To migrate or not?

[phtthp]

if you migrate to Aussie or NZ - where do your primary school kids learn Chinese ? Chinese culture / roots "lost" forever ? raise up a child who can’t speak Mandarin ?


how many primary schools over there actually teach Chinese ?

[Attolia]

phtthp:

if you migrate to Aussie or NZ - where do your primary school kids learn Chinese ? Chinese culture / roots \"lost\" forever ? raise up a child who can't speak Mandarin ?


how many primary schools over there actually teach Chinese ?

There are places to learn Chinese. When we were kids, my parents sent us to the Fo Guang Shan Chinese Association every Saturday for Chinese lessons. We absolutely hated it. lol. I'm not sure if it's still going - I quit about 12 years ago - but I think it should be. It seems like every Chinese kid here went through Fo Guang Shan at some point. It's a Taiwanese-run facility, however, so we learnt traditional script instead of simplified. And I'm sure if you look hard enough there are Chinese tutors willing to offer their services. I've seen the notices in the supermarket. And if all else fails, there are lots of Chinese kids who don't speak English. Get your kid to befriend some of them and it'll be a mutually beneficial relationship

There was this little item on the news the other day. Yes, the number of NZ kids learning Chinese is relatively low, but they are trying to boost it up.

http://ci.ac.nz/news/call-for-more-new-zealand-children-to-learn-chinese

But I think that as long as your family maintains its chinese core, for example, speaking some Chinese at home, celebrating things like Chinese New Year or other Chinese festivals you normally would, your child won't lose his/her Chinese culture. It's completely up to parents as to whether it's strengthened or lost forever, really.

[Just relax]

Attolia:

phtthp:

if you migrate to Aussie or NZ - where do your primary school kids learn Chinese ? Chinese culture / roots \"lost\" forever ? raise up a child who can't speak Mandarin ?


how many primary schools over there actually teach Chinese ?

There are places to learn Chinese. When we were kids, my parents sent us to the Fo Guang Shan Chinese Association every Saturday for Chinese lessons. We absolutely hated it. lol. I'm not sure if it's still going - I quit about 12 years ago - but I think it should be. It seems like every Chinese kid here went through Fo Guang Shan at some point. It's a Taiwanese-run facility, however, so we learnt traditional script instead of simplified. And I'm sure if you look hard enough there are Chinese tutors willing to offer their services. I've seen the notices in the supermarket. And if all else fails, there are lots of Chinese kids who don't speak English. Get your kid to befriend some of them and it'll be a mutually beneficial relationship

There was this little item on the news the other day. Yes, the number of NZ kids learning Chinese is relatively low, but they are trying to boost it up.

http://ci.ac.nz/news/call-for-more-new-zealand-children-to-learn-chinese

But I think that as long as your family maintains its chinese core, for example, speaking some Chinese at home, celebrating things like Chinese New Year or other Chinese festivals you normally would, your child won't lose his/her Chinese culture. It's completely up to parents as to whether it's strengthened or lost forever, really.

That I think is only true up to a certain point. There is enough anecdotal evidence that if the environment around the family is not conducive then the children will lose touch eventually. It is a losing or in fact lost battle.

You just have to read blogs or the news from Shanghai and Mumbai where because those cities are so cosmopolitan, the \"traditional\" aspects do not appeal to a large number of Chinese and Indian children, and this within the countries that spawned these traditions for thousands of years!

It is truly difficult to maintain your traditions in a transplanted environment unless there is external support and influences reinforcing these traditions.

So it is better to be realistic of what your children will become from transplantation. It is important to be aware of this now, than to lament about it down the road.

[Attolia]

Just relax:

Attolia:

[quote=\"phtthp\"]if you migrate to Aussie or NZ - where do your primary school kids learn Chinese ? Chinese culture / roots \"lost\" forever ? raise up a child who can't speak Mandarin ?


how many primary schools over there actually teach Chinese ?

