ASA 2 A02
Week 3
The article Beyond Tiger Mom Anxiety : Ethnic, Gender, and Generational Differences in Asian American College Access and Choices by OiYan Poon and Ajani Byrd addresses issues that talks about the influential choices that determine Asian Americans and their decision for a college.
After reading this piece, it resonated with me a lot about my own experiences coming to a decision to pick UC Davis as my college to attend. According to their statistics, it was stated that when Asian Americans were asked to identify the “most influential person” in their college choice process, a majority of them said their parents, which was a staggering 52.3%. Seeing this number surprised me because it made me realize that more than half of those people listened to their parent’s input rather their own. This stuck out to me because it is an issue that I believe is very prevalent in Asian American culture. Being a second-generation Asian American, I have trouble coming to terms with who I really am. I find myself questioning whether or not I am full American or a foreigner whose parents happened to just come to this country in hopes of finding a better life. Experiencing both cultures at once changed my mindset to think about Asian customs as well as American customs. Americans are known for their freedom in voicing their opinions and independence from their parents. However, this is not true for Asian culture. Growing up, we were told to always listen to our elders and never talk back. We were disciplined to be a certain way and act a certain way. As a result, we have developed an independence that still incorporates what our parents would think of the actions we do. Choosing college, for example is one of them. Every once in a while, my mother would tell me about her life in China and how education was not an option for her since she had to take care of her siblings. This made me realize the gap between my life and my mother’s. As I had just began college application season, my mom would always nag me about the school I would be attending and the major I will be pursuing. Though, I often questioned if it was my mother who would be attending the college or me. However, coming to terms with my mother’s wishes and reminders of her struggle I listened to her opinion and picked a college that would be close to home.
Reading this article allowed me to gain insight into issues that are prevalent in the Asian American community. I believe that more people should be aware of these issues to also gain understanding from this point of view.
Question : How can we as Asian Americans steer away from our parents’ opinion and build an independence for ourselves?
Media :
References :
Poon, O and A Byrd. "Beyond Tiger Mom Anxiety: Ethnic, Gender and Generational Differences in Asian American College Access and Choices." Journal of College Admission, 2013.
[Fung Bros]. (2014, May 7). WHY DO ASIAN PARENTS LOVE COLLEGE SO MUCH?. [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTnqRvknXxs
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