Bring Back the Ability to Message Students in the Inbox After a Course Concludes

llawrence10
Community Participant

I really, really miss being able to communicate with students via the inbox (and for students to be able to communicate with each other) as soon as a course concludes. Some common reasons for instructor-to-student, student-to-instructor, and student-to-student communication after a course concludes:

  • A student asks if their final assignment was received
  • An instructor wants to let one or more students know their final assignment was received
  • An instructor has made arrangements to allow a student to submit a final assignment the day after a course concludes
  • An instructor wants to let the whole class know final grades have been submitted
  • An instructor needs to stay in contact with a student who earned an "Incomplete"
  • Students form friendships and would like to stay in touch with each other
  • An instructor wants to follow up with a former student to see how they're doing
  • A student asks an instructor for recommendations on other instructors for courses they're planning to enroll in
  • A student wants to know if a favorite instructor will be teaching other courses in upcoming semesters
  • A student asks for a letter of recommendation

These are very common scenarios. But the changes to the inbox do not allow instructors or students to message students after a course concludes. That's the equivalent of slamming the doors shut. We should be seeking ways to encourage ongoing communication, not preventing it.