Saves Hong Kong Students from Awkward English

出自香港新聞網 - 樹仁新傳系學生實習習作

Learning English has always been a nightmare to many students in Hong Kong. Not to mention the tedious grammar exercises, have it frightened students away. Loss of interest in learning English leads to decline in English standard in return. But some experts allocated the problem and introduced an innovative way to redeem students from English panic – to learn with movies.

James Yiu Po Kwong, the head of English Channel in Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) who according to The Asian Wall Street Journal, has a mission to save Hong Kong students from the awkward textbooks English. Yiu has been now dedicated for movies and TV drama series translation. He proposed learning native regional English through movies and TV Programs. Taking “Sex and the City” as example, the phrase “Rain Check” which in fact, means “I will go with you the next time!” Such local usage of English can only be found in dramatic scene. Students can improve their language proficiency only when they understand the situational meaning.

Yiu also criticized that the English proficiency of Hong Kong people is declining due to the inappropriate ways in learning English. He explained, “The Hong Kong Education System focuses only in traditional textbook English while neglects the flexibility of English usage.” When he was asked about his years of self-learning, he had words for the students, “Be confident!”