I was first exposed to different languages during preschool, where I would hear english from my school but hear korean at home. Later I was exposed to another language of spanish in highschool. As a language learner I think I mostly enjoyed learning about a new culture that the language brings. I also enjoy experiencing how in the beginning a new language sounds so foreign and you cannot recognize any word. However, as time passes you start recognizing the sound of the language and understand. When I think back I cannot imagine how I felt back when I thought spanish was foreign now that I can pick up phrases that are spoken. It became another part of my identity.
I think one aspect I disliked about learning a new language was how hard the vocabulary was and how I needed to know a certain level in order to proceed to the next level. When I was learning Spanish in highschool, I did not like how my teacher would just move on to the next topic when I was taking time to digest and make the knowledge my own. Oftentimes, I found myself giving up in mastering the language but to learn enough to be able to complete school work.
According to one of the surveys, I found out that I am mostly a visual learner. Which means I understand and remember terms by visually seeing through pictures. When I read the list of advice given for visual learners, I was surprised to find how much I was already performing in real life. For example, I usually sit near the front of the classroom to see the board better. I also have thoughts that trail off to an image when I hear specific terms and I avoid distractions during study times. I think in the future I will try some of the other advice given such as using flashcards, drawing pictures to explain new concepts, or color coding my notes.
On the other survey, I found out that I have strength in music, body movement and social. I think when I am memorizing new words for a language, I should create a song or rhythm so I could keep it permanently in my brain. I think in the future I might use more body language to help me memorize vocabulary in unique gestures. My other strength was social and I tend to love talking to others. I think I should tell a friend what I learned or the words I find interesting to help me practice the language consistently.
After acknowledging how I learn best, I wanted to use those skills to improve and learn a language. Also, I decided to switch my perspective on how I view learning a language. When I read the articles, I noticed how a lot of people have misconceptions that adults cannot learn a new language. In one of the articles, the phrase “Do not aim for perfection” caught my attention because I did not realize how much I wanted to succeed and have a task perfectly accomplished. I think the most important task is to set a clear goal and find reasons to learn a language. This should be reminded because often it is easily forgotten. Furthermore, I learned that it was easier to learn a language by speaking to someone everyday. I realized that in the past, I always tried to learn spanish and never spoke it out loud with others. Since I have strengths in social, I think I will expand my learning activities by finding someone to talk to in the language I am learning. I will interact with a friend daily to make an environment where I could embrace my mistakes with pronunciations. I might try using mnemonics to memorize words and plan on having short term goals to make sure I feel proud of achieving a step in accomplishing a language. After these readings I really love how my perspective changed for tackling a language with a more positive motive.
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