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Cultural Topic of Your Choice: Hanbok

            Hanbok is a type of traditional Korean clothing from the Joseon period (1392-1897), and the word literally means “Korean clothing.” It was originally designed for the sake of moving easily, and its design has changed very little from the first hanboks. Hanboks are known for their clean, simple lines meant to flow, and for their bright colors meant to represent to the five elements: white for metal, red for fire, blue for wood, black for water, and yellow for earth. Traditionally, color could also be representative of a person’s social or marital status. Material could also be indicative of social status.

Hanbok can range from semi-formal to formal and, although it was everyday-wear during the Joseon dynasty, today it is usually worn for special occasions such as a wedding or the Lunar New Year. The is also a day established in 1996 created to encourage people to wear their hanbok. A woman’s hanbok has a jacket-like shirt (jeogori) and a wrap skirt (chima), whereas a man also wears a jacket but with loose pants (baji). Children’s hanbok consist of a jacket, vest, cloth hat. Children traditionally wear hanbok while celebrating their first birthday. There are other garments that can be worn in addition to the basic hanbok for style or warmth. 

State your learning goals for this week and how you went about accomplishing these goals

            My focus this past week was to learn how to read, write, and say the Korean alphabet. Going into this goal, I imagined that it would be rather simple to accomplish. I was wrong. It was easy to understand how to build a sound from individual letters since it’s similar to how the English alphabet works; However, there are certain sounds associated with the Korean alphabet that I have never encountered before, and that’s where challenge of this goal lays. The are some differences between sound units that I can’t distinguish very well, and therefore, can’t imitate very well either. Because of this, I’ve had to work through the alphabet more slowly than I originally anticipated. As of right now, I’m still focusing on simple vowels and consonants, and I will move on to the complex ones. If I keep studying and practicing regularly, I expect to incorporate the rest of the alphabet sometime this coming week.

            Along with in class time and class notes, I’ve been using apps to help work towards this week’s goal. I use Duolingo for identifying the letters and for hearing their sound. Memrise is useful for listening and pronunciation because it incorporates clips of native speakers saying particular words and phrases. Between the two, I can track my progress and see what letters, words, and phrases I’ve mastered or need to work on. In addition, having Youngmin repeat words and correct my pronunciation has helped me progress faster and more accurately than I think I could have done completely on my own.

            Next week, I will work the complex set of syllables into my study set, and I’ll keep working towards mastery of the simple set. 

Do some research about the culture of your target language and write about the 'linguistic aspects', e.g., body language, how people talk about time, etc.

In general, Korean culture and language has been influenced by both China and Japan. Historically, similar aesthetics and motifs pop up in the art and culture of all three nations. The similarities between these countries even include shared words and grammatic patterns. As the west adopts things from Asian cultures, Korean culture also reflects aspects of western culture, as seen with the incorporation of words from western languages, the appreciation of western style, music, and so on.

            From what I’ve read, it’s clear that the Korean language and how people use it adheres to the societal expectation of speaking with a level of respect fitting for the receiver. Levels of respect are commonly expressed through honorifics and chosen conjugations when speaking. One source stated that it is considered ‘poor etiquette’ to say refuse an offer and that a conversation may keep going until the offer is excepted to avoid a rude ending. In regards to nonverbal communication, it is polite to use both hands to give or receive something and to hold your right arm with your left arm while doing so. Different angles of bows also denote respect. 

In addition to discussing the resources (see above: In your learning journal for this week, discuss how BYKI, Mango Languages, and what you have bookmarked in Diigo may be useful to you. In your learning journal for this week, discuss how you may use at least two of these resources.), outline how you have begun to work on your first language tasks. 

Diigo is very useful for keeping track of the useful sources I’ve found by saving them all in one place. With Diigo, I can go ahead and find several sources at once, and then go back to them when I have time. Its app is also convenient for studying anywhere at any time. Mango Languages offers a regimented approach to studying languages, which is a helpful guide for keeping me on a reasonably paced, consistent study track.

