探祕紐約頂尖幼兒園的入園考試(2)
Vanessa defends her clients. “These parents want to give their child the best advantage. Most of these families have been to the best colleges and want the same for [their offspring]. The children are learning and having fun. We do everything with games.”
瓦妮莎爲自己的客戶做出了辯護。“這些家長希望爲自己的孩子創造最有利的條件。他們中多數人本身畢業於最優秀的大學，也希望（自己的孩子）將來能像自己一樣。孩子們在這裏既學習了知識，也玩得很開心。我們把一切都用遊戲的方式教給孩子們。”Both concede, however, that a typical outcome of a mock play date is putting mothers and fathers at ease. As Vanessa puts it: “It demystifies the process for parents and lets them relax.”
然而，兩人都承認，模擬遊戲約定通常的結果是讓家長安心。正如瓦妮莎所言：“這種模擬爲父母們揭開了整個過程的神祕面紗，從而讓他們放鬆下來。”
By day, Vanessa is an occupational therapist, which means that she is sought after by parents who want their child to work on fine motor skills or attention difficulties. Sara, who is studying for a PhD in child psychology, is often asked to help provide “enrichment”, reading, comprehension or mathematics.
白天，瓦妮莎是一位職業治療師，這意味着，家長們希望她能幫助自己的孩子提高精細動作能力、或解決專注力問題。薩拉正在攻讀兒童心理學的博士學位，家長們經常請求她爲自己的孩子提供“強化訓練”，比如增強閱讀、理解或數學能力。As Ms Rheault puts it, the hope is “the child will move up to advanced reading group at school. The enrichment market is growing leaps and bounds. Tutors are no longer just for kids who need support.”
正如羅特所言，家長們希望“孩子在入園後進入高級閱讀小組。強化訓練的市場正呈跳躍式增長。指導教師不再是那些需要幫助的孩子們的專利。”Ms Rheault was inspired by her own experiences to introduce playgroup services. In 2007, while still an analyst at Morgan Stanley, she was trying to get her three-and-a-half year-old daughter into a very competitive school. “I told my daughter to make sure she shares with the teacher all that she knows . . . not to be too shy . . . and to please speak up so the teacher would be able to hear her.”
里奧特推出小組遊戲指導服務的靈感來自於她本人的經歷。2007年，她還是摩根士丹利(Morgan Stanley)的一名分析師。當時，她試圖讓3歲半的女兒進入一家競爭非常激烈的幼兒園。“我告訴我的女兒，一定要把知道的都告訴老師……不要太害羞……要大聲說話，這樣老師才能聽清楚。”When the children sat down, the teacher posed the first question: she had five teddy bears, and took away two, how many were left? “Three,” said Ms Rheault’s daughter. So far so good – until she answered all the questions directed at the group. “We did not get in but I learned that even good advice can backfire when interpreted by a three or four year old.”
孩子們坐下後，老師提出了第一個問題：她有5個泰迪熊，拿走兩個，還剩幾個？羅特的女兒答：“3個。”事情一直進行得不錯，直到她女兒一人回答了老師向遊戲小組提出的所有問題。“我們沒有被錄取，但我認識到，如果讓一個3、4歲的孩子自行解讀的話，即便是好建議也可能起反作用。”Play date experts may also flag up family scenes parents might not want their child to draw in their admission test. “One child,” notes Ms Rheault, “drew a picture of her mother with a cigarette in her hand. It might be mom’s one guilty pleasure but to the school, it might look like the parents are bad to be around.”
遊戲約定專家還可能會提醒家長們，哪些家庭場景是他們可能不希望自己的孩子在入學考試中畫出的。羅特指出：“有一個孩子畫了一副媽媽手拿香菸的畫。這位母親可能心懷愧疚地保留了這麼一個小愛好，但學校可能會認爲，家長對這個孩子有不良的影響。”They are also careful to spot traits that might be interpreted by a school as an indication that a child is on the autism spectrum. “So many of these things, like walking on tiptoes or not making eye contact, are normal but if 20 other children are fighting for a place, the school will go for the easiest option,” says Ms Rheault.
此外，他們還會謹慎的指出，哪些特徵可能被學校視爲有自閉傾向的標誌。羅特表示，“踮起腳尖走路、或目光躲閃等情況，在很多時候都是正常的，但如果還有20個孩子在競爭一個名額的話，幼兒園將做出最顯而易見的選擇。”After assessing the child’s play, the experts write a report alerting parents to problem areas and suggest exercises to practise at home. With so much resting on a play date, Vanessa is careful how she frames her verdict. “I always start by noting the child’s areas of strengths. These are young children and performance and behaviour can vary day to day,” she says.
在對孩子的遊戲表現進行評估後，專家們會撰寫一份報告，提醒家長注意孩子的哪些問題，並建議他們在家裏進行一些練習。由於遊戲約定如此重要，瓦妮莎對自己的判斷表達得相當謹慎。她表示：“我總是首先指出孩子的優勢。他們還小，每一天的表現和行爲可能都不一樣。”Though occasionally, Ms Rheault adds, a play date might show a parent that an elite school is not suitable for their child. ”Sometimes you have to reset a parent’s expectation. George might be bouncing off the walls.”
羅特補充稱，家長有可能通過遊戲約定發現，自己的孩子不適合上精英幼兒園。儘管這種情況比較少，但也偶爾發生。“有時，你不得不調整父母的期望。喬治可能是太鬧騰了。”
