Dr. KY WU

Lecturer

Email
lckywu@ust.hk
Telephone
2358-7890
Room
3358

I specialised in linguistics and education studies. Before joining HKUST, I taught language and teacher education courses at various other higher education institutions. At HKUST, I teach EAP/ESP courses to undergraduate and postgraduate students. I also teach on the MA program in International Language Education. My teaching interests include discipline-specific language instruction and materials development, and I have co-developed task-based materials for a suite of courses for senior year engineering students majoring in different engineering disciplines. My academic interests are technical communication and academic writing, areas in which I have published. I am an invited reviewer for journal manuscripts. My previous projects included publishing two practice books on writing skills for upper secondary school students, and co-leading a UGC-funded project on Mastering the Technical Vocabulary of STEM. A forthcoming publication explores the role of classroom instruction in analytical writing performance.

Professional Interests

  • Academic writing
  • Genres in higher education
  • Language pedagogy
  • Academic and specialized vocabulary
  • Materials development

Scholarship

2023 Journal Publication

Cross-faculty cooperation in an ESP course: Issues arising in the COVID pandemic

Carmichael, S., Wu, K. Y., & Anita, C. H. A.

STiLE - Scholarship of Teaching in Language Education

This paper reports on a small-scale study which investigates the effect of the disruption caused by the COVID 19 pandemic on the effectiveness of language instruction and cross-faculty cooperation for two cohorts of undergraduate students in Spring 2020 and Spring 2021. We used textual analysis, subject faculty interviews and student interviews as our instruments. The study found no significant impact on student performance from the increased time gap between language instruction in report writing and the application of those skills in a lab report written for a course in the students’ major. However the disruption of the pandemic exacerbated gaps in cooperation between the language teachers and the subject faculty. The paper concludes with some practical recommendations and observations about collaboration between subject departments and language educators.

2022 Book Review

Book review of "Grammar: A linguists' guide for language teachers"

Wu, K.Y.

JALT Journal

Wu, K.Y. (2022). [Review of the book Grammar: A linguist’s guide for language teachers, by T. Rankin & M. Whong]. JALT Journal, 44(1), 198-201. https://jalt-publications.org/sites/default/files/pdf-article/jj44.1-reviews.pdf

2022 Conference Presentation

Syntactic complexity and writing quality in students’ technical writing

Lee, J., Wu, K.Y., & Lee, E.

Online and Thailand

With Joyce Lee and Eric Lee.

Paper presented at the 41st Thailand TESOL International Virtual Conference, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Online & Thailand, 21-22 January 2022.

2022 Journal Publication

Syntactic complexity and writing quality in students’ technical writing [Journal article]

Lee, J., Wu, K.Y., & Lee, E.P.C.

THAITESOL Journal

Lee, J., Wu, K.Y., & Lee, E.P.C. (2022). Syntactic complexity and writing quality in students’ technical writing. THAITESOL Journal, 35(2), 22-35. https://so05.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/thaitesoljournal/article/view/261827/176041

2021 Conference Presentation

STEM vocabulary resources: Giving technical words the attention they deserve

Wu, K. Y., Ng, I., Har, F., Lee, J., Wong, J., & Yu, A.

The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Colloquium presented at the HKCPD Hub Virtual International Conference, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 8-10 January 2021.

2021 Conference Presentation

Remote teaching during the pandemic: The case of an ESP course for engineering students

Au, A., Wu, K.Y., & Carmichael, S.

Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

Paper presented at the Third International Conference on English Across the Curriculum, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, 20-21 May 2021

2021 Working Paper - Peer Reviewed

Exploring the effect of task-based language teaching on students’ analytical writing.

Wu, K.Y.

International Journal of English for Specific Purposes
2021 Conference Presentation

Developing materials for learning STEM vocabulary

KY Wu

Japan/online

Wu, K.Y. (2021). Developing materials for learning STEM vocabulary. Paper presented at the JALT CUE 2021 Conference, JALT CUE SIG, Japan, 11 September 2021.

2019 Conference Presentation

Helping science and engineering undergraduates to master technical vocabulary

Wu, K. Y., Ng, I., Fung, J., Yu, A., Tse, A., Lai, Hannah, & Har, F.

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong

Colloquium presented at the HKCPD Hub Continuing Professional Development Symposium, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, 5 June 2019.

2018 Journal Publication

Impacts of discipline-specific language instruction on the academic writing of civil engineering students

Wu, K.Y., & Carmichael, S.

Asian Journal of Applied Linguistics

Wu, K.Y., & Carmichael, S. (2018). Impacts of discipline-specific language instruction on the academic writing of civil engineering students. Asian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 5(1), 19-35.

2018 Conference Presentation

Effects of task-based instruction on undergraduates' analytical writing assignments: An exploratory study

Wu, K.Y.

Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

Paper presented at the Second English Across the Curriculum Conference, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, 5 December 2018.

2017 Article

Teaching analytical writing: A scaffolded approach

Wu, K.Y.

IH Journal
2017 Conference Presentation

Academic writing: Impacts of discipline-specific language instruction

Carmichael, S., & Wu, K. Y.

The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Paper presented at the Faces of English Conference, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2 June 2017.

2016 Conference Presentation

Evaluating the impact of discipline-specific instruction on student academic writing in Civil Engineering

Wu Kam Yin and Sarah Carmichael

3rd English Scholars Beyond Borders (ESBB) International Conference, Providence University, Taichung, Taiwan, May 20, 2016
2015 Conference Presentation

Language curriculum design for engineering students: How specific can it be? International Conference on the Development of English across the Curriculum

Sarah Carmichael, Wu Kam Yin and Joyce Lee

Hong Kong Polytechnic University, December 2015
2013 Working Paper - Peer Reviewed

Designing and evaluating a genre-based technical communication course, incorporating a task-based model of instruction.

Carmichael, S. Wu, KY & Lee, J.

Hong Kong Journal of Applied Linguistics 14, 2 (2013); pp.20-44.
2012 Conference Presentation

Designing a technical communication course: From conceptualization to evaluation. Symposium: Research into Practice in the Four-year Curriculum

Sarah Carmichael, Wu Kam Yin and Joyce Lee

The University of Hong Kong, June 1, 2012
2011 Conference Presentation

Issues in Course Design and Materials Development for a Technical Communication Course

CARMICHAEL, Sarah with K. Y. Wu

Hong Kong: Hong Kong Polytechnic University 7th International Symposium on Teaching English at the Tertiary Level, 13-14 October 2011.
2010 Commercially published teaching materials

Skill Smart: Writing. Vol. 2.

Lee, I., Wu, K. Y., & Curtis, A.

Educational Publishing House

Lee, I., Wu, K. Y., & Curtis, A. (2010). Skill Smart: Writing. Vol. 2. Hong Kong: Educational Publishing House.

2009 Commercially published teaching materials

Skill Smart: Writing. Vol. 1.

Lee, I., Wu, K. Y., & Curtis, A.

Educational Publishing House

Lee, I., Wu, K. Y., & Curtis, A. (2009). Skill Smart: Writing. Vol. 1. Hong Kong: Educational Publishing House.

2009 Book Review

Language Acquisition and Development: Studies of Learners of First and Other Languages: Book Review

Wu, K.Y.

ELT Journal

Wu, K. Y. (2009). Book review of “Language Acquisition and Development: Studies of Learners of First and Other Languages”. ELT Journal, 63(1), 84-86.