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study from textbooks. If they are forced to sit at their desks and stuff their faces into books all the time, then how will they get the chances to see, hear, and touch the actual things textbooks tell them about? In other words, many opportunities to learn outside the classroom and beyond their textbooks are lost. Learning suddenly becomes superficial as students do not even get the chance to face the reality for themselves.
The parents’ efforts are not to be neglected either. After an exhausting day of work, they have yet to face another challenge at home — dealing with their children’s schoolwork. While these parents may hope that they can spend more time with their children doing things they love as a family, such as casual chats and reunion dinners, these things diminish when the children’s work piles up, and they are only greeted with hours of writing and incessant nitpicking. Families miss out their precious time together, and suddenly relationships become academic-based. Conversations reach no further than asking whether they have finished their homework and how their tests went, and many families lose the chance to develop a deeper and more meaningful relationship together. The only things bonding a parent and a child are homework and exams. This is indeed a pity as families cannot make full use of their time together and create more fond memories for one another. When children emerge from the battlefield, with trophies that mark their success in school and the society, the parents tag along, appearing to be physically and mentally exhausted.
Children also have vibrant personalities, and no two people are quite alike. That is to say, they have different strengths; some excel at academia, while others the arts. However, with the examination-based education system, it is very difficult to tap students’ real potential. Hong Kong is at present a knowledge-based financial economy, with universities serving as its barrier. As many parents and children dream of getting into the top schools and fields, many youngsters with different strengths are forced to change their preferences in order to be accepted in society. Otherwise, they will be classified as ‘useless’ and ‘ungrateful’. Many have to bury their passion deep down in their hearts, and may even develop mental problems from doing so. Although this seems to benefit the economy as more people are contributing in the labour force, many possible achievements from these youngsters that could make the community proud are lost. The limited scope of