Schools, Community Hope To Address Parenting Pressures From Asian Families

The community and schools in Palo Alto, California, have started their efforts to address the extreme pressure that Asian students and young individuals are experiencing because of their parents. There is a growing concern because of the number of youths ending their lives in the community.

Mercury News reported that Asian youngsters are more prone to stress and suicidal tendencies because their parents expect a lot of things from them. This is said to be one of the main reasons why four of the nine suicide cases in Palo Alto involved Asians.

"Of course, we worry. Why is this happening in our area?" said Chinese-Language Parent Network's Ann Xu. "That's a really complicated issue."

It was also noted parents and community leaders have met to think of ways on how this problem can be addressed in the coming months and years. Mercury News also noted that the same issue is a concern to the top-performing schools in Bay Area.

According to Carbonated.TV, individuals will gather in Palo Alto this coming April 20 to discusses important issues involving the youth like academic expectations, availability of a counselor and even the stigma of mental illness among young people. This is also expected to help parents deal with their kids who are having troubles with their academics.

Parent Ivy Wu said she wants other moms and also dads to realize that it is not healthy to set high expectations for their kids. She shared that her daughter got depressed because she was asking a lot from her at school.

"I'm trying to tell parents, 'Don't look at your kids as a project. Help them develop their potential, but don't insist on your terms,'" Wu said in the Carbonated.TV report. "Your kids don't have to go to an Ivy League school."