This is a brilliant article. Something I think some of us can relate to. And I think I turned out a lot better because nothing less than perfection was expected of me. Getting a 'B' for even 1 out of 15 subjects was something to be frowned upon. And God help me if I got more than 1 'B'. It would be followed by "agli baar toh ek bhi A nahi aayega". This was Dad's cursing of course. Indian fathers, at least many of those whom I know, seem to have this sarcastic style of speaking. And motivating. I must say it was a combination of fear of getting scolded and the desire to do well which kept my grades up in school.
It was my mom's hands-on teaching which helped me when I was younger. When she got a full-time job, I was in 6th standard. After that, it was pretty much on my own. And I managed. There was supervision, but there was also the independence to choose your own learning techniques.
I think one of the reasons responsible for my academics going south in Singapore is the lack of supervision. I can always hide my grades from my father. As long as I don't make any major screw-ups, like not get into university, bad grades go pretty much unnoticed. Or cursed-over-the-phone. Which hardly matters.
What I expect from myself was also tailored by what others expected of me. With no one to scold me for not studying here, I expect a lot lesser from myself. Which, in this last semester, will be crucial in deciding whether or not I have a job or not. Stupid conditional offers.
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