Abstract
This paper is based on interviews, followed by an online survey, in which tertiary students from Hong Kong, Japan, Mainland China and Singapore were asked to give their conceptions of their ideal English lesson. Factor analysis revealed three main types of lesson that different groups of students preferred. In order of overall popularity, they were: 1. The communication-oriented English lesson, in which the atmosphere is relaxed. There is plenty of active discussion and authentic materials are used. 2. The form-oriented English lesson, in which the teacher teaches new language items, corrects most grammar mistakes and spends some time revising grammar. 3. The transmission-oriented English lesson, in which the teacher pays a lot of attention to correct pronunciation, guides most of what the students do and corrects most grammar mistakes. Hong Kong students followed this overall order but differed from students in Singapore and Mainland China in the degree of their preferences. They liked communication-oriented lessons significantly less but they liked form-oriented and transmission-oriented lessons significantly more. These results (like those of an earlier study) suggest that, while Hong Kong students are generally well-disposed to recent innovations in teaching methods, they may be less so than students in some other parts of Asia.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - Dec 2004 |