Retired Teacher’s Viral Open Letter …Claims Parents – Not Teachers – Are Failing the School System
Few topics stir stronger opinions than education. Questions about childcare, schools, and how children should be taught feel deeply personal, touching on what many see as the foundation of society itself.
It’s no surprise, then, that debates about what’s “wrong” with the school system are constant. Teachers are scrutinized, policies are argued over, and schools are often blamed when students struggle. Yet several years ago, one retired teacher offered a perspective that cut through the noise—and continues to spark discussion today.
That teacher was Lisa Roberson, whose open letter was published in the Augusta Chronicle in 2017. Though written years before the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped classrooms across the country, her message has remained widely shared, resonating with readers long after its initial publication.
The pandemic only intensified disagreements about education, exposing how divided—and passionate—people are about responsibility, standards, and expectations. But for Roberson, the core issue predates those changes. In her view, the problem does not begin with teachers. It begins at home.
“As a retired teacher, I am sick of people who know nothing about public schools or have not been in a classroom recently deciding how to fix our education system,” Roberson wrote.
“The teachers are not the problem. Parents are the problem.”
She argued that many children arrive at school without basic supplies, manners, or respect for others, while teachers routinely spend their own money to fill the gaps. According to Roberson, classrooms are increasingly asked to compensate for what should be taught outside of school—responsibility, accountability, and basic preparedness.
She challenged readers to look more closely at so-called “failing” schools and ask uncomfortable questions: Do parents attend school events? Do they communicate regularly with teachers? Do they ensure their children have supplies, complete homework, and take responsibility for their behavior?
Roberson acknowledged that teachers play a critical role, but insisted they cannot do both jobs. “Teachers cannot do their jobs and the parents’ job,” she wrote. “Until parents step up and do their job, nothing is going to get better.”
Unsurprisingly, the letter caused a strong reaction when it went viral—and it still does. Supporters praise her honesty and firsthand experience, while critics argue that her view oversimplifies complex social and economic challenges facing families and schools alike.
Whether one agrees or disagrees, Roberson’s letter continues to raise a question many believe is worth confronting: when schools struggle, where does responsibility truly lie?
What do you think—are parents largely to blame, or are teachers and systems being unfairly criticized?
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