When I was in my undergraduate school in Macau, I found a interesting phenomenon. Most of the local students had a part-time job while they were a full-time students, and their part-time jobs could still provide them a good amount of money to support themselves. They did not have too much pressure over the school work and they were not so ambitious towards the academic achievements as those students from outside the city. It seemed like for them, the future career was so promising that they did not have to worry too much about it. This phenomenon triggered my interest in the local environment and culture, and how it shaped the value of the local youth.
Macau is known as a special administrative region within the People's Republic of China. It currently has 19 casinos and more are planned. It is a city where the gaming industry flourishes. It is now the gambling center in Asian which is also known as the Asian Las Vegas, which attracts millions of tourists to the city. Macau is undoubtedly a rich city, with per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of US$17,500. But this prosperity leads to one of the biggest worry that Macau society expressed about their youth. It is that youth in Macau nowadays have presented a rather aimless attitudes toward their future and expressed less interests in furthering their education levels.
Macau is known as a special administrative region within the People's Republic of China. It currently has 19 casinos and more are planned. It is a city where the gaming industry flourishes. It is now the gambling center in Asian which is also known as the Asian Las Vegas, which attracts millions of tourists to the city. Macau is undoubtedly a rich city, with per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of US$17,500. But this prosperity leads to one of the biggest worry that Macau society expressed about their youth. It is that youth in Macau nowadays have presented a rather aimless attitudes toward their future and expressed less interests in furthering their education levels.
With the prosperity this industry brings,
job opportunities related to casino and tourism still continue to increase with a considerably high salary. Casinos also provide all necessary training, which attracts young people without much work experience or higher education. The government also provide many welfare benefits to
the adult citizens in Macau. But the majority fear that all these promising
economic developments have made their teenagers lack of studying and working incentives
and therefore become aimless.
According to the statistics given by
Youth Education Bureau, we can find the increasing dropouts of Macau
Youth. The youth problem is now considered to be one of the most concerned
problems in Macau.
Form 2003-2004, there were 4908
students dropped out of school, among these students, 2060
chose to take a job, 76％ of which devoted themselves in
gaming and its related industry.
In 2007, 20% of the working young adults in Macau
were engaged in gaming industry, and it is said that this proportion will
be continued increasing. The fact that casinos luring students away from school worried many citizens.
What is the culture climate that
derived from this flourishing gaming industry? The
gaming industry has an indivisible inner relationship with the
Macau youths' value problem. The low threshold of the gaming related
employment as well as the opportunity cost of taking high education, all lead
to the youth’s dropouts and devote into gambling industry. Students tend to sacrifice their future and long-term security by forgoing their education for the quick cash provided by casino jobs. which is not a good sign of a better development prospect for Macau.
The casino culture is having negative effects on the character of local students, who end up with a skewed vision of what money means. The over exposure to this kind of culture has a great impact on local children's life value and how they view the society. Young casino workers see money changing hands quickly, with gamblers wagering tens of thousands of dollars at a time. With this kind of culture controlling children's philosophy, they tend to consider less about the job satisfaction, the possibility to develop their potential and the meaningfulness of the work.
Links:
Introduction to Macau society
http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Macau.html
Macau Youth Education Bureau
http://portal.dsej.gov.mo/webdsejspace/internet/Inter_main_page.jsp
Macau church officials worry casinos lure students away from school
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0501271.htm
The casino culture is having negative effects on the character of local students, who end up with a skewed vision of what money means. The over exposure to this kind of culture has a great impact on local children's life value and how they view the society. Young casino workers see money changing hands quickly, with gamblers wagering tens of thousands of dollars at a time. With this kind of culture controlling children's philosophy, they tend to consider less about the job satisfaction, the possibility to develop their potential and the meaningfulness of the work.
There are
both pros and cons about the casino culture in Macau society. I think
the impact will continue to be a social issue that people need to
consider. Efforts should be made from different parties: government,
school, family, mass media, etc. Although the casino industry has
brought about huge economic development in Macau. However, it
is crucial to avoid the negative impact that casino culture
brings to the youth.
Links:
Introduction to Macau society
http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Macau.html
Macau Youth Education Bureau
http://portal.dsej.gov.mo/webdsejspace/internet/Inter_main_page.jsp
Macau church officials worry casinos lure students away from school
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0501271.htm
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