A summer course in New Zealand included learning how the host family and others used English to communicate. This Physiotherapy major found the locals friendly and chatty. She read Harry Potter after watching the movie.

Primary school English classes for this Biotechnology major included Old MacDonald Had A Farm and the ABC Song. Her professors encourage interactivity in lectures. She reads about the latest research in her field.

English was the lingua franca for this student’s university exchange to Moldova. She read about a swimmer in the 2004 Olympics because she liked him.

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.

During an English camp in secondary school, this Science major learnt multiple drama techniques and prop names. Reading stories to kindergarten children was a win-win situation as she taught them English and also benefited from it.

Interviewing tourists in Stanley was an interactive learning experience for this Arts major. She felt relieved when she received a good grade for an SBA book report. [5TT265]  ...

Joining a competition in Toronto allowed this Finance major to talk with the locals, which helped improve his English. He enjoys newspapers. He also read Harry Potter.

A teacher who explained news articles word by word helped this Chinese major expand her vocabulary. She reads Eileen Chang’s English novels and their Chinese translations. The High School Musical movies made her read the novels.

A fresh grad, who works as a flight attendant, enrolled in an English course to improve her grammar skills. Research for her final year project involved reading academic papers with complex vocabulary.

Despite losing a competitive debate in secondary school, this Social Work major developed new skills. Reading course material with a dictionary enhanced her vocabulary. She seldom used English in primary school.

This student had to work out how to get food and drink coupons during an English speaking day in junior secondary school. She read the newspaper in senior secondary.

An ELT lecturer shared personal experiences with this Anthropology major’s class. Some ethnographies are written as if they were telling stories about culture and human behaviour. She once read about foot binding in the SCMP.

In primary school, this student received good marks for pronunciation by associating the sounds with Chinese words. This student’s English improved in Form Four by reading the South Morning China Post and listening to Radio Television Hong Kong.

English was the only language allowed in a camp attended by this student while in secondary school. She says that because she attended a CMI school, she did not read many English books.

Watching movies in secondary school built this Business major vocabulary. She learnt presentation skills in a university English course. An American novel about a maid deepened her understanding of racism and discrimination.

To prepare for the DSE, this Civil Engineering major had to read a lot of texts and memorise the vocabulary. She read Julius Caesar during an English leadership programme.

Providing speaking practice for junior students on a ‘talk counter’ in the English promotion team in secondary school was helpful to this Social Science major. Reading and discussing books in class was interesting. The Harry Potter movies are more exciting than the books.

Studying in university required this Biomedical Science major to use the language for academic purposes. He did reading, writing, and speaking in English extra-curricular classes.

Watching Romeo and Juliet in class allowed this Accounting major to learn more about the story as well as English. She finished the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella in secondary school.

Participating in an English camp provided an opportunity for this Finance graduate to practise speaking. Reading reference books is helpful for exams but not for speaking.

Chatting with visiting students from Scotland was meaningful for this Engineering major. He likes doing outdoor activities rather than reading. He read newspapers and magazines during secondary school.

Preparing for a speech festival in senior secondary gave this student a chance to read a variety of scripts while receiving guidance on pronunciation. In university, he prefers to read English versions of some material as translations may be inaccurate.

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.

Despite practising speaking with a private tutor, this Chinese Literature major recorded a poor result in IELTS. She read a book before sleep every night last year.

Drama and games with new friends in university exposed this student to new vocabulary and culture. A textbook provided insight into how different cultures eat. He finds it difficult to listen to native speakers.

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.

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 teacher in primary school used fresh vegetables for vocabulary lessons. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was the first English book this Accounting major read by himself.

A drama performance taught this Education major spoken and written English. A secondary school teacher required his class to read aloud a murder story with emotion.

A student enjoyed writing poems and playing games in a workshop on Thanksgiving day at university organised by an international tutor. The workshop was different to secondary school because it was interactive. Although reading English books is hard, she was able to finish Matilda. [4CJ093]

Describing herself as the worst student in a tutorial class, this student caught up to her older peers with help from the teachers. The first time she read a textbook was in secondary school Biology.

Going on exchanges and also interacting with visiting students improved this Marketing major’s vocabulary in secondary school. She likes audio books reviewed on YouTube.

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

After being forced by a high school teacher to watch English videos in every language class for two terms, this IT major improved. She read Harry Potter in English because she could not wait for the Chinese version.

A project on the origins of the English alphabet enhanced this student’s knowledge of the language. He considers Peter Pan, which he read in high school, as a classic.

Joining the drama club in university allowed this Hotel Management major to practise her spoken English. She reads magazines such as National Geographic in her leisure time.

English was used in a primary school fun day that involved cooking for this Social Work major.

Doing an English show-and-tell in primary school required this Life Science major to speak in front of a large audience. He also had to complete spoken English exams.

This Business major loved an extra-curricular class with a NET because they played games, watched movies and had sharing sessions. He was inspired by reading Life without Limits.

English was the common language for this Surveying major and her Spanish roommate. Compulsory weekly reading lessons in secondary school were boring.