Spring 2024 - Monthly Language Learning Journal 4

I am currently working on my final cultural research presentation and my final podcast with my language partner. I am planning on presenting about the influence of Buddhism in Korea. My presentation will start with the origins of Buddhism and how it spread across the country. I will present some of the major Buddhist sites that have survived to this day. I will also describe Buddhism’s lasting influence on Korean society, as well as define common Korean words and phrases that relate to Buddhism.

These last few weeks I continued to meet with my partner to hold conversations in Korean. At the beginning of this semester, I was hoping that I would be at a more advanced conversation stage by now. Nevertheless, I am happy with my progress and look forward to continuing my learning after graduation. I believe that my Korean conversation is more fluid than it was at the end of Fall, although it still has a long way to go. I have also learned many new vocabulary terms and phrases that I have kept track of in my notes.

I also recently explored some new language learning techniques on my own. I dedicated some time this week on Naver to read news articles, blogs, and even look at financial charts. Naver is considered the ‘Google of South Korea’ and handles roughly three quarters of the web searches in the country. Navigating this web portal was at first very frustrating given my slow reading, but it was also very interesting to explore the Korean side of the internet. I will certainly be using this more in the future, both to improve my Korean language skills but also to stay updated on Korean news.

Another activity I worked on was simply watching Korean broadcast news on YouTube. I quickly discovered that this required advanced oral comprehension. With my current level and with the help of the images and videos displayed on the screen, I was at the very least able to understand many of the main points of the stories. One video I watched recently discussed the Korean Baseball Organization or KBO’s recently adopted Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) system. Recent blatant errors involving this new system and KBO umpires has caused controversy over the introduction of this robotic umpiring technology.

Watching news is a relatively easy way of learning Korean on the go or in between other tasks. One or two videos several days a week can keep me informed on Korea and also help me sharpen my listening skills.

After graduating this semester, I am planning on continuing to speak in Korean as often as possible with my friends. At the very least, I will aim to have 1-2 hours of conversation a week. I also plan to incorporate Korean news into my regular morning and evening news reading routine. I will also try to occasionally browse Naver during my free time. Of course, I will always keep my mind open to new learning techniques.

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Comments

  • I really like how you are exploring the religious aspects in Korea! There is so much to learn from different religions and the influence they bring to Korean society. Naver is such an amazing source for learning Korean! It is probably the most used online platform in Korea.

  • It sounds like you've really immersed yourself in learning both the Korean language and culture! Your project on Buddhism's influence in Korea sounds fascinating. It’s great to hear how you're utilizing different resources like Naver and YouTube to enhance your skills. Keep up the dedication, and I’m sure your fluency will continue to grow!

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