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Parents, I need your opinions...
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| Senior Member |
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| 11580 Posts |
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| Hong Kong |
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| posted by tinybear 1188 days ago |
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He was 7. It was a boy aged 12, a girl aged 9 and a boy aged 7.
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| Newbie |
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| 467 Posts |
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| Hong Kong |
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| posted by barbie 1188 days ago |
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GT, I think your comments are from an Australian perspective.
Hk is a totally different kettle of fish.
I don't know about Shanghai.
There is little concept of 'happiness' being important in HK school culture,
the belief is 'success leads to happiness - success can only be achieved through every page in a workbook being completed'.
Happiness, which in the west is believed to be totally connected to 'learning' is of no consequence to most HK parents.
I've been told by Chinese academics in the field of education that the Confucian belief 'Work Hard (or 'wor har' as it's called here) and you will reach that goal' prevails.. Unfortunately, the belief is that the 'hard work' will let you achieve anything. The first school I taught at in HK had kids from high profile HK families who were expected to be doctors. This was despite the fact that they couldn't cope with the secondary courses that would get them into this field at university. One of the kids in particular was suicidal over the expectations.
He was enrolled in every tutorial class going during school hols. His life was a misery.
Manners, happiness etc are not even passing thoughts to the majority of parents in HK.
I wait for the day when schools have all the funding they need and the airforce has to have a cake stall to raise money for a new bomber.
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| Senior Member |
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| 11580 Posts |
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| Hong Kong |
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| posted by tinybear 1188 days ago |
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Thanks for confirming what I have always known (from my own observations).
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| Newbie |
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| 467 Posts |
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| Hong Kong |
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| posted by barbie 1188 days ago |
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tinybear, your observations have been insightful to say the least (especially if you aren't a teacher.)
What I know about 'HK education' is from nearly 4 years of teaching here (in local and Int schools)and 20 years in other countries, as well as having taught uni courses to undergrad teachers.
Take no notice of geodude, his comments are understandable but uninformed.
I wait for the day when schools have all the funding they need and the airforce has to have a cake stall to raise money for a new bomber.
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| Regular Member |
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| 6594 Posts |
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| United Kingdom |
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| posted by Gum Tree 1188 days ago |
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Barbie and tb - yes it was from my own perspective. But I acknowledge the local push. I just think it is sad. Kids are there to be enjoyed for whom they are, not put on show for a parent's ego.
Have either of you got a comment on expat kids? Seems to me that a lot of them are put into the DH hands for a lot of the time and don't get to learn about values and such stuff from their parents. This is a generalisation, but I have noticed a lot of insecurity and lack of independence amongst the ones I have met so far.
"Marooned on a rock with 80,000 and now 90,000 alcoholics and counting"
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| Junior Member |
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| 2409 Posts |
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| Singapore |
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| posted by rachel_z 1188 days ago |
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Barbie, the mentality in Shanghai is more or less the same. I have to start my class late that day because one of the boys in class was forced by his mother to sing for some parents. He was clearly embarassed but seemed to be getting used to this sort of performance. Anyway yeah they care about abilities and academic achievements, not about personality or character. If a kid is smart and a high achiever, they will be let off scott free if they behave rudely. In fact most of the time, they were rude to their own parents, teachers and the rest of their classmates. When I first took the classes in the new school, I have to establish the habit of queuing up, saying please and thank you etc... in fact I have to say that most of the local kids I have seen are much more impolite than foreign kids. This is the fact but I am glad to say that its improving... glad that the kids in my classes are becoming more considerate about others.
I love all kids and it hurts me that the 'wrong emphasis' has been encouraged by their parents, thats all. Geez... I gotta stop... I am becoming more and more emotional here.
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| Regular Member |
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| 3524 Posts |
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| Hong Kong |
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| posted by sunwaterandsky 1187 days ago |
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Expat kids? It really depends on their origins and their contact with parents. My experience has been that they often have very little contact with their parents and rely on their helper or a teacher for security and help. This places an extra burden and responsibility on teachers and helpers.
I taught middle school for a while and found that the children were probably more susceptable to peer pressure without the opportunity for support and discussion with their parents.I found that the parents were often baffled by their children's waning affections and independence.
Some children really do live a life without limits - their helper has no authority over them, they are unsupervised for most of their waking hours and parents feel guilty, so don't hold them accountable for their actions. Looks like we are building a heartless immoral group - future multinational CEOs?
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