Navi Mann
Professor Webley
English 10
13 April 2015
Academic Success: Asian Americans Being
Pressured Into Doing Well in School
Over the last few decades, Asian Americans have greatly excelled in high education. Almost all Asian American students are not just working for themselves, but also for their entire family. Asian children are expected to bring honor into their families. Children are said to be extensions of their parents, meaning whatever they do will reflect back to their parents. Most Asian parents always want the best for their children whether it’s in school or at work. Often, Asian parents will not praise their children out of fear that they will become spoiled. Instead, they are more likely to criticize and shame their children
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According to Katherine Kam, a journalist who writes about Asian American mental illness, Asian American teens become depressed for various reasons. “Family conflicts and academic failure loom large,” she reported, “but some have a family history of depression, which might make them genetically vulnerable” (Kam). Many, especially if they are immigrants from countries where mental illness is considered low priorities in health care, believe they can overcome disorders by will power or discipline alone. This is why they might refuse to seek professional help or discuss their problems with …show more content…
In “School Achievement from One Asian American Perspective”, Stanford T. Goto sketches the pressures and conflicts faced by Asian American students. In his study Goto proceeds to talk about why Asian Americans are expected to thrive when it comes to education. Mathew, a 16-year-old junior who took part in this study, said he felt pressured by his family to attend college. When really, Mathew wanted to open up his own business right after high school. Mathew felt as if he had no other choice then to listen to his parents because he did not want to bring shame to his family, which supposedly is worse that experiencing personal disgrace. This study claims that Asian Americans do not really have a choice when it comes to their education
In this article, Eric Liu presents his life as a native immigrant to an Asian American individual. He shares his experience through his reflection of ideas and emotions. Along with his story, it relates to the ideas of people’s journey from adolescence to adulthood. Eric’s inspirational experience is directed towards minority groups who try to adapt to the American culture and lifestyle. His parents emigrated from China to America, before he was born which he later became exposed to the freedom and diverse society. This results in beneficial effects for his individuality, career opportunities, and lifestyle. Although his parents have lived in a different culture than him, his life in America has made him assimilated into the American society
Studies of Hmong students are not sufficient to provide in depth and comprehensive information on the performance and education of this minority group. There are countless factors that impact the achievement levels of these students and in order to address the needs and issues, more research needs to be done. I suggest that more studies need to be done on the newly founded Charter schools which focus on the Hmong culture as well as American academics. I also suggest more studies that focus on the examination of peer pressure and gender equality issues relative to academic success involving Hmong-American students, and most especially for Female Hmong students for whom data is typically lacking (Vang, 2004) .
The school system typically emphasizes participation in speaking in class, which may be more intimidating for Asians due to their background and importance of silence. Participants of Sue’s study “felt forced to conform to Western norms and values (‘talking more’) when such behaviour violated their cultural upbringing” (77). In other words, Asian participants felt uncomfortable trying to fit the White standard of talking and participating in class. Furthermore, the college and university admission decisions may be influenced by unconscious biases. These biases are usually prominent in individuals faced with an uncertain decision.
Growing up in the American education system, I always took my education for granted. My mother would always say, “You know how much people would want to be in your place and go to school?” In Chinese culture, education is the only way to achieve upward social mobility and leave the poor social economic class; whether you are rich or poor, you must have education and go to school. Education is not equal for everyone so how can one play the game when it is set up against you. Education is based on the resources that are offered in the area, thus if you live in a poor area, you get fewer resources. When the One Child policy was passed, it helped because all the family’s resources are focused on one child but the child is the only one to take care
She specifically emphasizes on the providence given by the American education system to resume studies after a break. In Japan, this provision is not provided for. Many of the students were of the view that the American education is quite superior compared to the Japanese education system. They observed that the learning environment is more learner-oriented. Specifically, they noted the keen follow-up on students ' assignments, which is not evident in the Japanese system. They also emphasized the cordial relationship between teachers and the students. However, they noted that the Japanese system might be more superior in the sense that students are more serious about their studies since it may cost their lifetime. In the Japanese system, the ministry of education as opposed to the American system designs the curriculum where the curriculum is designed by the state. This affirms the fact that the government greatly influences what is taught in schools. It is noted that "This limits the role played by curriculum developers hence weakening the education system" (Kim). Hence, the fact that each state is given freedom to design its curriculum creates disparity in the education system. This action was greatly objected by the students interviewed as they viewed it as a method of enhancing disparity in the education system. They also claimed that it caused discrimination when seeking interstate job
As a minority, coming from an international country to a foreign nation has been the most crucial decision that my family has concluded to live the possibility of the "American Dream". However, growing up as an Asian-American student wasn’t simple; I was faced with the challenge of malicious racial slurs, spiteful judgment, and unjustified condemnation that attacked my family's decision to come to America.
Yoo, Brandon. "Unraveling the Model Minority Myth of Asian American Students." Education.com. 25 Oct. 2010. n.p. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. .
