It is now the start of the Fall 2020 semester. This semester I will be taking SDLC 113. I will be working with Vivian this semester who is my language partner. This semester I am studying remotely, so we will be communicating through zoom. I have a lot of expectations for myself this semester, but I am optimistic that I will be able to achieve at least some of the goals I have set up for myself. Some of these goals include working on my pronunciation skills, learning how to read more efficiently in Korean, and to study more Korean vocabulary.
In addition, I am studying remotely this semester, so I am living with my brother and parents. I think this is beneficial for my Korean learning journey because both of them are native Korean speakers and we speak Korean at home. Though I would usually speak a mixture of English and Korean to them, I will try to solely speak Korean this semester, while I am at home. In addition, I mentioned this last semester for SDLC 112, I wanted to practice and get more immersed in the Korean culture. I wanted to engage in the cultural food of Korea. I wanted to familiarize myself with traditional Korean food and the significance of the food for the country. For example, a dish known for its historical significance is budaejjigae, which in English is translated to Korean Army Stew. This stew has a spicy rich broth with beans, sausage, onion, ramen, and rice cake. This stew was created by army members in Korea, who wanted to eat a stew but lacked the normal ingredients to make a proper stew. As a result, they grabbed whatever army rations they could find and created this stew. Now this stew is normalized in Korea and is enjoyed by many Koreans. Therefore, I want to engage and learn more about different traditional Korean foods and learn the cultural significance it had on Korea.
Since I haven’t started my lessons yet, I will talk about some of the things I did over the summer that helped with my Korean learning. I have begun to watch more Korean dramas over the summer. Though I had the subtitles turned on, I tried my hardest to not rely on them. I found that my ability to understand and comprehend Korean has significantly improved as I immersed myself more around programs that spoke my target language. In addition, I found that I was able to pick up on hidden Korean jokes that are not accurately translated in English. In addition, I have begun to listen to more Korean music. One artist I particularly enjoy is Sam Kim. Sam is a Korean American artist, but he is able to speak both languages fluently. While I listen to his music, I try my best to listen to the lyrics and try to understand what he is saying and what the lyrics are about. As I look forward to this semester, I will continue to engage in these activities to aid my Korean learning journey.
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