Hongkongers’ weakness in English-language writing, speaking persists in IELTS

Weaknesses in writing and speaking have persisted among Hong Kong students sitting an internationally recognised English test, with the candidates last year performing similar overall to those in 2022.

Mainland Chinese students in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) assessment also registered lower results last year, with scores dropping from 6.1 to 5.9 on a nine-band scale. Hongkongers’ scores were stable at 6.7.

The scale ranks candidates from “non-users” of the language at 1 to “expert users” at 9. Candidates who score 7 are considered “good users”.

Observers on Saturday attributed the performance by Hongkongers to their limited opportunities to speak or write in English, calling on schools to hire more native-speaking teachers and create a better learning environment.

Veteran English teacher Pauline Chow Lo-sai said the results simply reflected the difference in testing between the city’s Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) and the IELTS.

She said the speaking component of the IELTS mainly involved one-on-one conversations with examiners, instead of the group discussions held in the DSE.