We present in-depth cases of four low-income Chinese American adolescents' perceptions of their parents' educational messages using a discourse analytic approach. We asked how students construct and draw on discourses in order to produce interpretations of their schooling responsibilities, in light of parental messages. Our analysis uncovered how parents used language in order to impart educational messages, how students differentially constructed these messages, and how they experienced themselves through the varied discourses. The diverse discourses were key to understanding how the students constructed their realities and served to shape possible actions, as well as subjective experiences. Our findings reveal that even when achievement outcomes look the same on the surface, the discursive logic that students draw on in order to explain their achievement and their parents' educational messaging can be distinct. Our findings rebut the model minority myth and show how these youth differ from one another by deriving meaning and motivation for their education in varied ways.