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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.

This study investigated the effects of four different methods used to evaluate Chinese compositions of senior secondary students in Hong Kong, with a particular interest in examining whether any one method would result in improving students’ attitudes to writing (especially their willingness to revise) and increasing their writing achievements. A ‘pre-test/post-test’ experimental design was trialed to explore whether there were significant differences between the four evaluation methods used, i.e., detailed evaluation by teacher, evaluation by teacher using symbolic codes, evaluation by peers using a checklist and self-evaluation using a checklist. The subjects were 120 students from three Form Four classes of a government-aided secondary school. They were divided into four groups, each of which had their Chinese writing compositions evaluated by one of the above methods for six months. The results of the trial showed that the students in the ‘peer evaluation (checklist)’ group performed better in terms of taking the initiative in rewriting, their writing habits and their recall rate of revising. A post-study questionnaire survey of the students found that they generally held a positive attitude toward peer evaluation by checklist.

A number of studies have been conducted to investigate different aspects of the cognitive process of composing or the social context in which composing occurs. Few studies have, however, investigated the impact of a shift in the context of writing upon the cognitive process of composing and the strategies that writers employ. This chapter illustrates a study of the composing processes of two advanced ESL (English as Second Language) writers and the strategies they adopted when they wrote academic texts in two different contexts: the class setting and the home setting. The writers were asked to think aloud or verbalize all the thoughts that ran through their minds while composing. The composing sessions in the class setting were video-recorded while the composing sessions in the home setting were audio-recorded. The think-aloud protocols were transcribed, coded and analyzed in conjunction with the writing plans, drafts, time logs and process logs that the writers produced. The assignments produced in both contexts were also rated for coherence in text by independent judges. The findings indicated that the writers demonstrated awareness in making adjustments to their composing strategies in light of the shift in the context of writing. They did so through recycling or making adaptations to the strategies they had used previously as well as invoking ‘new’ strategies to facilitate the process of composing. In addition, the writers demonstrated different levels of strategic awareness in utilizing the resources available to them when they composed in the home setting and produced assignments with different textual qualities.

Almost all professors in Taiwan sigh and say, ‘the Chinese proficiency of university students is gradually deteriorating.’ This chapter aims to combine both teaching theory and teaching experiences. There are three parts in this chapter: (a) the current situation concerning freshman Chinese composition instructions; (b) a better quality of Chinese composition writing; (c) generating good student-teacher interaction through teaching composition. It ends with a conclusion stating the joy derived from teaching freshman Chinese composition. This chapter also targets at assisting those people who share the same enthusiasm and dedication, and offering a common platform for mutual sharing throughout the process of elevating the teaching quality of freshman Chinese composition.

This essay contemplates to trace the teaching of Chinese composition in Singapore from the 1970s to the present time. The chapter stated the lack of motivation, lack of composition writing skills and lack of knowledge as the greatest hurdles faced by Singaporean secondary school students. It also offered concrete teaching objectives and their corresponding teaching methodologies tailored for each level of secondary school students, in which the competence and skills approach stood out as the teaching principle as advocated by the Singaporean Ministry of Education. Categorizations were laid out in this chapter with regard to the different stages of essay writing and essay writing skills respectively. The author herself also shared her experience of teaching writing online via forums and postings in websites. Her conclusion was positive and optimistic towards the scientific approach of teaching Chinese composition.