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Navigating conflicting desires: parenting practices and the meaning of educational work in urban East Asia

Göransson, Kristina LU ; Kang, Yoonhee and Kim, Yeon-Jin LU orcid (2022) In Ethnography & Education 17(2). p.160-178
Abstract
Today parents are faced with increasing expectations to attend to their young children’s learning and cognitive development. South Korea and Singapore are well-known for their competitive education systems and for consistently topping international student assessment tests. They also share an inflated private tuition industry, fuelled by the assumption that parents are compelled to invest substantial resources and time to support their children's development and education. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Seoul and Singapore, the article explores how middle-class parents of pre- and primary school children negotiate seemingly conflicting aspirations of academic achievement versus emotional well-being and resilience. The findings unveil... (More)
Today parents are faced with increasing expectations to attend to their young children’s learning and cognitive development. South Korea and Singapore are well-known for their competitive education systems and for consistently topping international student assessment tests. They also share an inflated private tuition industry, fuelled by the assumption that parents are compelled to invest substantial resources and time to support their children's development and education. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Seoul and Singapore, the article explores how middle-class parents of pre- and primary school children negotiate seemingly conflicting aspirations of academic achievement versus emotional well-being and resilience. The findings unveil how parents strive to cultivate positive attitudes towards learning through management of time and space in everyday life. In particular, it draws attention to the moral imperative to raise children who enjoy learning, as a way to reconcile parents’ twofold aspiration to upskill their children and cultivate their emotional well-being. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Ethnography & Education
volume
17
issue
2
pages
18 pages
publisher
Routledge
external identifiers
  • scopus:85125921583
ISSN
1745-7823
DOI
10.1080/17457823.2022.2042708
project
Parenting strategies around children's education in urban China, South Korea and Singapore: A comparative ethnographic study
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
bbc0076e-6ab4-4e76-99b0-cd195e5a4251
date added to LUP
2022-03-03 09:29:43
date last changed
2023-02-03 15:20:12
@article{bbc0076e-6ab4-4e76-99b0-cd195e5a4251,
  abstract     = {{Today parents are faced with increasing expectations to attend to their young children’s learning and cognitive development. South Korea and Singapore are well-known for their competitive education systems and for consistently topping international student assessment tests. They also share an inflated private tuition industry, fuelled by the assumption that parents are compelled to invest substantial resources and time to support their children's development and education. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Seoul and Singapore, the article explores how middle-class parents of pre- and primary school children negotiate seemingly conflicting aspirations of academic achievement versus emotional well-being and resilience. The findings unveil how parents strive to cultivate positive attitudes towards learning through management of time and space in everyday life. In particular, it draws attention to the moral imperative to raise children who enjoy learning, as a way to reconcile parents’ twofold aspiration to upskill their children and cultivate their emotional well-being.}},
  author       = {{Göransson, Kristina and Kang, Yoonhee and Kim, Yeon-Jin}},
  issn         = {{1745-7823}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{160--178}},
  publisher    = {{Routledge}},
  series       = {{Ethnography & Education}},
  title        = {{Navigating conflicting desires: parenting practices and the meaning of educational work in urban East Asia}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17457823.2022.2042708}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/17457823.2022.2042708}},
  volume       = {{17}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}