My child is more than 10 minutes late and has been docked 15% of his/her grade. Can I send an email requesting the teacher to give a chance to remedy the situation?
No. You may not.
But your kid can have a go if they’d like to try. (You can coach on how to write a respectful request.) Then you both respect the answer.
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This is under prep school admissions. What age is your child?
Age 15.
Can you? Sure. You have free will
Will the recipient roll their eyes and listen for the whoosh sound of the incoming helicopter parent? Yes
This is your kid’s battle. What you need to do is teach them that actions have consequences. The remedy is don’t be late.
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For anything.
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My kids went to public high school, but I did not get involved with contacting staff unless it was very serious (5 kids, got involved twice, once for developing some executive function strategies and the other for a mental health crisis). If my child was docked points for being late, there are your natural consequences.
Agree kid should reach out about this instance with teacher, dean, advisor, etc…
I don’t think it is inappropriate for a parent in HS to ask school for understanding overall policy, especially if not well / consistently applied, etc. I have a hard time understanding a 15% cut on overall grade, a 15% cut on 1 assignment grade, maybe. I would not ask about changing your kids specific grade.
Here is my opinion…there has to be a good reason for even reaching out to the teacher etc. if it’s “gee I was late but I don’t think my grade should be penalized”…that’s NOT a good reason. If it’s “my alarm clock didn’t go off”…that’s not a good reason.
I guess I’m asking…why did the kid arrive late? Because it would have to be a very good reason for this to even be addressed.
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Fair point! If was clearly a policy and they were just late, they should know that is that. I was sort of assuming (maybe wrongly!) there was some factor on top of that in this case.
And I meant to more highlight KID should reach out to teacher (vs. parent) about a classroom specific.
I fully believe OP gave incomplete information
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Why was he late? Is there a reasonable excuse, like a medical issue, or something that would require accommodation, like ADHD? Missed train or traffic?
At our BS, showing up for all obligations on time was expected, and there were consequences for failing to do so.
Sometimes, the first and second “tardy” generated a warning with the third having a true consequence. But there is no “late bus” or “car broke down” or other excuse for not getting from one place on campus to another when expected. Indeed, an environment like this would become very dysfunctional very fast if this kind of order wasn’t enforced.
Your kid probably knows the rules and hasn’t shared the whole story with you.
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It’s a great lesson to learn at this age, one they won’t forget.
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Excused tardiness is a common accommodation for a variety of medical and psychiatric issues. If that is relevant, a parent should get involved. I can write more if this pertains.
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Temporarily closing for review
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