@unpublished {1422445,
	title = {Challenging Conventional Assumptions about Ethnic Studies Students describe exceptional academic rigor in courses that also strongly promote belonging },
	year = {2018},
	note = {Class of 2021, Concentation: History and Literature\&nbsp;},
	type = {SOCIOL1104 Fall 2018 course research project},
	abstract = {This paper explores Harvard students{\textquoteright} motivations for taking classes focused on Asian American studies, an ethnic studies discipline for which there are a few courses but no comprehensive program at Harvard. I interviewed twelve students enrolled in three Fall 2018 Asian American studies courses on their reasons for enrolling and their conception of the courses{\textquoteright} value in their academic, personal, and political lives, which were often impossible to separate. Interviewees perceived that their Asian American studies classes helped them develop academic and career-related skills, navigate racism, and increase their feelings of belonging at Harvard. Literary and historical content that was rigorous and {\textquotedblleft}relatable{\textquotedblright} to their own lives contributed to these benefits, as did the presence of Asian American instructors and majority Asian American student bodies. This combination of factors facilitated perception-changing academic discussions in a comfortable environment and ultimately altered many interviewees{\textquoteright} academic pathways and expanded their views of career possibilities, students described. Especially for the Asian American interviewees, AAS classes{\textquoteright} dual effects of promoting feelings of belonging and furthering academic engagement facilitated each other. Most interviewees wished for more investment in ethnic studies.},
	author = {Liana Chow}
}