Asian Americans, often referred to as the “model minority” are also affected negatively. In Keith Osajima’s article “Internalized Oppression and the Culture of Silence”, he focuses on how Asian Americans deal with their form of oppression. He noticed that many of them “were reluctant to take the risk of thinking critically about the inequities in society” (Osajima). He states that the typical quiet, well-behaved Asian American deals with what Erica Sherover Marcuse calls “internalized oppression”. Osajima asserts that internalized oppression “[leads] the oppressed people to believe that the solution to their problem is to become like or to be accepted by those in the dominant group” (Osajima). Therefore, Asian Americans have dealt with their oppression by: being good students, going to college, and getting well-paying jobs, like their white counterparts. This is where the phrase “model minority” comes in for Asian Americans. Because so many Asian Americans excel in school, the pressure to perform well is immense. Southeast Asians in particular “are not able to conform to this unrealistic expectation and in fact, have the highest high school dropout rates in the country” (C.N. Le). Osajima sums his argument up perfectly with his final sentence when he states that “the educational process can do more than reproduce a compliant work force, but can be a vehicle for liberation.” (Osajima). His strategies for allowing his classroom to serve as a site for liberation included cutting down on lecture time, encouraging students to take risks with their thinking, and assuring his students that their contributions would be respected and not be looked down upon. With encouragement and the use of these techniques, Asian Americans can begin to think critically about their role in society
In this paper I will be sharing information I had gathered involving two students that were interviewed regarding education and their racial status of being an Asian-American. I will examine these subjects’ experiences as an Asian-American through the education they had experienced throughout their entire lives. I will also be relating and analyzing their experiences through the various concepts we had learned and discussed in class so far. Both of these individuals have experiences regarding their education that have similarities and differences.
The author, Amy Chua, portrays her opinionated argument that Chinese children are more Why Chinese Mothers are Superior Why Chinese Mothers are Superior successful because of the way they are brought up in her article, “Why Chinese Mothers are Superior (2011)”. This theme is important because it compares and contrasts the tactics of Chinese mothers to Western mothers to strive for their children to be successful. This paper describes the three key arguments Chau (2011) ties into Ed124 and why Chinese parents act the way they do towards their children.
In 1970, the term “model minority” was popularized by journalists, social commentators and some academics to refer to Asian Americans. The stereotype suggests that Asian Americans are more academically, economically and socially successful than any other racial minority groups, and it was achieved by overcoming disadvantages through hard work, thrift, strong family ties, and emphasizing children’s education. Contrary to this popular belief by Americans, the exaggerated praising of Asian Americans as the model minority is false. This positive image of Asian Americans as a model minority has a sinister core of believe about Asian Americans and other racial minorities in America: a view of Asian American as foreign. Since most studies on Asian children centered on their success stories and the realization of the invisible crisis that many Asian American children face is fairly recent, few studies have addressed the diverse and complex experiences of Asian American children, especially those who do not fit the model minority stereotype. This paper revisits the model minority myth and examines the impact of model minority myth on underachieving student who are failing schools. I will first present a contextualized understanding of the “model minority myth,” what is it and what does it mean to be model minority. Secondly, I will demonstrate that the myth has been inaccurate and invalid representation for many Asian American students. Then, I discuss the impact of the model minority stereotype on underachieving Asian American student schooling. I argue that the stereotype has pose a threat to the students’ advancement on school and society. In order to illustrate the impact of the model minority stereotypes on individual experiences, I r...
Asian immigrants have faced many obstacles transitioning to life in America. One major obstacle Asian immigrants came face to face with was receiving an education. Asians are known to place high value on learning and education, but many things stood in their way and hindered them from even receiving an education. Between Asian immigrants and Americans lie a language barrier, which is often seen as a set back. An example of this is Lac Su since he had to serve as a translator for his parents, which in turn affected his school work. He was forced to learn American culture and English at a faster rate than his parents because they were busy with their own responsibilities to the family. Another obstacle Asian Americans faced receiving an education was separate classrooms and segregated schools, as seen in the Tape v. Hurley case. The case followed the discrimination eight-year old Mamie Tape faced as she was denied admission to Spring Valley School on that grounds that she was of Chinese race. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Tape, however the Francisco Board of Education took it upon themselves to establish a separate school system specifically for Oriental children. Racially segregated schools deeply influence the student’s performance. Asian American children are taught different material and in a different style than their counterparts. These and many more obstacles impeded Asian Americans from receiving an education that they were entitled to.
Chinese-Americans authors Amy Tan and Gish Jen have both grappled with the idea of mixed identity in America. For them, a generational problem develops over time, and cultural displacement occurs as family lines expand. While this is not the problem in and of itself, indeed, it is natural for current culture to gain foothold over distant culture, it serves as the backdrop for the disorientation that occurs between generations. In their novels, Tan and Jen pinpoint the cause of this unbalance in the active dismissal of Chinese mothers by their Chinese-American children.
For those Asian Americans who make known their discontent with the injustice and discrimination that they feel, in the white culture, this translates to attacking American superiority and initiating insecurities. For Mura, a writer who dared to question why an Asian American was not allowed to audition for an Asian American role, his punishment was “the ostracism and demonization that ensued. In essence, he was shunned” (Hongo 4) by the white people who could not believe that he would attack their superior American ways. According to writers such as Frank Chin and the rest of the “Aiiieeeee!” group, the Americans have dictated Asian culture and created a perception as “nice and quiet” (Chin 1972, 18), “mama’s boys and crybabies” without “a man in all [the] males.” (Chin 1972, 24). This has become the belief of the proceeding generations of Asian Americans and therefore manifested these stereotypes.
To keep nothing back, Asian parents’ academic expectations of their children is boundless. Asian kids are not born with the excellent grades, but they are taught to prioritize those grades. Parents want their kids to get nothing lower than a B. When they complain about how their fingers are falling off and their pen is running out of ink, they will either get slapped down or given money for another pen. They are fed well, but they do not rest well. The elders believe that an A+ is the passport out of poverty and is the only thing that ensures a bright future for the little ones.