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Phone conversations with non-native speakers can be painful. Unless it is a very advanced student (which by your typing I can tell you are not) I will text message most information.
However, I would not cancel a class 20 minutes before. I think such short notice is rude.
Arrange a new system: If the teacher cancels with less than 2 hours notice, the student gets a free class. If the student cancels with less than 2 hours notice, the student has to pay for the cancelled class. 
I do that kind of message by text. That way, there’s a record of it in case there’s any argument about it later.
But in any case, your teacher is a stupid prick. Cancelling 20 minutes before class is EXTREMELY poor form and rude. You should make sure you get a discount off him for the inconvenience he caused for you.
It’s also a really shitty excuse. “Stomach problem” indeed? Yeah, right. Like he only noticed he had a fat wobbly gut 20 minutes before class? Pull the other one, it’s got bells on.
My privates pay me one month in advance. Failure to cancel the day before means they have to pay. Same goes if I cancel on the same day, the next class is free.
Works out fine that way. Keeps the stomach problems at bay. 
Yes, I would definitely text. I hate talking on the 'phone. Depends on whether the student had cancelled the same day whether I would too. Sounds like your teacher either forgot or just woke up so had to make an excuse. It’s pretty rude unless the student has cancelled the same day, and then it would be different because it’s more of a casual arrangement.
I don’t teach one to one because it’s not worth the money, but I never cancel my Chinese class because I love studying Chinese (with this teacher). One time I slept through my alarm and didn’t go but obviously I paid my teacher anyway.
I would call. Texting is cowardly.
I think the attitude is more important than the media. We all cancel stuff sometimes, even for reasons that aren’t true. Everyone has ‘sickies’ sometimes. We have to accept that people occasionally cancel because they have something better to do, are feeling under the weather (but not actually ill), would rather stay in bed shagging their partner, it’s too hot/cold/raining, whatever.
It wouldn’t really bother me if my teacher did this because I know she respects me and cares about my Chinese and really works hard for me. It’s sounds like you and your teacher don’t have this underlying respect for eachother or you haven’t built up much of a student-teacher relationship. If you don’t like your teacher, it would be better for you to get rid of him/her now.
Yes. :bravo:
Yes. :bravo:
We all may hate having to contact someone, with a lame excuse, to cancel a committment. But a phone call is the decent way to do it and 20 minutes notice is completely unreasonable.
How does he know you didn’t travel one hour to get there?
[quote=“katy”]I just blamed my English teacher for the way he informed me to cancel our private English class. I told him it’s O.K. to cancel the class suddenly because of his unexpected stomach problem, but why, WHY DID NOT MAKE A PHONE CALL INSTEAD OF THROWING A MESSAGE? Are you sure your student could aware of it?
My teacher responded that he was afraid of interrupting me. Come on, it’s lunch time and we were going to start our class in 20 minutes. EMERGENT!
Come on!!![/quote]
“Emergent”?
That is simply incredible! 
[quote=“Chris”][quote=“katy”]I just blamed my English teacher for the way he informed me to cancel our private English class. I told him it’s O.K. to cancel the class suddenly because of his unexpected stomach problem, but why, WHY DID NOT MAKE A PHONE CALL INSTEAD OF THROWING A MESSAGE? Are you sure your student could aware of it?
My teacher responded that he was afraid of interrupting me. Come on, it’s lunch time and we were going to start our class in 20 minutes. EMERGENT!
Come on!!![/quote]
“Emergent”?[/quote]
See? That is what happens when teachers dont’ show up to class.
Leave the poor girl alone. She is a student, after all.
[quote=“SuchAFob”][quote=“Chris”][quote=“katy”]I just blamed my English teacher for the way he informed me to cancel our private English class. I told him it’s O.K. to cancel the class suddenly because of his unexpected stomach problem, but why, WHY DID NOT MAKE A PHONE CALL INSTEAD OF THROWING A MESSAGE? Are you sure your student could aware of it?
My teacher responded that he was afraid of interrupting me. Come on, it’s lunch time and we were going to start our class in 20 minutes. EMERGENT!
Come on!!![/quote]
“Emergent”?[/quote]
See? That is what happens when teachers dont’ show up to class.
Leave the poor girl alone. She is a student, after all.[/quote]
Chris is mean. He was picking on me in IP today too. :raspberry:
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Being a professional English teacher, she or he must know how to talk to her or his student, whatever the student’s level is.
[/quote]
You try it. Call someone whose Chinese level is bad and talk to them… Have fun.
And if you are unhappy with your teacher (which you clearly are) CHANGE TEACHERS!!!
Sorry, in Taiwan, what exactly makes one a “professional English teacher?”
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So you’re only complaining about the fact that it was a text and not a call? Why such a big deal? It’s 2006, not 1966. He sent you information. You received it.
Just tell him he owes you a class and that he’s a rude shite. End of story.
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I would be pissed to get a text relating to anything to do with work, unless it was a drastic emergency such as “Don’t Sell! Hold Everything! Pull in the OP! Call Soon!”.
I would never send a text messsage to somebody who had hired me.
For any reason whatsoever.
Text messaging’s function (juvenile verbosity aside) would seem to lie in two major areas, communicating with somone when you can’t make a call, or when you don’t want to make a call.
If someone can’t make a call, then why not? Cuz they don’t want to, usually.
And as for the whole modernity aspect: it matters naught.
The personal touch still goes a long way, especially in money or management matters.