In January, Yale law professor Amy Chua caused an uproar with a Wall Street Journal article that claimed demanding Asian parents (like her) raised more successful children than coddling Western parents. The piece, an excerpt from Chua's best-selling book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom, detailed how her daughters weren't allowed to attend sleepovers or choose their own extracurricular activities, generating endless controversy in parenting and education circles. Now, the (in)famous Tiger Mom's oldest daughter, Sophia, has been accepted to both Harvard and Yale. Does Tiger Parenting work?
Yes, witness the Ivy League results: "Criticize all you want, but you can't argue with success," says David Lat at Above the Law. Of course, it's not exactly surprising that Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld would get into Harvard and Yale. She's "beautiful," "brilliant" and "an extremely talented" pianist. Her acceptance is "richly deserved," and, with this happy ending, the Tiger Mom is somewhat vindicated.
"Tiger Mom triumphant: Her cub got into Harvard!"
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Parents should now mimic Tiger Mom: "I wish I were strong enough to perfect and institute a (watered down) method of Tiger Parenting to use on my three kids," says Jofel at Chicago Now. "I love Amy Chua," and her daughter's Harvard and Yale admissions should clear her after all the criticism she's received. Now maybe there will finally be time for cuddling and Xbox.
C'mon, Tiger Parenting isn't what got Chua's daughter in: "Sophia probably would have done well in the college admissions game even without her pushy mother," says William Lee Adams in TIME. She's a skilled writer and a piano prodigy who made her Carnegie Hall debut at age 14. Still, "Chua did bequeath her with one gift most pushy mothers can only dream of: alumni status." Both she and her husband hold degrees from Harvard, and it's always helpful to have legacy when applying to school.
"Did Amy Chua's daughter really need a Tiger Mom to get into Harvard?"
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