Stereotypes in Disguise: The Dual School Lives of Japanese Immigrant Students

Abstract

This study investigated how Japanese adolescents behaved and performed in differing educational contexts. A qualitative analysis of 12 male and 11 female students revealed that they were quiet and reserved and fit the model minority stereotype while attending public/private schools in an urban region of the northwestern part of the United States. In contrast, at a Japanese weekend school the same students were relaxed, loud, and careless about academic performance. The findings of the study suggest a unique function of an ethnic language school beyond the maintenance of language and culture.