Being a Vietnamese student in this country, I am expected to perform very well in the areas of math and science because I am “Asian”. But what exactly does that mean? Why have we been stereotyped this way in America? Surely not all Asians or Asian Americans perform excellently in these fields because there is no single race that holds the title of the torrent to “Best in Math and Science”. Basing such unrealistic expectations on exam results does not prove anything. After all, for every super genius type Asian, there is also an American within or beyond his level. Such comparisons only serve to fuel a silent rivalry between races that, in the future, could create discord that would do our world more harm than we can ever imagine. In truth, this stereotyping could not be further from the truth. Okay, I will grant that the Chinese invented the Abacus, but that does not mean that all Chinese excel in Math. Chinese also excel in using herbal remedies for medical dilemmas, that does not mean they are the best in Science either. If anything, this stereotype only proves that Asians work harder than the regular students on the campus which is why they excel in their studies. Asia is also well known as the home of 3rd world countries. Therefore, all the citizens of that particular area of the world have a lot to prove to their 2nd and 1st world counterparts. This is what drives them to become more innovative and more patient in developing new frontiers in the areas where Americans and Europeans used to dominate. We were turned into model students for a particular purpose in America. That purpose is to create an unrealistic level of competition among the students. The stereotyping has caused Asians to be viewed differently on campus. The reality is that while we are expected to be model students on campus, the only thing our varying levels of success in this area proves is that we work harder than everybody else while allowing Americans to ignore the reality that such stereotyping just causes a certain level of racism among the student body. This brings me to the next reason why Asians and Asian Americans tend to succeed more than their counterparts. Whatever success we have attained in this field can mainly be attributed to the difference in traditions and cultures. The first difference is that our parents are more interested in seeing us succeed because of any failures they happened to have in the old country. The last thing they want is for news to get back there about the failure of their children. So they are much tougher on us when it comes to studying habits and grades. For them, perfection is never attainable because there is always something to be proven to the others out there. So, in a culture where educational achievement is treated as a gold family heirloom, we come under undue pressure to succeed just as they did when they came to the new country. Perseverance is key, failure is not an option. Punishment will be dealt out for failure in any area. Those students who remain in the old country, then usually end up in schools where education is more of corporal punishment than a system of enlightenment for the young. Indeed, none of the academic achievements of Asians or Asian Americans is achieved without a lot of heartache, perseverance, and, at one time or another, f