Maternal expectations, classroom experiences, and achievement among kindergartners in the United States and Japan

In this study differences in parental expectations and demanding classrooms on the academic achievement among children in the United States and Japan are examined. Subjects were selected from 24 representative kindergartens in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area of the United States, and 24 representative yochien in Sendai, Japan. Results indicated that Japanese kindergartners exceed American kindergartners in mathematics skills. On the other hand, Japanese mothers expect little academic involvement and kindergartens provide little academic experience for the kindergartners. In general, the conclusion indicated that high maternal expectations do not guarantee high levels of performance.