They may look very different from you.

They might do things that you would never do.

But that's their culture and you can't change anything. So just be nice and respect them. You probably also do things that they would not do.

Sharon Cheung

Port Regis Preparatory School

Don't be a parrot

I'm writing in response to the letter 'Intelligence x 7' (Young Post, July 17).

Nowadays, many people say that Hong Kong students are like parrots.

They just repeat what their teachers taught them, but they never think.

I think the main reason is that we don't know how to learn. We just go to school every day and sit there waiting for the teachers to feed us information. We never prepare for the lessons.

We need to learn not to only rely on our teachers and textbooks. It's important for us to learn how to learn. We should not only listen. We need to learn to think.

Tsang Tan-hei

Shun Lee Catholic

Secondary School

Language still key to communication

Recently, a small incident made me change my way of thinking.

I have a summer job at a bakery. One day, an English-speaking customer asked me something about the bread.

I tried very hard to understand what she said, but I couldn't help her and she left.

After that, I realised that it's important to understand and speak English. I regret not paying attention in English lessons, and that I didn't think English was important.

From now on, I will try my best to improve my English so I can communicate with people from around the world.

I hope it isn't too late for me.

Ding

Old technology can be more useful

The telephone and ICQ serve the same purpose. They allow people to communicate.

Using the telephone is fast, because you speak and the other person immediately responds, but you can only talk to one or two people at once.

Using ICQ allows you to communicate with many people at the same time, but it's slower, and sometimes you don't know who people really are.

So both have pros and cons.

But I think that using the telephone is a better choice as it can improve your speaking skills.

Mary Fong Siu-ling

Leung Shek Chee College

A lesson in

co-operation

Recently my class prepared for an English drama competition. I felt my group was hopeless, not because of the script, but because some of the members didn't co-operate.

Although some members worked hard, others didn't feel that the project was important.

Even though they didn't want to take part in the competition, I think the more important lesson was learning how to co-operate.

Rachel Wong Sin-man

Yan Oi Tong Tin Ka Ping

Secondary School

Think Logically

In Hong Kong, many students talk nonsense. If they don't know something, they make up answers that don't make sense.

The main problem is that the education system doesn't teach logical thinking.

This could have an impact on students as they grow up. They will have trouble presenting their ideas in a logical, sensible way.

I think the Education and Manpower Bureau should introduce logical thinking in secondary schools.

Students need to learn to think independently and logically.

Lo Tsz-chun

Law Ting Pong

Secondary School

Prevent teen suicide

Hong Kong has a high teen suicide rate.

Some experts say one of the main reasons is the pressure teenagers get from school. There is fierce competition for places in secondary schools and the eight universities.

Parents have high expectations of their children. As they want their children to become academic stars, they often send their children to tutorial centres.

This increases students' workload, and reduces the time they have for relaxation.

The lack of communication between parents and teens is another reason.

Most parents are so busy working that they don't have time to talk to their children.

The government needs to look into the problem of teenage suicide.

The departments concerned should take prompt action to tackle the problem.

Sally Huang

Methodist College