I have been reading short articles online written by the newspaper Bisnis Indonesia. The above article is an example of the types of articles I have gone through. I like reading through the business articles because they discuss the cultural events that are happening in the country right now. Until now, I have only been able to see Indonesian culture from the perspectives of Bu Julie and textbooks, it is nice to have another source that is more current. The linked article above discusses a bribery scandal that is being investigated by the Indonesian government.
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I had the opportunity to translate an Indonesian passage for my friend. He was doing a cultural analysis of Indonesia for a business course and the article was in Indonesian. The article was about a page long, but I did know most of the vocabulary, as it pertained to the culture of Indonesia. I enjoyed the opportunity to use my language skills to complete a task that will benefit my friend’s project.
I have learned another negation word. Belum is used to say that you have not done a task yet. For instance, if someone asked you if you ate lunch yet, you would say, “Saya belum makan siang.” This demonstrates that you are going to eat lunch, but you have not done so yet. In addition to belum, masih belum is another phrase used in negation. Masih belum indicates that a desired state or event has not yet occurred.
I have continued to study through Duo Lingo and Drops. I am thankful for these resources as I will be able to continue using them after I graduate. Now that school is ending, our conversations have focused on graduation and what we will do after we graduate. This has further expanded my vocabulary and has kept me interested these last few weeks of school. I am going to miss this class, as I always enjoyed the meetings. As I think back to my first class with Thalia, I am amazed at how much I have learned in just three semesters. I am looking forward to going to Indonesia some day and testing my knowledge.
I have started to read a few articles in Indonesian. I have mainly looked at newspaper articles. Some of the vocabulary I am not familiar with, so I have been using an online dictionary. In order to help my comprehension, I first read through the articles out loud, focusing on my pronunciation. I then read through the text and scan for words that I easily know. I do this to try and infer the meaning of the article. After I have done this, I start to break the article down and look up words that I do not know. This has helped me expand my vocabulary to words outside of a friendly conversation. I have learned vocabulary that is common in business, politics, and culture.
I have started to write words down that I encounter that I think are useful. I have been writing down the words on note cards so that I can quiz myself at the end of the week. This has further enhanced my ability to recall information. I have also started watching films that have Indonesian. This has helped me with my pronunciation. Finally, I have started to say vocabulary out loud so that I can hear myself and try to correct my mistakes.
Classes are going well. Since I am the only student learning Bahasa Indonesia this semester, I feel like Bu Julie has made a tremendous effort to help me. In the previous semesters, I have always learned with other students, all at varying stages of knowledge of the language. Being able to have one-on-one discussions for the whole class period on my language skill has made me a better speaker. As Zach and Brad have much more experience with the language than I, it is nice to not have to abstain from conversations because my knowledge of the language is stunted by my inexperience.
Bu Julie has recommended another language learning program, Duo Lingo. This program allows for more study time. I have started to use Drops in the morning when I wake up for five minutes and at night after dinner for another five minutes. I use Duo Lingo during the day in between classes as there is no time limit to how often I can use the program. I feel like having all of these resources has helped me tremendously. I continue to learn more every day and feel like I am not having to relearn old material nearly as frequently as I used to. I feel like I am really progressing in my knowledge of the language and always look forward to class time.
Bu Julie has started to pull material from an Indonesian language book that she has to supplement my learning. This book focuses more on conversation. The book has common phrases for introductions, topics to discuss with strangers, and how to get around Indonesia. We are still using the book from the SDLC library for cultural information, pronunciation, and grammar. This seems to work well, as the book from SDLC does not offer as much information on important phrases. Bu Julie has also started assigning homework out of the SDLC book to help me prepare for the next week’s class. I believe this has helped me to stay motivated.
