Ziyi

Ziyi is a 16 years old and in the 10th grade in a high school in a mid-sized Midwest town. She was born in China, but came to the U.S. when she was only five years old. She never attended school in China, and started in 1st grade after her arrival in the U.S. Ziyi’s parents completed high school in China and can speak some English. Both parents and her older sister work at a local Chinese buffet restaurant. Ziyi occasionally helps at the restaurant.

While Ziyi has lived and attended school in the U.S. for 10 years, she remains classified as an English language learner. Her official overall English language proficiency level is 4.8.

Ziyi received some ESL instruction in elementary and middle school. She attends all regular mainstream classes at her high school, though the school’s ESL teacher continues to monitor her progress. Her favorite subject in school is math. Her high school is on the edge of town, and serves a predominantly white student population with many coming in from the rural areas outside of town. Most of the ELLs in the school are Spanish speakers, and Ziyi is just one of a few Asian students in her school.

Ziyi loves both Chinese and American popular culture. She listens to the radio and has many favorite TV shows, but she also loves to watching Chinese soap operas with her family, as well as watching Chinese music videos on YouTube. Last year Ziyi had the opportunity to return to China for the first time for a two-month visit over the summer. Though she had little memory of China, she was proud that she has maintained her Chinese language skills well enough to communicate easily with family there.

Ziyi’s family spends most of their time at the restaurant, but she does not enjoy working there. She would like to go to college after high school, but she is not sure yet what she would like to study.