The Hong Kong writing project: Writing reform in primary schools

Pupils in Hong Kong schools find writing in Chinese very boring. With regard to this phenomenon, the theoretically framework of ‘Hong Kong Writing Project’ aims to create an environment for language usage, and help pupils to learn how to write efficiently in a pleasurable environment. The project has been implemented in Hong Kong for five years, and the number of schools participating in this project is increasing. Theories of linguistics, psychology and language teaching serve as the project’s foundation and surveys were conducted after the end of the project. Results indicated that most pupils liked writing and did not consider it difficult. Compared with the traditional teaching method, pupils were considered to have performed better when taught by new teaching methods, especially the peer review strategy. The teachers also indicated that the Project helped them to have a better understanding of their pupils. Copyright © 2005 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.