Faculty Publications and Conference Presentations

<p>A phrasal verb (PV) is a type of formulaic language that is ubiquitous in informal English discourse but notoriously challenging for English language learners. With many learners struggling to develop knowledge of formulaic language, this study investigated whether they make measurable PV gains over time and which factors in a study-abroad environment facilitated the development of PVs. Seventy-five mixed-L1 foundation students in the UK were tracked over the first two terms in an academic year. They completed a productive PV test, a receptive PV test, an Updated Vocabulary Levels Test, a language contact questionnaire, and a social network survey when studying abroad. Using descriptive statistics, paired-samples t-tests, and mixed-effects modelling, the findings indicate that the participants made only small gains in PV knowledge in two terms of study abroad. Interestingly, they made larger gains in productive knowledge than receptive knowledge, suggesting that they consolidated existing knowledge more than acquiring new PVs. Overall vocabulary knowledge, PV corpus frequency, and language contact significantly predicted PV knowledge, while semantic transparency and L2 social networks did not. Overall vocabulary knowledge and L2 social networks predicted PV gains. This study reveals that the developmenet of PV knowledge is relatively slow and incremental during study abroad. Thus, high-quality L2 interaction may be necessary for international students to develop PV knowledge in such contexts.</p>

This essay examines the potential impact of paid-for or premium language models, where some students may be able to afford advanced models generating superior outputs while others could face inequities due to financial constraints. It explores how this dynamic can exacerbate the digital divide, challenge traditional as well as more recent assessment methods in language education, and discusses strategies that hold promise in navigating these complexities in the era of Generative AI within the context of higher education.

<p>The current research is an extension and partial replication of Köylü (2018. Comprehension of conversational implicatures in L2 English. Intercultural Pragmatics 15(3). 373-408.) and it investigates the development of conversational implicatures in third language (L3) Mandarin. More specifically, this study explores whether learners with a first language (L1) Cantonese and second language (L2) English background are able to comprehend implied meaning in L3 Mandarin. 14 L1 Cantonese L2 English L3 Mandarin participants with a high intermediate level of Mandarin proficiency took part in the study. There was also a control group of 11 native speakers of Mandarin. Quantitative results based on a 20-item audiovisual interpretation task demonstrate that the L3 learners of Mandarin were not on a par with native speakers of Mandarin in arriving at an intended implicature for the test items. A qualitative analysis of learner responses indicates that the learners' interpretation of conversational implicatures in L3 Mandarin, although usually successful, was also characterized by repetitions, literal comprehension, and recognition of a gap between the literal and the implied meaning, as well as unintended implicatures.</p>

<p>Generative artificial intelligence has emerged as a powerful technological innovation that is exerting a sweeping influence in the education sector. The rapid diffusion of ChatGPT in universities worldwide presents both opportunities and challenges to higher education policy and administration. This study seeks to examine students’ behavioural and perceptual experiences with the use of ChatGPT at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, which was among the first universities worldwide to introduce officially protected ChatGPT services. Launched in November 2023, a university-wide student survey sampled 680 students from both the Hong Kong campus and the Guangzhou campus in Mainland China. The results indicate significant usage of ChatGPT services among the students and a very high level of intention to continue that use. The students perceive ChatGPT to contribute positively to both their learning and career development. Significant variations were found according to gender, level of study, age group, discipline, and country/region of origin, in terms of the students’ experiences with ChatGPT. These results offer useful evidence for curriculum reform and the improvement of students’ AI literacy in higher education institutions.</p>

Teaching large language classes presents unique challenges in maintaining engagement and personalized instruction. This study explores innovative approaches through a qualitative case study of LANG1234: Professional Speaking for the Workplace, an English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course at a Hong Kong university designed to develop professional communication skills across disciplines in a large class size format. Grounded in the ESP principle of addressing learners’ specific professional needs, the course features modules on branding, crisis communication, and intercultural competence. Drawing on instructor reflections and course documents, the paper examines how co-teaching models, technology integration, and active learning strategies are deployed to overcome the constraints of the large-class format. Findings indicate that collaborative co-teaching, digital tools (e.g., Miro, Mentimeter), and structured interactions successfully foster an interactive, skills-based learning environment. The study also identifies key challenges, including instructor role ambiguity and the ‘disjuncture’ of teaching profession-specific content, underscoring the need for structured professional development to support ESP educators in effectively scaling interactive, communicative language instruction.<br/><br/>

