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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

Online booking for parents evenings?

43 replies

TeenAndTween · 30/01/2014 12:11

For parents evening our school currently gets pupils to book the timeslots directly with teachers.
This means that a teacher can be very clear if they definitely want to see you, but if your child is a bit disorganised you end up with all your slots together, or teachers missed out.

They are considering using an online system so parents can book directly? It sounds like a good idea, but are there any downsides to this?

Also if your school parents evenings are orderly occasions as opposed to organised chaos, what is the school doing that helps this?

OP posts:

meditrina · 30/01/2014 12:25

Do 100% of parents have online access?

Best system I've come across is one which asks you to tell your DC between what times to are available, then over a week each subject teacher books slots via pupils in lessons (removing the problem of disorganised pupil mucking it up) then with no stress or effort on parents' part you get a lovely timetable of appointments at the end of the week.

homebythesea · 30/01/2014 12:33

I think any Subscription type system (ie needs the parent to sign up for slots)is inherantly unfair - you might not be at school, get the message late in the day and miss out on convenient slots etc etc. We have two schools, 2 different approaches. First you are asked to nominate those teachers you want to see and then are given a timetable, no negotiating - you make it or you don't. The other has a queuing system - teachers are all at desks between x and y time, you line up to see each teacher, bell rings every 5 mins to notify changeover. This works brilliantly - much better than the timetabled system IME

MillyMollyMama · 30/01/2014 13:15

I don't think the queueing on the evening always works well to see teachers as we have actually had to go home before seeing all of them. Some queues are large and people take longer than 5 minutes! Some people resorted to bringing in younger children and getting them to queue up and reserve a space. Generally, the idea of pre booking will work for the organised parents but leave the others with poor choice of time slots and all likely to be at unpopular times. No foolproof method at secondary level because everyone has a lot of teachers to see.

Original poster

TeenAndTween · 30/01/2014 13:32

re online access.
I was thinking about that.
All parents may not have it, but all the children do at the school, so the child could book the slots at school if needed.

The issue we have had with booking via our child, is her not leaving gaps between appointments, and some teachers being 'too busy' in the lessons to make appointments, so she has failed to book some teachers I would really like to see.

OP posts:

Starballbunny · 30/01/2014 13:36

The DCs quickly get the hang of it and I generally get quite well planned parents evenings.

Our school IT system has attitude, on a good day. Often it just doesn't work. Booking parents evening would be certain to make it crash.

hellsbells99 · 30/01/2014 13:38

Our school has changed to the online system - I have booked the last couple of evenings in this way. Letters, texts and emails are sent out a couple of weeks before the booking system opens, notifying you exactly when the system will be open from - and a reminder email close to the date. I have found it great.
It is a High School though and all communications tend to be electronic nowadays. As stated by Teen above, if necessary the children can do it at school.

TheLeftovermonster · 30/01/2014 14:53

I would prefer an online system - that way I can book meetings myself. DS is not very reliable, doesn't always book every teacher and meetings are either too close together (and makes everyone who's already running late even more late) or too far apart.
I wouldn't want to make it harder for the teachers, though, or for the other parents.

FernieB · 30/01/2014 15:46

Our school gets the kids to book appointments with their teachers which generally means I have a whole load of appointments back to back which just doesn't work. What actually happens is that parents just jump in whenever a teacher is free or queue up to see teachers. It's a bit of a free for all but usually works out okay in the end.

Starballbunny · 30/01/2014 22:16

And tonight it's sulking. I wanted to look up old reports (for a different thread) and is bust again.

AtiaoftheJulii · 31/01/2014 09:58

One of my kids' schools changed to online booking last year - we've had one parents evening with it, and another about to happen. It worked really well for me - I got in early and booked a nice event-spread set of appts, but I did think that for people who weren't able to get online promptly, you could end up with a really crapshoot choice of time slots. Getting the kids to do it at school might not optimise each set of parents' timings, but might well be fairer overall.

Ds's school have the teachers spread out over many classrooms and the library (rather than all in a hall or two like my girls' schools) - I've only been to one there, but I didn't have to queue, and I think it was at least partly because everyone was so paranoid about missing their next slot which might be a five minute walk away, that most chats were kept as brief as possible :)

Orangeanddemons · 31/01/2014 10:03

Love the IT attitude. Our school has this attitude with IT, but I call it the Bermuda Triangle. Nothing ever works properly!

DeWe · 31/01/2014 10:11

Dd1's school does it. Works well in theory.

However, when I came to use it I couldn't get it to recognise my password (I'd reversed two letters it turned out-so my fault) and so I had to get another-which took 3 days. By then some of the teachers were completely booked out, and some only had times I couldn't make. Luckily most of the teachers I really wanted to see had spaces, and they were fairly close together.
Of course when I arrived everyone seemed to ignore the time slots anyway.

