Peer-Reviewed

Links

Asian American and Pacific Islander Students: Equity and the Achievement Gap by Valerie Ooka Pang, Peggy P. Han and Jennifer M. Pang21

Synthesis

These two peer-reviewed articles highlight problems with the “model minority” stereotype that paints Asian-American students as high achieving. This stereotype ignores the differences in achievement among various ethnic groups. As a result, there is often a lack of research and intervention for Asian-American youth who are not succeeding in school due to the misconception that they’re all academically successful. These studies disprove the model minority myth and show the negative implications that it can have for youth who do not fit into the stereotype, or who place value on their unique, ethnic, identity.

The first article, Asian American and Pacific Islander Students: Equity and the Achievement Gap, seeks to break down this stereotype by showing that the achievement of AAPIs is not uniform across ethnicities. The researchers studied more than 1 million AAPI and white seventh graders in a statewide California testing program to examine their reading and math achievement scores. In addition, they disaggregated the performance of 13 AAPI subgroups. When scores were aggregated, AAPI students performed significantly lower than White Americans in reading, and significantly higher in math. However, when scores were disaggregated, a majority of AAPI ethnic groups performed at significantly lower levels than White students in both reading and math. There was a wide range in performance among the 13 different ethnicities studied after controlling for gender, lunch status, and parent education level.21 Overall, the study found that the use of the large AAPI aggregate hides statistically significant achievement differences among different ethnic groups, leading to the misconception that AAPIs as a whole group are generally academically successful.

The second article, Ethnic and Panethnic Asian American Identities: Contradictory Perceptions of Cambodian Students in Urban Schools, illustrates some of the negative effects that the model minority stereotype can have on students. The researchers investigated how the model minority stereotype affects Cambodian students’ own identity and how teachers and administrators perceive these students. They observed an urban high school located in the largest Cambodian community in the U.S. At this particular school, the typical discourse about Cambodian students tended to be in contrast with the more positive image surrounding East Asian students. Cambodian students were generally described as “poor, welfare dependent, and involved in gangs”, while other Asian subgroups were deemed as “smart” and “high achieving”. The word “ghetto” was often used to describe where Cambodian students lived, and how they behaved.22 However, in higher- level classes (the Magnet academy), Cambodian students were viewed as being part of the model minority. Teachers often disregarded their students’ ethnic identities and discussed their Cambodian students as part of their “bright Asian students” group.22 Many students in the Magnet academy felt frustrated by the lack of recognition of their ethnic background by teachers and peers.

Both articles highlight the problems that the model minority stereotype brings for AAPI students. The belief that Asian-American students have all reached high levels of academic achievement can lead to a lack of research and help for students who struggle in school. In addition, this stereotype can have negative effects on students’ perception of their ethnic identity as well as how their teachers view them in comparison to their peers. Cambodian students at an urban high school were either negatively contrasted with East Asian students or were grouped together with these other students at the expense of their ethnic identity. Due to the negative effects of the model minority myth, many grassroots organizations are working to raise awareness about this issue.