[quote=CA renter]
All that being said, if the cultural and language barriers were the crux of the problem, why do so many Asian students do so well, especially when one considers the fact that their languages and cultures are even more dissimilar than many of those who perform poorly on these tests? …Of course, some would argue that the people coming over from China, Japan, Korea, etc. are wealthier (therefore, more intelligent) while the people coming from Latin America and Africa are more likely to be the downtrodden because they are more likely to be descendents of slaves, or people who weren’t doing well in their native Latin American countries, so made their way over here. Then, we’re right back to, “I just don’t know.”[/quote]
Being one of the asian people who came here, I think it’s really just culturally, the focus is on academics over really much anything else…Unlike in Latin America perhaps where you have baseball players, soccer stars, etc…In Asia, it’s all about doing well on those entrance exams because if you don’t get in, you future life/career in those asian countries is going to be extremely limited…
In Asia, there isn’t as many second chances like in the US and it’s not as easy to just start some internet company and make billions.
Overall, I think asians tend to just put more (ALL) their focus on academics and are willing to sacrifice everything (no retirement savings, live in in-laws/parents/whatever, no sports, fun, friends) to get there…From all the studies I’ve read, after like 3 generations, they revert to the typical Caucasian family as well so it’s more of an immigrant phenomenon as well.
At the end of the day, the immigrant from India/Asia/wherever simply wants it more than someone else…
A lot of parents here want their kids to get along with other people, make friends, etc…I don’t think a lot of old asian families cared about that (maybe they play with their extended family more).
