The Power of Coethnic Communities: Understanding Diverse Asian American Experiences in Education

• In Event: Roundtable Session 23
  In Roundtable Session: Asian Communities and U.S. Education

Abstract

This analytic paper provides a survey of the historical and current context of the development of co-ethnic communities of all major Asian American ethnic groups, and links these experiences to variations in educational attainment by applying an adaptation of Portes & Rumbaut’s theory on modes of incorporation. Understanding how the nature of co-ethnic communities—their concentration or dispersion of manual laborers, professionals, or entrepreneurs—has played into social/occupational and educational outcomes, is essential for unmasking the educational needs within the Asian American community that are often ignored. This paper serves to sensitize educators, researchers, and policymakers to diverse needs both between and within Asian ethnic groups and provides recommendations for support for lower-achieving populations.

Authors

• Stacy Kula, Azusa Pacific University

• Lorine Erika Saito, Claremont Graduate University

• Zaynah Rahman, Claremont University - Claremont Graduate University

• Matthew A. Witenstein, Claremont University - Harvey Mudd College

• Susan J. Paik, Claremont Graduate University