Getting straight A's and being a great piano player doesn't say anything whatsoever about you, and certainly is not enough to create a well rounded personality. Im not western, neither am I chinese. But I understand where they are both coming from.
I think part of the problem also lies in the fact that we have, as a society, tried very hard to objectively measure everything - progress ,creativity and personality. This is simply not possible or desirable.
And the effect of this has been that certain folks go totally overboard, giving it way too much importance.