Catch Phrase | 反向教育 (fǎnxiàng jiàoyù)

Writer: Li Dan  |  Editor: Zhang Chanwen  |  From: Shenzhen Daily  |  Updated: 2023-04-25

Meaning:

“反向” means “reversal,” and “教育” is translated as “education.” This idea, popular among young Chinese parents, proposes to let children have their way and suffer the consequences instead of trying to reason with them and dissuade them from making bad choices. In a word, this method stresses redelegating the responsibility of a parent to guide their underage children to the children themselves, who are meant to learn from their pitfalls. Such a method will not always work well, particularly with smaller children.

Example:

A: 每天早晨叫孩子起床上学都是一项艰巨的任务。

Měitiān zǎochén jiào háizi qǐchuáng shàngxué dōu shì yīxiàng jiānjù de rènwù。

It’s an arduous task to get my kid out of bed each school day morning.

B: 你可以试试反向教育。不催他,让他迟到一天,然后等着挨老师的批评。

Nǐ kěyǐ shìshì fǎnxiàng jiàoyù。Bù cuī tā,ràng tā chídào yītiān,ránhòu děngzhe āi lǎoshī de pīpíng。

You can try the reversal method. Let him idle his time away and be late for school, and he will learn from the teacher’s punishment for being late.