The school communication chain

Part 1    Parents talking to teachers

1. Identify a pressing need to speak to a teacher.
2. Find out name of relevant teacher from reluctant teenager.
3. Weekday morning: write note and send it into school with relevant teenager.
4. Weekend morning: find scrunched up note in pocket of trousers heading for washing machine.
5. Next week:  phone school to speak to teacher.
6. Teachers being teachers, they’re teaching (during school hours) or in meetings (after school hours), not speaking to parents on phone.
7. Leave message for teacher.
8. 2 or 3 days later, phone school again.
9. Speak to receptionist, she of So I’m Supposed To Know Everything, Now? fame.  She insists that it’s not school policy to put parents through to teachers and you have to be routed via guidance. (See?  She does know everything.)  Leave message for Guidance teacher to pass to Class teacher.
10. 2 or 3 days later…  Assuming you 1) still have the will to live, 2) can remember the original question (did you keep that note?) and 3) still want an answer, figure out Guidance teacher’s email address and email the question.
11. 2 or 3 days later… Yes!  Result!  Receive response from Guidance teacher who has spoken to class teacher.
12. But…  You need to reply to the teacher’s reply.  Email Guidance again.
13. 2 or 3 days later…  receive a reply to the reply.
14. It must be about week 4 by now.
15. If you’re lucky, very lucky, Continue reading →