Professor bans emails from students except to set up office appointment

[cobrat]

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I agree that there should be email etiquette courses, probably in eighth grade. Do they still teach kids how to write a business letter in elementary school? Basic email etiquette should be added to that curriculum.

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<p>This varies greatly by school district and individual school. Many K-8 public school systems writing education can be very hit or miss. Many high school and even college first-years arrive without having learned much basic writing skills…much less knowing how to write a business letter. </p>

<p>In my NYC public junior high school, I don’t recall our teachers teaching us anything about writing business letters. I learned how to do so through older relatives and looking up samples on my own in my HS and public libraries during my HS years. </p>

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I would have thought that this stuff would come naturally to my daughter. But last year when she was a freshman, my daughter showed me an email that she was going to send to a professor – a seventy-year-old European man. I was shocked that she started the email “Hey [nickname form of prof’s first name].”

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<p>This might also be a cultural/generational difference. </p>

<p>I experienced the exact reverse of this when I started my undergrad at a Midwest LAC known for its progressive orientation. Many Profs preferred students addressed them by first name both in class and in writing to “avoid creating a hierarchical barrier” between them and students. </p>

<p>I’ve always advised young students that when in doubt, it’s much better to err on the side of greater formality when corresponding with Profs/employers UNTIL THE PROFS/EMPLOYERS THEMSELVES indicate it’s ok to be more informal. </p>