The challenge of academic writing for Chinese students within ...

much in the first year except I made some friends and saw a lot of things I had never seen.
The second year was much better, my life was gradually back to schedule. Especially thanks
to my girlfriend, who always woke me up when I was wandering.
When I heard about the opportunity to come to Liverpool Hope University, I was extremely
passionate. I knew that it would be a challenge to me for my parents might not have enough
money; I might face a lot of difficulty when I was abroad. But I was determined, so were my
parents. My dream was waken up. I will work hard and earn myself a bright future.
Maxine
Age Gender Degree subject(s) Length of
study in UK
to date
21 Female BA Business and
English Study
Hometown (on Fig
5.1)
Notes
One year No.2 Participant of a ‗2+2‘
exchange programme 13
I come from a booming modern city called Shenzhen, which is next to Hong Kong. Strongly
influenced by Hong Kong and the West especially in terms of culture and economy, it has
everything a metropolis has except its scale (it is the size of Hong Kong but when compared
to Shanghai, Beijing, it is just tiny). My parents came to Shenzhen when they were offered
work opportunities because of their relatively high education (undergraduate and
postgraduate degree) and from then on my family settled down.
Figure 5.4: Maxine‘s perception of her own learning experience from the ages of 6 to 21
13 Her Chinese university has a ‗2+2‘ exchange undergraduate programme (2 years study in China plus 2 years
in the UK) with his university in the UK.
123