A cultural chasm exists between Asian parents and those who identify as "Australian" that affects their view on academic success, sex-ed classes and what schools should teach, new research reveals.
The third annual Parents Report Card — completed by ASG and Monash University — surveyed 1,800 parents and guardians on their thoughts about education in Australia.
It found Asian parents put a lot more emphasis on the academic performance of their children and were far more likely to be disappointed at poor results.
"This stronger tie to education could be linked to first generation immigrants who come to Australia to give their children a better life and seek the opportunities that a strong education brings," the report found.
| (Results are % of respondents who agree with statement) | Australian | Indian & other Asian |
| I set high expectations for my child's academic performance | 67 | 80 |
| I believe a degree will help my child achieve their ambitions | 75 | 89 |
| All people in my social group believe education is key to success | 79 | 93 |
| All parents in my cultural group are disappointed when their child does poorly at school | 46 | 72 |
| I believe my child can be distracted from their learning | 74 | 63 |
| Schools should do more to teach my child about social skills | 69 | 94 |
| Schools should do more to teach my child about how to behave in public | 49 | 74 |
| Sexual education is best learnt at school | 25 | 62 |
| I can openly talk with my child about sex at home | 74 | 60 |
Dr Shane Phillipson co-authored the report and said this emphasis on academic performance didn't necessarily mean undue pressure was being put on kids.
"I think it's to do with the cultural background," he told News Breakfast.
"If there is an expectation from birth around children's purpose, it's setting a boundary around their behaviours and expectations.
"We have expectations around other sorts of areas of children's life, why not now set boundaries around academic achievement?"
The report also found Asian parents put higher value on a degree than Australians (89 per cent versus 75 per cent) and thought that everyone within their cultural group considered education as the key to success (93 per cent versus 79 per cent).
The sex-ed divide
The biggest disparity among backgrounds was on the question of sexual education, with Asian parents far more likely than Australian parents (62 per cent versus 25 per cent) to agree school was the best place to learn about sex.
"For some parents, sexual education may be a culturally sensitive topic which is not openly discussed," the report finds.
"Therefore Indian and other Asian parents may rely on schools for help and support in communicating this topic successfully with their children.
"It may also vary from school-to-school on the level of detail they go into addressing sexual education."
Report co-author Sivanes Phillipson said the results reflected different values that were based on cultural backgrounds.
"We see that [Australians] take that very laid-back approach," report co-author Sivanes Phillipson said.
"They feel that their children should have the least expectation from them.
"Or maybe they see it as [less] pressure, rather than expectation, so to speak."
