing, though. When DC come home and say they did xyz today and it was great, we should email the teacher cc the HT to say so and thank them.