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.

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

Watching American movies in secondary school English classes allowed this student to learn slang. He does not like reading but is required to use textbooks about electronic engineering.

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

Shakespearean dramas performed by fellow university students interested this student. She once saw her name in the Standard or the South China Morning Post because her Scrabble team won an award.

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.

A primary school NET turned this student’s noisy classmates into English learners with games. His reading skills were tested in the A-level exams.

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.

Secondary school is where this student started to focus more on learning English. He did more reading during exam periods.

A reading corner in her primary school classroom allowed this student to pick and choose the books she wanted to read.

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.

Eating lunch with his secondary school English teacher gave this student an opportunity to learn more phrases and vocabulary. He read Hamlet and Macbeth in junior secondary and now reads The Economist to help with his BBA studies.

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.

Books with grammar exercises were bought for this student by her mother to help her build a good foundation when she was in primary school. She also attended a phonics course. She likes Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.

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.

First-year university English classes with a NET helped this student make improvements despite the fact that she made recurring mistakes along the way. She liked reading a ghost story when she was in secondary school.

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.

A teacher motivated this student to work on his composition in secondary school. He has been reading on the Internet and also some journals.

A teacher helped this student improve his presentation skills after school. He has been using the dictionary or the Internet to learn new words that he has come across when reading TIME magazine or course material.

Group work helped this student improve in high school. She reads books to learn more about her major and uses a dictionary for complicated words.

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.

This student has been working with foreign tutors in the language centre in university. He is comfortable with the required readings but would like to improve his speaking and listening skills.

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.

Newspapers provide a learning opportunity for this student. As a Business major, she finds some of the readings difficult. She uses a smartphone or the Internet to check new vocabulary.

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.

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.

Syllabaries in kindergarten marked the beginning of this student’s English learning. In primary, he used pictures to remember vocabulary and did “tons” of grammar exercises.

Two secondary school teachers inspired this student to learn English. One teacher used songs and English movies with subtitles while the other emphasised a lifelong need for the language.

The ABC song and writing after-school form this student’s earliest memories of learning English. The student started learning grammar in Primary 3 and could write sentences by Primary 6.

Learning English has been part of this student’s life since kindergarten. She learnt difficult sentence patterns and how to write a composition during junior secondary while she watched movies and read poems and lessons with NETs in senior secondary.

Primary school was the most important period of English learning for this student. She consolidated her knowledge in secondary school and uses English for gaining other knowledge during university.

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.