Chinese-Heritage Students in North American Schools: Understanding Hearts and Minds Beyond Test Scores PDF
Preview Chinese-Heritage Students in North American Schools: Understanding Hearts and Minds Beyond Test Scores
“This edited book uniquely combines all aspects of Chinese students’ experiences, ranging from developing cultural identities to being educated by Chinese parents to learning academic subjects and thus helps readers see the interplay of various aspects and gain a better understanding of the complexity of academic and non- academic experiences of Chinese students.” Hong Xu, Professor of Teacher Education, California State University, Long Beach, USA “As I read through this important new collection of studies … what struck me was the incredible diversity of communities and contexts, families and young people brought together under the umbrella of ‘Chinese-heritage’ students. It depicts the actual diversity in Chinese socioeconomic and migration background, first and second language and dialect resources, spatial/geographic dis/placement, and, indeed, everyday educational experience. This is a question of cultural homogeneity and heterogeneity, of difference within difference—of how we can talk about ‘Chinese-heritage’ or ‘Chinese’ or, for that matter, ‘Chinese-American’ communities in ways that capture the complex lived dynamics of common cultural experiences, practices, and schemata—and, indeed, the differences between and within these communities.” Allan Luke, Emeritus Professor, Queensland University of Technology, Australia; Adjunct Professor, University of Calgary, Canada; Honorary Professor, Beijing Normal University, PRC, from the Foreword “The ‘Chinese’ have carried the stereotypical status of being excellent in test taking globally for a long time. This rich collection of studies reveals the diversity and complexity of Chinese students in North America. It clearly shows that Chinese students are much more than test scores… . However, the value of this volume goes way beyond demystifying Chinese students… . I am hopeful it will serve to inspire similar efforts in the entire field of education and one day we can move beyond test scores as the only outcome measure in education.” Yong Zhao, Presidential Chair and Director of the Institute for Global and Online Education, and Professor in the Department of Educational Measurement, Policy, and Leadership, College of Education, University of Oregon, USA, from the Afterword This page intentionally left blank CHINESE-HERITAGE STUDENTS IN NORTH AMERICAN SCHOOLS This comprehensive look at Chinese-heritage students’ academic, sociocultural, and emotional development in public schools examines pertinent educational theories; complex (even inconvenient) realities; learning practices in and outside of schools; and social, cultural, and linguistic complications in their academic lives across diverse settings, homes, and communities. Chinese-heritage students are by far the largest ethnic group among Asian American and Asian Canadian communities, but it is difficult to sort out their academic performance because NAEP and most state/province databases lump all Asian students’ results together. To better understand why Chinese-heritage learners range from academic role models to problematic students in need of help, it is important to understand their hearts and minds beyond test scores. This book is distinctive in building this understanding by addressing the range of issues related to Chinese-heritage K–12 students’ languages, cultures, identities, academic achievements, and challenges across North American schools. Wen Ma is an Associate Professor of Education at Le Moyne College, USA. Guofang Li is a Professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Transnational/ Global Perspectives of Language and Literacy Education of Children and Youth at the University of British Columbia, Canada. This page intentionally left blank CHINESE-HERITAGE STUDENTS IN NORTH AMERICAN SCHOOLS Understanding Hearts and Minds Beyond Test Scores Edited by Wen Ma and Guofang Li First published 2016 by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 and by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2016 Taylor & Francis The right of the editors to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Ma, Wen, editor. | Li, Guofang, 1972- editor. Title: Chinese-heritage students in North American schools : understanding hearts and minds beyond test scores / edited by Wen Ma and Guofang Li. Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2016. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2015034423 | ISBN 9781138999268 (hardback) | ISBN 9781138999275 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781315658438 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Chinese American students. | Chinese Americans-- Education--Social aspects. | Chinese--Education--Social aspects-- Canada. | Children of immigrants--Education--Social aspects--United States. | Children of immigrants--Education--Social aspects--Canada. Classification: LCC LC3071 .C58 2016 | DDC 371.829/951--dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015034423 ISBN: 978-1-138-99926-8 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-138-99927-5 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-65843-8 (ebk) Typeset in Bembo by Saxon Graphics Ltd, Derby This book is dedicated to our children, Xiaoya, Francis, Patrick, and Amanda, and millions of Chinese-heritage learners like them. We hope they will grow up to achieve their full potential, and become happy, well-rounded, global citizens, free of bias and stereotypes. This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Foreword: Who and What Are “Chinese” Students? xiii Allan Luke Acknowledgments xix Wen Ma and Guofang Li Introduction: Understanding “Difference within Differences” in Chinese-Heritage Students’ Educational Experiences across School, Home, and Community Contexts 1 Guofang Li and Wen Ma PART I Chinese-Heritage Students’ Language and Literacy Learning 9 1 Chinese Students’ Heritage-Language Learning in the United States: Issues and Challenges 11 Keying Wen and Guofang Li 2 A Chinese Student’s Early Education in U.S. K–12 Schools: A Multilevel Perspective 25 Yalun Zhou, Rebecca L. Oxford, and Michael Wei
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