Parents are more important than schools, but there's a catch... (article by Daniel Gauss on Visible Magazine)

 

I recently had an article published about the importance of parents in a child's education.

Here is the article: https://visiblemagazine.com/parents-are-more-important-than-schools-but-theres-a-catch/

For those of you who are learning English as an additional language, I wanted to explain the title. 

Parents are more important than schools, but there's a catch...

"a catch" is used a lot in English. In this case it would mean, "Parents are more important than schools. However, there is something important to realize."

So, in the article, I argue that many parents set very high expectations for their children and apply too much pressure on their children to succeed in school. They achieve their goal of good grades and academic success, but they do not help their children to become self-motivated and life-long learners. 

I think it is interesting that in the IT revolution which started in the 1990s and early 2000s, you did not have Harvard graduates who created this revolution. You had guys who quit or dropped out of Harvard so that they could pursue their own goals and learning objectives - they chose self-motivation over academic achievement.

I think a student can be self-motivated and do well in college, but these guys felt they needed extra time and space away from their universities. A "tiger" mom would not have let them do this and they would not have done anything original.

Getting back to: "...there's a catch" :

Or, I might say, "I will let you borrow my car, but there's a catch. The catch is that you have to drive me to the airport tomorrow."

I asked Microsoft AI "Copilot" to explain what a catch is: 

Definition: “A catch” refers to a hidden drawback or condition in an offer or deal that might make it less appealing than it initially seems.

Example: Imagine you tell someone, “I will give you this book, but there’s a catch.” This means you are willing to give them the book, but there is an additional condition or requirement they must meet.

Illustration:

• Scenario: You offer a student a free book.
• Catch: They must write a book report on it within a week