A student who entered the Hong Kong education system in Primary 4 received support from teachers and classmates. She says it was tiring reading Harry Potter because she had to keep looking for meanings in the dictionary.

A student says she enjoys studying English drama at university. She enjoyed the English reading scheme in secondary school but seldom reads now.

A student is motivated to polish her English by listening to YouTube hosts. She also read Tuesdays with Morrie, The Five People You Meet in Heaven and The Time Keeper by Mitch Albom.

A student who is ‘crazy about rock music’ learnt more vocabulary while looking for the meaning of lyrics. She thinks the English version of Harry Potter is better than the Chinese translation.

A teacher encouraged this student to become a school emcee to overcome her pronunciation difficulties. She also enjoyed reading Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

A Chinese teaching major says English would be important if she worked in an international school. She remembers spending a lot of time checking the dictionary while reading Harry Potter.

This student read the Twilight series and then watched the movies to help improve her English.

A trip to Canada raised this student’s awareness about using English to communicate. A dictionary is helpful when reading.

A student had to catch-up when she transitioned from the Mainland to Hong Kong in Primary Four. She says her reading ability is affected by dyslexia but reads books about classical music to write an essay.

It was interesting comparing English to Cantonese in secondary school. It’s better to read a book after watching a film because it can help build a mental picture.

A school visit to a university hotel helped build this student’s vocabulary. He read about Coco Chanel during the SBA. He’s an NBA fan and plays video games in English.

A church leader focused on communication and not grammar while teaching out of a textbook.

A NET inspires with drama and musicals. Craft books are interesting and beautiful.

A summer camp led by native English speaking students built confidence because it focused on communication and not errors. Books such as Harry Potter and Tuesdays with Morrie are good for learners.

Watching Titanic in primary school on the Mainland created an interest in the lyrics of the song, “My Heart Will Go On.” The student also watched Harry Potter and Twilight. She briefly looked at the Harry Potter book.

A postgraduate psychology student enjoyed an English camp organised by American tutors on the Mainland during secondary school. Jane Eyre is a really touching book.

Reading can involve preparation for tests such as TOEFL and SAT and can be fiction like The Vampire Diaries. Dictionaries are good for developing vocabulary.

Listening to the BBC and reading online and printed newspapers were part of this student’s A-level preparations. He used a dictionary to check new vocabulary.

A student enjoyed the TV dramas and movies shown by NETs including Sherlock. She also read the first three Harry Potter books after watching the movie. She finds the smartphone dictionary helpful.

A violin major overcame her fear while travelling alone to the US during junior secondary. She had to use English to survive. She prefers non-fiction books like My Happiness Project and Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.

A student says an overseas exchange programme provided a better learning environment. The South China Morning Post and TIME magazine feed his interest in politics.

A Chinese teaching major learnt English through drama during NET-led classes in secondary school. She read Harry Potter and is comfortable reading E-books, and using other online sources such as dictionaries and search engines for vocabulary building.

A performing arts competition helped this student in the speaking part of the DSE exam. She also took part in the daily reading scheme during secondary school. She prefers printed books but also uses an e-dictionary.

A student from a CMI school appreciates the support from his teacher as he was afraid of facing the DSE exam. He has read a little of Harry Potter. He uses a printed dictionary.

A student brushed up on her English by watching movies and listening to songs during a gap year. She feels a CMI secondary school was more relaxing because most subjects were in her mother tongue.

Debating skills helped an English Teaching major with the spoken component of the DSE. She prefers news media such as the South China Morning Post and TIME magazine to fiction. She feels writing is more important than reading.

An English Teaching major performed in the Wizard of Oz during her secondary school’s anniversary celebration. She has also read Tuesdays with Morrie and a book about the holocaust called Night.

A private tutor chatted in English while playing games with this student. She liked reading the self-improvement book, 59 Seconds and feels that reading can be a multimedia experience.

An auditor remembers doing a lot of English exercises to communicate with foreigners. He reads books on photography. It’s good to practise with foreigners.

Learning phonics from a NET in kindergarten was important for this student’s development. C.S. Lewis is his favourite author and he has read Narnia and Freakonomics.

A teacher made this student’s learning interesting with stories. He used to read novels at home after supper. He uses a dictionary to learn new vocabulary.

A secondary school teacher helped this student who wanted more exercises to improve. She also enjoyed being an emcee at school. Her dad gave her Roald Dahl’s Matilda and also likes Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She enjoyed Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie.

A university programme with foreigners gave this student the chance to talk freely in English about politics. He says this practice helps to develop communication skills. He has read The Dictator’s Learning Curve.

Interacting with foreigners, including a secondary school teacher and fellow university students, has motivated this student. His teacher used movies while his university friends taught him slang. He has read a book about North Korea and he likes books on politics and economics.

A one-month exchange in the US gave this student a rare opportunity to speak in English. She liked Tuesdays with Morrie but would have enjoyed it more if she had not been pushed to finish it quickly by her secondary school teacher.

Tutorial classes were different to regular school classes because this student could learn exam skills. He checks the dictionary while reading newspapers and academic material.

A family trip to New Zealand as a 15 year old let this student learn more about the use of English there and the peoples’ culture. His secondary school teacher encouraged him to read Tuesdays with Morrie for a book sharing competition in which he won second runner-up.

Listening to RTHK’s English news about issues such as Occupy Central and making class presentations helped boost this student’s vocabulary. He likes reading books with movie tie-ins such as The Hunger Games. He also reads material related to marketing.

An advanced reading and writing course helped this student understand inferences and idioms. He likes to read automobile magazines because he is a ‘car maniac’. He prefers news articles to novels.

Reading what interests this student in the library has helped his vocabulary and grammar. He uses a dictionary if he does not know the meaning of a word.