Hong Kong kids need to learn self-care skills
It's time Hong Kong children learned to think for themselves and pull their weight around the home, writes Hazel Parry
It's Friday afternoon and the hall at Renaissance College in Ma On Shan is packed with about 250 domestic helpers. They are not waiting to collect students, but chatting and whooping with delight as children serve them drinks and food, while others entertain with dancing and singing.
"It's fantastic," says Laura, who has worked in Hong Kong for 10 years. "It's a lovely way to spend two hours ... it makes us feel appreciated."
Many helpers send most of their pay home to their families and don't get to spoil themselves, Bignold says, so they thought it would be nice to give them a treat. "We hope it encourages children to respect the people who do things for them every day, whether they are a helper, bus driver or the lady in the cafeteria."
It's a lesson that children in Hong Kong would do well to learn if two recent surveys hold true. The surveys painted a city of spoiled brats who were often unable and even unwilling to look after themselves because of overindulgent parents and helpers.
A survey of 500 parents, conducted in March by Tai Po Mega Mall, found that 76 per cent of the parents interviewed said their children needed help getting dressed and 61 per cent said their children did not know how to bathe themselves. More than half of the parents said their children did not clean up, while 42 per cent said their children needed help finishing a meal.
