Damian Hinds says teachers shouldn’t reply to emails from pushy parents after hours

[noblegiraffe]

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6621263/Teachers-ignore-emails-pushy-parents-says-education-minister.html

Apparently too many teachers are replying to emails from parents at night.

“He suggests parents should only use only official channels and that teachers should spend a set amount of time per day answering queries.”

Er, but during the day I’m teaching and so at night is when I’ve got time to deal with emails? Replying to emails during the school day will only push other work into the evenings.

I much prefer emailing parents to phoning them too.

I work in the office of a one form entry primary school and we get huge numbers of emails, maybe 50-70 a day, though obviously not all from parents. Some are quickly answered, others can be much more time consuming.

The vast majority I can deal with though, so there are not many I forward on to teachers, but the odd one needs teacher input or someone else to deal with it.

Most parents are very reasonable about timescales but managing my inbox is relentless.

Saying they, I'd rather parents emailed us directly than chunter about it on social media....

OTOH the primary senco often emails me at 9pm ish and we often have a convo then. But I don't expect availability, iykwim

As someone who has just received an email from my HoD telling me to ring a parent tomorrow....this thread is very timely. It's times like this that I flit between telling myself to take deep breaths and let it all wash over me, and deeply deeply regretting leaving my previous career....

I'm curious to know what the minimum threshold is considered to be for 'urgent', which a couple of posters have said would warrant a phone call to the school as opposed to e-mail.

In Primary, the child needing to go to after school care, or change to pickup. I may not always see my email in time to let the child know about the change.

but the point is as it has to be a phone call or face to face meeting it only happens when it is a significant problem, not a trivial matter so it doesn't happen very often at all.

But I rarely have to email or respond to parents’ email as it is (none this week so far, for example) that I don’t think that’s a reason to do away with email completely but I get that it has worked for you. All
Schools run differently due to being in different areas and policy should apply in context, in my opinion.

FallenMadonna excellent post.

Teachers need to manage their time as it suits them - my friend is a teacher his sends them during the day, the subject he teaches means his students don't need his input constantly (not primary which is very different) and works until 5.30 then leaves and doesn't bring work home. Another friend leaves school almost with the students because he has to collect his kids - this means he does his prep and marking after they are in bed. As for email, I found it handy at my DD's school as she boards - at her previous school we also had emails for teachers but I rarely had need to use it (her current school is always emailing us!)

Yes my children are early primary (you're really struggling to pick holes here) and the homework is specially set and described as tasks to do with your child... Not for them but quite often I'll find something like an interactive website to do the described activity on (was one recently with dienes apparatus rather than drawing them out) and I'll help in terms of print screening the result and pasting it to print out after my child has done the task - then I get the "where's that link from so I can use it" type queries. I'm also from a teaching background myself and bloody good at seeking out random obscure resources (always was good at that)

Believe me I would bloody love homework of a worksheet I could just plonk the child in question in front of and support/refocus as required by it's not the way their school does things.

I deal with parent emails whenever I get a chance. If someone emails in the evening I tend to reply then just so it's ticked off the huge to-do list. It reduces my stress levels. My school has a 2-3 days policy. I find emails much easier to fit in than phone calls. Also, you have a paper trail, which is sometimes useful when you're accused of not doing enough!

I saw this article and was honestly shocked at how many emails teachers were having to answer in the evening. It's really unfair and must add extra stress to an already stressful job.

All communication at DDs primary is done through the office. If I needed to speak to a teacher I'd phone or pop into office or email if I didn't have time.

DSs secondary gives out a couple of email addresses but again mostly done through phoning the office or through Head of Learning. School actually sent out a list this year that included his form tutors email address. Can't find it again!

As for what we email about, I'm very sparing and hardly ever do. But it's strictly senco related stuff for one child. And general my child needs support they're drowning (new to big busy secondary school) stuff for the other. Neither is 'urgent' stuff.

I do like having email as an option as I work long shifts and the secondary school is a distance away so can't pop in easily, they go by bus. And written responses are great when you are as scatty as me.

This came up in our governors meeting last night. Head (primary school) clarifies that staff emails are not available to parents, we have a dedicated email address for queries where you put the staff members name at the top and the office staff forward them on. Office only open 8.30-4.30, and staff respond via this email address as well. We have an expectation of 48 hours for response.

No issues that I know of.

The heads email address is available if there is a confidential issue, and the chair of governors email also

Will Damian Hinds be OK to teachers responding to emails from unpushy parents?

I’m a SENCO so get lots of emails from parents - I don’t mind at all, part of the job. I don’t reply at night though as I don’t want to appear available outside work hours, and also I feel it looks unprofessional to be sending emails to parents at 9pm at night (Will freely admit this is just personal opinion and I’m not even sure why I think it - I guess because I think you wouldn’t get an email from your lawyer/architect/cardiologist outside office hours). I do write replies that late, but I save them in my Drafts folder and ping them all off at 8am next morning.

I try to respond to parents as soon as I read their email or I'll forget to reply. They won't get it out of working hours though because it has to go through the office. I often email very early in the morning or on my day off. I don't tend to open my work email much during the weekend or I might see something stressful.

What I hate is parents who email to say they have concerns about some such thing and want to speak to me 'in the first instance' but then don't say what those concerns are! Leaving me stressed until the meeting/ phone call.

@nobelgiraffe sorry - just seen your question. I'm not sure I said I was in touch very much; probably 6 or 7 emails re 2 children in 2 years. its rare so their responses are memorable. I have months when shifts mean I can't do pick up so don't see teachers at all But since you ask:,Twice about dc1- one to reassess the reading level when coming home with inappropriately easy books and once to respond to teacher query about a behaviour change. Its been more with Dc2 who has learning difficulties but again a handful of times last year to try and find ways to meet his needs and to share reports from professional assessments etc. I also volunteer in school when I can so periodically email the office about times for events etc.

I think the issue is not the vast majority of parents, its the handful that abuse the situation. I don't mind people sending emails when ever they want, but the few that, despite frequent reminders and it being clearly explained on our website get angry and abusive to staff who don't reply within their expected timeframe are the ones responsible for the blanket bans at some schools and the huge headaches giving our individual emails can create for some teachers.
Its the ones that email at 10am and complain that you haven't replied by 11am (err- teaching!), especially when its something minor about a lost jumper or could they have a replacement homework sheet.
The ones that send several emails every Sunday night and expect you have dealt with them by 8am Monday morning, when the information you need is in school or it needs discussion with colleagues or children.
The ones that email the individual teacher about changes to collection at 5 minutes before end of school and get abusive when the teacher holds on to the child to check before they let them leave with what appears to be a random stranger.