I read the recent Time magazine article asking if we push our students too hard and whether we are preparing them for success or overloading them with stress. I agree we are pushing our students too hard, but if we are to send our children to the schools here that is what's required. How do we balance this?
Jaime Simpson, of Teen Success, responds:
Eighty to 90 per cent of the questions I receive from teens relate to the pressure they face from parents to achieve and how this causes so much stress in the home and how they struggle at school to get the grades that their parents want. So this issue affects both the teenagers and parents. The teens are also concerned about this topic and are wondering how to handle the pressure.
It should be of concern that many parents in Hong Kong spend lots of money on extra-curricular activities that all deal with a child's scholastic and cognitive abilities while the emotional, psychological and social health of children are often overlooked.
For parents, the main key to balance is simply a reminder that your child needs both cognitive learning and emotional and relational release. How your child can experience the latter will be determined on their personality. Some love to be involved in sports and team work, others prefer to be alone and to read, others like to shop or spend time on the computer. One child's balance of schedule will not work the same for another.
So work out a balance for your child with them, work out a schedule that works best for their uniqueness.