            This past week I have started to learn how to read, say, and write the Korean alphabet. Four other students and I have been studying this material with Youngmin over the course of 2 or 3 class sessions. In addition to in class practice, I’ve been reviewing material received from Youngmin, and I have been using apps for daily reading and listening practice. Apps such as Memrise and Duolingo have helped keep me on track with daily reminders to practice and have provided incentive with daily goals.

            Going forward, I already know that I need to create a more rigid study schedule. I think my study patterns are too irregular, varying between skipping one day and devoting more time than necessary to one study session. I’m working towards incorporating a 20-30 minute Korean study session to my daily routine. 

My%20Learning%20Plan%20-%20Zach%20Stewart.docx

During my first meeting with my language partner, we discussed my learning plan and the main goals that I had for this semester. We spent the learning session specifying which type of goals I wanted to accomplish and how to work towards them. For example, we looked over my “pre-test” and noticed that I may want to work on grammar, such as particles. For each session, we are planning to learn some new vocabulary and have a short grammar lesson tackling different issues.

We also wanted to evaluate my speaking skills, so we warmed up by having a conversation with each other about how our summers were. I noticed that I was doing fairly well, but I did stumble upon some words, which I had to ask my learning partner about. I wrote down those words and made an effort to review those words the following week. I would say that our first learning session went well because I was able to set goals and practice my speaking. I’m hopeful that our future learning sessions will go well too!

Please see my attached learning plan for SDLC 111 below!

Angella%20Lee%27s%20Learning%20Plan%20for%20SDLC%20111.pdf

• Do some research about the culture of your target language and write about the 'linguistic aspects', e.g., body language, how people talk about time, etc.

Last semester I was in enrolled in a course called Cross-Cultural Management in the business school, and we actually learned a lot about the culture and behaviors of Koreans in the workplace. We discussed the various models such as Hofstede’s model in class, and I was actually part of a group that presented on Asian culture. Koreans tend to be very collectivist in nature. They stick together, and make decisions as a group, tending to not separate their opinions from those from others’ or their bosses’. They are also monochronic, they begin and end things on time and as listed in programs, and they are almost never late without a good reason. Asian culture in general is very indirect. Koreans feel uncomfortable about giving direct negative advice or asking for something out right, they find a way to word sentences in a positive note. In general, Koreans keep to themselves in public and in the office. Without being prompted, most Koreans are quiet and subdued, taking their time to be polite to everyone and everything. This being said, Koreans also accept the hierarchical order of society. They do the work that they are told to do, and accept the direction of their supervisors and the older generation, without the questioning that would be common in Western societies. Korea is a not a very individualistic society. Furthermore, Koreans lead their lives looking towards the long-term, making decisions based on the impact of society in the future, and the direction in which they desire their lives to go to.

As I learned in my class, Korean culture is a stark contrast to American culture, as we act the opposite in every single aspect I have described so far. It is also important to note that societies and attitudes change. I think that while the old generations of Koreans are very much adherent to the standards I discussed, that geographic location, education, and the liberalness of young people may make these standards incorrect. I don’t think all people can be put down under the same behavior models, but as I also learned in my class, as behavior changes, models will change as well.

**Summarize your assessment and goals in a blog post in your learning journal.

According to the Levels of Competence, I would rate my speaking as intermediate-developing 2 because I am most confident in speaking in Korean. However, I am not at the advanced level because I can always increase my vocabulary and make my speaking more clear and fluid. I would rate my reading and writing on the same level of intermediate-developing 1 because I am not so strong at these skills. I would say that I am better at reading than writing Korean, but both skills are weaker than my speaking abilities.

Through SDLC 111, I want to develop my speaking, reading, and writing skills in Korean. My main goal is to use these skills to help me when I try to study abroad at Yonsei University next semester, which is why I will be learning vocabulary about Korean campus structure and the geography of South Korea. I will practice my reading skills by reading articles and short books, while I can work on my writing by learning about grammar and spelling words correctly. I will dedicate 2 hours on Monday to work on these goals with my learning partner, and I will plan out other times during the week to practice!  

