Post Final Reflection Paper (500 words):
Reflect on your learning experiences this semester.
(a) What insights have you gained about yourself as a language learner and cultural explorer? What did you find difficult? What have you enjoyed? How will you continue your learning?
(b) Which readings and learning activities did you find most useful? What would you like to learn more about?
I had a great language learning experience this semester. The combination of SDLC 105 and 110 classes gave me valuable cultural and linguistic insights. As a language learner, I found that learning a brand new language in older age can be difficult, but it is not undoable. I had a great experience in exploring my interests in terms of culture and language. I had learnt the languages I know at an earlier age, therefore starting a new one at 19 was an experience I won't regret. I found out that I am not very interested in how morphology or syntax work in the language, but rather I am more prone to practicing the language and slowly understanding its logic and the way it works. I also believe learning about the culture helps a lot in terms of understanding the language itself, since some phrases you hear from the target language have no direct translations. Reading texts, listening to music, or TV series everyday conversations are also very helpful when pursuing a language. I truly enjoyed working both alone and in a group with my classmates and language partner. I also loved to use several resources and eventually picking the ones I find the most useful.
I also enjoyed having classes with other language learners, although the difference of the languages we all learnt made it challenging to relate the concepts and the concepts to all of us. I enjoyed reading about bilinguals and the best ways to learn languages, although at the end, I believe most of us already knew which methods work the best for us personally, I also loved talking about culture shock and communicative competence, since those gave me some insights about how to understand my target culture better. I did like having presentations where we all reflected upon our interests and passions about certain languages and cultures. I believe my Linguistics class not only helped me understand my target culture better, but also helped in understanding other linguistic and cultural insights from a number of other languages.
I liked talking abut the basic structure of the languages and the cultural heritage of the languages that are on the verge of extinction nowadays. I found it a bit challenging to relate all the discussions to Turkish, but it was still interesting to hear about other languages. Professor's example from the Russian language helped me understand some concepts better, as Russian is my second language. This class motivated me to do research about the language and culture that I have been learning. My presentations helped me gain extremely valuable insights about Turkey and culture.
It was challenging to keep the track of all the journals and blog posts that I had to write, since some of the questions were repetitive, but I managed to not leave everything for the last minute.
Overall, both my courses were useful and helped me in my learning goals. I am hoping to visit Turkey in summer and use my knowledge in the country I have been learning about so much.
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