<p>This article aims to bridge the research gap in understanding the dynamic and discursive nature of translanguaging spaces. It does so through exploring the temporal and interactional qualities of translanguaging spaces using a newly proposed space-centred systematic observation approach to analyze two cases from Kongish Daily, a Hong Kong Facebook page with 75,000 subscribers. By examining initial social media posts, responses, and related discourses at the core of the interaction and in surrounding events, we describe how spaces expand over time through incorporation of new sociocultural references. Results demonstrate how new networks of meaning are created through the expansion and interconnectedness of multiple spaces. Case 1 shows the expansion of the translanguaging space during engagement with a Kongish poem. Case 2 reveals how the expression "loong"and its network of significations developed across sociopolitical and temporal contexts. By observing translanguaging spaces longitudinally across timescales, this novel approach effectively captures their context-dependent dynamic qualities beyond static language and space constructs. It also shows the creative and critical potential of translanguaging to circumvent more powerful state discourses while camouflaging resistance. The study thus offers theoretical and methodological contributions regarding translanguaging spaces' interactional properties. It has implications for more adequately researching complex linguistic repertoires and translanguaging in diverse communities today.</p>

<p>Teacher emotions are vitally important for the classroom environment and students’ language attainment; however, studies concerning foreign language teaching anxiety remain scarce. This study examined foreign language teaching anxiety through administering questionnaires to 235 in-service teachers to investigate the impacts of educational stages and teaching experience on foreign language teaching anxiety. The statistical results show that secondary school teachers exhibit significantly higher levels of foreign language teaching anxiety than their primary counterparts, especially in ‘lack of student interest’ and ‘fear of negative evaluation’. Novice teachers are significantly more anxious than experienced teachers in the dimension of ‘teaching inexperience’, whereas no other differences are shown in other aspects. No interaction effects are observed between the two variables. Pedagogical implications for understanding foreign language teaching anxiety in different educational and experiential stages and corresponding anxiety-reducing strategies are discussed.</p>

<p>This longitudinal mixed-methods study tracked the informal language contact and phrasal verb knowledge of 21 Chinese foundation program students in the United Kingdom (UK) during the 2019-2020 academic year through three rounds of data collection. Because of the disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the study was able to capture the impact of a global crisis on the experiences of international students studying abroad and learning a second language (L2). Data from a Language Contact Questionnaire, a Study Abroad Social Network Survey, and semi-structured interviews indicated significant changes in their L2 use and social networks. Our findings showed that the students sharply reduced their L2 contact and increased their use of first language (L1) during the pandemic. Productive and receptive tests assessing phrasal verb knowledge revealed that the students did not make significant gains after the pandemic lockdown. The study suggests that significant changes in the living environment can directly impact students’ L2 usage and their formulaic language development.</p>

<p>Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI)-powered tools have become influential in the landscape of informal digital learning of English (IDLE). However, the psychological mechanisms underlying English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners’ intention to continue using GenAI in IDLE remain underexplored. Drawing on the cognitive appraisal theory, the present study examined the relationship between appraisals of language learning (control, intrinsic value, extrinsic value), appraisals of technology (usefulness, ease of use, risk), emotional responses towards the use of GenAI, and continuance intention. To this end, 503 Chinese university students completed a survey, and data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. The results showed that learners’ perceived control over the language was indirectly and positively related to their continuance intention. Their indirect relationship was mediated by higher perceived usefulness, higher perceived ease of use, or lower perceived risk, each of which was followed by increased positive emotions. Additionally, extrinsic value appraisal was found to be significantly and positively associated with perceived risk, which was then related to a decrease in positive emotion and continuance intention. Based on these findings, practical implications for EFL teachers on how to support learners in achieving a balanced and productive use of GenAI tools in IDLE are advanced.</p>

This study examines a redesigned peer observation of teaching (POT) framework in a Hong Kong university language centre. The framework offers multiple observation formats—self-observation, observing peers, and reciprocal observation—combined with peer dialogue and self-reflection to give teachers more autonomy. While existing literature lacks in-depth analysis of choice in teaching observations, findings indicate strong engagement with self-observation and peer observation, with many participants valuing reflective discussions and learning through observation. However, teachers suggested making participation optional and allowing observation reports to remain private. Overall, responses were positive regarding increased flexibility, with recommendations for incorporating ‘unseen observations' and a ‘just watching' approach. The paper concludes by advocating for professional learning communities and conversational networks to broaden the impact of teaching observations, fostering collegial development across the centre.