Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/515703
Sionefuka Pole, a senior at James Logan High School in Union City, is constantly asked if he's a football player. Many assume the tall, muscular Tongan doesn't care much about school, either. But he's a straight-A student who loves singing in the school choir — and he's never played football. "When I say I'm in choir, they don't believe me," says Pole. "But I don't care what people think. Choir has helped me to be myself." Benji Chang and Wayne Au, authors of the article "You're Asian. How Could You Fail Math?: Unmasking the Myth of the Model Minority" in Rethinking Schools, believe numerous cultures were "squished" together as Asian to make things easier for European and U.S. imperialists who conquered them. They believe the myth of the model minority is used to drive a wedge against other minorities. Since Asian Americans were able to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, the reasoning goes, why can't Latinos or blacks? Such reasoning is simplistic, is used to "mask" racism, and completely ignores class exploitation in the U.S., they say. e truth behind the myth Asian Americans have done very well when it comes to achieving the American Dream of getting a good education and earning a good living. This has resulted in "model minority" as a common term, even used in Newsweek and "60 Minutes." Among the five major racial/ethnic groups in the U.S., Asian Americans have the highest college degree attainment rate, rates of having an advanced degree, median family income, and rate of working in a highly skilled occupation, even outperforming whites in these categories. But these statistics don't tell the whole story. The reality is that some Asian students don't do well in school, drop out, join gangs, or behave in other ways that are not associated with being a model minority. "The high school dropout rate among Southeast Asian Amer- icans is staggering," comments Phe Bach, a chemistry teacher at S O M E T I M E S A S I A N S T U D E N T S S I T Q U I E T LY and border on invisibility. But teachers should open their hearts and minds to be inclusive of students who sit quietly in class and may feel ignored, says Phe Bach, a chemistry teacher at Mira Loma High School in Sacramento who moved from Vietnam to the U.S. at age 15, without knowing English. "Teachers can reach out to students and do research about their students to understand them," says Bach, San Juan Teachers Association, who is the author of Best Teaching Practices: A Supporting Guide for New Teachers (Lambert Academic Publish- ing, 2013). "The best way to let students know you care about them is to understand them. It's so im- portant to have a relationship with all students — so they can open up and share what they are thinking and feeling. As teachers, we need to be patient, open-minded and willing to embrace differences of all students." Tips for educating Asian American students from Benji Chang and Wayne Au, authors of the article "You're Asian. How Could You Fail Math?: Unmask- ing the Myth of the Model Minority" in Rethinking Schools, include: • Don't automatically assume that Asian American students are good students. • Rethink the "silence" of Asian American students in your classroom. They may be quiet because they have a firm understanding of the material, or perhaps they are embarrassed for not grasping what is being said. Check in with students individually. Don't make assumptions. • Teach about unsung Asian American heroes. • Highlight ways in which Asian Americans chal- lenge racism and stereotypes. • Weave historical struggles, culture and art of diverse Asian communities into your curriculum. HOW CAN EDUCATORS HELP ASIAN AMERICAN STUDENTS? Q: Pacific Islanders may be categorized as Asian, but they have different stereotypes. In the publication Culture, an arti- cle titled "Four Myths About Pacific Islanders" states, "One myth is that Pacific Islanders used to be violent savages, mak- ing them nowadays naturally adept at football." 11 V O L U M E 1 9 I S S U E 9 ASIA CONTAINS NEARLY 4 BILLION PEOPLE AND MORE THAN 50 COUNTRIES. NOT EVERYONE IS FROM HERE.