Introduction

Modern globalization has driven the

importance for non-Western
students to learn Western ways of
thinking and communication.
Through this movement, Chinese
students are negotiating language
and culture in the school setting.
Rationale
1.Cultural differences between ELL
students and school instructors/
instructional methods are a relevant
& major area of concern.
2.NCPA high school-level students
often plan their thinking and write
drafts in Chinese before translating
to English.

Research Question
What is the impact of using
circular versus linear intake tools
on writing performance for Grade
10 ESL students at NCPA?

The Impact of Circular versus Linear

Intake Tools on Writing Performance
for Grade 10 Students at NCPA

Related Literature:
Intake Tools for ELLs

Amanda Yu
Nansha College Preparatory Academy

Literature Review:
Linear vs. Circular Thinking
Circular and spiral thinking is
rooted in traditional Chinese
customs and norms, even in
Taoist principles that
highlight contextual, flexible,
and holistic elements of
thought. (Peng, SpencerRodgers, & Nian, 2006)

Graphic organizers can be an

effective tool for ELL students to
organize their ideas and guide their
The ideal state or ultimate strength of
human thinking should be a combination thoughts during the writing
of both yin and yang, a synthesis of many process (Tayib, 2015)
different ways of thinking. (Peng, SpencerRodgers, and Nian, 2006)

Tsinghua University: 1/3 of the students

used Chinese rhetorical patterns in order
to write their English essays (Kangli, 2011).

Linear vs. Circular Thinking

delayed thesis, digressive discussions, and

preference for using analogy and counterarguments (Kangli, 2011).

Context
Setting
Nansha College Preparatory Academy
Participants
Forty Grade 10 students from Nansha College Preparatory
Academy (NCPA). The schools entry grade levels for new students are 7 and
9. Two classes of students will be selected based on their similarity of
students English language levels (according to WIDA test scores) and class
size.

Methodology

Data
Collection
(Quantitative)
Independent Variable:
- Each students final scores will be
Circular vs. Linear intake tools
collected after one month. Scores from
all previous summative writing
Dependent Variable:
assignments will also be recorded.
Students performance on a Western- - The mean of previous scores will be
style writing assignment; specifically, on
compared to the score of the
argumentative paper.
two Common Core State Standards for
ELA 6-12 that apply to argumentative Data Collection (Qualitative)
- Teacher and counselor (primary
writing: W.9-10.1 & W.9-10.2
researcher) will take anecdotal notes
during the study.
- Individual post-study interviews

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Limitations
Researcher bias
Standards-based school setting
Participant sample
References

Samp

le circ

ular o

rganiz

ers

Kangli, J. (2011). The influence of Chinese rhetorical patterns on EFL

writing: Learner attitudes
towards this influence. Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics
(Quarterly), 34(1), 77-92.

Peng, K., Spencer-Rodgers, J., & Nian, Z. (2006). Nave dialecticism

and the tao of Chinese
thought. In U. Kim, K. Yang, & K. Hwang (Eds.), Indigenous and
cultural psychology:
Understanding people in context 247-259). USA: Springer Science
+Business Media, Inc.

Tayib, A. (2015). The effect of using graphic organizers on writing (a

case study of preparatory
college students at Umm-Al-Qura University). International Journal of
English Language Teaching, 3(1), 11-31.