Roashell Bonadie
Education 355 – Critical Issues in the History of Education
Dr. Diaz – WANY Midterm Assignment
April 19, 2012
Critical analysis
The history of the Asian population in America was not an easy one. After looking at all the evidences based on Asian history and demographics in America I am overwhelmed by the quantity of information that I learned while conducting this study. Before this study I accepted as truth that, the Asians who came to America in the 1800s were the ones that had attained mass wealth in their country however; after reading about Asian in U.S. I then learned that this story is fictitious and far removed from the truth. Asians, especially the Chinese who were the first to arrive in the U.S.A. in search of gold, were treated poorly by the Europeans in California. It was said on the Asian Nation Website that, Chinese miners experienced their first taste of discrimination in the form of the Foreign Miner Tax. This was supposed to be collected from every foreign miner but in reality, it was only collected from the Chinese, despite the multitude of miners from European countries there as well. When some Chinese miners objected and refused to pay the unfair tax, they were physically attacked and even murdered. Eventually, the Chinese tried to go to court to demand justice and equal treatment but at the time, California's laws prevented Chinese immigrants from testifying against Whites in court. As a result, many murders went unsolved as many murderers went free.
Chinese were not the only Asian group that was treated unfairly. When I looked at the other groups such as the Japanese they too were discriminated against by the Europeans. Looking at all these evidences made me realize that even though American Laws speak about freedom and equal rights for all, the leaders in society did not upheld the same opportunities for all Citizens. The White Europeans were the ones who were mostly favored and any other race was deemed as inferior.
When I looked at the demographics of the Asian population in New York I see a population that is increasing rapidly. Chinatown in Manhattan has the city’s largest concentration of Chinese, but in recent years the Chinese population has been declining in that area due to rise in property value. The Asian population in Queens is also growing rapidly. On the west side of Queens the Asian population in one of the most diverse, on the east side on Queens it has the greatest concentrations of Indians in the city they are the second largest Asian group in New York and also in Flushing Queens the Chinese dominate that area. In Brooklyn there is an established Chinese community in Sunset Park that has spread south and east to Bensonhurst. The New York Times article by Kirk Semple also goes on to say that the people of Chinese descent in New York made up almost half of all Asians population, and they are multiplied in most city neighborhoods, especially in those where they began settling in large numbers decades ago, neighborhoods such as Flushing and Elmhurst in Queens, and Sunset Park and Bensonhurst in Brooklyn. The Asians are here to stay, and this country duty is to embrace them because they also contributed to building America to the country it is today.
The interview that I conducted with Chris an Asian American made me realize that they (the Asians) are just the same as me and countless immigrants. They came to this county in search of a better life and they are willing to work hard, extremely hard to get what they want. Some people think that Asians are more intelligent than other groups but after reading an article on Asian- American Children written by Jianhua Feng I realized that the “The "whiz kids" image is a misleading stereotype that masks individuality and conceals real problems.” Asian students that are viewed to teachers and educators as instant successes, poses a problem for those Asian students that need help, since educators may neglect those students that really need help because of this stereotype. Like any other group of migrants Asians also faced many difficulties for example they struggle to adapt to a new language and culture, and many of them drop out of school.
The most relevant contemporary issue this group faces in NYC schools according to the Asians leadership documents is the view that Asian Americans as a racial and/or ethnic group have achieved a higher level of success than the average population. This stereotype characterizes Asian Americans as pulling themselves up by their bootstraps, intelligent, gifted in math and science, polite, quiet, hard-working, family-oriented, law-abiding and successfully entrepreneurial, with few societal problems and little complaint. This stereotype shields the public from problems such as domestic violence, juvenile delinquency, drugs, and suicide that occur among Asian Americans, and paints a rosy picture of Asian Americans as a group without problems and struggles.
Asian kids are not smarter than any other ethnic group, it is not something that they were born with. what makes the difference in their performances in school is their discipline attitude when it comes to school. If they can achieve success in school then other students can also achieve the same success if they simply apply themselves.
Three suggestions/recommendations as to what we as educators can do about it.
My three suggestions are as follows:
- At the beginning of the semester, meet specifically with the students and parents to discuss your teaching methods, expectations for attendance, tardiness, other class rules, preferences for self-directed learning, etc. Allow the parents to express any concerns they might have.
- Teachers should get to know the different groups of students and how they operate to further understand how to teach that child. The teacher can use the different countries national day to have a parent come into the classroom and share about their culture. It can be as simply as making a dish, teaching the other students how to say hello in a different language, drawing a picture etc. The Internet also is a good resource for finding out information on specific groups.
- Have open communications with the parents whether they speak English or not. It is important that all parents feel a sense of belonging from the school when they are dealing with their children’s’ education. It makes participation from the parents stress-free.