Model Minority Syndrome

As a future educator, I have begun to take note of of Social inequalities that exist in the school. Stereotypes foster false perceptions about students in schools. One of the most common stereotypes are based on race. For instance, many teachers many teachers view minority groups such as African Americans or Latinos as lazy and not working hard. They lower expectations. I think we have all talked about these stereotypes after going here at UW-Milwaukee. There are other types of stereotypes.

The Model Minority Stereotype is one that claims Asians are the model for how other minorities should act. Asians are viewed as highly educated hard working people who do not live in poverty. This is true of some Asians, but it is not true of all Asians. Lumping Asian Americans together is not fair because it silences the multiple voices of Asian Americans. This labels Asians as a homogeneous groups and deletes their culture, social class, ethnicity,religion, language, sexual and gender differences.

All of this leads to stereotypes that are not fact. For instance, Chinese Americans were viewed in a 1966 article as good citizens because the status quo viewed them as quiet people who did not challenge the system. After riots following the Rodney King trail, Korean Americans were viewed as "stand-ins" for white middle class Americans. There are plenty of other examples the books.

I think it is important for teacher to know about model minority syndrome because education can be used as a tool to eliminate stereotypes. The only way people will learn is through education. True multicultural educators hold the role of fighting stereotypes in an effort to promote equality. When teachers promote equality, it strives to create equal opportunities in the world.

Two High Schools

Chapter 18’s reading this week was quiet disturbing. It was about two schools, Groundview Technical High School and Mountainview Township High School. Groundview and Mountainview are both located near Chicago; however they are vastly different schools. Mountainview High caters to the needs of upper class. The surrounding community near Mountainview is surrounded by homes ranging from $500,000 to $1,000,000. Students in the school have a variety of freedom. They are allowed to non-descript jeans and designer clothes, while walking free and comfortably through the hallway. There are various wings in each the school and students may designate a “major.” If students are running late to class, they are told in hurry along and do not receive a detention slip. There is advanced technology including state of the art technology and audiovisual equipment. An entire wing is dedicated to fine arts and there are multiple gyms, swimming pools and an expensive library.

Groundview Technical High is vastly different. Upon entry into Groundview, there are metal detectors and security, which students must past through. Students are required to wear uniforms and carry pictures ideas with schedules. Students are not permitted to leave for lunch. The building is deteriorating due to a lack of funds. Security guards are present and assign detentions to late students. There is not a well equipped place for study of the humanities and the social sciences. There is a room full of woodshop and carpentry equipment that is kept locked because staff is not allowed to operate the equipment. There is not theater, pool, music area, exercise equipment and a few books which must be shared during class.

The most important thing I took from the descriptions was that schools are vastly different. Schools should provide equal access to all students, regardless of social status. It is not fair for a school, such as Groundview to suffer while students at Mountainview have the best opportunities possible. A country that is supposed to provide equal access to all is really alienating those who are not part of the dominant culture. Groundview is full students who come from the working class, who are not valued in mainstream society. As a result, they get a second class education. That is disgusting as a future educator!!

Emotions during Adolescence

For my portion of the group presentation, I have been researching the affects adolescence has on emotions. Thus far, I have broken my research in to four categories: individual emotions, dating, relationship with parents and the affect of peers. What I have found in regards to emotions is that they are fluctuation due to hormones. The hormones can cause students to have emotional outbursts. They are susceptible to be jealous, sad, angry, happy in a relatively short time. Self-Esteem is the lowest when students enter high middle school but increases throughout the Middle School experience. In addition, relationships with peers become very important. Adolescents have a need to be accepted by their peers. Having friends becomes as important as having friends. Dating also becomes very important. Adolescents begin to socially construct what dating and a relationship is. Relationships with parents become distant, as adolescents strive to achieve more independence.

This is some of the main points that I will touch on during my presentation, not all. However, the reason why these issues are important because they affect Middle School Teachers. Teachers must understand these changes in order to be sensitive and cater to the learning styles of students. There are specific strategies and methods which can be used to teacher Middle School Students, which other members in my group will touch on.