Although the A-level examination is fast approaching, many students are so tempted by the delights of ICQ and online games that they neglect their education. For them, things such as English enhancement courses have little attraction.
'I like English, but I'm lazy,' admits 20-year-old seventh former Horace Lam Kai-fung. 'I'll play ICQ, or something else, as soon as I switch it [the computer] on.'
Although Kai-fung recognises the need to improve his English, he thinks he lacks the discipline to update his knowledge of the language every week.
Perhaps, having to pay would boost the incentive to learn, suggests Anthony Lo Wing-chak, the dean of studies at James Yiu English Club. That is why the club has established a pay educational Web site.
With a target audience ranging from kindergarten children to working adults, the Web site consists of six categories designed to enhance subscribers' knowledge of grammar, slang, phrasal verbs, idioms, memorisation techniques and jokes. There is also a choice of courses on a quarterly, six-month and annual basis, costing $580, $980 and $1,900, respectively.
Club founder James Yiu stresses the advantages of being able to 'speak like an American, not a Chinese'.
