Stereotypes Of Minority Students

As the United States becomes more diverse, colleges are seeing increases in minority students. However, this increase does not mean that the same number of students are leaving their college with a degree. Minorities face many challenges in college, some of which have persisted since elementary school. Although colleges try to diminish these difficulties by having different organizations where students can go to seek help, the students have already formed the mindset that they do not do as well as their white counterparts from micro-aggressions, learned thoughts and behaviors, and comparisons of resources.
There are different variables that effect a person’s ability to succeed in school, college or otherwise. However, it is well known that
The closest achievement gap to white students in 2014 is the Asian American students, 75% graduation rate and 69.4% respectively (UIC, 2014). This gap does little to disprove the “model minority” myth that is used to invalidate the hardships minorities face. The “model minority” myth is the stereotype that Asian Americans have succeeded in the American dream because of their achievements (Golash-Boza, 2014). However, this stereotype is self-sustaining to a certain extent in education because students, especially minorities experience stereotype threat. Stereotype threat is the fear that one will do something to confirm a negative stereotype of their race (Heine, 2011). For example, reminding an African-American student of the ‘Blacks are unintelligent’ stereotype will show a statistically significant decrease in test scores than if they were not reminded of the stereotype (Heine, 2011). Stereotype threats can also positively affect student performance because they fear in disproving the positive stereotype. For example, reminding Asian Americans that they are supposed to be ‘good at math’ or ‘highly intelligent’ can create motivation that will increase their test scores and in turn their educational
Having educational institutions rely on funding from property taxes and other local revenue place minority communities who have historically been forced into low income neighborhoods and continue to be discriminated against in the job market no matter their qualifications at a disadvantage compared to their white counterparts. Even white people who are a part of a low income, underserved neighborhood fair better in education because they do not have negative stereotypes automatically assigned to them that discourages teachers from helping the students realize their full potential. These disadvantages can dishearten students from pursing or completing higher education, leading to their underemployment because they do not meet the standards of the employer and inability to better their neighborhood and school systems for the next generation. This cycle can only be broken by encouraging unbiased testing, minority financial aid, and a new policy that will allocate funds equally between public elementary