Student Learning WOES (The ‘Wishes’, ‘Opportunities’, ‘Expedition’ and ‘Sustenance’)

Abstract

This paper reports on an investigation into the relationship between web-folios and English language acquisition at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HKPU). The project involved a cohort of Year 1 Engineering Students in 2005/2006 enrolled on an English course run by the English Language Centre (ELC) of the HKPU, with web-folio activities as an assessed component. Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions provided the main source of data, from which ten themes emerged, including the role of web-folio activities in language learning and in developing autonomy, and factors influencing web-folio implementation at university.  It is hoped that the findings of this project can contribute to the on-going dialogue about web-folio-oriented pedagogical practices and curricular considerations.