A secondary school English club gave this student a chance to learn more by interacting with his English teacher. He reads the local news in the newspaper.

Debating in university gave this student an opportunity to prepare speeches and arguments. She has read Jane Eyre and Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. She finds the latter exciting.

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.

A fun fair in primary school enabled this student to have more interaction in English through games. She prefers to read newspapers such as the SCMP as it allows her to learn new vocabulary.

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.

As an English ambassador in secondary school, this student was involved in more activities. He read Matilda and thought it was funny.

This student uses English for communication and learning in university. Rating his English as weak, he reads online newspapers to improve.

This student enjoyed an interactive drama performance with foreign actors while in secondary school. She uses the Internet to read about different attitudes to horoscope.

Watching movies motivates this student to read the book version. That’s why she read The Hunger Games and The Lord of the Rings.

English only days in secondary school were a good learning opportunity for this student. Reading newspapers focusing on economics and finance is helpful for his major in Accounting.

Tutorial classes led by a funny teacher who used word games helped this student’s writing and reading skills. He is an Economics major and has to read articles and journals which he describes as boring.

Talking with foreign workmates from England and the US made this student more aware of listening and speaking skills. He took tutorials to improve his vocabulary for the A-level exams. [4CK054]  ...

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.

Staying in the US for three months helped this student improve her English. She seldom reads books but prefers to talk about interesting movies.

Working in an international company caused this student to panic because he had to use English to communicate with colleagues. He read Harry Potter books given to him by his uncle and also funny websites.

TV dramas, especially mysteries from the BBC and NBC, interest this student. He has read Harry Potter but thinks of it as entertainment rather than a learning opportunity.

A teacher kept in touch with this student during the summer holidays by chatting with him and his classmates on the phone. He enjoyed reading The Lord of the Rings and watching the film.

Watching TV shows such as 60 Minutes Plus motivates this student to use the dictionary to check new vocabulary because he is interested in social issues. Graphic books such as comics have raised his interest in learning English.

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.

A one-month study abroad scheme at the University of Hawaii enabled this student to communicate with people from other countries using English as a lingua franca. She read the South China Morning Post in secondary school.

A study abroad scheme in the UK gave this student a chance to communicate more, learn the culture, and improve her grammar. She read the South China Morning Post in secondary school.

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.

A drama project in secondary school required this student to help write the script with classmates. He also read the South China Morning Post to prepare for the DSE exam. He found it hard at first but persevered and realised he started to learn.

Primary school drama classes allowed this student to practise her English skills. She read Harry Potter after a friend recommended it to her. Later she watched the movie.

Doing a solo performance and being part of a choir meant this student had to work on pronunciation and fluency. She mostly reads academic books.

Writing book reports for his aunty, who is an English teacher, was useful for this student. Harry Potter is his favourite book but he seldom reads these days.

A NET encouraged this student and her classmates to read and share, which led to effective communication. She reads National Geographic because she likes geography.

In primary school classes organised by the ESF this student experienced different teaching methods including games, and arts and crafts. He likes to practise his pronunciation by reading English newspapers aloud.

Books such as Harry Potter and movies like Taken have helped this student learn English. As a BBA student, she needs to read a lot and finds some of the material difficult.

Writing and performing a drama in Form One exposed this student to everyday English. She feels a sense of accomplishment for reading the entire Harry Potter series. She prefers non-fiction these days.

An exchange trip to Australia pushed this student to use English more often while meeting people. He learnt some English while reading Twilight. He also watched the movie.

English camp provided an alternative learning environment for this student while in secondary school. He read British literature as part of a university course. His favourite author is Ismail Kadare.

Reading and listening to songs have been used by this student to improve her level of English. She moved to Hong Kong from the Mainland for secondary school and found it “totally different.”

During primary school, this student realised one could learn English by communicating with others. The student also benefitted from a trip to Sweden when she was 15.

Exposure to English was limited during this student’s kindergarten and primary years. It changed when she studied in an EMI secondary school which had extra-curricular English activities.

This student developed a system to remember the spelling of a word through pronunciation. She watched variety shows to increase her vocabulary and sense of the language.

Kindergarten was probably the starting point of this student’s English learning. This student attended tutorial classes in secondary and loves reading English books or watching movies in her spare time.

Despite learning English for many years, this student does not feel her language skills are very good. She feels that because she lives in Hong Kong, there are few chances to speak English outside of school.

A good primary school teacher motivated this student who did well in dictation. She realised the advantages of being proficient in English and read books to increase her knowledge and ability with the language.

Primary school English included dictation and poems for this student. This student attended after-school tutorials in secondary school. In university, students are expected to have a level of proficiency to communicate withy others.