Research Highlights

Writing under examination conditions presents significant challenges for secondary students, as success depends not only on subject knowledge but also on the ability to communicate effectively using discipline-specific language. Research consistently highlights the importance of disciplinary literacy, defined as the capacity to read, write, and express ideas in ways that align with the conventions of specific academic fields. This competence is essential for producing coherent and persuasive responses across subjects such as science, history, and the arts. However, there remains limited understanding of how students develop and apply disciplinary literacy in high-stakes examinations, particularly within the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (iGCSE).

The iGCSE is a widely recognised, English-medium qualification that serves as a key pathway to higher education in Hong Kong and internationally. With increasing participation across international, Direct Subsidy Scheme, and private schools, there is a growing need to better understand students’ writing development and how disciplinary literacy is enacted within this assessment context.

To address this need, this research adopts a corpus-based, data-driven approach to examine genre, textual organisation, and lexicogrammatical features across disciplines. The findings will produce the first comprehensive corpus of iGCSE student writing in Hong Kong, serving as an authentic resource for teaching, learning, and future research, and offering valuable insights to enhance educational practices.