Cause and effect essay
Time to tear up “Kong Kids” label
By Aimee Yip
Several years ago, a seven-year-old boy yelled uncontrollably in a Tai Po shopping center because of the discontent with his parents. He complained that he was deprived of personal freedom as his parents forced him to go shopping. In order to vent his anger, he not only put the blame on his parents, but also cried to call the police. The boy’s conduct was recorded and spread fast on the Internet. It triggered a heated public debate and the public labeled the boy as a typical “Kong Kid”. “Kong Kids” is a new term that describes the Hong Kong children who are unable to take care of themselves, manage personal emotion and communicate with others. In fact, “Kong Kids” phenomenon nowadays becomes more severe and brings lots of social issues. The case of the seven-year-old boy is only a tip of the iceberg in Hong Kong. For the sake of the children’s and society’s future, it is better for us to go beyond the symptoms and look into the root of the problem so that “Kong Kids” could be eliminated. There are three causes of “Kong Kids” phenomenon: parents’ excessive indulgence, domestic helpers’ perfect care and Hong Kong’s exam-obsessed education system.
Over-protected by parents is one of the major factors leading to “Kong Kids” phenomenon. According to the World Factbook 2013 of the Central Intelligence Agency (2013), it showed that Hong Kong has the second lowest birth rate in the world inasmuch as many Hong Kong families prefer to have at most two children. The kids hence become the only apple of the parents’ eyes. Hoping to give a pleasant living condition and a better future to their kids, the parents provide and prepare the best things for their kids, for example, satisfying their requests, shielding them from difficulties and applying an elite school for learning. In that the kids are over-protected and spoiled like a “prince” or “princess”, they are used to relying on their parents and hence lacking self-care abilities. Xinhua News published a survey about overprotective parents, which conducted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong. It reported that seventy-nine percent of children who should be eating unaided are still fed by parents or domestic helpers. In 56 percent of cases, the parents feed the children. A registered dietitian Ingrid Kan Yuen-man commented that many parents still feed because they are worried about their children spilling food or getting their hands dirty.(Zhang, 2009) Therefore, it is obvious that “Kong Kids” occurrence stems from the overindulgent parents.
“Kong Kids” phenomenon is also caused by the domestic helpers’ perfect care. In a hustle and bustle city, Hong Kong parents are so busy that they work day and night to earn a living. In order to strike a good balance between family and job, most of the parents decide to hire a domestic helper so that their kids are well-cared. Domestic helpers are the parents’ good helping hands that handle all the work such as cleaning houses, cooking a meal and looking after the kids at home. Catering for their boss, domestic helpers not only prepare all the things for the kids, but also praise the kids all the time. Even though the children make mistakes or behave in a wrong way, domestic helpers tend to be reticent. There is no room for the kids to reflect on themselves and rectify their improper behavior and manner. They become self-centered and unable to manage emotion, which are the characteristic of “Kong Kids”. Domestic helpers only focus on how to satisfy kids’ wills but disregard the kids’ manner, and therefore “perfect” domestic helpers should take on some responsibilities for the “Kong Kids” phenomenon.
Moreover, Hong Kong’s exam-obsessed (Suffixes) education system contributes to the “Kong Kids” phenomenon. In Hong Kong education system, students are required to take at least two examinations throughout a year and there are still many tests and assignment during a school term. In each examination and tests, students are required to get a high score for getting a higher rating and entering a better school. The exam-obsessed education system forces students to emphasize on their academic results. The timetable is tightly filled by academic-related works. They spend a lot of time on reading books, doing exercises and having tutorial classes. Having no chance to interact with others or make friends in social occasion, the kids become weak in interpersonal communication. They have also no chance to do any housework and learn self-care skills and hence they are incapable to care themselves. Take Leung Kin-Pang as an example, he is a postgraduate from The Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2008 but has been unemployed for more than two years and lived under Social Security Assistance Scheme. In spite of the good academic results, Leung Kin-Pang lacks self-sufficient skills, problem-solving skills and communication skill. These are the reasons why he cannot find any job. Obviously, the exam-obsessed education system is the evil root of “Kong Kids” phenomenon.
“Kong Kids” phenomenon is getting worse due to parents’ excessive indulgence, domestic helpers’ perfect care and Hong Kong’s exam-obsessed education system. While blaming the improper behaviors conducted by “Kong Kids”, parents and the government should be responsible to look into the causes and solve the problem. For parents, it is better to leave children alone and allow them to create their own world. For government, something should be done to improve the inadequate education system. Children are the major pillar of our future and they should be nurtured in the right way. For the sake of children and our future, it is the time for us to tear up the “Kong Kids” labels in our lives. (935 words)
Reference
The World Factbook. (2013). Country comparison :: Birth rate. Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2054rank.html
Zhang, X. (2009, May 22). Survey: Spoiling may defer child development. Xinhua News. Retrieved from http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-05/22/content_11418159.htm
English Writing 