Kumon tutoring TikToks are bringing up hilariously painful memories for Asian millennials and Gen Zers

With its vaguely sad-looking logo burned into the brains of children across the world, Kumon has been a staple of Asian American life for decades.

With its vaguely sad-looking logo burned into the brains of children across the world, Kumon has been a staple of Asian American life for decades. The math and reading training center has been the subject of standup jokes, memes and, most recently, TikTok fame. 

Videos of young adults spoofing their time at Kumon have reached millions, bringing in Asian American audiences who say they can definitely relate.  

“I feel like I spent my whole childhood at Kumon,” said Aly Panjwani, 26, who was a student at a Texas center from elementary to early high school. “It was somewhere between a community center, tutoring center and a cult.”

Kumon-Tok is mostly filled with jokes about tall stacks of homework and anxiety-inducing timed tests, a common experience that represents a few laughs and stellar mental math skills years later. 

“It’s a place for childhood trauma,” one Indian American TikToker joked in a viral video talking about her experiences.  

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/asians-kumon-tiktok-millennials-genz-rcna130424

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