Why do Indian-Americans win spelling bee contests?

BBC ^ | 30 May 2016 | Sanjoy Chakravorthy

[Cronos]

..About 70 of the 285 final round competitors in this year's bee had South Asian names.

Apart from winning the last nine spelling bees in the US, Indian-American children have also won the last five National Geographic Bees ,which tests the geographic knowledge of millions of American children. From 2005, the winning rate of Indian-origin children in these two competitions has been well over 80%.

But what explains this extraordinary success by a group that makes up less than one percent of America's school-age population?

...In academic competitions, especially those focused on math or science, Indian-American youngsters do very well - nowhere near as spectacularly as in the spelling and geography bees, but at five to 20 times the rate of their population size.

These competitions include the Siemens Science Competition, Intel Science Talent Search, Mathcounts, and US Presidential, Rhodes, Truman, Churchill, and Marshall Scholarships.

But in other fields like music and athletics, Indian-Americans either barely hold their own or are non-existent at the top level.

..For example, in the 2013 All-National Honor Ensemble, 45% of the musicians in orchestra and 13% in the band were Asian-Americans, but just 2 and 1%, respectively, were Indian-American.

In athletics and team sports, Indian-Americans actively participate in high school but are virtually absent at college level and in professional sports.

No one of Indian origin (with a very minor Indo-Canadian exception) has ever played in any professional sports league: American football, baseball, basketball, or ice hockey.

There is also no one in the lists of emerging talent, for example, the top 100 high school prospects in baseball.

[CodeToad]

” I am describing them as part of our American fabric.”

You sound like Obama proclaiming America to be a muslim country. India is NOT and never has been a part of our country.

[CodeToad]

I am tired of hearing how Americans suck and foreigners are so much better.

If foreigners were so much better then why do their countries suck so bad they want to come here but we Americans do not want to go there?

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Indian students require answers to exams and cheating to get through college. They do it rampantly in India.

3,000 Indian Law Students Riot Over New Ban On Cheating

More than 3000 students of 20 law colleges in the eastern Indian state of Orissa have boycotted their final university examination and demonstrated in protest against a ban on copying. The students turned against teachers when they were stopped from copying inside examination halls this week.

Authorities called in police for help. "On frisking in the presence of the police, we found almost all students carrying books and photocopied notes hidden on their body," education official Radhanath Mishra, said from the state capital of Bhubaneswar.

"We asked them to hand over all the illegally smuggled study materials. But they did not listen to us." When authorities seized the smuggled notes and books with the help of police, the students turned violent and left the examination halls in protest. According to reports, students of almost all law colleges ready to take the same examination around the state protested in a similar way demanding they be allowed to "resort to cheating" during the examination.

American students have never rioted over not being allowed to cheat.

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Indian students skip classes but then demand extra time to complete assignments with the excuse that because they were not in class they somehow deserve extra time to complete the assignments. The syllabus outlines due dates, but they think they can play ignorant of the syllabus.

America students turn in assignments properly and on time but the Indians don’t.

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When assigned to make a presentation, Indian students plagiarize by presenting something found on the Internet even though all universities have a no-plagiarism policy. All work must be original. Indian students then claim no one told them that particular assignment could not be copied from the Internet. It is like talking to little retarded children.

American students know their work must be original and don’t feign ignorance or stupidity to try to plagiarize.

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When an Indian student presents original material, such as when the assignment must be performed during class, the work product is very poor. Their work often isn’t even within the topic assigned it is so poorly performed. When told they cannot use the Internet during class to plagiarize they protest that they cannot complete the assignment and turn in incomplete work.

American students get the work done.

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Indian students do not attend class unless there is a grade involved, and even then, they arrive late and leave early thinking they should get full attendance credit. When they receive points off for lack of attendance, they protest.

When assigned to make a presentation for grade in class, Indian students often appear in class just to make their presentation and then leave. When marked down in grade for lack of class participation they protest that they shouldn’t have to listen to other presentations. They are too stupid to understand the other presentations are part of the learning experience.

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Indian student talk during class and disrupt class. When told to shut up they claim they are allowed to talk because they are discussing another class. They are too stupid to understand they arrogance and belligerence of disrupting the class lecture.

American students find the disruptive Indians to be disrespectful and childish.

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Indian students plagiarize other students when posting discussion board topics. They wait until other students post the assignments to the discussion board then rewrite what the first students wrote. The Indians get upset that they are given zero grades for plagiarism.

American students do their own work or expect to be marked down.

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When a technical computer lab is required in class, Indian students do not know how to use a computer and so they demand the assignment be a group effort. They complain if they have to write their own papers about the lab work and demand that the American students provide them the paper so they can turn it in as their own. Again, Indians are all about plagiarism.

American students find the Indians to be stupid and incapable, yet arrogant enough to proclaim they are somehow better than Americans.

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Look up anything technical on the Internet. Many, many Indians will post the identical content as their own. Once again, Indians plagiarize. They are so stupid as to claim that merely reformatting the content means it is their own work. “It is my work. I formatted and posted it!”

[CodeToad]

“Everyone is refuting you left & right “

We are hearing from trolls, not “everyone”.

What are you a teenager, “But, daddy! Everyone knows...”?

[CodeToad]

“Perhaps you need to go back “

Maybe you should get back on your magic carpet and go back to whatever witch doctor village you came from, kid.

[CodeToad]

“No, it is said from a person with manners”

It isn’t “mannered” to trash the USA on our Memorial Day.

[leaning conservative]

All that anger for some people who disagree w/ you? Maybe you were dumped by an Indian woman, but you have a thoroughly nasty attitude towards them. It’s not too late to get help.

[gaijin]

Especially agree with you about the gakkou o-souji, cleaning the school..!!!

So incredibly helpful and character building..!

I did it myself, too.

It’s the END of graffiti, teaches team-work, many, many other things.

Really sends the wrong message to have school-kids with school SERVANTS to clean up their messes..!

Couldn’t agree more..!

[kearnyirish2]

I can’t speak for the engineers, but the young students do well; there is a lot of parental focus on education.

[punknpuss]

So true. Hubby and I visited our son in April to take him out to dinner. After, we went to visit the new Hunt Library at NC State. Almost everyone at the library was of Indian or Middle Eastern descent. They aren’t partying on the weekends (and neither is our son). If someone wants to get somewhere in life they have to make sacrifices. I always tell my son to do the heavy lifting while he’s young. There will always be time to enjoy himself when he has earned his success.

[Cronos]

Indians are Caucasians...

[Cronos]

boy, you do have a bee up your bonnet about Indians.... why?

[Cronos]

If they were so cheap, then why are they:

1. REaching the tops of different businesses?
2. Not replaced by even cheaper Filipinos, Chinese etc.?

While some may be bad, this is not true for all, otherwise they would have lost all their business by now -- there is only so long one can "fool people"

[Cronos]

CodeToad -- n00b

Dana looks less like a troll than a person asking you for reasons for your unvalidated statements

[Cronos]

Hmmm... if their English is always, as you say, “extremely poor”, then why do they win so many spelling bees in English?

[Cronos]

Dana1960: While you are discussing Indians as economic competitors, I am describing them as part of our American fabric

CodeToad: India is NOT and never has been a part of our country.

Aha CodeToad -- reading comprehension may be what you need to work on -- Dana said "Indians" and you read "India"

[notaliberal]

You are right......mistake!

[Oztrich Boy]

Because Indians learn correct English. Which is why they are the preferred employees for phone helplines