The difference between the English standards and teaching practices of Hong Kong and the Mainland surprised this Hospitality major. She focused on reading academic texts in secondary school.

Having started learning English late, this Fashion and Textile major’s secondary school teacher gave her tutorial lessons. She read books for school assignments.

There were not many opportunities for this Engineering major to speak English during secondary school as teachers focused on exams. She also reads about fashion and news from social media sites.

Starting primary school marked the beginning of this English major’s language learning. Due to the small class size, the teachers were able to give her more time.

After moving to Hong Kong, this Biology major had difficulty learning English in primary school. She feels English is essential in life and it is important to start learning at an early stage. The plot in Twilight attracted her.

A Shakespearean drama troupe that visited this Biotechnology major’s secondary school during English Week taught him acting and natural speech. He did a report on Superman after watching the movie and reading the book.

To help prepare for the public examinations, this Biotechnology major’s English teacher gave him one-on-one lessons. He read books such as A Christmas Carol, The Railway Children and The Diary of a Young Girl for his literature class.

Good teachers are very important according to this Hotel Management major as they raised her interest in learning English. She would like to read novels like The Hunger Games in the future.

Secondary school English classes were boring for this Textile and Clothing major because her teacher used notes. She reads books with instructions about sewing.

Learning to translate a Chinese story to English made this student appreciate the differences in the two languages. Books by Nicholas Sparks such as Dear John and the Notebook have made this Translation major cry.

A hard working secondary school teacher helped this Film major improve her English grammar for the college entrance exam. Reading The Lord of the Rings also improved her writing.

Foreign tutors introduced this Creative Media to Scrabble when they visited his primary school. He likes drawing and reads books and online articles about art.

Tutors at a primary school camp used games to encourage this Environmental Policy major to speak English. He credits his secondary school English teacher for making him fall in love with the language. Reading journal articles is difficult.

A secondary school English teacher made learning fun with group discussions and games. This Chemistry major likes classical music and reads Wikipedia to learn the meaning of some terms.

A university tutor used humour, short movies and western culture in English classes. This Electronics major listened to an audio version of the Fantastic Four and watched the movie.

Classes at school provided an English learning environment for this Engineering major. Lessons included group discussions about topics in the news. She reads lecture notes.

An inexperienced English teacher in senior secondary helped this Engineering major with exercises and memory skills. He likes to read websites about games and movies.

A Form One English teacher advised this Engineering major to use a grammar website that starts with the basics and goes step by step to more advanced skills. He found Harry Potter too difficult to read when he was in primary school.

University gives this student more opportunity to speak in English. Secondary school classes were led by a teacher. She likes funny books such as Sophia Kinsella’s Shopaholic.

Attending an EMI secondary school helped this Civil Engineering major because all the subjects were in English. He feels it is easier to master grammar than vocabulary. He used Wikipedia to look for information.

A brilliant secondary school English teacher explained the use of Shakespeare in Chinese writing and prepared this Environmental Science major and her classmates for exams with drills and news clippings. Agatha Christie’s famous detective character Hercule Poirot is funny and made her think about life.

A secondary school English teacher set a high standard for this Music major when he was preparing for the A-levels. One of the exercises was reading the newspaper every day. He now reads course material.

Getting his English pronunciation right earned this Finance major candy. He enjoys reading Sherlock Holmes even though he needs to refer to a dictionary for some unknown vocabulary.

A harsh learning experience involved learning pages of phrasal verbs because this Medical student’s English was not up to standard in Form 1. Even though the Hunger Games was a required reading in secondary school he completed it out of pure interest.

English is the lingua franca for this Religious Studies major when playing football with international students at university. It was compulsory to subscribe to a newspaper and clip stories during secondary school.

Secondary school NET teachers from the US used poems, songs and dramas to create an interesting learning environment. This Cultural Studies major learnt a lot through the lyrics of Leona Lewis. She read Twilight and The Hunger Games.

Moving to Hong Kong changed this graduate student’s focus on reading from textbooks to the poetry of Pablo Neruda. He was embarrassed when he couldn’t ask a question using English during a forum.

A teacher made secondary school English classes fun with games. This Nursing major read textbooks to prepare for the DSE and also Harry Potter, TIME, user guides, and reference books from library

Learning English in Canada and Hong Kong exposed this Medical student to different curricula. She learned a lot of vocabulary from reading Geronimo Stilton. She felt watching TV dramas like the Mentalist, House, and Once Upon a Time is a better way to learn.

A tough teacher enabled this Law student to be better prepared for the IB exams and raised her interest in poetry from William Blake and Shakespeare. She liked reading Harry Potter.

Learning with NETs from an early age encouraged this Law student’s fondness for English. Doing IB literature changed her focus from grammar to a more in-depth study of themes, characters, and literary devices. One of the novels she read was Heart of Darkness.

An English teacher helped this Nursing major overcome her shyness by choosing her to make a speech in Form Four. The Five People You Meet in Heaven is the first English book she finished for her school’s reading scheme.

An English only kindergarten with small classes and her first experience with drama laid the foundations for this Psychology major’s confident use of the language. She liked Twilight more than Harry Potter because it’s a love story and easy to understand.

A psychology major enjoyed the time when a NET used drama in secondary school class and rewarded the students for their efforts. Another teacher used videos to engage students in reading Pride and Prejudice. She also read Harry Potter after watching the movie.

Primary school English classes included songs which made remembering words easier. This Fine Arts major’s teachers said she could practise English when ordering in restaurants. She likes books about ceramics.

A fabulous teacher gave this Business major a lot of advice on how to write better and improve his listening skills. She doesn’t feel as close to English in university although she has to read academic papers and journal articles.

An exchange trip to Taiwan in Form Five made this Social Science major think about different ways to learn English in the classroom. She read Marley and Me for a book report because she liked the movie.

Group discussion as an alternative to learning strictly about grammar made senior secondary school English classes more interesting for this student. She read Tuesdays with Morrie in Form Three and considers it a good book.

Interacting with her teacher while practising choral speaking in Form Three helped this student. She felt a sense of accomplishment after completing Lord of the Flies in Form Four because it was a difficult book.

University English lessons and subject-specific articles have helped this student develop the vocabulary of psychology. He has to read a lot of textbooks and one novel during the summer break.