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Not really. I grew up in a developing country, where there were only public schools. And my school was by no means elite. Biographies of scientists were not par

Not really. I grew up in a developing country, where there were only public schools. And my school was by no means elite. Biographies of scientists were not part of curriculum either. It's really the culture. Parents did care about kids' academic performance, a lot. The whole society advocated studying hard with the right approach (whether it's really right is debatable). Even state media devote significant time to STEM related news and documentaries. Drug was never the problem because even carrying drug is capital crime. I'm not saying every every in every city was like that as our country had tons of social and economical problems. However, kids' education especially STEM education is THE focus of parenting.

vezzy-fnord 13y ago
Sounds like the typical case of a poor nation. There is no incentive to stay, the country is in a dreadful economic state, a large socio-political diaspora is present and so forth. In times of desperation like this, it's usually the same everywhere: parents strongly guide their children into entering fields that are profitable and flourishing in academia. Their intentions are benevolent, but the way they accomplish this is often forceful, egocentric and driven not by the virtue of knowledge and intellect, but rather the expectations of prosperity. Very often, although there is a superficial appearance of high intellectual culture, the reality is that many of these people are doing it to appease their parents and are actually mediocre in their fields. Also societies which insist on formal education this much tend to teach in a very flawed manner: mere rote memorization with no immersion. In the end, you breed soulless parrots who can recite lectures and academic papers, but show no passion or intimate understanding and desire to refine their skills. This is how you get dull, 9-to-5 code monkeys who can write instructions in PHP and Java in a sort of cargo cult way with no sophistication. Drug was never the problem because even carrying drug is capital crime. Aye, when will people learn prohibition never works?
g9yuayon 13y ago
Well, I think you're into another extreme. Developing, yes. Poor? Maybe. Desperate? I'm not sure. At least our school days are full of fond memories. And my classmates seemed happy, and I was definitely happy. More importantly, we did enjoy learning.

vezzy-fnord 13y ago

Sounds like the typical case of a poor nation. There is no incentive to stay, the country is in a dreadful economic state, a large socio-political diaspora is present and so forth. In times of desperation like this, it's usually the same everywhere: parents strongly guide their children into entering fields that are profitable and flourishing in academia. Their intentions are benevolent, but the way they accomplish this is often forceful, egocentric and driven not by the virtue of knowledge and intellect, but rather the expectations of prosperity. Very often, although there is a superficial appearance of high intellectual culture, the reality is that many of these people are doing it to appease their parents and are actually mediocre in their fields. Also societies which insist on formal education this much tend to teach in a very flawed manner: mere rote memorization with no immersion. In the end, you breed soulless parrots who can recite lectures and academic papers, but show no passion or intimate understanding and desire to refine their skills. This is how you get dull, 9-to-5 code monkeys who can write instructions in PHP and Java in a sort of cargo cult way with no sophistication. Drug was never the problem because even carrying drug is capital crime. Aye, when will people learn prohibition never works?

g9yuayon 13y ago

Well, I think you're into another extreme. Developing, yes. Poor? Maybe. Desperate? I'm not sure. At least our school days are full of fond memories. And my classmates seemed happy, and I was definitely happy. More importantly, we did enjoy learning.