Brown Voices

AAPI Heritage Month

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the U.S. In Dr. Punita Rice’s research, 51.8% of South Asian American adults said teachers grouped them with other Asian American subgroups. These resources are about South Asian American students specifically.

For teachers

Dr. Punita Rice’s doctoral research at Johns Hopkins University surveyed 85 South Asian American adults about their K–12 years. Looking back on school:

  • 77.7% felt teachers assumed they were smarter than students from other cultural or racial groups.
  • 68.2% agreed that teachers assumed they needed less academic support than their peers.
  • 64.6% agreed that teachers assumed they needed less help with time management and organization.
  • 72.9% felt teachers did not understand them, their cultural identities, or their backgrounds.

Read the findings →

Read it as a staff or book club

Discussion questions for every chapter, plus reading schedules for book clubs and staff reading groups, and pages for families and college courses. Free to print and share.

You’ll join Punita Rice’s newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime.

Bulk copies for schools →

From the Podcast

Dr. Julie Thomas Achettu on House of Jaya & the Asian American Lit Course She Built

House of Jaya co-founder Dr. Julie Thomas Achettu on fusion fashion, upcycling sarees, building the first Asian American literature core course, and what teachers can do.

Zohra Lasi (@therapysherapy) on Log Kya Kahenge & What Desi Kids Actually Need

Zohra Lasi (aka “therapysherapy”) on people pleasing; Log Kya Kahenge; cycle breaking; what parents & teachers of Brown kids should know.

Saloni Nahar on Community, Representation & What it Looks Like When School Gets it Right

Actor & filmmaker Saloni Nahar on growing up Brown, what her schools did right, Anxious Brown Girl, & what she’d tell young South Asian kids.

Heems (Himanshu Suri) on the Underbelly, Rejecting the Model Minority Myth & What Forward Actually Looks Like

Heems (Himanshu Suri) of Das Racist and Swet Shop Boys on growing up Brown in Queens, rejecting the model minority myth, mental health, and what success feels like.

Invite Punita to speak

Punita is available for author events, panels, book club visits (in-person and virtual), library programs, and podcast guest spots.

Invite Punita

Get new conversations by email

You’ll join Punita Rice’s newsletter. Unsubscribe anytime.