Sophilicity

Thus, I have returned to talk about the experiences I faced with stereotypes in school. If I'm perfectly honest, I could say I've had my own share of "casual racism". I'm not saying I was badly affected by it, but the fact it exists could be a concern.

I'm not really one who gets easily offended, don't get me wrong, but I do think going to a school where a majority of people were predominately white made me realise that people aren't educated enough about other cultures other than their own. 

In terms of stereotypes, it's always the same question I've got, ever since I first started school. For the majority of my life I've lived in an area where predominately white people have lived, so being a minority is always interesting. For example:

X: Where are you from?

Me: I'm from the UK, I was born here.

X: No, where are you really from?

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's got asked: "where are you really from?" - Apparently, it's not enough for me to say I'm British. If you were really curious maybe asking for my ethnicity would have been a better choice of words. I've also had my fair share of guesses as to where I'm from. I'm Chinese-Vietnamese, but the Vietnamese side of me is rarely guessed correctly. A lot of the time I've got Korean, a couple times Japanese, and some are rather off like Malaysian or Cambodian. 

But I think the two most intriguing experiences I faced whilst at college involved my A-Level subjects as well as a discussion with a friend in my BTEC class. 

Experience 1:

So as I entered college after receiving my results for my GCSEs, I went to confirm my choices for college. GCSE grades, I mainly got A's and B's... In some of the most peculiar subjects. (A's in Maths, English Lit, Religious Studies, Core Science and Spanish). So I decided I wanted to take on Creative Media Production BTEC at the time (which accounts for 2 A-Levels), along with English Language and Mathematics. The choice for Mathematics was merely due to the fact I didn't know what else to choose, and my mum being the Asian mum she is, said that due to my good Maths grade I should take Maths. But as the teachers saw my choice for Maths they asked why I didn't do Business Studies with Maths and take Media studies A-Level with English Language A-Level. 

I'm gonna be honest with you, I attended a Business Studies class and I have never looked so blank in my life. I realised it really wasn't for me, which led to my final decision. However, the teacher who was reviewing my final choices was actually Asian. She looked at my GCSE grades and looked at my subject choices and asked "Why don't you take Geography?" or "Why don't you take any Science subjects?". Geography was a bit peculiar in regards to stereotypes, but Science has never personally been a strong point or a subject I'm passionate about. The most interesting thing in Science I studied was either Pyrotechnics and Forensics. The way she put it made it seem like she was judging me for my choices, especially as I was taking BTEC. She asked, "Why did you choose BTEC instead of A-Levels?".

There's also been a stereotype in terms of BTEC that it's for "dumb" students. Obviously, it's not a constant stereotype, but it has been inferred. In reality, BTEC allows those who prefer a more hands-on experience and practical work style. I actually really enjoyed BTEC, it provided me with an opportunity to go at my own pace, do my own work as well as learn to work in a team. The projects were very practical based but also very interesting when it came to inputting your creative mindset. Not everyone is amazing at academics, and though I would describe myself as an all-rounder, I think it's incredibly undermining when people judge people for taking BTEC. I took A-Levels and BTEC and obviously some are better for other courses than for others e.g. Medicine, Law etc. But it doesn't mean that BTEC isn't of value, I still managed to get into a Russell Group university with my BTEC grades which were actually better than my A-Level grades. Yes, the course was all coursework based and assessed, but it still requires effort to complete the tasks as required. 

Taking a subject that wasn't stereotypically "Asian" was already questionable to the Asian teacher who reviewed my choices, but taking a BTEC rather than all A-Levels was also a big concern. I guess it was the expectations that I would go into a field which was stereotypically "Asian" like Medicine, Engineering, Accounting, Maths or some sort of Science to the least. But clearly, I was thinking otherwise - And personally I don't regret it.

Experience 2:

So one time during my BTEC class, the teacher decided to cancel our first class, but it was a double period so we decided to wait for our second class which started after the following hour. I'm very sure I spent at least 30 minutes having this discussion... But let's start by providing some context. When I first went to this class, there was a big question as to why I joined, especially when GCSE grades had been discussed. Some people deemed me smart, but I thought otherwise because personally, I found a lot of people to be a lot more talented than me in the field. I think I'm better with writing ideas and doing paperwork, rather than filming and doing more hands-on projects like editing. My classmates deemed me as a workaholic because I spent the first half of the year just being quiet and doing my work. I didn't really take GCSEs seriously so I wanted to put in the work at college. I'd finish my assignments 2 weeks in advance and just leave because my teacher provided me with time off. 

Within the next half of the year, I decided maybe it would be time to start actually socialising. I did have friends at my college but they were either from secondary school or people I'd known beforehand. I ended up making friends with a group, and we were honestly a mixed bunch but... I was once again the minority being the only Asian whilst everyone else was white.

Now back to the main point of the story. One of my friends who was in my group started to ask me questions out of curiosity. I wasn't sure what to expect as they had just randomly asked if they could ask me some questions. I'm pretty open so I was like sure. But the questions they asked, I really didn't expect at all... It was trying to decide whether they were joking or genuinely serious. For example:

X: What do you eat at home?

Me: I usually eat rice...

X: Oh, what kind of house do you live in?

Me: I live in a normal house...? Like everyone else...

X: Wait so you don't live in those roofed houses? (they were referring to a pagoda)

Me: No...

X: Hmmm... What do you wear at home?

Me: Pyjamas?

X: Oh you don't wear traditional clothes at home? 

Me: Nope, why would I?

X: Do you ever wear white makeup? (they pointed to a picture, referring to the Japanese geisha style of powdering your face white)

Me: Nope... And that's Japanese...

The conversation obviously isn't word for word, but the topics are pretty much the same but think of this within a 30-minute span. I want to say I'm joking, but the fact it occurred makes me wonder how close-minded that some people may be or just unexposed to the Asian culture. The fact they can't differentiate between the cultures, or even between people... I wonder how people would feel if we were to do the same to them. If we were to switch positions, asking these kinds of questions it would be pretty peculiar right? So it's a big question as to why people think it's ok to ask this when they wouldn't know how to react themselves.