Using text messages

A small 'local' application of mobile technology occurs to me.

One frequent complaint amongst OU tutors concerns inactive students who can't easily be contacted because they aren't reading their OU email & haven't provided a landline number. We resent making private calls to mobiles, because our pay doesn't allow for incurring that sort of expense. So we grumble & resort to writing letters. Paper, ink, envelope, first class stamp... total cost 30p+ & still no guarantee of a response.

Solution: send the student a text.

"Urgent msg from your OU tutor: pls check your mailbox asap"

"No TMAxx rcvd - problems? Pls call"

Cost to tutor: 10p max (unless the student turns out to have left for exotic climes). Likelihood of being seen: high. Comparing response rates to letters/texts would make an interesting bit of research!