90% of the mothers in our country are superior. superior in buying hardcore preprocessed food.
Why American Mothers are Superior
61–67 of 67 posts
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#62I have a 3.95. I could've earned that .05 back by letting academics consume my life, but I didn't. I was a terrible trumpet player (and hated the trumpet) until I left band for choir in middle school, and I could have been a lot better at it if I weren't busy teaching myself to program, rather than practicing.
I have earned Cs on tests that fell during tech week (crunch time for school theater the week before opening night, with build crew and rehearsals lasting until 10pm).
What I propose (and what she proposes) is that there's nothing wrong with that. Sacrificing my instrument and moving to choir taught me what is it enjoy making music. Those tests I bombed aren't pretty, but in the performances the following weekend, I worked closely with a group of talented people under incredible constraints and unpredictable circumstances to pull off a smooth show, and it was both the greatest thrill and the greatest lesson in teamwork I'd ever experienced.
I've no doubt that sufficient emotional and physical pain applied by a parent could coerce any child to earn a 4.0 and to master an instrument, but that kind of empty, forced skill is not something we should aspire to. Let people do what they love. Even if it weren't for programming and respectable grades, I could make a living with an IATSE card. They pay and the hours would be terrible, but at least I would like what I do.
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#63I have a 3.95. I could've earned that .05 back by letting academics consume my life, but I didn't. I was a terrible trumpet player (and hated the trumpet) until I left band for choir in middle school, and I could have been a lot better at it if I weren't busy teaching myself to program, rather than practicing. I have earned Cs on tests that fell during tech week (crunch time for school theater the week before opening…
You know, I know a really smart guy who went to a top school and now works for D.E. Shaw. He really lit up when I talked to him briefly at a wedding and asked if he was still getting to play his musical instrument. It turns out he had done so - did music for a friend's low ambition, high excitement show. And that really seemed to be more meaningful than the C++ code foo he did for D.E. Shaw.
You will never regret jamming with friends. A test is just a blip.
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#64Earlier quoted context omitted.
Its not anecdotal if it was His mother. Not hearsay anyway.
Anecdotal means "Not necessarily true or reliable, because based on personal accounts rather than facts or research" so the claim that it his mother is, itself, anecdotal. Kind of inherent in casual, internet conversation... hard to avoid.
Hm. Pedantically, his experience with his mother isn't Based on personal accounts, it is his personal experience. So to him anyway it wasn't anecdotal. But to everybody else, sure. Like all reported empirical evidence.
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#65Anecdotal... Two parents with high IQs and academic professions have highly-achieving children (although the only accomplishment I was actually impressed with was the bronze medal in the Olympics...).
And the vaguely racist assumption that Asian students know their facts but have no imagination:
They will tell me what X does in great detail but not answer the question. American students are more likely to jump in with ideas about how to change X, replete with statements like “X sucks because…” >>>>>>>>>
I went to school with the child of one of the original UNIX developers. He submitted a word processed paper in grade school (late 70's). I can remember him reading GEB in the back of Chemistry class. He has gone on to do wonderful things - and I never saw evidence of the 'Chinese Mom' upbringing... He always seemed to be a very balanced, healthy human being - doing what he wanted to do.
Richard Feynman didn't have a Chinese mother either...
So we all have these anecdotes - what Chua is talking about is something different. It is not merely anecdotal - it is why there is high unemployment and at the same time tech companies in NYC starving for engineers.
Thee is a link for me in the 'Chinese mom' argument (not Chua's per se but the tiger parenting her daughter pushes against) and Gladwell's Outlier's argument.
Even if you are a genius it takes "10,000 hours" of hard work. Some people are internally motivated enough to do it at a young age. Others need a 'Chinese mom' to turn the TV off and go through the piano piece one more time...
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#66I am waiting for the Jewish Mother article :-)
Not sure if this the kind of "Jewish Mother" article you are looking for, but here it is - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405274870333350457608... -- written by a mother who happens to be Jewish.
Re: Why American Mothers are Superior
#67I have a 3.95. I could've earned that .05 back by letting academics consume my life, but I didn't. I was a terrible trumpet player (and hated the trumpet) until I left band for choir in middle school, and I could have been a lot better at it if I weren't busy teaching myself to program, rather than practicing. I have earned Cs on tests that fell during tech week (crunch time for school theater the week before opening…
You know, I know a really smart guy who went to a top school and now works for D.E. Shaw. He really lit up when I talked to him briefly at a wedding and asked if he was still getting to play his musical instrument. It turns out he had done so - did music for a friend's low ambition, high excitement show. And that really seemed to be more meaningful than the C++ code foo he did for D.E. Shaw. You will never regret jam…
Yep. The thing for me was that trumpet was not anywhere near "jamming with friends" the way choir is - I didn't like anyone in band, and after 45 minutes of playing I'm winded and my brain is deprived of oxygen, whereas 45 minutes of singing leave me feeling great. I don't think parents should let their kids do nothing, but I do think kids should be allowed to experiment, and choose for themselves what they stick with.