An Open Letter to Boston's K 12 Schools: The Need for Ethnic Studies

I was in the fifth grade, it had been seven years since I arrived in America, and I felt hatred towards my own ethnicity and culture. I did not know about the history of Chinese Americans in the U.S. at the time. I was also ashamed of my cultural heritage because I was having a difficult time fitting in with other kids in school. Looking back, I am saddened to think that I experienced those feelings as a child about my identity, and I am so grateful that I was able to learn from it and come to reconcile with my inner struggles and love myself. Many children with immigrant backgrounds have probably felt the way that I did before because schools do not teach us to appreciate our immigrant backgrounds. For that reason, schools need to implement more ethnic studies into their curriculum. I know the importance of ethnic studies because as a Chinese immigrant in the U.S. and a student of Boston Public Schools (BPS), I once denied my own culture because I did not have the chance to learn about it. Since most people I knew came from cultural backgrounds that were different than mine, I often felt like an outsider amongst my peers. However, I began to feel differently once I started learning about Asian American history and about Chinatown through a youth leadership program called A-VOYCE (Asian Voices of Organized Youth for Community Empowerment) at Asian Community Development Corporation (Youth Programs, 2020). A-VOYCE is a high-school afterschool program that taught me about community development and helped me to explore my cultural identity. Had I not been part of the group, I still may not be confident about who I am today. Boston Public Schools K-12 need to implement ethnic studies into their curriculum because ethnic-related studies enable students to engage in the world around them, teaching them to stay informed about current related issues. They also inspire students to become active leaders in their community. In the film Precious Knowledge (Palos & McGinnis 2012), Tucson High School's Mexican American Studies Program allowed high school students to take Mexican American Studies classes instead of American history. Students were able to self-reflect on their cultural background, learn about Mexican American history, and think about what it means to be a Mexican American in this country. This program ultimately contributed to 100% of students graduating high school and 85% going to college, which shows that ethnic studies programs tremendously improve graduation rates, compared to the 85% national high school graduation rate (Public High School Graduation Rates 2020) and 69% college enrollment rate (Immediate College Enrollment Rate, 2020). Stanford University researchers (Anderson 2016) gathered data from three San Francisco high schools and found that students who participated in an ethnic studies program for four years had increased student attendance by 21%, grade-point average by 1.4 points, and credits toward graduation by 23 credits. Not only do ethnic studies help students appreciate their identity, but they also improve students’ academic achievement.

To incorporate ethnic studies into a school curriculum, schools can partner with youth programs like A-VOYCE. Ethnic studies teachers should have an ethnic background related to the topic they are teaching so that they truly understand their curriculum and students, and can use their personal narratives to teach their students. Funds should go into educating teachers on the history and current events surrounding different ethnic groups. For example, an Asian American teacher can participate in something similar to A-VOYCE workshops to learn about Asian American history and identity. The teacher can then incorporate the A-VOYCE curriculum into their lesson plans. Ethnic studies should be introduced in elementary schools to encourage students to build awareness and confidence in their ethnicity. As students develop critical thinking skills in middle and high school, ethnic-related courses should help students reflect on their identity, learn about current issues, and think about what they can do to address those current issues. The demographics of BPS are 42% Hispanic, 33% Black, 14% White, and 9% Asian (Boston Public Schools at a Glance 2019). Therefore, schools need to provide ethnic studies programs for Hispanic, Black, and Asian students. If schools are able to teach American history from K-12, they should be offering ethnic studies as well. Before I got the chance to explore my identity, I knew that I held negative views on my own people, but did not know why because I never had the opportunity to reflect on that in school. Without ethnic studies in school, students of color might not be as engaged in the classroom as other students because the curriculum does not include them in the picture. Seeing their ethnic groups marginalized on the sidelines of history books can cause students to think that they are of less importance compared to other American students. The need for ethnic studies in K-12 is especially important right now as the pandemic is fueling xenophobia. We must provide ethnic studies courses as part of the school curriculum because it is important to teach students that they matter in this country.

Anderson, M. D. (2016, March 7). The Academic Benefits of Ethnic Studies. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/03/the-ongoing-battle-over-ethnicstudies/472422/

BPS at a Glance 2019-20_FINAL.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://www.bostonpublicschools.org/cms/lib/MA01906464/Centricity/Domain/187/BPS%20at %20a%20Glance%202019-20_FINAL.pdf

Precious Knowledge | Ethnic Studies in Arizona | Independent Lens | PBS. (n.d.). Independent Lens. Retrieved November 22, 2020, from https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/films/precious-knowledge/

The Condition of Education—Postsecondary Education—Postsecondary Students— Immediate College Enrollment Rate—Indicator April (2020). (2020, April). https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cpa.asp

The Condition of Education—Preprimary, Elementary, and Secondary Education—High School Completion—Public High School Graduation Rates—Indicator May (2020). (2020, May). https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_coi.asp

Youth Programs. (2020). Asian Community Development Corporation. https://asiancdc.org/avoyce