Learning Plan

[Yahui Wu]

My general aim for the self-directed Turkish class this semester is to be able to introduce my self and make basic conversation in Turkish fluently. To achieve this, I have set three specific smaller goals, whereby I could better stick to my plan.
The first goal is to fully absorb the basic pronunciation rule, including the phonetic symbols. I know that Turkish has 28 letters, which is different from English. Although the writing of some letter is the same as that in English, the pronunciations of those letters are different and could be easily confused with those in English. I hope that I could be able to read the Turkish words correctly even though I may not know the meanings, and to spell the words correctly when others say them. I think to achieve that constant practice is the best way.
My second goal is to be able to introduce myself fluently in Turkish and to do the basic greeting. For example, "my name is Nicole, and I am 21 years old. I am a senior at University in Richmond. I am majoring in Finance and minoring in art history. I plan to go to graduate school after graduation. I love Turkish culture, and I am learning Turkish recently. I am so attracted by the spectacular view in Turkey and I hope that I could visit Turkey one day." To achieve this goal, I need to understand basic grammar and learn some Turkish words. My Turkish teacher will help me with it, and I will begin to watch some Turkish movies or videos with English subscription, which could help me to learn it faster. Also, learning to some Turkish popular songs is a good way as well. Since I love watching makeup or beauty video on youtube, I will research this kind of Turkish video on youtube at the same time.
My third goal is to be able to make basic conversation in Turkish. Since I want to visit Turkey someday, I believe it would be convenient and interesting to talk to local people when I traveled there. I would like to be able to talk about the food, the weather, the Turkish culture, the art, and the fashion at the end of this semester. I need to expand my vocabulary in this period. I would also like to watch some documentary about Turkish history or nature in Turkish with English subtitle. I would like to make full use of the class time to practice the basic conversation with my Turkish teacher. I also hope that I could meet some new Turkish friends so that I could practice with them when I am not in class.
Overall, my interest in Turkish is more about communication tool rather than just reading and writing. Therefore, I will contribute more time to practicing listening and speaking in general. I hope that learning Turkish could help me to understand more about the Turkish culture and lifestyle.