I suspect one problem is you may tend to get the keen (middle class/academic/pushy etc.) parents log on asap. They they take the times they want, and put down to see all the teachers. Then those that are less bothered (and may well be the parents the teachers would like to see) come along and find they can't get slots etc.

OneMoreMum · 31/01/2014 11:54

Ours have just moved to the online system, worked brilliantly and certainly much better than getting teens to book the appointments themselves, previously they have mysteriously not managed to get appointments with those teachers they don't like... I did have one teacher phone and speak to us over the phone since otherwise she would have to wait around an hour to see us (her last appointment).

School generally uses the sports hall plus a few classrooms together and notified that at booking so you could book all the appointments in the hall in one block.

They tend to be pretty relaxed about the times, just see people in order of appointment even if they are running behind. Takes a bit longer but is less stressful than our primary which used to ring a bell every 5 minutes and force everyone to move on...

Marmitelover55 · 31/01/2014 13:12

We've got our first one next week. We have received a letter giving us time slots for English, maths and science which ard all quite close together. We will then have to queue to see any of the other teachers that we want to see. They are expecting us to see a minimum of 8 in total. No idea how well this will work yet...

RufusTheReindeer · 31/01/2014 16:57

Year 7 ds1 came back with 3 apts

Year 8 ds1 came back with two apts one at about 5 and the other at about 6.30

Year 9 on line booking, DH got 12 apts... We did cancel a few 10 mins later once he realised that we did not need to see every teacher that had ever said hello to ds1!!

bigTillyMint · 31/01/2014 17:40

The DC's school has a no appointments system.

All the teachers are in the hall and you can choose who to go to when you want - I think it runs 5 - 8ish. We never have to wait for more than one person in front (we do get there at 5!) and it works really well!

HSMMaCM · 31/01/2014 18:37

We have an online system. It's great. We are told when it will open and what rooms all the staff are in. I booked all the staff on the top floor first and then middle floor, then ground floor, then hall. Saved a load of shoe leather

MissMilbanke · 31/01/2014 18:44

Yep online system here as well and it's fine.

Bell would be a fantastic way to con life the 5 mins as some parents take the piss

MissMilbanke · 31/01/2014 18:45

'Conclude' not con life

creamteas · 01/02/2014 09:51

In DS's school they have an appointment system which the DC are supposed to book. But no-one ever seems to stick to this.I don't think an online system would make any difference.

The staff are all either in the hall or drama studio, and staff encourage parents to jump in if they are free, and you are waiting for someone else! We have never seen the teachers in the order of our appointments

One thing I have noticed is that parent's evenings tend to thin out over the years. Year 7 is packed, but by Y11 only half the parents seem to be there.

ShadowOfTheDay · 01/02/2014 09:58

Ours has a form for the kids - they fetch it home - you tell the kids roughly who you want to see and a general time you are attending in the evening, they go round the teachers you want to see and the teacher fills in any time slot that is free within your available time...

works well.

seeing or not seeing any particular teacher on the night is not the be all and end all - they have email and telephones, and are happy to use them...

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/02/2014 09:59

We have an online system for all 3 of mine.

Primary school. Works very well as you are only booking 1 teacher.

Secondary school worked very well for dtd1 as I booked early, got appointments with all of her teachers. It was very nice to be in control.

Dtd2 I was a bit late booking appointments, so trying to get well spaced appointments was hard, and I had to miss some.

I love it (but will book straight away next time). I do, however acknowledge negatives, the biggest one being lack of internet access.

Original poster

TeenAndTween · 01/02/2014 20:48

Thanks all.
Sounds like it would work well for the organised parents, but perhaps not so well for the less organised ones, with maybe less possibility for chasing up that the teachers would have with pupils booking at school.

OP posts:

BackforGood · 01/02/2014 22:28

Haven't had experience with on-line booking. I'd quite like it, but would have worries for people without easy access to log in.

My ds's school have always had the 'all sit in the hall and you queue for who you want to see' way, and I find it MUCH better than my dd's school where they get appts in advance.
My dd is actually very organised and also quite happy for me to see everyone, so gets most appts (although does have to really chase some teachers) but if my son had had this system it would have meant we got 2 appts with teachers he got on with, and nothing else booked!
At the ones where there are time slots though, it only takes 1 teacher early on to be running late, and it throws all the rest of the appts - no-one knows if they are supposed to hold their ground there and turn up late for the next one, or go to the next one on time then have missed the one they were waiting for, etc.
Give me the free for all in the hall any day of the week.

ShadowOfTheDay · 02/02/2014 08:25

people gradually get to realise that all the parents evening stuff does not matter one jot at a decent school - because the tutor or individual teacher will get in touch if there is a problem (or if there is a fab piece of work etc).

The only time you need to worry is when the teachers are ASKING YOU to attend....

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