The Effect of Asian Ethnic Community Size on the Asian-White Achievement Gap in the U.S.

This study seeks to examine the effect of the size of Asian ethnic communities on the Asian-White achievement gap between 2013 and 2017 in U.S. school districts. Ordinary least squares regressions were used to assess this relationship, while controlling for other district characteristics that have been empirically shown to have an association with the gap. It was found that inconsistent with the model minority theory, Asian Americans do not always have an academic advantage over time. The present study also does not directly support the selective assimilation theory, as larger Asian ethnic communities in a district are not associated with a greater Asian-White gap. However, a negative and significant relationship was found between the size of Asian ethnic communities and the academic achievement of White students.