First, the whole "tiger mom" thing is not universal. And more to the point, does not mean the sort of constant monitoring like in the US. In Korea and Japan (

First, the whole "tiger mom" thing is not universal. And more to the point, does not mean the sort of constant monitoring like in the US. In Korea and Japan (don't know about Singapore), independence in young children is highly valued. Many grade schools in Japan, for example, require that children go to school on their own. At six years old, they walk, take the subway, etc. Parents routinely send six, seven or eight year olds out alone on errands. Japan even has a TV show that follows around little kids being sent out on their first independent task. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5k5XTZy0rA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5k5XTZy0rA Expecting and demanding high achievement is not the same thing as smothering children with constant monitoring.