Taking an online IELTS course and interacting with students on forums were different to traditional classroom learning. Reading academic journals for essay writing enhanced this Arts major’s understanding of various topics.

The presence of a foreign teacher in secondary school encouraged this student to talk more in English. The reading materials for Sociology are very difficult so she has to spend extra time to understand the meaning.

Switching from a local school to an international one allowed this Hotel Management major to be fully immersed in an English speaking environment. Being interested in social issues and human rights, her favourite books are A Thousand Splendid Suns and The Kite Runner.

A love for learning English and doing exercises motivated this student to work on his grammar. He prefers to read magazines such as Forbes and BBC Magazines.

Listening to songs motivates this Finance major to learn lyrics. He read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in secondary school. He prefers watching movies to reading.

Pride and Prejudice is the first English book this Journalism major read. A summer camp in the US provided her the opportunity to attend classes at the local schools and practise her speaking skills.

English learning centred on grammar, reading, writing, speaking, and listening for this Science major. She went to the US for an exchange.

A university English course related to this Business major’s career goals. He started reading a book about expatriate life while travelling after buying it in an airport shop.

Attending an international exchange programme in China required this Nursing major to speak English with foreign students. Her readings in secondary school were boring and mostly for exams.

English serves as a global language when chatting with foreign friends. This Language major once had a chance to read the book Jane Eyre with a few hundred people.

Learning through movies in class was fun and useful for this Building Construction major. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen was assigned reading. She enjoyed the story because she learnt more about history.

Newspapers are the preferred English text for this Graphic Designer. She reads to broaden her knowledge and possibly help her get a better job. It is easier to read Chinese books.

Playing video games with a dictionary enhanced this Social Work major’s vocabulary. He reads lyrics while listening to English songs.

Movies and songs taught this Civil Engineering major English vocabulary and usage. Newspapers and magazines provide him the knowledge about daily life.

Attending tutorial classes and memorising new vocabulary and phrases during high school were useful. This Psychology major read Twilight in Form Two after watching the movie.

A trip to a fast food shop made this Maths major recognise the English names for different food. The Secret Garden is the first book he read from the beginning to the end.

A NET facilitated interactive group learning through games and videos. This English major feels that some books have exaggerated plots and are only written to make money.

Watching movies has trained this Science major’s listening skills. Reading The Fault in Our Stars made her think that we should never give up no matter what happens.

This BBA major attended tutorial classes that focused on exam skills to prepare him to re-sit the DSE. He also read newspaper articles which he found difficult.

Studying Edith Hamilton’s Mythology in secondary school involved reading the book, discussing it and making a drama for this Engineering major. She experienced the mood of Dante’s Inferno when a teacher read it aloud in a dynamic voice.

This Business major learnt how to argue in secondary school debate competitions. She reads the SCMP to get updated on current affairs in Hong Kong.

A social worker recalls how a university professor inspired her to use English. She seldom reads English books but started the Twilight series after watching the movie.

A short programme in the UK inspired this Economics major to learn more about English. She thinks reading books like The Little Prince and Peter Pan is time well spent.

Having discussions in class allowed this Computing major to develop critical thinking skills. He read Daniel Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow because of his interest in the topic.

Listening to the radio programme English Made Easy taught this Biology major grammar and new vocabulary. Teaching primary school students and reading research papers related to her major enhanced her language skills.

The desire for a high IELTS score motivated this Ethics and Public Affairs major to read and listen more. His friend gave him The Little Prince as a birthday gift. He couldn’t understand Cloud Atlas.

English classes were boring for this Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering major as he was not interested in the subject. His teacher always gave him a lot of articles to read.

Playing games with a foreigner during English Week in secondary school was fun and interesting for this student. He prefers group learning. He bought the book Dracula at a book festival and used it for a book report in the DSE.

Holding a radio show in secondary school promoted active learning and was different to regular classes for this Psychology major. A Psychology textbook was the first book she read by herself.

A secondary school teacher used group projects to expose this Accounting major to new vocabulary. Other secondary teachers gave her magazine articles to read. She likes to read about science.

This Chemistry major learnt different tones and intonation while playing the main character in a drama competition. She read passages written by an NET in the reading session.

An exchange trip to the Netherlands gave this Cultural Studies major the chance to polish her English. Since secondary school she has been reading Harry Potter because she really likes the story.

A Hong Kong teacher’s YouTube videos educated this Accounting major in English pronunciation and usage. He reads about business, politics and entertainment in The Economist and TIME. He also read books on psychology and business.

A foreign teacher helped this student to improve his speaking skills in secondary school. He also watches programming on BBC and CNN. He read a lot while preparing for IELTS, and also during a university language course.

While studying in Canada, this Accounting major used English when the teacher was present and reverted to Chinese later. She usually reads materials online and likes watching YouTube.

Presenting in front of Japanese classmates during an exchange program was harder than presenting in front of Hong Kong students. This Management major thinks reading in English enables him to know more about the world. He read TIME magazine.

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.

An exchange in Italy provided this Engineering and Management major the opportunity to practise her English with other students. Although she likes Harry Potter, it is difficult to finish the whole book.

A Chinese Language Teaching major played a “bad guy” in secondary school English class. She read The Little Prince. She can’t imagine using English much in the future.

Watching movies and discussing the plot, message and language used made English classes interactive for this Architecture major. The meaning behind Animal Farm and 1984 is inspiring.