Friday 29 May 2020

Etiquette on WhatsApp Groups


WhatsApp has revolutionized the way we communicate. The ability to convey messages instantly to the class through the Class Group is very convenient to all.

Listed below are my thoughts on the way people post things on WhatsApp. I felt we need to follow some etiquette to put WhatsApp to better use. These are meant mainly for the Class Groups we maintain in our Vidyalaya to connect with our classes during this lockdown.


Post things that are relevant to the group

Keep the intended purpose of the group. The Class Groups are meant for keeping you up-to-date of the school news, announcement and alerts related to scholastic and c-scholastic activities and programmes of the school. Do not post or forward messages that are not relevant to the class.

Also do not post some unimportant message just below an important message posted by someone. 

No personal messages

Avoid personal conversation in a group. If you would like to chat with a friend, do it privately.

Acknowledgement and Thank you's from all not required

If the teacher has posted an instruction or a classwork, no need for everyone to post "Ok, Madam", "I will do it, sir" and things like that. If you have understood the message, follow it. If you need any clarification, post a question.

If you have attended an online test or uploaded an assignment to the Google Classroom, your teacher will be able to see that. No need to say "I have completed the test" and the like.

Similarly, no need for everyone to post "Thank You" ntoes, if someone has posted a useful message. 

Congratulations/Birthday Wishes/Condolence Messages

It is always good to wish someone on their birthday or congratulate them for any achievements. Joining someone in their grief and offering condolence is also very much required. A few messages of this nature on the group is ok, but everyone is not supposed to post that in a group.

The best way to do this is to send a private message to the person concerned. If you want everyone in the group to know that you have done so, no doubt the group is the best place for that.

Urgent matters, make a call

You cannot expect the other person to check WhatsApp messages immediately. You are aware of the information explosion on your WhatsApp. So if you need a response immediately better make a call.

Here are a few things more...

  • Avoid lengthy messages. Be precise and short with the messages. 
  • It is better to post the stories or notes on your Google Drive and provide a link to it that posting the entire content.
  • When you are posting a video or image, you may add a short description of what it is to help others to decide whether to download and see it (who has got the time to do all these when we are simply forwarding it as received)




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