A Review of Southeast Asian American Education

Bee Lee

Section 2

Week 3

            In “Complicating the Image of Model Minority Success: A Review of Southeast Asian American Education” by Bic Ngo and Stacey J. Lee, I was astounded to see some similarities between Southeast Asian Americans education and their explanation for success. However, what caught my attention was primarily on the Hmong community on the topic of education. Because I am Hmong, I was very intrigued when topics relating to the Hmong were discussed, specifically because I was able to connect to it.

Reading this article, Ngo and Lee described how social capita provides students with “access and opportunity” in education. They discussed how middle-class families were able to do well because of their connections, whereas working-class families lack a social capital, which can explain their lower educational success. This, I thought, was a reason why Hmong Americans has the highest percentage of 59% in attaining less than a high school degree. Because I grew up in a family where both of my parents had little educational background, I was limited to resources out there that would help me to where I am at today. My parents did not have any clue to what requirements were needed to be in college nor did my fellow Hmong friends’ parents. Therefore, I had many struggles to get to where I am at today.

Although lack of social capita may be an underlying cause to a lower educational attainment, should there be more research done to examine the impact of race, social context, and economic opportunities on educational persistence and achievement among various Southeast Asian groups?