1995 Results

(Cite as:  Andrew Chin, The 1995 National Asian American Studies Examination in U.S. High Schools, 21 Amerasia Journal 121 (1995).)

Introduction

Because of effective professional networks and extraordinary individual efforts, a relatively small number of Asian American Studies departments have had a disproportionate influence on the formulation of Asian American political values and discourse during the past decade.  Nevertheless, Asian American perspectives are rarely recognized in most parts of the United States, despite the continuing growth of Asian American communities in all regions of the country.  The recent proliferation of Asian American Studies programs beyond the leading universities of the West Coast, Hawaii, New York and New England [FN1] is therefore of vital importance.

American high schools are also beginning to provide an exposure to Asian American perspectives as part of their required multicultural curricula.  More often than not, however, the teachers being asked to provide these perspectives are unaware of Asian American Studies as an academic discipline.  The National Asian American Studies Examination is a new initiative to encourage the development of rigorous programs in multicultural education at the high school level.  As a co-curricular activity, it motivates students and teachers to engage in a meaningful exploration of the Asian American experience, even in the absence of administrative support.

A further purpose of the examination is to present an empowering context for the educational achievements of exceptional Asian American students.  For these students, success in academic competitions, particularly in science and mathematics, often comes at a heavy price:  it is seen by the mainstream to affirm the model minority thesis, an ultimately debilitating stereotype.  [FN2]  The National Asian American Studies Examination provides an opportunity for Asian American students to attain academic prestige in an activity which liberates and enables them to challenge such stereotypes and the dominant social and economic order.

A final aim of the competition is to challenge schools and teachers to examine the condition of Asian Americans in the student bodies and communities.  The contest thereby supplements the dominant cultural interpretation of Asian American educational achievement with the relative functionalism perspective of Sue and Okazaki.  Beyond identifying high-achieving Asian American students as examples for their classmates, and attempting to "inculcate in others those Asian American values that facilitate educational achievements," participating schools have been required to commit specific resources -- instructional resources and time -- to studying "the status and situation of Asians in American society."  [FN3]  The effective of a school's participation, then, can only be to improve the racial climate for the entire student body.

Background

The Council for Asian American Studies Education, a national coalition of university students and faculty founded in 1991, [FN4] passed a resolution in 1993 calling for the establishment of an annual high school examination in Asian American Studies.  As stated in the resolution, the purposes of the National Asian American Studies Examination were:

The 45-minute examination consisted of 20 multiple-choice items and one short essay of not more than one hundred words.  The multiple-choice questions were based on two texts [FN5,6] which have been widely adopted (some controversy notwithstanding) [FN7] by Asian American Studies programs at the university level, but have not received extensive exposure at the high school level.  A bank of 100 multiple-choice questions was developed, from which 40 items were eventually chosen for the competition and the practice examination.  The practice examination was published in A. Magazine.   [FN8]  (The 1995 examination is reprinted in Section 2.)

Registration materials, including the practice examination and a color wall poster covering 150 years of Asian American history, were sent to 1,145 schools in all fifty states.  The invitations were based on successful participation in other national, locally-administered academic competitions, including the National Council of Teachers of English Achievement Awards in Writing and the American High School Mathematics Examination.  In addition, press releases announcing the competition were sent to hundreds of periodicals and Internet information resources.

Teachers were asked to obtain copies of the required texts and to register their participating students by December 31, 1994.  Many teachers elected to order The State of Asian America directly from South End Press,  which provided a discount for contest participants.  Given the degree of preparation required, the competition enjoyed a reasonable level of participation in its initial year:  192 students at 22 schools in 13 states.

Multiple Choice Questions

Short Essay Question

Identify one historical episode which resulted in the empowerment of Asian Americans, and explain what significance it has to Asian Americans today.

Results of the 1995 Examination

The multiple-choice sections of the examination were scored with a penalty for wrong answers to discourage guessing.  Three points were awarded for each correct answer, and one point was deducted for each incorrect answer.  The essays were scored by panels of three readers on a basis of thirty points, with validity, composition and original insight as the criteria for evaluation.  Thus the maximum possible total score was 90.  Table 1 indicates the percentile ranks for the scores attained in the competition.

Table 1.  Distribution of scores on the 1995 NAASE.

The first place individual winner was Michele Smith, Grade 12, Moanalua High School, Honolulu, Hawaii.  Smith will receive a $250 scholarship to attend the University of Hawaii.  The second place individual winner was Eddie Chiu, Grade 12, Clarkstown High School, New City, New York.  Chiu will receive a $150 scholarship to attend Brooklyn College.  The third place individual winner was Edwin Yau, Grade 12, Bellaire High School, Bellaire, Texas.  Yau will receive a $100 scholarship to attend Rice University.

The first place school team, coached by James Suchy, was Clarkstown High School, New City, New York, with a score of 149.  Team members were Eddie Chiu, Aysha Venjara and Timothy Chung.

