A large-scale survey of Chinese students interested in studying in the United States has found that nearly two-thirds of them do not speak English well enough to participate in an American classroom discussion.
The telephone survey of 25,000 prospective Chinese students—conducted recently by Zinch China, a consulting company that advises American colleges and universities about China—found that 62 percent of those surveyed had “poor” or “subfunctional” spoken English. When Zinch conducted a similar survey approximately a year earlier, just 38 percent fell into that category.
At the same time, the share of students with strong linguistic ability fell from 18 percent to just 4 percent.
The findings, released here during the annual meeting of Nafsa: Association of International Educators, are potentially worrisome news for American colleges, many of which already are struggling with an influx of Chinese undergraduates with limited English proficiency. As a result, some students struggle to participate in class discussions or may be stuck in special language classes.
Such students could need months, or even a year, of English-language preparation to fully function in an academic setting, said Sid Krommenhoek, one of Zinch’s founders.
The situation could also complicate recruitment by colleges without intensive English programs and those institutions, such as liberal-arts colleges, that are heavy on seminar-style, discussion-oriented classes.
What’s behind the sharp drop in language proficiency? Even Mr. Krommenhoek isn’t entirely sure.
One possibility, he said, is that poor spoken English is actually a function of the greater emphasis in China on preparation for English examinations. That preparation can focus heavily on reading and writing skills, while the ability to have an informal conversation in English is not stressed.
“They’re focusing what’s being asked for on a test,” said Mr. Krommenhoek, “not necessarily what they need in the classroom.”
A Growing Pool of Top Students
Another potential explanation is simply that the pool of Chinese students interested in coming to the United States is far greater than it was just a few years ago, said Clay Hensley, director of international strategy and relationships for the College Board. The number of Chinese students in American colleges has nearly doubled, to nearly 200,000, in six years.
That means, taken as a whole, today’s Chinese students coming to the United States may be less academically elite, have fewer years of English-language training, or come from cities or regions that offer fewer opportunities to build international connections.
“As the pool grows larger, it wouldn’t surprise me that language ability as a whole goes down,” Mr. Hensley said. But, he added, American colleges also are drawing some of the very best Chinese students, who previously wouldn’t have gone abroad.
He’s echoed by Chris Boehner, executive director of Vericant, which conducts video interviews with and collects proctored writing samples from Chinese applicants to American colleges and boarding schools. Among younger students seeking to go to American high schools, Mr. Boehner, whose company is based in Beijing, said he is seeing stronger and stronger academic and English ability.
For its survey, Zinch contacted some 25,000 students who had registered in the company’s database over the past 12 months. In unscheduled phone calls, interviewers assessed students’ English proficiency in 9- to 12-minute conversations, using an approach based on international language tests.
Among those surveyed were students who are as young as American eighth graders. That was a deliberate decision, Zinch has said, because if only current high-school seniors were included, the sample size would have been far smaller. And students now are deciding early in high school to study abroad.
But, as Zinch notes, if only students about to leave for college had been included, levels of English undoubtedly would have been higher.
Some educators also question whether an over-the-phone interview is the best way to evaluate language ability.
In addition to language proficiency, the survey attempted to gauge the financial resources of the families of prospective students.
The finding: Their pockets are deep. About 30 percent said they could spend $10,000 to $40,000 annually on a college degree, while 62 percent said they could afford at least $40,000 a year.
The Nafsa conference, which has more than 8,200 attendees, continues through Friday.