Take a photo of a barcode or cover
rinnyssance 's review for:
Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
by Amy Chua
I see a lot of negative reviews on this book and I simply don't understand it; clearly these people did not finish the book or their pride won't let them see the faults in their own upbringing and parenting. In this book, Amy Chua explained her parent's struggle as Chinese immigrants, how her childhood was affected by it and her journey raising her own children. That's it, really. Half of the things people are upset about have an obvious sarcastic tone to them and actually made me laugh before I thought to take offense, but Americans (of all ethnic backgrounds) tend to get offended when their child-rearing skills are called into question, if you want to be honest.
Her main concern in this book is that she is American born, living in a Western society, struggling to raise her children to be the best and the brightest. Doing this in the 21st century where what she called "liberal parents" are so into coddling their children and assuming self-esteem, intellectual capacity and work ethic are things that are developed through nurture, and not integral to our being by way of nature, is difficult. I can think of several ways in which Western parents suck at parenting and will probably continue to suck even more as parents-to-be begin to raise children.
What stuck most in my mind about her troubles with Western parenting is the blame game; many Western parents will blame testing or the school system before they question their child's academic prowess. It's always the school's fault and there's always a reason the parents aren't held liable for their child's lack of education. Often, Western philosophy of education suggests that learning should be fun, not work; fluent, not abstract or critical; and slow-paced. Standardized tests are often chastised and new "learning disabilities" and "learning styles" are lobbied for every time we open the newspaper. "Test anxiety" is no longer seen as unpreparedness, but a legitimate excuse not to excel. "Learning styles" are tested for and re-training for teachers (which has constantly proven to have null results) is paid for by the DOE, under the premise that if you cater to every student's learning preference, a positive change in academic performance will occur.
So I see her concern. Her conversations with parents, mentioned in the book here and there, are usually negative but sometimes curious. Her peers consider her children to be model students and citizens until they find out that she drills her children. Making them play instruments six hours a day, teaching them mathematical skills two years ahead of their grade level and accepting nothing but the best from her children, even if that could mean doing things that her peers may not agree with. All-in-all I saw nothing but dedication and this story was more of a love story between her and her children and a learning experience for her raising children in Western society.
The book is not all nagging and long nights practicing sheet music. She admits that raising her children taught her a lot about compromise. She speaks of learning her children's personalities and how she uniquely raised them based on their willingness to cooperate and their abilities. She speaks of frustration and worry she had for her children and how they surprised her in more ways than one. She learns a lot from her children and learns that they're just as tough as she is. They were just as much of a tiger as she was.
I admired this book because Chua is a mother in the professional world who did not dump her children onto the education system and let them take it from there. She may have busted her ass to get the job of her dreams but she still stayed up late to work on her children's music recitals and homework duties. She is deeply involved in her children's academics and determined to ask her children to work as hard as they can. Nothing she mentioned in this book was anything her children, or any child, couldn't handle. She's tough, but she's also compassionate. She worked her way to the top, as did her parents, and she wants her children to work just as diligently.
Her main concern in this book is that she is American born, living in a Western society, struggling to raise her children to be the best and the brightest. Doing this in the 21st century where what she called "liberal parents" are so into coddling their children and assuming self-esteem, intellectual capacity and work ethic are things that are developed through nurture, and not integral to our being by way of nature, is difficult. I can think of several ways in which Western parents suck at parenting and will probably continue to suck even more as parents-to-be begin to raise children.
What stuck most in my mind about her troubles with Western parenting is the blame game; many Western parents will blame testing or the school system before they question their child's academic prowess. It's always the school's fault and there's always a reason the parents aren't held liable for their child's lack of education. Often, Western philosophy of education suggests that learning should be fun, not work; fluent, not abstract or critical; and slow-paced. Standardized tests are often chastised and new "learning disabilities" and "learning styles" are lobbied for every time we open the newspaper. "Test anxiety" is no longer seen as unpreparedness, but a legitimate excuse not to excel. "Learning styles" are tested for and re-training for teachers (which has constantly proven to have null results) is paid for by the DOE, under the premise that if you cater to every student's learning preference, a positive change in academic performance will occur.
So I see her concern. Her conversations with parents, mentioned in the book here and there, are usually negative but sometimes curious. Her peers consider her children to be model students and citizens until they find out that she drills her children. Making them play instruments six hours a day, teaching them mathematical skills two years ahead of their grade level and accepting nothing but the best from her children, even if that could mean doing things that her peers may not agree with. All-in-all I saw nothing but dedication and this story was more of a love story between her and her children and a learning experience for her raising children in Western society.
The book is not all nagging and long nights practicing sheet music. She admits that raising her children taught her a lot about compromise. She speaks of learning her children's personalities and how she uniquely raised them based on their willingness to cooperate and their abilities. She speaks of frustration and worry she had for her children and how they surprised her in more ways than one. She learns a lot from her children and learns that they're just as tough as she is. They were just as much of a tiger as she was.
I admired this book because Chua is a mother in the professional world who did not dump her children onto the education system and let them take it from there. She may have busted her ass to get the job of her dreams but she still stayed up late to work on her children's music recitals and homework duties. She is deeply involved in her children's academics and determined to ask her children to work as hard as they can. Nothing she mentioned in this book was anything her children, or any child, couldn't handle. She's tough, but she's also compassionate. She worked her way to the top, as did her parents, and she wants her children to work just as diligently.