Marketing Merit: Neoliberal Politics of Asian American Representation in a Charter School

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 11:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: Global Contexts, Educational Access and Learning

Abstract

This ethnographic case study explores how Asian American educators at a Midwestern public charter school navigate neoliberal market pressures in response to a recent curricular change. Drawing on data from the 2023-2024 academic year, this study examines Asian American educators’ ambivalent perceptions of the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, both as a tool for instructional change and a marketing strategy. While school leaders framed IB primarily as an agent for instructional improvement, many teachers voiced its limited impact on their teaching practices. Nevertheless, they still acknowledged IB’s symbolic value in attracting high-achieving Asian American students, constructing desirable Asian Americanness upon model minority narrative. In doing so, this study illuminates how Asian American racialization intersects with neoliberal marketization of charter schools.

Author

• Insil Jeon, University of Minnesota