Hand Parent Progress Questions to a Teacher
This recipe makes sure a question about how a child is doing always reaches a teacher. AeroChat does not discuss a child’s results, behaviour or level. It recognises the question, collects the details the teacher needs, passes it to the right teacher and tells the parent when to expect a reply. Set this up before any other tuition workflow goes live. Part of the tuition centre workflows.
What happens today
“Teacher, Ethan only got 52 for his mid-year exam, what can we do? Should he move to the other class?” The message lands in the centre’s WhatsApp, between a fee question and a make-up request. The admin forwards it to the teacher’s personal phone. The teacher is teaching until 9pm. The parent waits two days, feels ignored, and starts looking at other centres.
Parents pay for the teacher’s judgment. A slow or generic answer to this question costs more than any other.
The flow that works
- AeroChat recognises a progress question: results, homework, behaviour, attention, moving class or level, or a learning difficulty.
- It does not answer it. It tells the parent the teacher will reply and asks for anything missing: the child’s name, class and the concern in a sentence.
- It tags the conversation, assigns it to the child’s teacher in the AeroChat inbox and notifies them.
- It tells the parent when to expect a reply, using the times you set.
- If the parent is upset or mentions wellbeing, it marks the conversation urgent for your centre manager.
The recipe
Copy this into AeroChat
When a parent asks about their child’s progress, results, homework, behaviour, attention, whether to change class or level, or mentions a learning difficulty, follow these steps.
- Do not comment on the child’s progress, results or ability, and do not suggest a class, level or programme.
- Say: “Thank you for telling us. This is a question for your child’s teacher, and I’ll pass it on now.”
- Ask for anything you do not already have: the child’s name, their class and day, and the concern in a sentence. Look up the class in our class list Sheet by the parent’s phone number if you can.
- Tag the conversation “progress”, assign it to the child’s teacher as listed in our class list Sheet, and notify them with a short summary.
- Tell the parent the teacher will reply within 1 working day, or after their class that evening if they teach today (example timing).
- If the parent sounds upset, mentions the child’s wellbeing, stress or safety, or asks to speak to the centre manager, also tag the conversation “urgent” and notify our centre manager.
If the same message also asks something routine, such as a fee or a make-up, answer that part as usual and hand over only the progress part. Reply in the parent’s language.
Change the reply timing and who gets notified to your own before you paste it.
What to connect
- Your class list Sheet. With each child’s class and teacher, so AeroChat assigns the question to the right person.
- Tutoring software, if you use it. Teachworks connects through its API: turn on API access in its settings, create an API token, and paste it in when AeroChat asks. The recipe then reads and writes there instead of in your Sheets.
- Your team in AeroChat. Add each teacher as a team member so conversations can be assigned to them and they reply from the shared inbox, not their own phone. Starter includes 3 seats, Growth 10 and Advanced 25.
- How AeroChat reaches the Sheet. Connect your Google account when AeroChat asks, and approve the access.
Using a different system? If it has a public API, it connects to AeroChat the same way: describe what you want, paste in its key, and it runs.
Can’t find your tool? Message us in the chat on this page and we’ll tell you how it connects.
What you still decide
- Which topics count as a progress question at your centre.
- How fast teachers reply, and what the parent is told.
- Who handles urgent or upset messages.
- Whether teachers reply in the chat or call the parent.
The result to expect
Every progress question reaches the right teacher with the details collected, and the parent knows when they will hear back. Teachers stop getting forwarded screenshots on their personal phones. Nothing about a child’s progress is answered by the system.
Measure it with your own numbers: how long progress questions wait for a teacher’s reply, before and after. Check every “progress” tagged conversation in the first week to confirm none were answered by the system.
Next: trial class booking. See also live chat handover.
Set up the handover first
Paste this recipe before any other, add your teachers to the inbox, and message your own number asking whether your child should change class.
Start your 7-day free trial. No credit card needed.
On Shopify? Install AeroChat from the Shopify App Store.