Yang, chi cheungchi cheungYangDr. KWAN Yu Hang, ChrisChrisDr. KWAN Yu Hang2025-09-042025-09-042016In Mirici, I. H., Erten, I. H., Öz, H., & Vodopija-Krstanović, I. (Eds.). (2016). Research papers on teaching English as an additional language (pp. 71-88). Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences University of Rijeka.9789537975272http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11861/24964Previous studies related to request strategies usually show that non-native speakers (NNSs) of English have inadequate pragmatic knowledge in making requests appropriately. For example, they use more direct strategies than native speakers (NSs). In this paper, the request strategies used by 47 associate degree students in a tertiary institution in Hong Kong, as Chinese learners of English (CLEs), in their 28 e-mails and 24 memoranda written for the ‘Communication and Presentation Skills’ course assignment were analysed by using an integrated analytic framework combining the move structure analysis (MSA) and the Cross-Cultural Speech-Act Realisation Project (CCSARP) coding manual. Overall, similar to the previous studies, this study shows that the involved CLEs seemed to make more direct than indirect requests. Although this tendency differs from the norm in the English-speaking world which generally favoured indirectness, at least to some extent the students, given their limited English proficiency, demonstrated some pragmalinguistic and sociopragmatic knowledge by using some strategies to cater to the addressees’ face wants. It is hoped that through explicit instruction and some ‘learners’ exploration’ tasks, followed by teacher’s feedback, learners’ consciousness to native speakers’ norm can be raised and their pragmatic competence in requesting can be gradually enhanced.enRequest StrategiesE-MailsMemorandaMove Structure Analysis (MSA)Cross- Cultural Speech-Act Realisation Project (CCSARP)Chinese Learners of English (CLEs)Book Chapter