When I first moved to America at the age of 10, I had a difficult time learning English. As a native Korean speaker, it was challenging to translate and understand the syntax and grammar. However, I still enjoyed going to school and making small baby steps. I liked talking to my friends even though I could not understand anything, doing group projects, listening to my teachers talk, and just learning how to communicate. I was especially interested in learning more about grammar, different clauses, and structures. When I became fluent in English, I started learning Spanish in high school.
In high school, we were required to take a language course for two years, so I chose to take Spanish. It did not go as well as I thought, and I did not like it. The structure of the class did not fit my learning style. The teacher had a strong technical background (he was a computer science teacher), so he made the class very technical as well. For example, instead of incorporating visual learning activities and other discussion-based exercises, we would just have to memorize all the vocabularies, different phrases, and conjugations. After, we would get tested on the materials. His teaching style caused me to dislike the class and the language as well. I am still somewhat conversational today.
Based on my previous experiences, it seems like I was a "Language" learner, meaning I enjoyed talking, reading out loud, and most importantly, writing and journaling. I am motivated by books, records, and anything that creates opportunities for writing. Additionally, I loved writing reflections and summaries, as well as analyses. Furthermore, I seem to be a visual learner as well. I learn by reading or seeing pictures. I like to see what I am learning. I did not really like group discussions because I was not very confident in myself, so I did not encourage myself to speak out and participate. I knew that talking and practicing my English would enhance my skills, but I was afraid to make mistakes. So I disliked the fact that many of my classes forced me to talk in front of others. Like I have already mentioned, I am more of a "Language" learner, so activities that require reading, writing, and speaking would suit my learning style. For example, keeping a journal, reading then explaining or talking it out, and exploring the meaning of words would be some great exercises.
Based on the FIRE model, I seem to be more rational, insightful, and evaluative. I resonate with a lot of the points mentioned in those three columns, especially row 5. I enjoy being following theoretical frameworks and problem-solving. I do not necessarily think I am the best at it, but I have also been practicing case studies, which I enjoy. However, I also appreciate open-ended questions that create opportunities for intellectual discussions in small group settings. I should expand my learning activities by trying to be more factual like being open to having structured, technical, and detailed activities.
Comments
I also had a similar experience when I immigrated from South Korea to America. It was definitely hard to learn a brand new language but also to adjust to the unfamiliar social scene. Luckily, I had an awesome ESL teacher named Mr. Keeps who helped facilitate my English learning. I also started to take a different language after I became fluent in English. For me it was Chinese.