The Extreme Pressure of Being Chinese...
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In a recent article published in the New York Times, a trend in Shanghai was discussed where young and affluent Chinese parents are obsessed with sending their children to schools that teach "skills" that will better equip them to interact with the west.
Golfing, Polo, playing the violin, eating and dining manners, polite relations with the opposite sex were all sited as desired skills that parents of today's children did not learn when they were growing up and therefore want for their own children.
When I lived in Singapore for a few years, I grew to appreciate the duality of being Chinese. Singapore is around 72% Chinese, and I noticed that all had to go through life not only perfecting their mastery of Chinese culture, but also learn western language and culture in order to compete and survive.
In talking with a very close and intimate friend in Korea, she also concurred with the pressures put on Korean children to perform not only academically, but know about and possess modern skills that will help them compete in life and integrate well on a social level with other cultures, specifically the rich and powerful west.
Parents in China and other Asian nations have to shell out huge sums of money for these extra curricular schools that teach their children things that they as parents are not capable of teaching to their children. My female friend in Korea and I both concurred that it is most ideal to have parents teach their children the things they need in life to not only compete and survive, but to also enjoy an delight in. (ice skating, hitting a baseball, playing the guitar, surfing, scuba diving etc.)
However, admitting that you as a parent are not able to teach your child how to play golf because you have to work 80 hours a week in order to pay for his or her golf lessons is an astute judgment on the part of the parent. At least the child is being taught and guided while you are not there to do it yourself. Corporations love this kind of employee commitment.
This poses a very interesting question at the developing globalised world of capitalism, culture and socialisation of modern individuals. Are we better off sending our children to others to learn the things we cannot as parents teach them, or do we not work as hard and as long, in order to develop ourselves into better teachers for our children? In the process saving money along the way, and growing closer to our children as opposed to farther away from them while they learn valuable skills needed not only to survive in this world, but to enjoy and appreciate life as well.
In a recent article published in the New York Times, a trend in Shanghai was discussed where young and affluent Chinese parents are obsessed with sending their children to schools that teach "skills" that will better equip them to interact with the west.Golfing, Polo, playing the violin, eating and dining manners, polite relations with the opposite sex were all sited as desired skills that parents of today's children did not learn when they were growing up and therefore want for their own children.
When I lived in Singapore for a few years, I grew to appreciate the duality of being Chinese. Singapore is around 72% Chinese, and I noticed that all had to go through life not only perfecting their mastery of Chinese culture, but also learn western language and culture in order to compete and survive.
In talking with a very close and intimate friend in Korea, she also concurred with the pressures put on Korean children to perform not only academically, but know about and possess modern skills that will help them compete in life and integrate well on a social level with other cultures, specifically the rich and powerful west.
Parents in China and other Asian nations have to shell out huge sums of money for these extra curricular schools that teach their children things that they as parents are not capable of teaching to their children. My female friend in Korea and I both concurred that it is most ideal to have parents teach their children the things they need in life to not only compete and survive, but to also enjoy an delight in. (ice skating, hitting a baseball, playing the guitar, surfing, scuba diving etc.)
However, admitting that you as a parent are not able to teach your child how to play golf because you have to work 80 hours a week in order to pay for his or her golf lessons is an astute judgment on the part of the parent. At least the child is being taught and guided while you are not there to do it yourself. Corporations love this kind of employee commitment.
This poses a very interesting question at the developing globalised world of capitalism, culture and socialisation of modern individuals. Are we better off sending our children to others to learn the things we cannot as parents teach them, or do we not work as hard and as long, in order to develop ourselves into better teachers for our children? In the process saving money along the way, and growing closer to our children as opposed to farther away from them while they learn valuable skills needed not only to survive in this world, but to enjoy and appreciate life as well.
posted by savvysymbiont @ 6:05 AM
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