Do local and international school students in Hong Kong have different thinking styles?

Abstract

This study had two objectives. The first objective was to investigate whether or not local and international school students in Hong Kong have different thinking styles. The second objective was to examine the predictive power of socialization variables for thinking styles among students in secondary schools. Three hundred and two students from three schools in Hong Kong responded to the Thinking Styles Inventory – Revised II based on Sternberg’s theory of mental style government, and a survey on two groups of socialization variables: student characteristic and school environment. The student characteristic variables included personological and situational variables, while the school environmental variables included in-class experience and assessment-related variables.

Results indicated that there were statistically significant differences in thinking styles between local and international school students in Hong Kong. Results also indicated that the subgroup of in-class experience was the most powerful in predicting thinking styles at the international school, the subgroup of assessment-related variables was the most powerful in predicting thinking styles at the traditional local school, and the subgroup of personological characteristics was the most powerful in predicting thinking styles at the direct subsidy scheme local school. Implications of the findings are discussed for parents, teachers, school administrators and policy makers.