Why Asian parents are trapped in a private tuition arms race

Grace often hears other Singapore mothers debating how much private tuition their children need. Some rush to enrol their offspring in multiple classes before they turn five, while others try to resist the pressure to add lessons outside school. She enrolled her two children, now aged four and seven, in Chinese tuition when they were three to give them greater exposure to their ancestral tongue. “Neither of their parents speaks fluent Mandarin at home … I guess there is some degree of pressure...