4 ms·

> And they act like the cost makes it unattainable for anyone else. But it’s a few thousand dollars if that (as low as under $1,000) which is reachable to all b

> And they act like the cost makes it unattainable for anyone else. But it’s a few thousand dollars if that (as low as under $1,000) which is reachable to all but destitute families This strikes me as extremely out of touch. I would think this cost is unattainable for a large chunk of American families. If it were true, and the cost was so clearly worth it, then why isn't every kid in America doing test prep?

mc32 5y ago
What’s more important to get a kid, a new iPhone or some education? Americans mostly don’t do after school reinforcement education because it’s not in our culture —unlike Asian cultures where buxibans are pretty much the rule. People will putt around in very old cars which need replacement in order to afford being able to send their kids to after school classes. We’d rather get new sneakers, iPhones or whatever else peer pressure tells us to do. Our pop culture reinforces the “be a dope” stereotype as cool and the studious kids as “nerdy”. That’s all you need to know.
- SyzygistSix 5y ago
  That is certainly a factor but I'm not sure it is all we need to know.
ericd 5y ago
Because it’s hard? It requires forcing your kid to do something they probably don’t want to when you’re likely already exhausted from the other demands of staying afloat, especially if you’re a single parent. But reasonable test prep is very obviously obtainable from a monetary perspective. My own SAT prep was mostly a $20 workbook, and my score improved immensely by the third practice test. Even $1,000 can be achieved if it’s made the top priority besides food/shelter. And my impression is that for many Asians, that’s where the priority sits.
scarmig 5y ago
Test prep isn't all that effective in raising scores, at least on the SAT. To the extent that it is, a $30 test prep book provides the lion's share of the benefit.
randomifcpfan 5y ago
Different family cultures. Some families value education more, plan ahead more, and sacrifice current consumption for their children’s future more than others. Small differences compound over time.
bhupy 5y ago
Different culture: https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/06/21/asian_study_art.html https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/06/21/... "Do these Asian students have an unfair advantage because their affluent parents can afford to pay for expensive test prep, as Mayor de Blasio has suggested? At Stuyvesant, as critics of the de Blasio plan have pointed out, 46 percent of students qualify for free or subsidized lunches, a common measure of very modest financial circumstances. Many of the Asian families whose children go to Stuyvesant and the other specialized schools are poor. Many of them are immigrants, or the first people in their families to be born in the United States. Many of them live in households where English isn't spoken. They are not children of privilege gaming the system, but newcomers working to realize the American dream. ... But in addition to pushing their children, China- and Korean-born parents, according to the "tiger mom" theory, sacrifice their own immediate needs to provide their kids with the resources they need to succeed."

mc32 5y ago

What’s more important to get a kid, a new iPhone or some education? Americans mostly don’t do after school reinforcement education because it’s not in our culture —unlike Asian cultures where buxibans are pretty much the rule. People will putt around in very old cars which need replacement in order to afford being able to send their kids to after school classes. We’d rather get new sneakers, iPhones or whatever else peer pressure tells us to do. Our pop culture reinforces the “be a dope” stereotype as cool and the studious kids as “nerdy”. That’s all you need to know.

SyzygistSix 5y ago
That is certainly a factor but I'm not sure it is all we need to know.

ericd 5y ago

Because it’s hard? It requires forcing your kid to do something they probably don’t want to when you’re likely already exhausted from the other demands of staying afloat, especially if you’re a single parent. But reasonable test prep is very obviously obtainable from a monetary perspective. My own SAT prep was mostly a $20 workbook, and my score improved immensely by the third practice test. Even $1,000 can be achieved if it’s made the top priority besides food/shelter. And my impression is that for many Asians, that’s where the priority sits.

scarmig 5y ago

Test prep isn't all that effective in raising scores, at least on the SAT. To the extent that it is, a $30 test prep book provides the lion's share of the benefit.

randomifcpfan 5y ago

Different family cultures. Some families value education more, plan ahead more, and sacrifice current consumption for their children’s future more than others. Small differences compound over time.

bhupy 5y ago

Different culture: https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/06/21/asian_study_art.html https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2018/06/21/... "Do these Asian students have an unfair advantage because their affluent parents can afford to pay for expensive test prep, as Mayor de Blasio has suggested? At Stuyvesant, as critics of the de Blasio plan have pointed out, 46 percent of students qualify for free or subsidized lunches, a common measure of very modest financial circumstances. Many of the Asian families whose children go to Stuyvesant and the other specialized schools are poor. Many of them are immigrants, or the first people in their families to be born in the United States. Many of them live in households where English isn't spoken. They are not children of privilege gaming the system, but newcomers working to realize the American dream. ... But in addition to pushing their children, China- and Korean-born parents, according to the "tiger mom" theory, sacrifice their own immediate needs to provide their kids with the resources they need to succeed."