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Comment by Waterluvian | Hacker News Reader

It seems like what these parents really want for their kids is enculturation, but they don't realise it. A western education on its own is still rather limiting when it comes to career and life success.

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>It seems like what these parents really want for their kids is enculturation, but they don't realise it. A western education on its own is still rather limiting when it comes to career and life success.

You'd be surprised. Those asian kids will do far better than university and job-wise than most american ones in the same high schools -- because of sheer determination (and parental pressure).

As for life success, that's not guaranteed even if you are a millionaire, so it's a moot point.

> but they don't realise it.

it's hilarious you think that people who send their teenage kids to live overseas indefinitely and pay $40k/year for a basic high school education "don't realize" what they're doing.

No, this is often about having a working exit strategy. Similar things happen in many countries right now, usually by getting a/the pregnant wife into the country, getting citizenship for the child and thus at least residency rights for both parents. Also moving assets continouosly out of China to safer countries. Obviously this is all very expensive, since they need to do it without the state noticing, ie. lots of bribing.

That seems pretty implausible that this is happening in many countries. Only 30 countries on earth have birthright citizenship the way you describe. Of those 30 only the US and Canada are developed nations. The rest are countries like: Mexico, Fiji, and Guatemala.

In most European countries it's much easier to get citizenship if a) stayed a while and b) gave birth to a child. Similarly it's easier for the other parent to get citizenship or permanent residence under these conditions. But yeah, I didn't describe it very accurately. From what people told me the US is/was one of the prime targets, will be interesting to see if that changes with Trump. Perhaps more come to Europe instead.

Hey, Australia is developed nation as well! Maybe not as much as Canada, but more than Mexico or the USA.

Australia does not have birthright citizenship. I looked it up when we were living in Sydney, and my wife was pregnant.

Interesting, you now have to live in Australia until you're 10. That didn't used to be the case. Thanks.

Anchor babies don't let parents stay in the US. The government will happily deport the foreign parents and the US child to stay with the parents. The anchor baby can eventually bring their parents over, but its a 21 year wait.

https://www.uscis.gov/family/family-us-citizens/parents/brin...

You seem to be unaware of DAPA.

And even in cases without DAPA eligibility, a USA-born child would not be "deported" in your scenario.

I was unaware of it, but reading through the wikipedia summary, its a recently(less than 10 years) passed law, that has been tied up in the courts for most of its possible existence? I agree that if it passes through the judiciary intact, then it changes things. Currently however, what people would call anchor babies do not provide the benefit most people would think exists

There's even a mandarin romcom around that plot. 'Finding Mr Right' I think.

So my parents sent my sister to a private boarding school in the UK(we're not from UK), paying more than $40k/year for the privilege, and the be honest with you, they didn't know exactly what to expect. For them, it was just getting her the best possible opportunity in life, the connections and the ability to go to any university she would like to after. But they genuinely had no idea how the British education system works. I would say it was a huge gamble as well, since we are definitely not millionaires and sending her to that school consumed 100% of their disposable income, without any guarantee it would result in what they hoped it would.

I would say my sister has gained tremendously from attending that school, but in a way, apart from knowing that school X is the best school in the country, my parents really "didn't realise" what they were doing, in a sense. So it's no surprise to me that Chinese parents sending their kids to US "don't realise what they are doing" - they just want to give their kids the best chance in life.

Did you read the article? It opens with a story is about a guy sending his 16-year-old son to Oxford because he likes the sound of a degree from there. Not Oxford in the UK. Oxford MI, which is a village in a rural area north of Detroit.

I'm from Michigan and I have a hard time believing that this guy knows what he's doing. Oxford HS isn't even in the top 100 high schools in Michigan:

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/michigan/r...

Even were the school excellent, I don't think a village of 3,500 people is the best place for a foreign student to get American acculturation. In the 10k town I lived in for a while, the exchange students really struggled compared with the ones where I lived later, in a near-city suburban area. There was a lot more for them to do, the average resident was more broad-minded, and there was a greater variety of people for them to meet.

not sure if they had it in mind, but immigrant coming through a struggling school outside of Detroit has a good story behind it. And you have to admit, after scanning thousands of applications Oxford will draw your attention even if for a second. Good SEO

Then he can go to the Michigan Institute of Technology and put MIT on his résumé?

The guy ended up going to Pen State after he finished HS. So I would say it worked out pretty well, regardless of above sarcasm.

Also a business model of http://berkeleycollege.edu and a few others.

True, but about that same guy, the author later says:

"His father insisted that this wasn’t just about family prestige or future job prospects. “I also want my son to understand, in a way that I never could,” he said, “that the world is bigger than Shenyang, bigger than China.”

There are lot of Chinese kids in my UK town local public schools (ie private schools one of which Obahmas roomies at Harvard attended ) for this very reason.

> Even were the school excellent, I don't think a village of 3,500 people is the best place for a foreign student to get American acculturation.

I'd say the opposite, actually.

If they were sent to a bigger city, it'd be possible to live a completely Chinese life in America: Chinese friends, Chinese food, Chinese teachers, Chinese everything.

Also, I think exposing kids to the diversity of the American landscape is valuable. So many international students think America is all NYC and LA before they arrive and realize that's actually only a tiny segment of the country.

I'm pretty sure there are things in between a village and one of the few cities with a Chinese community so large and concentrated that someone can live a completely Chinese life.

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