The second place school team, coached by Darlene Pang, was Moanalua High School, Honolulu Hawaii, with a score of 145.  Team members were Michele Smith, David Kamiya and Mercy Tamayo.

Analysis of Results

A standard evaluation of the validity of multiple-choice test items is a comparison between the point-biserial correlation of the credited response with those of the distractors.  This statistic is conceptually based on the rationale that the correct response for an item should appeal to high scorers, while the distractors [FN9] should appeal to those who have not mastered the domain of knowledge.  [FN10]   Generally, items should be designed so that the point-biserial correlation for the credited response is higher than that for all of the distractors.

Table 2 compares for each item the point-biserial correlation for the credited response with the highest correlation among the four distractors.  For 15 of the 20 items, the point-biserial correlation was highest for the credited response, satisfying the criterion for validity described above.

Table 2.  Test item validation statistics.

Although the small number of items may preclude drawing general conclusions about the Asian American Studies curriculum, the standardized test format can provide new insights and observations based on this statistical analysis.  The failure of five items to satisfy the validity criterion highlights topics in the required readings that were poorly understood even by the high-performing students.

First, the fact that three of the five invalidated questions (2, 13 and 19) relate to South Asian topics may indicate the extent to which Asian American Studies has tended to focus on East and Southeast Asian American perspectives.  In particular, the data for item 2 indicates that high-performing students succeeded in the competition despite less well-informed than average about the relative socioeconomic status of Asian Indian Americans.  This anomaly points to the more general marginalizaiton of South Asian Americans within Asian American identity, which can only be partly redressed through inclusion in academic texts.

Second, the invalidation of Question 18 indicates that detailed discussions of university politics and Asian American Studies curricula [FN11] remain incomprehensible to virtually all high school students.  In fact, none of the 192 participants gave the correct response to this item.  This is a clear reminder of the long learning curve which Asian American student leaders face when proposing curricular reforms at the university level.  Specifically, it is sobering news for campus Asian American Student initiatives, which are becoming increasingly demanding on student leaders, both in terms of long-term commitments and sophistication in university politics.

Third, the invalidation of Question 11 may be due to a lack of resolution of ethnicity, like other aspects of identity, in the personal development of many Asian American high school students.  The identity politics criticized by Aguilar-San Juan [FN12] persists on American university campuses today, where organized Asian American student activities directed toward empowerment remain the exception rather than the rule.

Finally, the validation of 15 of the 20 questions demonstrates that the topics covered on the 1995 National Asian American Studies Examination were generally appropriate for the high school curriculum, in the sense that these test items were sensitive to training and instruction.

The essay question permitted a wide range of topics and perspectives.  Table 3 lists historical episodes that were identified by three or more participants as resulting in the empowerment of Asian Americans.

1. 442nd Regimental Combat Team in World War II
2. San Francisco State University Strike
3. Hawaiian plantation labor movements
4. 1995 Immigration Law
5. Los Angeles riots/uprisings
6. Miss Saigon protests
7. Vietnam War

Table 3.  Popular short essay topics.

Given the time pressure, the short essays were generally thoughtful and well-written.   The following two essays are illustrative.

The Los Angeles riots of 1992, although debilitating and financially damaging to many Asian American business owners, indirectly empowered Asian Americans to publicize the racial inequalities they are still facing today, from the same people who were experiencing the discrimination hundreds of years ago.  Entrepreneurs, facing the common problems of the looting that occurred during the Los Angeles riots, and other Asian Americans witnessing this mindless destruction, united during this time of crisis to speak against the ongoing racism they face.  The Los Angeles riots allowed Asian Americans to form stronger bonds with each other and to fight for what they believe in.  -- Jennifer Nguyen, MacArthur High School, Houston, Texas

Without a voice, an idea cannot be conveyed.  One "shout" by Asian Americans was the controversy dealing with the Broadway musical Miss Saigon.   For some, it was mere entertainment.  Yet for Asian Americans, it was a degrading, stereotyping insult.  That was the cause of demonstrations against Lambda Civil Rights Organization's use of Miss Saigon as a fundraiser.  A coalition of many Asian groups from Los Angeles to New York City let all know the subtle dehumanizing stereotypes depicted in the play.  With this event in their foundation, Asian Americans have sounded their cries and now have been heard.  Asian Americans have now the voice, as well as the will, to spread their ideas and influence in America.   -- Timothy Chung, Clarkstown High School, New City, New York

Further Results

Several participating schools reported that their involvement in the examination increased awareness of Asian American Studies among both teachers and students.  Most of the participating schools already included some material on Asian Americans in their history curriculum, but teachers found the examination useful in developing new courses and activities.  For example, at Moanalua High School in Honolulu, Darlene Pang's AP European History classes wrote research and position papers based on the assigned texts as well as other references.  [FN13]  In the papers and essays of these high school students are the voices of the next generation of Asian American leaders.

