An article published by the Pew Research Center authored by
Jens Manuel Krogstad, titled "5
Facts about Latinos and Education," states, "Hispanic dropout
rate remains higher than that of Blacks, Whites, and
Asians." This hit home for me, because virtually no one else in
my family has a degree – college or otherwise.
Being
Hispanic, I find it nearly impossible to avoid hearing my own culture being
talked about in the media – especially now that DACA, the border wall, and
Trump are all being discussed, often in one sentence. The one thing
that is rarely talked about is our education system and how Hispanics keep
falling behind. The relationship between our culture and the
educational system needs restructuring.
Hispanic-Americans
are growing in numbers and in cultures. I use the term
"cultures" because Hispanics come in all races and backgrounds, and
because of this, they also have their own varying sets of traditions and
values. Latinos desire an education, but their actions do not
correlate with their aspirations. They want an education but do not
do what is necessary to obtain it. Hispanics are the
majority-minority group in America, yet they have the lowest level of
educational attainment of any major demographic slice of the
U.S. Latinos who do not come from an independent educational tradition
are the ones who get hurt.
There
is a disconnect between our society and our cultural beliefs. Most
Hispanics of my acquaintance understand the importance of getting an education,
but only in so far as it leads to immediate earnings to help take care of the
family. Often these two goals are in conflict, and families will
choose jobs over education. For many Hispanics, including me, a
drive for educational achievement was never something our families cared to
instill. My mother expressed the importance of learning another
language and going to school but always enforced getting a job and helping
support the family as the first priority.
As
the Pew article touched on, Latinos dream of going to college and often do, but
their culture does not push them toward it. Hispanics are told
things like: "That's not for you" or "You have to find a spouse
and have kids and raise them." Rarely are we told things like
"Go after your education." The few that do break from the
cycle and go to college run into a plethora of problems, ranging from the
micro-fiduciary issues to the macro-family issues.
Growing
up, I was always in competition with my cousin Joe, from elementary to high
school. We lived in the same household, and would compare
grades. I always felt inferior. Joe was always making the
grades I could not and reading books beyond his grade level. He
would often go above and beyond with his assignments to ensure an A in every
class. Joe had a thirst for knowledge, and anyone who spoke to him
instantly knew he was going to make something of himself. While he
was a shoe-in for a prestigious college, I would be lucky to get accepted
anywhere.
It
came as a big shock to my family and me when Joe dropped out of high
school. He dropped out because he was bored with the education he
was receiving and it felt like a waste of his time, getting something that
would not mean anything. He later decided to obtain his GED so he
could gain entry into a college for a real education.
Our
high school education system is not challenging our bright minds, but is
instead leading them into a vicious cycle of mediocrity. Over the
years, I found college banal and easy, not because I studied and changed my
ways, but because I took easy courses and easy professors who would help me
obtain that "piece of paper." As I moved up from freshman
to junior year, I noticed a steady decline in grades once I found myself in
more rigorous courses. I fell more and more behind when compared to
my peers. Subsequently, at the community college, my cousin was
bored with the same mediocre teaching methods that caused him to drop out of
high school. Therefore, it came as no surprise when he again dropped
out of school.
I
obtained financial aid and scholarships to help pay for college and later grad
school. I graduated with my B.A. with almost no
debt. Money was not the issue for me, and if one's willing to jump
through hoops, college can be paid for. The difficulties after getting
into college were in finding peers I could look up to; coming across ways not
to feel inferior to my classmates; discovering where I belonged in a sea of
students who did not share my culture or customs; and finding ways to separate
myself from my family, who constantly needed me.
Our
paths at one point seemed so intertwined that it is hard to understand what
went wrong. I ultimately graduated, went on to graduate school, and
am now a university professor. Joe, on the other hand, continues to
progress through life without nurturing his natural intellectual
affinity. How did a smart kid, who was bound for success, fail at
something that was second nature to him? Experts keep claiming that
it is a money issue, but in fact, that is the smallest issue. The
big problem had to do with his education and culture.
Growing
up Hispanic, we are told things as children that stay with us through
adulthood. We are told family is everything. You
never turn your back on them and stay nearby because they will always be there
for you. Our parents tell us to want more but do not offer support
when we go after our educational dreams. Frequently, discouraging
remarks are made: "Why are you wasting your time with that, get a
job" or "You could be making money and starting a
family." We do not get a support network. I was able
to see this subtle influence only once I moved away to start grad school in
Indiana, at Purdue University.
I
was not a talented student, or even very smart. My family never
supported my choices or my dream of getting a degree. Sure, they
would say things like "go after it," but the moment it became an
inconvenience, they told me to stop. If it were not for a professor
who saw potential and took an interest in me, I might have been in Joe's shoes
now. My mentor pushed me and challenged me to be
better. Once I left my family, I began to see what was keeping me
down: it was my own beliefs and family. These traits are passed down
from one generation to another in a never-ending cycle. In order to
break that cycle and succeed, I turned my back on my culture and my family.
Joe
stayed close to the family around the same location where he grew
up. He got married, bought a house with his wife, and found jobs
that paid. Those jobs are not writing jobs, but they pay frequently
and often. He became a waiter and later a bartender. He
is able to pay his bills and go on trips. He did everything our
culture wanted him to do. All he had to do was give up on
his dreams of becoming a sports journalist. I, on the other hand,
was not ready to let mine go.
It
was years later that Joe told me he dropped out of college. He got
tired of students leaving after four years of college and knowing as much as
they did when they entered the classroom in year one. He got tired
of professors demanding the very minimum on assignments and giving him a B,
which for many colleges has become the new average. He continued,
"Why would I waste my time working hard to get the same grades as someone
who spends most of his time smoking, getting drunk, and not studying? I
thought college would be harder, but instead it is exactly like high
school." He wanted to be proud of himself and to be around
people who valued an education.
Joe
would not settle for anything less than a real education. It is
because of this that I get so upset that in a diverse class of 22 students,
with eight Hispanics on average, I will have five failing my
class. Too many Hispanics are failing college, and it is not because
they are stupid; it is cultural. My Latino students often give me
legitimate explanations as to why they cannot complete the course, but the
constant excuse is for family reasons. Joe would have been one of
the few Hispanics who would be passing a rigorous college-level
course. Joe was so skilled in a system that shortchanged him in high
school and again in college that he was not able to achieve more. He
might have been a great journalist, but who knows now?
Hispanic-Americans
need to start claiming our educational voices and talking about our educational
system. The problem is not money; it is our attitude toward our
education. Our system needs to know that we are not doing well, but
are indeed languishing behind. Our friends, family, and culture
should adapt, and parents need to be involved in their children's educational
outcomes. If Hispanics are in trouble, so are we all.