Parents definitely doing too much!
Nowadays, apart from ‘tiger parents’ and ‘monster parents’, it is not uncommon to hear the term ‘helicopter parents’. It refers to parents who have taken too much control over their children. Another heated argument about parents nowadays is that whether they are doing too much for their children. In my opinion, the claim is valid.
To begin with, parents in Hong Kong usually plan everything for their children. Before their children are born, they have already planned a lot of things for their precious one. When their children start to grow, parents plan a lot of extra-curricular activities for them. About a year ago, an interview of a primary student caught the attention of most of the Hongkongers. That pupil claimed that his mother has enrolled 11 courses including Maths, English, piano lessons and so on for him. Although this case may sound a bit extreme, it is still not rare for us to hear parents planning a lot for their children. From baby playgroups to kindergartens, from primary to secondary, from university to workplace, parent often get involved and sometimes even choose everything for their beloved one. All these clearly indicate that parents are definitely doing too much for their children.
Apart from that, parents often finish most of the things which originally are their children’s responsibility. Children nowadays only have to focus on their academic study, but do not have many things to do. It is common that children in Hong Kong do not have to do housework. Parents will finish all housework by themselves or hire maids to do housework at home. Children are seldom involved in tidying up the house which is one of the responsibilities they have. There are also other cases of parents finishing most of the things for their children. For instance, some children in Hong Kong do not know how to tie the shoelaces as parents even help their children to tie them up. If parents help their children to finish such a little task, what about something bigger? The answer is no-brainer. Parents will surely help their children.
Some may yet say that it is understandable for parents to do so much for their children. They are their own children, of course parents will try to give the best to their children. Indeed, the motives of the parents are good. However, their way of doing it is wrong. The appearance of ‘Kong-kids’ is the most powerful evidence of parents doing too much for their children. ‘Kong-kids’ do not know how to take care of themselves as their parents have taken too good and too much care of them. This causes their children to lack the ability to take care of themselves. This clearly reveals that parents in Hong Kong are really doing too much for their children. They have done too much, indeed.
To sum up, much of what has been done by parents reflect that they are really doing too much for their children. Maybe, only after they lose the ability to do so, will they stop doing too much for their kids.
2017-2018 5C
Chan Yik Hei, Leo