School Supports for Chinese International Students in American Christian High Schools

Abstract

Over the last decade, many Christian high schools in the United States have been adapting to an exponential increase of Chinese international students. Chinese families have shown increased interest and ability to send their teenage students to American high schools. Public high schools can only host an international student for a year, but private high schools can enroll the students multiple years. There have been few educational research studies for private high schools to refer to if they wanted to read research that would directly aid them in creating supports for their increasing amount of Chinese international students. This study’s purpose was to explore what school supports Chinese international secondary students attending Christian high schools in the United States perceived to be effective. Three Christian high schools in California participated, with a total of 23 Chinese international students completing a questionnaire in which they rated existing schools supports and answered open-ended questions. The students showed overall satisfaction with existing schools supports, while also having many ideas for improvement. The students rated the following supports most highly: opportunities to be in service projects, the performing arts, the opportunity to learn about the Bible in club meetings and camps, teachers providing help for international students, and connection with international student alumni. Students voiced that they strongly desired help building stronger connections with local students, more academic support, and more culturally appropriate food.