The essence of the education arms race: a bidding war where everyone loses.

You sign up for classes, your neighbor signs up for two. You increase your bid, they raise theirs again. In the end, all parents stand by watching the show, no one sees more clearly.
Researchers call this a vicious cycle of "expectation gap → anxiety → more money → continued gap."
But the most ironic thing is: truly valuable education—an afternoon of companionship, a sincere conversation, an hour without looking at your phone—costs nothing.
Because there’s no bill, you think it’s worthless.
The biggest paradox of modern education: what you desperately buy is often useless; what you ignore is often the most expensive.