Since my presentation of my learning plan, I am able to read out words and know the Korean alphabet by heart—two things I thought were impossible. I remember when I was younger, my mother would try to get me to memorize the Korean alphabet, but it never stuck. And now, I can (slowly) read words! I’m still getting the hang of it because particles are quite a complex and a bit dull of an area because of all the nuances it consists of. But, definitely there have been major improvements to where I once was before the lessons.
I try to implement the stuff I learned in class when I speak to my parents, by trying to pronounce words properly—since I’m still not as proficient conversationally yet, it’s still difficult to hold a conversation. However, I feel a bit more confident when I do speak and don’t shy away as much to speaking up in Korean whether it be for a certain phrase or word. I also have tried to text more using Korean to my friends. It’s definitely convenient in knowing Korean words already, so now I try to type out the words that I would normally say in conversation in my messages. It has helped me gain a better comprehension in Korean vocabulary and when certain characters are used. It’s also nice because my friends always correct me when I do get it wrong, so I’m able to learn Korean now during interactions with friends. I’m unsure if the discussion on learning strategies has helped me as much because I’m already aware of what kind of learner I am and what I’m comfortable with, especially with learning a language. In regard to language structure, it has been quite interesting because it has helped me gain a better understanding in the purpose of each character within a Korean word. I enjoy being able to know the “why” or the purpose of things when I’m learning rather than memorizing information because I find myself to be able to retain information better and also creates a more enjoyable learning experience.
In reflection of the Korean language, I feel I have grown closer to my Korean roots. Language and culture, I believe, are heavily intertwined. There’s a whole debate whether language influences culture or if culture influences language, but I believe it’s a mix of both. On a similar note, there’s also the idea of relativism—language influences thought—or universalism—thought influences language; a concept I learned about during the linguistics chapter of my Cognitive Science class. In my opinion, I don’t think language is that black and white. Language is a complex structure that has greatly advanced society into where we are today. I do believe it affects our perceptions to some degree and that language helps maintain culture, but it’s too difficult to state that it’s one over the other. For example, the Korean language includes honorifics whereas English does not. In Korean culture, Confucianism is a fundamental part of society, shaping the moral system, the way of life, and so forth. One of its aspects include filial piety, in which it is important to display an attitude of obedience towards one’s parents; show love, respect, and support; and to display courtesy. Honorifics allow for this idea to be upheld and maintained in society.
In efforts to improve in my communicative competence, I need to properly establish a good foundation in grammar. I’m building up my vocabulary as our lessons progress, as well as in my daily life, but doing so has helped in better comprehension and communication. Therefore, in my plan, grammatical competence is heavily stressed upon along with discourse competence. Our main focus is really getting down the fundamental building blocks of the Korean language, so it’ll be easier to progress into the conversational aspect.
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