Background: Most previous research on beliefs on language learning (BALLs) has been focusing on tertiary level learners. Information of learners of other backgrounds is extremely lacking.
Aim: To identify the BALL patterns of Chinese ESL learners undertaking vocational education in the Hong Kong context and to explore the possible influences on their BALLs.
Sample: Questionnaires were administered to 243 Chinese ESL learners undertaking vocational education in Hong Kong.
Method: Surveys on the Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) were conducted and descriptive analyses were performed.
Results: Results indicate that respondents endorsed the existence of a specialized ability on language learning. They believed in the existence of foreign language aptitude, but did not agree that they had a special ability of learning foreign language. Respondents regarded English a language of medium difficulty. One hour a day for one to two years was regarded as necessary for speaking the target language well. The learning of vocabulary and grammar were regarded as important, and respondents viewed foreign language learning as different from learning other academic subjects. Respondents were overwhelming in their view that it is best to learn English in an English-speaking country. In addition, they endorsed the importance of excellent pronunciation, repetition, practicing, guessing word meanings, and were tolerant of making mistakes in speaking. Finally, there existed a high level of motivation among the respondents, with instrumental motivation being more prevalent than integrative motivation.
Conclusion: Certain learner characteristics and features of the socio-linguistic context of the Hong Kong society are suggested to contribute to the unique BALL patterns of this group of learners. Several implications for teaching in light of the findings are suggested.
背景：過往大部份關於語言學習觀念的研究，對象為大專學生。現時關於其他背景的學生在這方面的資料很缺乏。
目的：找出在香港正接受職業教育的學生對語言學習的觀念

Background: In most primary schools in Hong Kong, a product-oriented approach is used in teaching writing. The process approach to writing has been seen as an improvement over the traditional methods of writing instruction in recent years. However, the effectiveness of using the process approach to teach writing is still inconclusive. It is necessary to confirm its effectiveness through further research studies.
Aims: This study investigates how effective process writing is in helping about 200 students in the upper primary school level and the lower primary school level improve their writing skills and their attitude towards writing.
Sample and method: Six primary school teachers, 3 in the lower primary school level and 3 in the upper primary school level, each implemented an innovative two-month process writing programme in her school. The effectiveness of the programme was investigated through post-interviews and the comparison of a pre- and post-questionnaire, a pre-test and a post-test, and pre- and post- observations of the strategies used by the students in doing their pre-tests and post-tests.
Results: It is found that the programme brought about positive results across all classes and in both the upper and lower level in general though the results in each classroom slightly differed.
Conclusions/Recommendations: The process approach seems to be an effective approach even at as low a level as P.3 in the primary school. Process writing seems to be a feasible solution to heightening the writing abilities and confidence of students, especially those who have higher English proficiency and those at the upper primary level.
背景：香港大多數小學都採用成果取向的方法去教導寫作，近年視採用歷程取向的方法去教導寫作是傳統教導寫作的改良，但是否有效卻未有定論，需要作進一步的研究。
目的：這研究探討歷程取向的寫作方法對改進二百位小學生的改進技巧及態度是否有效。
取樣及方法：六位小學教師，三位任教初小、三位任教高小，在其學校試教一個為期兩個月有關歷程取向寫作方法的新課程，研究者採用測試後面談、比較試前和試後問卷調查、測驗成績、及觀察學生在測試前後的學習策略等多元方法，去尋找歷程取向寫作方法的有效性。
結果：發現各測驗觀察都稍微偏向支援歷程取向寫作方法。
討論和建議：歷程取向寫作方法似乎是一個較有效的教學法去提昇學生的寫作能力及信心

This paper will consider the use of English medium textbooks in bilingual situations and will briefly present the results of a survey of 24 schools in Hong Kong. Language and textual constraints may both inhibit the efficient reading of content subject textbooks in school. It will be argued that textbooks are "inconsiderate" in not making rhetorical (top-down) structures clear and that this is a neglected cause of student difficulty. Practical examples for making books more "considerate" will be offered.
本論文探討在雙語環境中英文教科書的使用及簡述在二十四間香港中學進行意見調查的結果。結果顯示，語言及原文的約束可能妨礙學生有效地閱讀學科教科書。本文的論點是教科書沒有顯明「由上而下」的修辭結構，實為學生閱讀困難的被忽視的原因。本文將提出教科書應如何顧及讀者的實際方法。
[Copyright of New Horizons: The Journal of Education, Hong Kong Teachers' Associationl is the property of Hong Kong Teachers' Association at http://www.hkta1934.org.hk/]

