This article uses philosophical analysis to clarify the arguments and claims about racial discrimination brought forward in the recent legal challenges to affirmative action in higher education admissions. Affirmative action opponents argue that elite institutions of higher education are using negative action against Asian American applicants so that they can admit other students of color instead, using race-conscious affirmative action. We examine the surrounding controversy, positing that the portrayal of Asian Americans as a model minority in this debate foments a politics of resentment that divides racial groups. Our analysis centers on how key concepts such as racial discrimination and diversity may be central to this politics of resentment. Given persistent threats to access and equity in higher education, it is important to gain conceptual clarity about the racial politics of anti-affirmative action efforts. Keywords: affirmative action, Asian Americans, college access, model minority myth, politics of education, race need to be based on philosophical ideas related to college access and educational opportunity and holistic reviews of applicants' qualifications, and not solely or even primarily on quantitative measures of academic merit or percentages of students (Guinier, 2015;Gutmann, 1999;Moses, 2002). We thus make two primary normative claims regarding the complex relationship between Asian Americans and affirmative action: 1) selective colleges should not discriminate against Asian American applicants or limit their numbers, nor should colleges treat them as if they are all the same; and, 2) Asian American students who feel wronged should not blame raceconscious affirmative action for the negative action that selective institutions of higher education may be perpetrating against them.A Note on Theory Critical race theory (CRT) frames how we understand the complexities of affirmative action, Asian American applicants, and discrimination. Like Teranishi et al., we find CRT to be a valuable framework to use in examining how Asian Americans are positioned in educational institutions (Teranishi et al., 2009). Deriving from critical legal studies, critical race theory helps analyze how power is distributed; in particular it focuses on the interactions between race, racism, and social institutions (Donahoo, 2008). At the same time, we draw on history and philosophy to understand anti-affirmative action strategies past and present. We leverage three tenets from critical race theory to frame our perspectives: the permanence of racism, majoritarian narratives, and counternarratives (Donahoo, 2008;Lynn, Jennings, & Hughes, 2013; Taylor, Gillborn, & Ladson-Billings, 1995). Relying on critical race theory, first we recognize that racism is an ordinary and permanent phenomenon deeply embedded within American legal landscapes and cultural practices (Taylor, Gillborn, & Ladson-Billings, 1995). Racism
A new NSF-funded experimental study seeks to incorporate innovative curriculum activities that cultivate inclusive engineering identities and demonstrate how the engineering profession benefits from diversity. We intend to expand first-year engineering student perceptions about who can be an engineer and what engineers do. This effort aims to create a cultural shift in engineering departments so students think beyond stereotypical perceptions of who belongs to the engineering profession (White men) toward more expansive notions about how the engineering profession needs diversity to thrive. Arguably, inclusive engineering departments will contribute to the retention and success of students who are underrepresented in engineering in terms of gender and race, but also in terms of backgrounds, talents, and interests.In this paper, we begin with an overview of scholarship regarding pedagogical practices that foster strong engineering identities and position diversity as essential for strong engineering practice. Next, we address the following research question: How do freshmen engineering students in traditional engineering courses identify with engineering and perceive diversity in engineering? To answer this question, we summarize findings from preliminary survey by tracking over time the engineering identities and perceptions about diversity in engineering of engineering freshmen during their first semester in two existing first-year courses. We conclude with theoretically-based and evidence-driven activities that will be incorporated in the same firstyear engineering courses in subsequent years of this NSF grant. Theoretical FrameworkOur theoretical approach is grounded in sociocultural theories of learning, where learning is viewed as a shift in how students participate in community practices 8 . Becoming an engineer, for example, can be viewed as a shift in how students participate in engineering practices, where freshmen begin to appropriate engineering ways of talking, being, and interacting. Over time, freshmen who take up engineering behaviors become sophomores, juniors, seniors, and graduates who eventually identify as engineers. However, some professions have traditionally excluded populations from participating in community practices 11 , including engineering norms that tend to marginalize women and people of color 24 , thus preventing students from learning how to become engineers since few entry points exist for them to participate meaningfully in engineering practices or identify as engineers. Through the sociocultural framework, learning how to become an engineer depends upon the ability of institutions and educators to provide access for students to participate in engineering practices. Some examples of engineering practices include collaborating in teams to identify, critically analyze, and solve problems with innovation; using skills and knowledge in math, science, engineering, and communication to help society; and recognizing how lifelong learning and resourcefulness fortifies engineering. Whe...
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