"You also need great parents." Indeed. I think the hierarchy of what factors make the biggest difference goes like this: 1. the kid 2. the parents 3. the te

"You also need great parents." Indeed. I think the hierarchy of what factors make the biggest difference goes like this: 1. the kid 2. the parents 3. the teachers 4. the school The kid has to have at least the basic physical and mental faculties or they are seriously impacted no matter how good the rest of the things are. Then the parents make the next biggest difference. Even if the teachers and school aren't very good the parents can make up for it and can even excel. It can be a close call between teachers and parents, because if the parents are doing just the minimum a great teacher can still make a big difference. Last but still important is the school, meaning the facilities and educational systems in use, separate from the teachers who teach there. Where I live I see most parents focus on two things: extra tutoring, and schools with fancy facilities. Most don't think they should do anything themselves, that they already paid the school/tutor to teach. An example is that despite the teachers constantly encouraging kids to read with their parents every night, it seems like most kids do their nightly reading on their own if at all.