<p>Would academic success be more likely if children are encouraged to do well or expected to do well?
It may seem a little obvious, but I think its kinda thought-provoking too x)</p>
<p>Expected. The children who were “encouraged” faked their way through honors courses until around 10th grade; now they’re in remedial English. I was always expected to do well and believe it has truly benefited me. You can’t “encourage” a kid to work hard. You expect it of your child and hope that you can instill work ethic that will follow him or her throughout life.</p>
<p>But learning shouldn’t be “work.” Everything in America is work work work…(peon reference ftw). Work out. School work. Etc. You don’t want children to become robots.</p>
<p>I think it should be expected of certain students, but if someone honestly has difficulty with academics, placing overly high expectations on them is in no way good for their self-esteem.</p>
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<p>Ever been to Korea? They “work” to an absurd level.</p>
<p>JeSuis, i have no idea what you’re talking about. sure, my parents have “expected” me to do well, but i’ll they’ve ever done was ENCOURAGE me- they NEVER forced me to do anything. i turned out pretty damn well… as a person and a student</p>
<p>The thing about expecting children to do well is how oftentimes they’re punished for doing poorly, but not always praised for doing well.</p>
<p>The child who is encouraged to do well has an opposite situation. They may not be punished for doing poorly and praised when they do well. </p>
<p>Which one may be more effective? If a parent pleads a child to stop throwing a temper tantrum in return for ice cream, they’ll continue doing it because they know they’ll get what they want. If the child throws a temper tantrum and his or her parent scolds and threatens to punish them, it’s likely the kid won’t repeat this kind of behavior.</p>
<p>I know a lot of kids who grew up knowing they’d be whipped if they misbehaved, and they’re generally pretty disciplined, as bad as it sounds. My father is an example.</p>
<p>My parenting philosophy has always been that children rise to the (loving) expectations set for them. In our house, that has proven to be true.</p>