Academic Success Despite Discrimination? Asian Americans in U.S. Schools

• In Event: 501 - Section on Asia and Asian America Paper Session. Social Inequalities: Emerging Research on Asia and Asian America

Abstract

Asian Americans are the most highly educated racial group in the country and they are commonly touted as the Model Minority for their high academic success. Nevertheless, there are also hints in previous research that suggest that Asian Americans may face certain disadvantages in school settings. For example, the Asian American academic advantage over non-Hispanic white students diminishes as children progress through school. This study provides a closer examination of the educational progress of Asian American students compared to white students. Using data from Northwestern Evaluation Association, we analyze reading and math scores (assessed by the Measures of Academic Progress) for over 130,000 students in grades K-7 in approximately 630 public schools. Through a seasonal comparison of the learning rates of Asian American and white students, we find that Asian Americans have higher academic achievement than white students in general, but that these advantages are maintained predominantly through faster rates of learning during the summer months. Furthermore, we find that this pattern is driven by students in the middle of the scoring distribution. We explore different possibilities of why the Asian American advantage mitigates throughout the school year including the compensatory effects of schooling, racial triage, and possible school-level discriminatory processes.

Authors

• Aimee Jean Yoon, The Ohio State University

• Joseph Merry, The Ohio State University