Education is a Marathon

Coco was with me when we went to Malaysia for the past few days.

My 4th sister was visibly, and audibly, worried when she saw how slow Coco was in going about her business ie. eating, doing her work and responding to others when she's called.

She said I really ought to do something about it, like finding her someone to compete with (since I have noted that she works best when under a certain amount of stress or competition). And that I ought to change her character or personality before I go into her academics.

As someone who's alienated from the concept of bringing up a child, I can see where she's coming from, and I would agree with her if I don't have a child myself. Yet as a parent with a child whose academics are at stake, I have to disagree with her.

Personality and character are inherent in us. We have a Chinese saying '江山易改，本性难移', meaning 'A leopard cannot change its spots'. If I were to change her character before I do something about her academics, Coco could very well end up in a stream or school that's less desired. Having been a secondary student in a neighbourhood school, I had suffered from the negative impact of being in a class that wasn't exactly enthusiastic about academic achievements. It also affected the way I looked at education for a long time, so much so that it has a lasting effect on my whole life!

The main and painful lesson that I take away from this is: a secondary school is extremely, if not most, important in shaping a child's future.

This is why I saw it vital, and literally did everything that I could to make sure, that Coco got into a good primary school so that she could up her chance in going to a good secondary school, and preferably a girls' school.

Introspectively, I thought my intention for Coco to get into a good secondary school from the start could stem from my belief that education is a marathon.

In a marathon, your performance has to be consistent. You can't start with a sprint and slow down later. You can't tell yourself you'll have it nice and slow first, or better yet, sit down and rest first, and then do very well at the last stage, because chances are, you won't even reach that last stage. But a good start, without a sprint, will be nice. It boosts your confidence and allows you to see how far you are from the ones in front and behind.

This is also one of the reasons I intend to spend a few years to build up Coco's foundation in Chinese. I'm not prepping her for her yearly Chinese exams, although those exams are good indicators of how well she's coping at each level. I am aiming more at her PSLE. I hope that by the time she reaches PSLE, she will be quite, if not very, competent in using the language.

I'm a Chinese lover (passionate about Chinese as a language and subject). Even now, I'm still constantly amazed by the use of Chinese especially in the area of writing. I truly want Coco to embrace the language as well.