After doing poorly in the DSE, this Textiles major took IELTS to meet university entrance requirements. She gained some practical knowledge and skills while preparing for the IELTS assessment.

Listening to Katy Perry’s Firework in secondary school made this student realise that music and videos are effective ways to learn English. He read Martin Luther King’s speech, I Have a Dream but prefers the Internet and YouTube for learning English.

Watching films was a fun and useful way to learn English. This Logistics major enjoyed reading books such as A Christmas Carol while preparing for reports in secondary school.

Playing cards with an American tutor in a village primary school was how this student learnt English in an informal way. She reads articles and online news in English for research purposes.

Doing a two-minute self-introduction in a freshman English class felt like speed-dating for this Politics and Geography major. He skims through a lot of the course reading material as he only focuses on specific points.

Attending an international school for primary and secondary improved this Social Science major’s English. Taking IGCSE and A-Level exams further strengthened the language.

This Computing major’s secondary school teacher used movies and popular songs to let students learn new vocabulary, expressions and sentences. Through fiction, she discovered authors use different expressions to convey the same meaning.

Preparing for IELTS involved 20 exercises a day over a three-month period for this Business major. She also read a lot of articles from various channels such as the BBC. The Secret Garden was the first English book she read.

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.

Notes prepared by an English teacher included materials from the South Morning China Post and TIME. He read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory because of the movie.

Reading by herself greatly improved this Computer Science’s writing and reading skills. She loves the historical and religious elements in the Da Vinci Code.

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.

Reciting sentences from a newspaper was boring and useless for this Business major. It was difficult to do a presentation about Percy Jackson and The Olympians during an English speech exam in Form Three.

There was an extensive reading scheme in this Social Work major’s primary and secondary school. She learnt to write a CV, essays and reports in university. She has travelled abroad.

Watching The Devil Wears Prada in high school made this Social Science major love English. She read Harry Potter after watching the movies; and the books are more interesting.

Reading a novel given to this student by his secondary school English teacher was challenging. He has been too busy to read books while in university. He suggests students should prepare for the DSE by reading.

English teachers showed movies to this Engineering major and his classmates in high school. He sometimes reads Japanese comics with an English translation because they are available earlier than Chinese versions.

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.

This Nursing major says her English had improved during a nine-day tour to Malaysia. She likes to read the English subtitles when watching movies. She reads English course material.

English classes taught completely in the language were hard for this Computer Science major. He could choose his own topics for the news sharing in secondary school.

Going to the US with her sister and then by herself let this Accounting major learn spoken English through conversation. She learnt to appreciate and understand poetry in secondary school.

To improve this Engineering major’s English, her mother forced her to memorise words and do grammar exercises every day. She read the South China Morning Post daily to enhance her language skills.

Using English in secondary school was a change for this Nursing major. English reading skills are important because she has to read a lot of journal articles.

Secondary school English classes were more interesting for this Engineering major because the teacher used games and activities. He read Harry Potter.

Songs from artists such as the Beatles and Bee Gees help this student with his listening skills. He uses a dictionary to find the meaning of new words. He sometimes uses English when he teaches the violin.

Learning English became more difficult as this cross-border student got older. She uses an e-dictionary to check new vocabulary. She prefers printed books.

The Big Bang Theory TV show formed part of this Green Technology major’s language learning. She also read a book on world history.

This Psychology read Moonwalk by Michael Jackson.

Minoring in English allowed this Early Childhood Education major to study western culture, linguistics and poetry. She is an American sit-com lover and watched The Big Bang Theory, Desperate Housewives and Modern Family.

Books such as Harry Potter and movies like Taken have helped this student learn English. As a BBA student, she needs to read a lot and finds some of the material difficult.

Reading newspapers and magazines were part of this Physics major’s DSE exam preparation. He feels English will be important in his future career.

A student is motivated to practise more with native speakers and tutors because she feels she needs to catch up with other undergraduates. She read Alice in Wonderland.

Participating in a competition in junior high school improved this Business major’s speaking and academic English. Readings for a philosophy course were more difficult than those directly related to her major.

Working as a team in a debate competition was the most enjoyable experience for this Logistics major. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was the first book he read alone. It boosted his interest in English.

Reading is a favourite hobby of this Business major. Reading is a conversation with the author and you can also learn more about the world. Reading is relaxing while the contents of some can teach us how to reduce conflict.

Attending a summer course in Australia gave this Economics major the opportunity to speak English everywhere. He reads about Hong Kong and international relations in newspapers.

TV programmes such as Hannah Montana and Art Attack allowed this student to learn English without pressure. She read the Harry Potter series and admired her favourite author JK Rowling’s use of the language in writing such a fascinating adventure.

Learning started in Primary 4 for this Politics major. Studying in an EMI primary school did not help improve her English. She has travelled to Taiwan.

Watching movies in secondary school was an alternative to listening to teachers and doing past papers for this Bilingual Studies major. She loves reading fantasy novels such as Harry Potter and The Chronicles of Narnia.

A summer camp led by native English speaking students built confidence because it focused on communication and not errors. Books such as Harry Potter and Tuesdays with Morrie are good for learners.