Latinx Files regularly features guest writers. This week, we asked De Los contributing columnist Alex Zaragoza to fill in. If you haven't subscribed to our weekly newsletter, you can subscribe. here.
I think I watched “Stand and Deliver'' about 20 times during my public school education. The moment I saw my substitute student standing awkwardly at the front of the class, or my teacher looking completely drained of life, Edward James Olmos turned to Lou Diamond. I realized that I was about to watch Phillips drop an integral.
The 1988 drama is based on the true story of Jaime Escalante, the famous Garfield High School math teacher who helped his working-class, under-resourced, and predominantly Latino students pass the AP Calculus exam. The point of this movie is not to always carry it with you (no matter what you do with calculus), but to teach students, especially Latinx and black students, that with grit and courage, you can overcome anything. It is meant to remind you. Imagine you go to a school where pencils are used as weapons during gang wars.
While this is a nice sentiment, it ignores the systemic failures that make up the second part of the equation. Students need more than ganas, and relying too much on this idea is detrimental and detrimental to Latinx students who are constantly forced to have this individualistic message pushed upon them.
That's what 22 scholars and writers argue in “.Debunking the grit narrative in higher education: Harnessing the strengths of African American, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Latino, and Native American students” The book, released in November, is edited by Angela M. Rocks, Deborah Faye Carter, and Rocio Mendoza, who are educators and scholars in the field of postsecondary education.
This contradicts the dominant narrative that students of color only need grit to succeed in college, that is, that students of color do not take much responsibility for their success, without giving much consideration to the larger institutional failures that impact their performance. This refutes the idea that the burden lies solely on them. And pop culture depictions of grit certainly don't help.
“Typically, the stories have a triumphant tone and claim that there's a simple solution or a unique solution that will make everything better: the right teacher, the right concept, this new easy trick.” said Carter, an associate professor of higher education at the university. Claremont Graduate University. “I think that's also how we conceptualized the introduction of grit. If kids have grit, everything will work out. That assumption is wrong. There's no quick fix. ”
It turns out that Hollywood doesn't reflect reality. I feel sorry for Michelle Pfeiffer, who taught rap lyrics as poetry in “Dangerous Minds.”
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Mendoza, who teaches at the University of Redlands, said the concept of grit “continues to influence the American Dream,” promoting an unrealistic, one-size-fits-all road map to achievement. It is said to be a thing.
“I think the more deeply ingrained narrative in this country is that if you do the right thing and pull yourself up, you will succeed,” she said. “And that's not the reality for any of us.”
While Gana is an important characteristic for students to possess, educators and institutions need to explore approaches that focus on creating environments that support students rather than leaving them to fend for themselves. This book claims.
Latinx students could certainly use this help. 2022 Survey The Lumina Foundation and Gallup State Higher Education found that Latino college students have a harder time staying enrolled than any other ethnic group or race. Half of all respondents said it was “difficult” or “very difficult” to remain in the program, and more than half of students said they had considered leaving school. Similarly, a 2023 report by the nonprofit organization Excelencia in Education found that the educational gap between Latinos and their white counterparts has widened over the past four years.
Locks, executive director of academic diversity, equity and inclusion at California State University, Long Beach, said the book aims to stop the “very real harm” caused by perpetuating the gut theory. He said that this is true.
“We’re talking about the guts issue being white supremacy,” she said. “This is an easy getaway for those in positions of power who, consciously or not, participate in white supremacy as educators, and decisions that have a real impact on students of color.” It gives them the freedom to make decisions.
Given the growing national backlash against programs and initiatives aimed at providing institutional support to students of color, the topics discussed in this book could not be more timely. It's not a thing. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, 81 bills attacking diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at universities have been introduced in 28 states and Congresses since 2023. Eight of these bills were passed in places such as Texas and Florida. This is a dangerous trend that will only further marginalize students who cannot afford it.
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(Jackie Rivera/For the Times, Martina Ibáñez-Baldor/Los Angeles Times)
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