East asian kids grow up smarter because their parents put a strong emphasis on education, like Jewish parents do. Asian kids aren't born with better math skills and the natural ability to play the piano or violin, parents force their children to learn these skills from a young age.
I think it's rooted in Confucianism and Taoist philosophy/culture.
Maybe, but also:
1) We tend to only see Asians who are ambitious and internationally successful over here, right ?
2) Despite the vaunted Chinese advantage, the US still is the source of innovation even if it's immigrants that are doing it
3) It's impossible to isolate success factors for upbringing objectively
4) You can still encourage excellence and make observations about laziness and challenging toys despite my assertion in 3)
5) Being better at math, succeeding at games, winning in business is a shitty metric of success if you grow up to be a broken rich person with no friends
My five cents/sense.