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PhD/MPhil Projects

Language and Communication has been designated as one of the University constituent themes for strategic research. As part of this strategy, the University has allocated a number of PhD and/or MPhil places in this area. The candidates are working closely with a team of university researchers and other higher degree students on language attitudes and practices in tertiary education.


The following are some current postgraduate research students and their research topics:

Name Research Topic Supervisor(s)
Ms Barbara Hennig
PhD candidate,
Faculty of Education/ German Section,
School of Modern Languages and Cultures
Motivations of Hong Kong Chinese Students Learning German as a Third Language as part of their Tertiary Education and Changes of their Motivations during their Learning Process Dr Chris Davison,
Faculty of Education, HKU
Ms Jin Jun
PhD candidate,
Faculty of Education
Students' Perceptions and Practices of Spoken English Interaction at an EMI University in Asia Dr Chris Davison &
Dr Matthew Clarke,
Faculty of Education, HKU

Dr Susan Bridges,
Faculty of Dentistry, HKU
Ms Kathy Leung
PhD candidate,
Faculty of Education
Supervisor-supervisee Expectations and Beliefs at HKU Dr David Bunton,
Faculty of Education, HKU

Prof Liz Hamp-Lyons, Faculty of Education, HKU
Ms Wang Xiang
MPhil candidate, Faculty of Education
Tertiary ESL/EAP Teachers' Perceptions and Management of the Relationship between Summative and Formative Assessment in Hong Kong Dr David Carless,
Faculty of Education, HKU


Completed projects

Name Thesis Title Supervisor(s)
Mr Xuesong (Andy) Gao From the Chinese mainland to Hong Kong: Understanding shifts in mainland Chinese students' English learning strategy use Dr Chris Davison,
Faculty of Education, HKU

Dr Phil Benson, English Department, Hong Kong Institute of Education
Mr John Trent Second Language Learners' Investment in Classroom Discourse: Developing a Multilevel Conceptual Framework Dr Chris Davison,
Faculty of Education, HKU
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