Tiger Moms or Sheep Moms Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua - Essay Example

Ying Yan Essay Draft) English 1B - Claire Nava April 12, Tiger Moms or Sheep Moms? “No grades lower than ‘A’; No hanging out overnight; No parties on weekends…” These are some rules made by “Tiger Mom”: Amy Chua, who is a Chinese-American professor at Yale University. “Tiger Mom” is a term that comes from her self-proclaimed book, “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother”. “Tiger Mom” refers to a strict mother who makes her children work particularly hard on studying and restricts their free time to do the things they are interested in, to ensure they continually achieve the highest grades on the things that their parents value (Chua 1). Moreover, people regards the term “Tiger Mom” as a synonym for a strict mode of education. The big question is that, will this “Tiger Mom” mode lead to a childs success? The answer is ambiguous, though Amy’s two daughters’ academic excellence answers this question. In most cases, “Tiger Mom” education is not available for all children. For those children who have strong obedience, this kind of education allows them to comply with the rules that allow them to perform well with this approach. Conversely, if the child’s rebellious attitude is very strong, this educational approach may cause consequences that are more serious (Chua 1). For instance, the child can become more rebellious. If children are rebellious for a long time, they develop psychological barriers and distortions when they grow up. Unfortunately, children have different rebellious styles and the strict “Tiger Mom” method is not always suitable. While “Tiger Mom” kicked off a huge wave of debate around the world, the opposite method from Finland’s education system is also drawing widespread attention. In Finland, schools firmly believe that education is a “service” process that children are viewed as customers. Since this education mode is more like a free-range type, people refer to it as “Sheep Mom.” “Sheep Mom” refers to an extensive way of education where teachers only have basic objectives for children (Gross 63). Parents believe that a child’s education should be based on the child’s personal interest, giving full respect for the child’s views and feelings, and opposing the use of force to suppress their learning course. As long as most children can reach the basic goals, teachers can feel free to teach them. Between the contrasting modes of “Tiger Mom” and “Sheep Mom”, many people tend to choose “Sheep Mom” education mode due to how appropriate pressure and basic leading principles are applied that foresees better growth of children in a healthier way. Finland’s schools and teachers have formed a consensus that it is a schools’ fault if children experience learning difficulties. It is, therefore, the responsibility of the school and teachers to find a solution to each individuals education (Gross 25). Schools also explicitly emphasize the importance of physical and mental health of students in leaning; all schools provide students with full nutritious lunch, and even provide free shuttle car for those students who live far away. Each class has a 15 minutes break and no students remain in the class even in the northern winter. Teachers believe that the break time for rest and a breath of fresh air can make students healthier, as well as more attentive. Logically speaking, there are not many oppressive parents and teachers, thus many students are not extremely conscious of their learning. However, the results of the “Sheep Mom” should not be underestimated. Finland students participated in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) for four times, and each time, the grades on math, reading and science were in the top three places. The grades not only shocked the world, but the Finns were surprised as well because “Sheep Mom” education mode had trained the most competitive children at PISA. In “Tiger Mom” education, parents make decisions for their children, even the decisions that are most important for the childs future. From Kindergarten, children under “Tiger Mom” mode are placed on the assessment line since their parents believe that they are the best schools that offer the best education (Chua 1). Some private kindergartens even set their own assessment criteria. For example, each semester a public school may randomly draw three children into a class test to establish the average level of education. At a private school test, there is no such fairness and the children are divided into three ranks or grades. Children who did not get a good grade are likely to receive their teacher and parents’ accountability. During school, children are usually pressured by teachers to make specific academic achievement. Some pressure is imposed by teachers to parents, and some parents then re-imposed the pressure on their children. In any case, the children are always wrong. Under chronic stress, the child’s mind will become very sensitive and even lead to a series of serious consequences (Gross 33). For example, not long ago, news reported that a middle school student jumped from the 17th floor and took his own life because he failed his exams and feared facing his parents with the result. Nobody wants to see such a tragedy happening again; parents should choose to give up on “Tiger Mom” education in order to let their children grow up healthier. Compared with the “Sheep Mom”, “Tiger Mom” mode keeps children going over materials to remember vocabularies, studying, and practicing in their class break time. The teacher and parents try to cram their children and make them study as much as possible. Some schools even change the elective classes, such as art or physical education to major classes. Children lose enthusiasm for learning and become weary, which can lead to truancy. It is clearly impossible for children to learn under such pressures. The more pressure parents or teachers put on the children, the more resistance children become and the more distance between the child-parent relationship will grow. Even Amy Chua later noticed that her way of teaching may lead her daughter emotionally away from her, but not the kind of intimacy neglect that would ruin her family. In a recent interview of Amy Chua, she conceded that because her first daughter was sensible and obedient, she felt her “Tiger Mom’s” education was feasible. However, when she applied her “Tiger Mom’s” education to the second daughter Lulu, she almost ruined her interests on violin. Lulu decided to quit her job as a Youth Symphony Orchestra violinist because of her mother’s bear arbitrariness. Lulu’s rebellion led Amy Chua to reflect on her education model. The woman who came up with the idea of “Tiger Mom” mode finally gave up the concept for her litter girl (Chua 1). Under “Tiger Mom” mode, no matter how promising the “Tiger Mom’s” child is, the mode is not worthy of our pursuit. Today’s parents are more concerned about their childs future success at the cost of the child’s happiness. Success may result in happiness in the future, but it does not necessarily equate to happiness. Joy and happiness are the elements of an individual’s own experience. When children get older, parents should respect their children and accept that they are separate entities. Parents should have discussions with their children about what they hope to do because this can both cultivate independence that develops a sense of responsibility for the child. Children are people, not tools or machines. Education should be “individualized by individualized instruction” and a successful way to teach that depends on each childs circumstances (Gross 62). As schools educate children, parents should not be too strong or too weak, but allow the children to accept something deep inside their heart. This will stimulate a child’s driving force, and bring out the utmost potential ability for a better course. Works Cited Chua, Amy. Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. London: Bloomsbury, 2012. Print. Chua, A (2011, January 8). Why Chinese Mothers are Superior. Wall street Journal. Retrieved on 2015, May 30 from http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704111504576059713528698754 Gross, C (2014, March 17). “Finnish Education Chief: We created a school system based on Equality’. The Atlantic. Retrieved on 2015, May 30 from http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/03/finnish-education-chief-we-created-a-school-system-based-on-equality/284427/ Read More