One of the most interesting passages from the reading was how it is easy to forget the complexity that is involved in saying something as simple and easy as "How are you? Fine. Thanks." Spitting those words out might take only a few seconds, but how several neurological steps are necessary for this to happen is very fascinating. Another interesting point that was very new to me was that tongue slips are not random because the word containing the slip and the word that influences it are found within the same grammatical construction. Before reading this article, I always thought it was just a random mistake that has no meaning or reason behind it. So this article helped me understand that learning a language engages many different parts of a brain in various ways, and there is almost nothing in language that just occurs coincidentally or for no reason. 

What stood out to me the most from the chapter about meaning is that it is important to look at different languages because focusing on just one language is likely to prevent the learner from being open-minded about how there could be several different ways of talking about the world and from understanding the difference between sense and reference. I could relate to the passage that talked about how in English, we don't have separate words to mean "mother's brother" or "father's brother" while Australian language does. Korean also has different terms to refer to different people in the family. So this passage taught me that while my target language is Korean, I should be open-minded about how other languages work so that I have a broader spectrum of understanding the world. Also, this article reminded me of the importance of vocabulary and structure work together to convey meanings. I will be remembering this point as I try to learn more advanced levels of vocabulary in Korean which is my weakness because my breadth of vocabulary in Korean is very limited and rather elementary. So while it is important to learn vocabulary, I will try to do so by using them in context or reading them in context so that I have a better understanding of polysemic words.

• Summarize your assessment and goals.

I think I am in the level of Beginning 2 (Novice Level) according to Levels Of Competence. I can understand phrases and commonly-used vocabulary related to areas of personal relevance including basic personal and family information. I am able to catch the main point in short, simple messages and announcements. My reading skill is in higher level than my writing and listening skill. I think my listening skill is Beginning 1 that I can only understand what I have learned in class or by myself. 

This semester, I want to improve my reading skill by practicing to read a menu at the restaurant, a children's book, news headlines and store signs. For my listening skill, I will watch/listen to Turkish pop songs' music videos, and news. I will also work on dialogues with my classmates twice a week. My language partner will guide us to practice dialogues like talking on a phone and ordering food at the restaurant. I will spend 2 hours a week (Mondays and Wednesdays) with my Language Partner and classmates. My Language Partner, Gokhan, will give me a feedback while I am studying independent to the classes (2+ hrs on Sundays for studying vocabularies - at least 15 words, 2 hrs on Mondays for reviewing, and 2 hrs on Wednesdays for reviewing). 

Here is My Learning Goals Fall 2017.docx.

In addition to discussing the resources, outline how you have begun to work on your first language tasks.

I have downloaded BYKI but I am not 100% how to use it yet. I could not find an accessible page to start learning the language. Aside from this, I have mainly been using Mango languages as well as a couple vocabulary lists (which I annotated in my Diigo) that I found on Google in order to learn the necessary introductory vocabulary. I am looking forward to using these resources because they will create a good foundation for me in the language. Thankfully, all of the resources with the exception of the vocabulary list that I found on Quizlet have an auditory component to them, so I will be able to mimic the sounds to the best of my ability as a starting point for developing my listening and speaking skills. My plan is to first use Mango languages and the vocabulary lists to familiarize myself with some of the words. Then, I will start using Duolingo to complement the study to develop some writing skills as well as my comprehension of words in sentences. I have begun to write down the words that I learn in my Turkish notebook. More specifically, I have written down classroom/life survival language vocabulary and introductions. I will continue to write down newly learned words in order to find patterns in the language.   

What kind of language learner am I?

