Those of you looking for a counterpoint to Amy Chua's "American kids fail because they don't work hard enough" thesis would do well to read this NYT op-ed. I've read other takes on the "yeah, but how does that prepare your kid for working with others?" counter, but none as succinct. It also neatly explains why Chinese are frequently perceived as pushy, arrogant, and graceless when working with westerners, IMO.