Archive for year: 2014

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Last week Julian assigned us in small groups. He gave us all a scenario and asked us what we would do in that situation. I thought this activity was interesting because I got to hear what my classmates would do in that particular scenario and we all had similar responses. Then we finally had our debate on Affirmative Action. This was my first time participating in a debate in any class so I found it a bit scary at first. It enjoyed hearing both sides hoping I could finally pick a side in this controversy. Of course, this issue should be fixed from its roots and that is in the k-12 educational system. I really hope Common Core works because it is unfair for minorities to be put into an education system that will work against them and this disparity needs to stop. It has been decades since the Supreme Court ruled desegregation in schools and the statistics of minorities in higher education have not gone up much since then. I understand that Affirmative action is not a solution but I see it as a temporary solution while lawmakers come up with one. Minorities have been waiting a long time for help in the K-12 education system and higher education. I think waiting for the solution and watching the minority in higher education stats stay very low is like criminal act by the government and society. It is better to have a temporary solution because there might not be a solution to the problem any time soon.

For this weeks readings we had three articles to read. The first two were about Latinos in higher education. The article by Sylvia Hurtado had many interesting statistics that were not very shocking. Hurtado mentioned that a way to diminish the negative Latinos stereotype is to have large Hispanic enrollments to provide more opportunities for whites to interact with Latinos and promote cross-cultural awareness. This would work with all of the other minorities in this country but unless we can get them in higher education, I do not see this happening. The second article by Vasti Torres was mostly about how Latinos feel like they need to adapt to American cultures and maintain their ethnic culture. I was not surprised to hear that 11 percent of Latinos have a bachelor’s degree compared with 28 percent of non-whites. I have many older cousins that graduated from high school but not one graduated from college. A few of my cousins went to college for a few semesters but never finished. I know a lot of people that I graduated with in high school that did not continue their education after high school. Luckily for me my close three friends are in college studying to be RNs. My friends are my support group and we encourage each other to work hard to reach our goals. The third article was about Asian Americans in higher Education. It was disappointing to read that although Asian Americans are “the model minority” with 51.1 percent of them enrolled in college, they still face many barriers in the work force and even at school. It seems like all minorities will face some sort of barrier in their lives to prevent them from succeeding. Although it is unfair I think that is what makes minorities in higher education very special people because they are able to overcome many obstacles and reach their goals of earning their degrees.

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I enjoyed last week’s class because it altered my perspective of Affirmative Action. I always knew that Affirmative Action was flawed, but I agreed with it because it is a step forward in attempts to resolve the unfair treatment of minorities and women. I always leaned to the argument that white males are the only group who are not benefiting from Affirmative Action, and that was ok because they are still at an advantage in the social structure of our society. Affirmative action does not change the hierarchy of America. After the lecture, the readings, and the debate, my opinion has not completely changed but altered. I strongly feel that affirmative action is a start but needs major modifications. I also feel that we need to create a system that does not raise racial tension, but serves as a way to end white priviledge. In short, Affirmative Action is start not a solution.

This week’s readings were also very interesting. I felt that Hertado and Torres both expressed the complexity of education for Latino students, and about the vast differences within the Latino community in relation to education. Hertado offered plenty of evidence through various events, and statistics, while Torres took the approach of conducting experiments and sharing a little more than Hertado about personal experiences.

I was intrigued by the vast differences in the values of education within the Latino community. I tend to forget that Latinos are immensely culturally different, so I was bothered that these statistics were news to me. I realized that I am not as sensitive to the fact that Latinos are different, because I live in California where Mexicans are the dominant Latino group, and I belong to that group. So when people assume that I am Mexican, when they learn that I am Latino, I am not bothered, because their assumption is correct. However, I can now understand and sympathize with those of other Latino cultures who don’t like it. Torres said it best, “Mi casa is not exactly like your house.” My eyes were open to the complexity of the pressing issues of Latinos in the educational system.

I also enjoyed chang’s article because it served as a great reminder that Asians are minorities and have suffered a great deal in America because of prejudice. Asian are commonly stereotyped with what most consider “good” or “positive” stereotypes, like, “Asians are… smart, good at math, naturally skinny…” I have even heard that they are the “accepted” minority because they seem to assimilate most smoothly with white culture than other minorities. Chang reminded me of the “communist” Chinese, the terrorist “Japs” and even of the unfair treatment of the Filipino veterans who assisted the U.S. during World War II. All the negative labels that have not completely diminished are affecting Asians in our educational system. Yes, out of all the groups Asians are the most likely to graduate, but attaining a degree is not achieved without toil, and labor from anyone, especially those belonging to a sub dominant group.