An English Teaching major entered university after doing a Higher Diploma where she studied the differences between Chinese and English. She later took part in an immersion programme in Australia. She likes books with pictures.

Preparing for the DSE English exam is a part of life. Students can be encouraged to read by watching movies first, just like Gone Girl. The novel Annie John is different to other books.

Taking a public speaking class in high school helped this Social Science major make friends and build confidence. He developed his reading skills when preparing for the SAT.

Joining a programme called Little Star allowed this Marketing major to learn English through fun activities. Performing drama sparked her interest in the language. She read The Great Gatsby for a university course.

As a lover of the performing arts, this Creative Media major was impressed with the Animal Farm opera. The autobiography of Maus was refreshing because she expected it to be heavy and boring.

The Book Fair is an opportunity for this woman to search for bargains. She likes the Shopaholic series and also romantic novels. She doesn’t like sci-fi because it makes her nervous.

An English learning programme in the UK gave this Computer Science major a chance to speak with the local people. He sometimes reads magazines in the library. He gave up after reading one chapter of the Great Gatsby.

While textbooks are quite formal, watching movies and dramas better prepared this Translation major to communicate with foreigners. She can still get the sense of the story if she reads Japanese novels in English.

A secondary school English teacher asked this Language major to write and perform a role-play. In secondary school, she improved her grammar and vocabulary by reading journals.

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.

Guessing the meaning of words and discussing it in front of the class enhanced this Management major’s vocabulary. Reading comic books such as Maus entertained her.

Watching American movies such as Harry Potter was a good way for this Economics major to learn pronunciation and conversation. She read both the Chinese and English versions of Harry Potter before watching the movie.

This Visual Arts major thinks her high school spent too much time on grammar and vocabulary exercises. She doesn’t read English books because of her lack of vocabulary. She uses a Kindle to read learning materials.

A Maths Teaching major used English while working as a conservation volunteer in Australia. She was happy when she read a few chapters of Harry Potter. She uses Wikipedia for homework and read the South China Morning Post and Young Post in secondary school.

Getting a good grade on the DSE is about knowing the right formula according to this Product Design major. Apart from learning the formula from her teacher, she prepared by watching YouTube videos and listening to music at home.

Emphasising the expression of meaning rather than accuracy was what this Nursing major learnt after an interview. She read magazines and newspapers in secondary school and now does research with journals.

Attending an EMI secondary school provided a good English learning environment for this Accounting major. She prefers Chinese books but reads English news online.

Secondary school English classes gave this Internet and Multimedia major the opportunity for group discussions. He reads articles about technology on the Internet.

University English classes were not useful for this Engineering major because they focused on reading and writing instead of speaking and listening. Reading for the SBA was very difficult for him.

Interacting with the family’s maid helped this Chinese Studies major learn English. She took part in a reading scheme in secondary school and had to write a brief report for each book.

Meeting a foreigner who asked for help required this Arts major to speak English. Roald Dahl is her favourite writer and she recommended his books to her students in a tutorial class.

Extra-curricular English classes improved this Engineering major’s confidence and chances of attending a better secondary school. His teacher encouraged him to read a newspaper.

English has been part of this Economics and Finance major’s life for as long as she can remember. Her father read books to her every night when she was young. She read Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami at the age of fifteen.

While working as an environmental protection intern in Australia, this Primary Education major used English to communicate with colleagues. She likes to read about spirituality.

Acting in Romeo and Juliet was different to sitting in the classroom for this student. He seldom reads English books but uses the language in university engineering classes.

Primary and secondary education helped build this Nursing major’s foundation of English. She improved her English by self-study in university.

Participating in a charitable event with foreigners gave this Science major a chance to communicate in English. Reading was better in primary school as the teachers would lead the class to do interactive activities such as drama. She likes both the Harry Potter books and movies.

Doing large amounts of homework and reading newspapers in Form One was difficult but helped enhance this Accounting major’s language skills. Reading newspapers given by a NET in Form Three was relaxing as the content was not difficult.

Preparing for the TOEFL test involved watching films, listening to the radio and talking. This Business major read the Harry Potter series and notes the talent, honesty, loyalty, kindness and happiness of the writing.

An English camp allowed this Science major to practise the language and learn how to communicate with others. He reads scientific articles about new discoveries.

TV dramas such as House enabled this student to learn daily conversation. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho is the best book he has ever read and it inspired him to be creative and adventurous. He also reads TIME and The Economist and watches TED videos.

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.

English Week was held in this Arts major’s primary school. He had a NET in junior high and took a university language enhancement course.

Primary school teachers held discussions to encourage this Law student to speak in English. Reading newspapers in primary school every day helped develop her reading habit.

A nice secondary school teacher helped this student learn more English and grammar. He reads sports and world news in the South China Morning Post.

Tutorial lessons helped this Civil Engineering to prepare for the public exam. He reads for his studies.

Using “English to understand English” was a breakthrough for this Social Policy major who had felt he was incompetent. In Form 6, he abandoned reading Chinese news in favour of the BBC which he credits for his improved English.

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.

In senior secondary, this Sociology major read newspapers and watched English programmes. She listened to songs and gained confidence in speaking with exchange students in university.

As an exchange student in Germany this Chemistry graduate used English to communicate. Reading The Hunger Games exposed him to a new range of vocabulary.