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<p>I really like this. Our school actually has a form to this effect that students fill out and give to teachers they are asking a recommendation from. It saves the teachers a lot of work remembering details for 180 kids, it helps them decide who to write letters for, and it can lead to really good personalized recommendation letters for the students that the teacher chooses.</p>
<p>Camathmom-- my quote, which you have quoted out of context, was in response to this question, which is quoted in my post:</p>
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<p>So oh, come on Camathmom!!! You alreaady “knew” that. ;)</p>
<p>Look, if you think you are doing everything you can as a teacher then why worry? As in every profession, there are people who are not doing their job and people who are doing more than their job. The problem with teachers is that they think when you talk about “One” you are talking about “all.” So, they kneejerk defend.</p>
<p>I have a great appreciation for great and even very good teachers, and even less than talented but hardworking teachers. I will fight for them every step of the way. As for the lazy teachers, or the spiteful teachers or the ones who think, “This job would be great if it weren’t for the students.” Not so much.</p>
<p>What do you think of this…Ask students who are apply to colleges to pay extra $50-$100 senior year. Use that money to give teachers extra bonus based on number of recommendation letters they have to write.</p>
<p>D2 is going to an international school. A lot of students need to leave school early to go back home or other family travel, so they often ask to take their finals early. It is extra work for teachers to come up with separate exams, so they make us pay extra for every test a student needs to take early. I think that’s equable because it is extra work.</p>
<p>If I misinterpreted your post, poetgrl, then I apologize. And, WHEW, I am glad to hear it!</p>
<p>But, it sure sounded to me like you were saying that a teacher’s recommendation letters, along with the admissions results for the students, should be made part of the evaluation of a teacher’s effectiveness. (In fact, I just read your post again, and I still read it this way.) So glad to hear that you DO NOT believe this!</p>
<p>As I said before, high school teachers should know that students need letters of recommendation in order to be admitted to certain colleges and that they will be asked to write them. Of course they should be asked in a courteous way, well ahead of time, and be sent a thank you note. They should also have the right to refuse a particular student if they can find nothing positive to say about that student (good attitude, hard worker, etc.) and they should tell that student why they will not be writing them a letter of recommendation. Teachers who refuse to write letters are just shifting the burden to the decent teachers who will write them. The students who need letters of recommendation will have to get them somewhere.</p>
<p>“The students who need letters of recommendation will have to get them somewhere.”</p>
<p>Another option for students with teachers unwilling to write them letters is to greatly limit their search to the colleges which do NOT require any letters of recommendation (they do exist, especially in-state Us & some other larger Us). </p>
<p>Personally, I feel that the likelihood of having to write letters of rec & other added duties weighs into the burden of teaching particular subjects and grade levels. The top teachers teaching APs and other challenging subjects know that they will be asked to write letters as many of their students will be vying for competitive Us & merit awards. If it isn’t part of their job descriptions, it should be! Similarly, teachers of younger students may be also asked for letters to allow these students to compete to enter private schools, get awards and other things. Should teachers of kindergarten & 1st grade be given extra pay because of the “accidents” they have to frequently deal with and separation anxiety crises? Isn’t this also stuff that “goes along with the job?”</p>
<p>My sister is a high school teacher and I have great respect and admiration for teachers. I’m just saying that being asked to write letters of recommendation for students is something teachers should expect and by not doing it, or by limiting themselves to a very small number of letters they are putting additional strain on their fellow teachers. How would they feel if they were applying for a different job and their current supervisor refused to write a letter of recommendation for them because they would only write six letters of recommendation a year.</p>
<p>SFL- how many letters should they write and does the person excluded because they are that # plus 1 have the right to say the teacher is not in it for the kids because they have a limit?</p>
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<p>Sure. I mean, why not? But, I’d set a minimum # they had to write before this. </p>
<p>Camathmom-- if you believe I believe that teachers ought to be evaluated based on their student acceptances to college? I certainly think it would be a better evaluation of the teachers who are teaching top AP classes than all this waste of time extra standardized testing they do now. But, hey, it is what it is. The only one I have left in high school goes to private school, and she’s already had teachers offer to write her recs, and the oldest was offered recs by nearly all of her teachers, as well.</p>
<p>Good luck to you.</p>
<p>I think it would be great if teachers were paid for the time they spent writing letters of recommendation. I also think students should be required to ask months in advance. If they don’t make a request by a given date, they risk not getting a recommendation. Teachers could have a maximum number of letters they were required to write and when they reached that maximum, they could refuse further requests unless they chose to write those letters as well. First come, first served. The students refused would have to ask another teacher, as I think all teachers should be required to do some letters if asked. Once again, if no teachers have anything good to say about a student, then they should not have to write letters. That would be the students problem. I don’t think it’s reasonable to say that a student just doesn’t get to apply to certain colleges because no teachers in their school will write a recommendation.</p>
<p>I am glad that i came across this thread… my daughter is a freshman in hs and needed recommendations for summer programs, volunteering opportunities and a science program at a local university… all in all, she asked for probably 10… wow… I didn’t realize this was such a huge issue for the teachers… she will be again asking for them next year…for a 3 study abroad programs, and an earth conservation program that she wants to be apart of…all for the summer of 2012. Wow, now that I think of it, she will also have some other rec’s that she will require for the CISP program and HPREP… </p>
<p>I agree that it can be taxing on teachers to do them… but as a nurse, we realize that when one takes on a certain profession, there are responsibilities that are inherent to the job! You wouldn’t believe the things that are expected of us. When you sign up for it… it comes with the territory! It doesn’t seem fair…but that’s life!</p>
<p>I have a friend who is teacher…who told me that she has denied requests for recommendations on several occasions… and she will tell the student why! i think this can be a learning exp for the student…they assume that they should recieve such a coveted item… when in fact, they haven’t earned it! </p>
<p>Also, to the original OP… you should have your son ask his teacher privately… if they have a good relationship, I am sure he will say yes… this will teach your son the art of persuasion, and the art of not taking no for an answer@ a very young age!</p>
<p>A teacher as an obligation to say “no” to any student that she would not recommend to that particular school. But, a lottery and a limit of six is stupid. It is only reasonable that the teacher be given ample lead time - minimum of three weeks, I would think. Students should be thinking about this Junior year, not senior year a the week before the application is due.</p>
<p>When I applied to the military academy, I needed letters of recommendation for a lot of different things and had to ask a lot of different people. I didn’t have a single one turn me down because they wanted to help me reach that goal. Applying for civilian schools, I didn’t need a single one.</p>
<p>Now I have needed LoRs for internships and for grad school and again have not had a single person turn me down. Part of that is because I am very careful who I ask and normally I give them quite a bit of lead-time. In fact, I went back and asked my high school football coach to write one for me back in December and told him the due date was in February which made him happy-- he had been asked by one of his current students to write him one 2 days before the deadline!</p>
<p>I mentioned in another thread…if your college senior is starting a new job, it maybe a good idea to get his/her current professors to write recommendation letter now in case graduate school is in the card someday.</p>
<p>How current would the letter be if the person will be working for a while before going on to grad school, I wonder? Also, would the school prefer a more current letter from employer instead of a dated letter from a prof? Just wondering & don’t have answers.</p>