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A debate has been caused by a new book called Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother about Chinese-style tough parenting in the US by Amy Chua．She is also a mother of two．
Chua describes the child-rearing methods she used with her daughters．She said they would seem unimaginable to Westerners．
Chua set strict standards for her daughters．For example, in school they weren't allowed to make grades lower than As．They had to play piano or violin and practice hours a day．There were no sleepovers, play dates or TV．
There has been wide criticism of Chua's book in the US．“It is kind of extreme,” Jeffrey Seinfeld, a professor at New York University, told the Los Angles Times．“standards of parenting need to be realistic and tailored to each child．Children need parents who can guide them, not force them to do things they are probably not interested in．”
Now the criticism seems to have spread to China．Sun Yunxiao, an expert from the China Youth and Children Research Center spoke to The Beijing News about his concerns．He argued that Chua's method of parenting would limit children from reaching their full potential．
“Some Chinese parents do focus on test scores and good degrees,” Sun said．“but what gets sacrificed along the way is their kids' capacity fully to develop and to enjoy life．”
While critics might sympathize with kids who experience this parenting style, some young people quite appreciate it．“I think anyone can do well if they work hard enough,” said 17-year-old Li Ao, a Senior 3 student at Qingdao No2 High School．“A tiger mother is there to help her kids work hard．”
Others think that Chua has a point when it comes to setting challenging goals for kids．
“It's crucial for children,” according to Abigail Gewirtz, a professor of family science at the University of Minnesota．She told CNN：“Honestly, kids need to be pushed sometimes．If you push a kid to do well, and they're good at it, they benefit．It's good to have high expectations．”
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