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Brynn Myers is a junior majoring in Spanish and political science. Working with Dr. Asher in Political Science, she is studying the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act on Hispanic and Latino students in Ohio. After graduation, she plans to participate in Teach for America and pursue a career in education policy.
What specifically do you research?
The research I am working on right now is concerning the No Child Left Behind Act in Ohio with a focus on Hispanic and Latino students. We’re trying to look at specific needs of this population as far as implementation of the legislation goes, and also where the law itself fails to address this portion of the population. Especially in Ohio, there is a huge disparity between the goals and the funding. The federal government wants 100% proficiency in 5th graders by 2014, so theoretically, there is no child left behind. The problem that is happening is that because there is a lack of funding and resources, a process called educational triage is occurring where the most at-risk and the most gifted students are being left out. The school systems focus most of their resources on the students that are almost passing so that they can get the adequate yearly improvement goals set by the law. Thus, the most at-risk kids, the poor, disabled, minorities, and especially what I’m focusing on—the limited-English proficiency kids—are suffering.
How did you get involved in this research topic?
It has been quite a process. I started out spending a quarter in Washington, D.C., with the Washington Center Program, working for the Office of Migration Affairs in the Mexican Embassy. One of my projects there had been discovering the financing behind anti-immigration groups and finding the underlying reasons for what these groups were doing. I was convinced that this was going to be my topic, but when I returned to Ohio State the research was just not going anywhere. So I continued looking for new ideas, and I reached this topic through my search for a faculty advisor. I jumped from the Departments of Spanish to Social Work to Education, and I ended up going to Dr. Asher in Political Science, who had been my professor for two classes. He is an expert in Ohio politics and recommended that I look at the No Child Left Behind policy and tie this in my Spanish major by emphasizing the Hispanic and Latino students. So it has been a process, but I am here!
Can you explain how you actually conduct your research?
Mostly, I examine government and public documents for my research. In these documents dealing with the limited-English proficiency students, there is a lot of talk in the language to parents about what will be provided, but then there is no funding for the programs. I’m also discovering a certain amount of propaganda in the phraseology available to describe failing schools or teachers. So there is a lot of communication, especially from the government, that I am analyzing. I am also looking at publications about No Child Left Behind. Although there are only a few early studies on education from the viewpoint of Latino families, there have been many current articles. I am stepping in at exactly the right time where this issue is emerging on the national level. I believe that elections in 2006 and 2008 elections, there will be a big focus on domestic policy because of the issues we have had internationally.
How have you benefited from your undergraduate research experience?
I have definitely learned a lot from my experience. One of the issues when I started my project was that I had this huge explosion of ideas; I wanted to look at all aspects. My advisor Dr. Asher helped me focus my topic. I have learned an immense amount about the different educational options, the state of our country, and the state of our state. For example, I would look at a study that says that if a school fails for two years, then it will be turned into a charter school. Well, then I had to go and look up what a charter school entails. Additionally, I have found that my research has a profound personal effect on my life. I work with Hispanic children through Big Brothers and Big Sisters and the Hispanic Coalition. This experience has helped stimulate thinking about my education, and what I want to do with my life.
What advice would you give to current undergraduates who want to get involved in research?
Pursue the research, and don’t give up. If I had quit when I heard from the first advisor that no one at this university was researching my topic, then I wouldn’t be anywhere today. You should also be flexible as to how your project evolves as far as control over where it goes. I started in anti-immigration groups and ended up in education policy. Push your advisors and meet with them. Things work out, just have faith and keep going. Also, OSU has a lot of interesting lecture series that are good ways to start projects. For instance, the Mershon Center, for political science, has great events where people will come and share their resources and research about new, interesting on-the-edge topics. It helps me as a student to be inspired and go seek answers.
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