David Kamiya, one of the high scorers on the Moanalua team, wrote a thoughtful critical analysis of the diverse perspectives represented in The State of Asian America.   He concludes:

The resources of the movement must be focused.  One group used Miss Saigon as a fundraiser, while another protested Miss Saigon by picketing the theatre.   This infighting ironically leads those Asian Americans who are not as outspoken as otheres to turn away from the movement, because it is seen as hostile to new ideas and alternative approaches.  [FN14]

"The assigned readings cleared up a lot of issues for me," said second-place winner Eddie Chiu, who added that he had started talking with his parents about his family's history as a result of his participation in the contest.  "It was a great experience.  [FN15]

Although all three of the award-winning individual students were high school seniors, many younger students also succeeded on the examination, most notably Elizabeth Chiu, a ninth-grade student at Bellaire High School, Bellaire, Texas, who scored in the 79th percentile.

There was no statistically significant difference between the scores of American-born and Asian-born participants, or between male and female students, although female and American-born students scored somewhat higher than the overall average.

Conclusions

Through the incentive of interscholastic competition, the 1995 National Asian American Studies Examination has introduced dozens of high school students and teachers to the rigorous and scholarly discipline of Asian American Studies.  The contest therefore represents a vital opportunity to extend Asian American perspectives beyond the university lecture halls of the two coasts into the high school classrooms of America's heartland.

Despite the support of the Coalition for Asian American Studies Education and the work of resourceful and talented volunteers, several external factors remain vital for the continued survival and growth of the competition.  First, adequate financial support will be needed to provide for continuing operating expenses and scholarships.   Broader and more substantive support from the academic community and national organizations will be necessary to augment limited personal resources.  Second, the Asian American Studies community should devote greater effort to engaging the nation's school districts in the development of multiculutral curricula containing a substantive Asian American Studies component.  Although many of the participating schools reported that Asian American topics were included in the required curriculum, the ethnic composition of the examinees indicates that usually only Asian American students are asked to study the subject in depth.  Finally, the competition should be placed on the calendar of nationally recognized annual scholastic competitions, in acknowledgement of the importance of Asian American Studies and the educaitonal value of the examination.   The coalition will be applying for recognition by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and to that end has ensured that this year's examination was coneducted in accordance with the latter organization's published guidelines for contests and activities.

Notes

For information on how to contribute to the success of future examinations, the author can be contacted at andrewchin@iname.com.

[FN1]  Shirely Hune, "Opening the American Mind and Body:  The Role of Asian American Studies," Change (November/December 1989), 56-63, reprinted in:  Don Nakanishi and Tina Yamano, eds.  The Asian American Educational Experience (New York:  Routledge, 1995).

[FN2]  Don Nakanishi, "A Quota on Excellence?  The Asian American Admissions Debate," Change (November/December 1989), 38-47, reprinted in: Nakanishi and Yamano, Experience.

[FN3]  Stanley Sue and S. Okazaki, "Asian American Educational Achievements:   A Phenomenon in Search of an Explanation," American Psychologist 45 (1990), 913-920, reprinted in:  Nakanishi and Yamano, Experience.

[FN4]  The primary mission of the council has been to provide substantive support to student-led initiatives for the establishment of Asian American Studies programs at U.S. universities, including successful campaigns at Texas A&M University and the University of Texas.

[FN5]  Karin Aguilar-San Juan, ed.  The State of Asian America:   Activism and Resistance in the 1990s (Boston:  South End Press, 1994).

[FN6]  Ronald Takaki, Strangers from a Different Shore (New York:   Penguin Books, 1989).

[FN7]  See forum on Strangers from a Different Shore, Amerasia Journal 16:2 (1990), 63-156.

[FN8]  J. Yang, "Examining Identity," Fall 1994, 12-13, with an erratum in the April/May 1995 issue at p.5.

[FN9]  S. J. Osterlind, Constructing Test Items (Boston:  Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1989).

[FN10]  T.M. Haladyna, Developing and Validating Multiple-Choice Test Items (Hillsdale, New Jersey:  Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1994).

[FN11]  Lane Ryo Hirabayashi and Marilyn C. Alquizola, "Asian American Studies:  Reevaluating for the 1990s," in Aguilar-San Juan, State, 351-364.

[FN12]  Aguilar-San Juan, State, 8-10.

[FN13]  Popular sources included K. Backus and J. Furtaw, eds., Asian American Information Directory (Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1992); Sucheng Chan, Asian Americans:  An Interpretive History (Boston:  Twayne Publishers, 1991); and M. Hong, Growing Up Asian American (New York:  William Morrow, 1993).

[FN14]  Darlene Pang, personal communication, April 11, 1995.

[FN15]  Eddie Chiu, personal communication, May 22, 1995.