Letter to Parents From Portuguese School Goes Viral

It has become relatively normal in recent years for parents and and other watchdogs to blame schools, teachers, and the education system for students’ academic or behavioral failings. However, according to a viral Facebook post, it looks like one school has swung the judgmental pendulum the other way.

The note, which has been floating around Facebook, and other social media sites recently, shows a missive allegedly sent to parents of students at a school in Portugal. On the letter are several bullet points that place the responsibility on parents for teaching children the “correct” way to behave at home before sending them to school, as opposed to teachers being responsible. The supposed note reads:

“Dear parents

• We would like to remind you that magic words such as hello, please, you’re welcome, I’m sorry, and thank you, all begin to be learned at home
• It’s also at home that children learn to be honest, to be on time, diligent, show friends their sympathy, as well as show utmost respect for their elders and all teachers.
• Home is where they learn to be clean, not talk with their mouths full, and how/where to properly dispose of garbage.
• Home is also where they learn to be organized, to take good care of their belongings, and that it’s not ok to touch others.
• Here at school, on the other hand, we teach language, math, history, geography, physics, sciences, and physical education. We only reinforce the education that children receive at home from their parents.”

While the validity of the note is in question, many who are sharing and commenting on the post don’t seem to care. Instead, people are praising the content — no matter where it originated. As Facebook user Deb Keaton put it, “I don’t care who created it, it’s true.”

According to a New Yorker piece, blaming teachers has been a long-running problem in the U.S. “…the tendency, when there’s an economic or social crisis, to lay blame on public-school teachers. They must have created the crisis, the logic goes, by failing to educate the young.”