Bu Julie has continued to use submersion to help me learn the Indonesian language. Bu Julie has recommended that I use the Drops application in an effort for me to improve my vocabulary. I have found the app to be very useful. The app is sectioned into different groupings of similar vocabulary. I have started on the food section. So far I have been able to go through three of the different food sections. What I like about Drops is that it continues to bring old words back into the mix to help you retain that information as you learn new information. In class, we have used this vocabulary in our lessons. Bu Julie will ask me what types of food I like, what I will eat for dinner, and other similar questions to test my recall. I enjoy this strategy better than previous strategies. I like knowing what topics we will be covering in the class beforehand so that I can study the necessary vocabulary and practice pronunciation. This way, when I get to class, Bu Julie can focus on helping me form the sentences correctly.
Korea has a lot of television entertainment program which are distributed by JTBC,MBC,KBS and SBS. 아는 형님 is one of the most popular television entertainment program in Korea right now. The concept of 아는 형님 explores the high school concept where the cast members act as students in a classroom while the guests would come as newly transferred students which is really interesting to me because I know that Korean have really strict rules about how young people should treat elders. However, in this show, they treated each other just like friends at the same age regardless of their real ages. And expect this, the format of this show is also interesting. It is not only a talk show. The cast members will also play games with the guests and give them opportunity to show their talent. A lot of K-pop stars, actors, and singers say that they really like this show. So, I think instead of always mentioning running man, I should also introduce some television program with new concept in contemporary society.
The March First Movement also known as Sam-il (3-1) Movement( 삼일 운동) was one of the earliest public displays of Korean Resistance during the rule of Korean by Japan from 1910 to 1945. The name refers to an event that occurred on March 1, 1919, hence the movement's name, literally meaning "Three-One Movement" or "March First Movement" in Korean. This is the thing that my language partner tell me in the class. And she showed us a statue of Ryu Gwuasun. 유관순 was the organizer of March First Movement and became one of the most well-known participants in this movement, and eventually, a symbol of Korea's fight for independence. I learn that Match First is a really important day in Korea so I think it is important to know the background information of The March First Movement.
Culture Post #1 (Korean New Years)
Culture Post #2 (Miracle in Cell #7)
Korea has is the birthplace of webtoons, a comic characterized by having fully colored images. Korea has many web pages where you can read webtoons for free or for a fixed price. Webtoon is so popular in Korea that many dramas are actually based off of some popular webtoons that teens read. Being a webtoon artist/author is a full-time job and people can get famous off of their work. To further my Korean language enrichment, I actually tried reading a couple of Korean webtoons during my free time. I find them very fun and easy to read because the images help me with understanding what is happening in each scenario.
There has been a huge scandal in Korea regarding multiple big name celebrities being part of a group chat. This scandal lead to a re-investigation of the death of Jang Ja Yeon. She was an actress who committed suicide and left a note explaining that she was sexually mistreated by certain big name company CEOs and her own entertainment company. Although it was revealed that she committed suicide, some believe that she was murdered because she had the intention of revealing the corruptness of the entertainment industry to the public. Currently, Yoon Ji Oh, a friend of Jang Ja Yeon, believes that her death was not a suicide. The friend is a sole witness to the death of Jang Ja Yeon and has been risking her life to give testimonies about what she saw and experienced. Yoon Ji Oh has published a book explaining what Jan Ja Yeon has been through and has been the center of public attention recently.
Artifact #3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8swU0C0U4ec
Today, we went to a Korean restaurant to enjoy and bond over Korean food. The entire time we were there, we had to speak and order food in Korean without the help of Evelyn. While we were there, I got into an extensive conversation with the cashier lady. We talked about what school I am from and what major I was. I didn't know some of the Korean vocabulary that I wanted to use, so I tried explaining the meaning using other descriptive words. I order a well-known Korean dish called kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) and ate it with a variety of side dishes.
Accessibility in Korea is on a whole other level. Every corner you walk there are 24 hour convenience stores stocked up with pre-made meals, alcohol, and daily essentials. Additionally, if you didn't feel like walking a little bit to the nearest convenience store, the food delivery services will find you wherever you are. If you are walking by the Han River and start to feel hungry, you can order any food you want with an app and the delivery guy will find you. Whether it is fried chicken or just ramen, delivery will come to you and you don't have to pay tip! Korea also has an extensive subway system set up so you can virtually go anywhere you want. All of the lines are also government owned, so you only need to have one card to pay for the ride.
