I intentionally make lesson requests only to teachers who have been online recently. This is because I'm a busy person and I have limited time slots available in my schedule, so I want a quick turn around if possible. I usually don't know until a few days before if I'll have a time slot free. When I get a quick decline, I normally have time to ask someone else. If a teacher doesn't have time to visit the site, I understand the expiration. But it's a bit frustrating to me if the teacher is online and won't take a few seconds to decline.
The only explanation for this I can think of is they think it's more polite to let it expire, but maybe there are more. Does italki give teachers bad marks for declining lessons?
Incidentally, although only about 10-20% of my requests get declined, the reason is almost always the same - the teacher really wasn't free during the time slot I selected. Maybe they'd rather not decline because they feel obligated to give a reason?
Yvona
According to your last post I now understand your point. It's not about financial thing at all. What you are putting on the table is more a "understanding, compassion and human being thing"
So yes, in my opinion (this is now about opinions) the teacher should be a bit understanding and flexible and this is somehow a marketing strategy as well.
If I have a new student that couldn't show up to the lesson, I'll ask the reason and probably would offer to re-do the session at another time (without requesting the payment), maybe he's a potential student and maybe the reason he missed was something serious that couldn't be avoided. If I choose to charge this student (new student), I would be gaining that money of that specific session but probably he would be upset and would probably not book any other lessons since he'd have lots of other teachers to choose instead. But this is how I deal.
So yeah, the student has all the rights to not want to have lessons with that teacher anymore but the teacher has all the right to request payment for the missed lesson but a smart professional would prefer to "forgive" that or those "serious situations" and keep the student for more future lessons than losing him for one or two times "easy" money.
Another inequality I've found here is teachers' possibilities of cancelling already booked lessons whenever before their starts. Yes, life might be unforeseen and we are all humans, but if occurs something VIS MAJOR to students, they have to pay indeed in contrast to teachers who just get away with it and nothing really happens. But students might have their business too or they need to have lessons, because they are going to have an important job interview or exams.
As I am concerned, I've never asked any of my teachers to cancell or postpone lesson immediately before it, although I might have had a clear reason. I find it a valid contract Also I really don't mind when some teachers asked me to cancell lessons or packages. But it should be regarded equally for both sides..