Extensive Reading (also known as ERS or the Extensive Reading Scheme) in many Hong Kong schools is viewed, organised and promoted in very narrow and limiting terms. Traditionally, ERS is enacted in the selection and reading of a book followed by the completion of the relevant book card. This paper challenges the prevailing paradigm and encourages teachers to transform their ERS lessons by adopting approaches that will activate and enhance pupils' engagement with the ERS books and ultimately reap long term benefits in EFL/ESL learning. These approaches include making the aesthetic and affective dimension integral to ERS as well as the promotion and adoption of a Vygotskyian social interaction framework in the structure and design of the activities. A description, examples and illustrations of the activities to promote the two approaches are provided for classroom practitioners.
在香港, 學校對於廣泛閱讀計劃 (又作ERS) 的看法、編排及推廣, 各方面仍停留在很狹窄的層面。傳統上, 所謂的ERS, 是先取出書本, 然後閱讀圖書, 最後把有關的資料填在圖書咭上。這文章的目的是挑戰現有的模式, 並鼓勵老師對他們的廣泛閱讀課堂作出改變, 採用不同的方法務求令學生投入於廣泛閱讀的書本中, 以便最終能為學生帶來在英語學習上的長遠得益。這些方法包括: 1) 在課堂活動中加入ERS 固有的美學及情感的原素。2) 採用並推廣Vygotsky 理論中互動社會作用的構想。本文將會就上述兩個方法, 加以詳細描述, 並舉出一些活動和例子, 以供老教師參考。
[Copyright of New Horizons: The Journal of Education, Hong Kong Teachers' Associationl is the property of Hong Kong Teachers' Association at http://www.hkta1934.org.hk/]

This paper aims to explore rater behaviour in assessing oral presentations using verifiable quantitative measures (VQM) as an external validity check on ratings. Twelve raters from a range of backgrounds were recruited to rate 115 Secondary 3 student oral performances in 'individual presentations'. These performances were drawn from a sample of 10 schools participating in a pretest conducted for the commencement of the oral component of Hong Kong's Territory-wide System Assessment in 2006. About 20 students were drawn from each school in three ability categories: low, medium and high. Students were selected based on their internal examination results. Fifty-eight of the 115 student performances were transcribed and assessed on VQM for 'ideas and organisation', 'vocabulary and language patterns' and 'pronunciation and delivery'. VQM results were correlated (Spearman's and Pearson's 'r') against fair average scores derived from Rasch analysis of ratings. The resultant correlations ranged from 0.6 to 0.9. It was concluded that raters were estimating values for constructs highly similar to those measured in VQM.
本研究是以可驗證的量化量度方法，探究英文科說話評審員在說話評估「個人短講」中的評審表現。是次研究，邀請了12位具有不同學歷及經驗的人士擔任說話評審員，對115位中學三年級學生進行說話能力測試，評審學生的說話能力。這些學生是來自於參加2006 年「全港性系統評估」預試的學校。參加預試的學校共有10所，其中包括不同能力組別的學生。每所學校都是根據校內的英文科成績(高、中、低)，挑選20位學生參加說話能力測試。是次研究是從115位參加測試的學生中，抽取了58位學生進行研究，以文字紀錄了這些學生在個人短講中的內容，再以可驗證的量化量度方法(VQM)，評估學生在「內容和組織」、「詞彙和句式」和「發音和表達」三方面的表現。本研究亦利用史比爾曼「」及皮爾遜「r」計算VQM 數據和羅許平均值的相關系數。是次研究所獲得的相關系數為0.6 至0.9 。總而言之，說話評審員給予評級的建構值和VQM 所得的結果甚為相近。
[Copyright of Hong Kong Teachers' Centre Journal is the property of Hong Kong Teachers' Centre at http://www.edb.org.hk/hktc]

Many teachers of English as a second language (ESL) have begun to perceive the place of collaborative writing in the teaching of writing. With the development of Internet-based resources such as blogs and forums, learners have begun to adapt to online writing and to use tools that supports such activity. Teachers are beginning to perceive the value of this and consequently such resources have begun to be incorporated into the teaching of ESL writing by getting students - as yet, mainly on an individual basis - to write e-mails, express their ideas on forums, and create web pages. An extension to these individual writing activities involves the incorporation of Internet resources into cooperative writing, where more than one learner produces a text jointly. The current study explores these issues in the use of wikis, and how wikis may be utilised in a group writing task. The paper describes a case study in a Hong Kong postsecondary institute where over the course of a month, groups of learners produced a report based on survey data they had collected. The outcome of the project was generally successful - in that groups produced more cogent documents than had previous groups who had worked in a pen-and-paper format. Nonetheless, a number of issues concerning the running of the project arose that need to be addressed for collaborative writing with wikis to be successfully implemented. While the study took place in a post-secondary institute, the use of wikis holds good across secondary level forms, with implications for their use at different levels discussed and elaborated.
很多教授英語為第二語言的教師漸漸認識協作式寫作在寫作教學中的作用。隨著互聯網上的資源發展，例如討論區及網路日誌，學習者開始適應網上寫作，及使用相關的支援工具。教師看到網上協作寫作的價值，逐漸將這些資源融合於英語寫作教學，籍此推動學生 (主要以個人方式) 寫電郵、在討論區發表意見及創作網頁。這種個人寫作活動的延展需要將網上資源融合於協作式寫作，即多名學習者合力創作一篇文章。是項研究探討使用維基於寫作教學，及如何把維基運用在小組寫作。這篇文章描述了在香港一所專上學院的個案。個案中幾個學生小組在一個月內以他們在調查所得的數據寫報告，結果令人滿意，這些小組比以往那些使用紙筆式寫作的小組創作的報告更佳。然而要成功地將維基運用在協作式寫作，我們有需要解決協作寫作所產生的問題。是項研究雖然探討專上學生運用維基寫作，然而在中學各級應用維基的情況也是良好的。本研究亦討論不同英語程度學生應用維基於寫作的效果