All parents want the best of everything for their kids. They want their kids to wear the best clothes, to eat the best food, and definitely, to get the best education. Even if that means parents taking classes to help their kids.
Yes, you read that right!
You may find many parents taking classes and happily so in order to send their kids to tuition classes. This, so that their kids will not fall behind in their studies. But only truly great parents will enroll themselves in tuition classes too just to be able to help their kids out at school.
That is exactly what’s happening in Singapore where dedicated kiasu parents are enrolling into school-level mathematics and even language classes just so they can be a better help to their children.
Singaporean parents taking classes
Homework is part and parcel of a student’s life and since they are part and parcel of your kid’s therefore it is subsequently yours too. More often than not, kids will ask their parents for help with their homework and unless you are a school teacher yourself, chances are you won’t be able to help them out.
Singaporean mum, Ling Yit Lin tried to help with her seven-year-old son’s mathematics homework but the poor boy ended up getting everything wrong!
“It was confusing. I did A-level maths but I had no idea how to do Primary 2 maths” said Yit Lin about parents taking classes.
So when the boy’s school Zhonghua Primary in Serangoon held a three-hour free workshop earlier this year, Yit Lin jumped at the chance. The school’s head of mathematics Lee Peck Har says he has been conducting the class for parents since 2008. Such classes prepare them better to teach their kids at home.
“We believe in garnering the support of parents to help us teach their children with the right method.”
West View primary school is also is also providing free workshops for parents.
“With these workshops, they are kept informed of the changes,” said West View Maths teacher Lee Lee Cheng.
Rashidah Abdul Rasip, principal of West View Primary said that these workshops were started because of parents. They often complain that they want to help their kids out but are unsure of what to do, he said.
Private tuition centres are jumping on the bandwagon parents workshop bandwagon too. Private tuition centre Neuromath started offering classes for parents a couple of years ago. Now, the tuition centre offers 30 weekly sessions for parents. This costs S$280 for a three-hour-block to S$490 for a full-day workshop.
Kiasu parenting
Teachers are however quick to point out that parents should not overly stress their kids. That's because they are feeling the pressure themselves. Parents usually worry about their kids' performance in school and how that reflects directly on their parenting skills. So they believe that their kids need help to excel so they can prove to be good parents.
If you are thinking of enrolling yourselves into these workshops as well, do remember to keep your priorities straight. You are there to help your kids in their studies, not to show off to the world how great of a parent you are.
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Source: The Star 2, November 2 2011
Also read: STEM education in Singapore: What you need to know