There are places to learn Chinese. When we were kids, my parents sent us to the Fo Guang Shan Chinese Association every Saturday for Chinese lessons. We absolutely hated it. lol. I'm not sure if it's still going - I quit about 12 years ago - but I think it should be. It seems like every Chinese kid here went through Fo Guang Shan at some point. It's a Taiwanese-run facility, however, so we learnt traditional script instead of simplified. And I'm sure if you look hard enough there are Chinese tutors willing to offer their services. I've seen the notices in the supermarket. And if all else fails, there are lots of Chinese kids who don't speak English. Get your kid to befriend some of them and it'll be a mutually beneficial relationship

There was this little item on the news the other day. Yes, the number of NZ kids learning Chinese is relatively low, but they are trying to boost it up.

http://ci.ac.nz/news/call-for-more-new-zealand-children-to-learn-chinese

But I think that as long as your family maintains its chinese core, for example, speaking some Chinese at home, celebrating things like Chinese New Year or other Chinese festivals you normally would, your child won't lose his/her Chinese culture. It's completely up to parents as to whether it's strengthened or lost forever, really.

That I think is only true up to a certain point. There is enough anecdotal evidence that if the environment around the family is not conducive then the children will lose touch eventually. It is a losing or in fact lost battle.

You just have to read blogs or the news from Shanghai and Mumbai where because those cities are so cosmopolitan, the \"traditional\" aspects do not appeal to a large number of Chinese and Indian children, and this within the countries that spawned these traditions for thousands of years!

It is truly difficult to maintain your traditions in a transplanted environment unless there is external support and influences reinforcing these traditions.

So it is better to be realistic of what your children will become from transplantation. It is important to be aware of this now, than to lament about it down the road.[/quote]Perhaps you're right. And I'm probably not really the best person to talk about the ease of upholding traditions, as my family's not really super traditional. We go out for a Chinese New Year dinner and mum usually buys some 年糕or gets given some, but apart from that, we don't really have any other traditions. I think all that was important to them was that we try to celebrate CNY and that we are able to speak some mandarin. (half failure there - I can speak basic Mandarin, but my brother can't). But, yes, if you're super traditional and want to hang on to every aspect of that, it'll be more difficult.

[sleepy]

I think the key question is when.


Looking for a place to retire in say 20 years time?
Then really doesn't matter where as long as you have accumulated enough cash

In the near future?
Then continuity in employment is important because you have to gainfully employed or self employed during prime years of your career. In that case, choice is probably limited to where you can seek employment successfully.


I've heard of someone who sold off business to migrate Australia & working as postman earning minimum wage. Then again that person probably had enough cash on standby from sale of business. I also know someone who gave up Canadian PR because of difficulty in landing a job in Canada.

[lovejoypeacce]

vinegar:

lovejoypeace,

how did u plan for job,accomodation and schooling for ur DD b4 migrating?

I went on a few look-see look-see trips. We visited schools, talked to headhunters, look around the different neighbourhoods etc - basically to get a feel of the lifestyle over there.

[toddles]

well on the chinese issue, some people migrate specifically to escape the need for chinese proficiency in schools here.


the parents don’t feel very chinese in Sgp anyway, so are happy not to have to impose chinese learning on their kids after migrating…

[Just relax]

toddles:

well on the chinese issue, some people migrate specifically to escape the need for chinese proficiency in schools here.


the parents don't feel very chinese in Sgp anyway, so are happy not to have to impose chinese learning on their kids after migrating...

Yes the pervasive influence of Western culture via movies, tv & especially music has caused many Asian children to prefer Western style culture and to basically ignore our Asian culture. It is a difficult battle to continue to show that Asian culture has a place in the world. Even democracy as a concept is equated with Western culture and so bright, passionate young children are drawn in to feeling that Asian cultures are outdated. As a consequence even Asian languages are feeling the pressure of Asian children speaking English in preference to the mother tongue.

How do we Asian parents adapt to this so that our children can have the best of both our own ancient Asian traditions and the newer Western influences?

[vinegar]

Even china ppl r more westernize nowadays.

[pirate]

vinegar:

Even china ppl r more westernize nowadays.

They may be more Westernized, but they are still not too impressed with people of Chinese descent who do not speak a word of Chinese.