I have always been an enthusiastic language learner and have developed fast language learning skills since I was a child. My native language is Armenian and as can be expected, I started to learn it right after I was born. At a very young age, I started to pick up Russian as well, because Russian TV channels, music, movies and cartoons were a huge part of my life. The same way, I started to learn English from the 2nd grade but unlike Russian, I  used multiple language learning websites, chat rooms, dictionaries, internet articles and even had a private tutor. This being said, I am familiar with several ways of language learning and I would say that, listening to the sounds of the language is the most important part in learning it and that is how I managed to learn some Spanish as well. Once I am familiar with the words, tenses, popular sentences, I am more likely to memorize their meanings. 3 languages that I am fluent in are immensely different from one another, therefore, I consider it a huge advantage to have been able to pick up 3 languages of different kinds. I realize that the language that I will be learning(Turkish) will require a lot of responsibility and precise time management, as it is also very different from the languages I already know. I have always practiced the auditory, tactile and visual styles of learning and all of them have equal advantages for me, although auditory remains my favorite one. I have noticed that expanding one's language vocabulary always helps to pick up the language easier, therefore I am going to try to learn as many new words as I can using auditory and visual resources, such as language websites with pronunciation and vocabulary flesh cards. The surveys I took recommended using pictures and journal writing in order to fasten my language learning procedure. I also think that practice helps me a lot, therefore intensive practice with my language partner and classmates will be my mane tool of remembering words and expressions faster. Overall, I think Turkish is a very interesting language and putting some effort into it, will be both enjoyable and academically fun. 

Picture taken from: 

http://www.linguaschools.com/blog/2015/07/28/how-learning-a-new-language-can-change-your-life/

Summarize your assessment and goals in a blog post in your learning journal and on the first page of your learning plan.

I have little to no experience in speaking this language. I did not have much exposure to what the language sounded like before starting this class. Over the past couple of days, I have watched a few videos on YouTube and listened to a podcast that taught a few basic introductions, such as “hello”, “my name is…”, and “nice to meet you”. By the end of the semester, I hope to establish a very strong foundation in the language in terms of pronunciation and grammar so that I would only have to learn new vocabulary and idioms continuing on.   

Reflect on the readings. How does this knowledge help you shape your language learning process?

I thoroughly enjoyed the readings because they gave me another perspective of language learning that I have not considered before. For years, I have wondered about the specific role that the brain plays in the processing of information and I believe that the first reading effectively addressed my questions. I find the topics that the author discuss incredibly fascinating, especially when he or she references the importance of cooperation or lateralization of the two hemispheres in order to communicate. It is outstanding how our brains are able to execute so many processes simultaneously! I previously did not consider all of the small-scale elements such as syllables and phonemes and its role in speech production. 

Furthermore, I love how the author contextualizes the meaning of words and simultaneously references languages other than English that have more specific words for certain situations. For example, the reading mentions how the Australian language Pitjanjatijara have different words for a mother's sister and a father's sister while English does not. This made me reflect on my studies of Mandarin Chinese because Chinese has different words for relatives on the dad and mom side as well. Learning this through the reading has made me realize that there are going to be a lot of linguistic components in my target language that are not going to make sense to me or that will be different from what I am used to. I am excited to explore these differences. 

In addition to discussing the resources (see above), outline how you have begun to work on your first language tasks.

One resource that I would definitely utilize in the Global Studio is the Korean language textbooks that are available. Since I would like to learn Korean, I believe that it would be best if I utilized a pragmatic way to approaching to learning the language as opposed to my freestyling my way through it. With the help of my TA, I would like to use the textbooks to accomplish my goals for the semester.

The second resource I will definitely utilize is the movie room. I see this as not only a practical way to increase my knowledge of the language and culture, but also as a fun activity that I could benefit a lot from. I could challenge myself to watch the movie without subtitles and summarize the movie after watching it.

Mango languages, BYKI are extremely useful learning guides for me, in that they provide a free software platform for me to able to learn Korean on. Mango helps me translate English phrases into Korean, as this is an extremely useful tool for me. Many of the times when I talk in Korean, I have to process what I want to say in English first, and then translate it into Korean. By utilizing this, I am not only able to expand my vocabulary, but become a lot more comfortable at translating what I want to say into Korean. The Youtube channel that I bookmarked on Diigo teaches how to say certain Korean phrases based on certain situations. It also expands my vocabulary, which is a primary goal of mine this semester. Another thing that I have bookmarked is a website that translates Korean lyrics in songs to English. This will be useful to me as I hope to listen to Korean music as a way to expand my knowledge in Korean, and I will be able to understand what the songs are saying.

I have begun to do my first language tasks by using the language learning channel on Youtube that I bookmarked on Diigo and what was available to me on the Mango site. I reinforced my knowledge on greetings, introductions, and farewells, making sure I knew how not only to spell it properly, but to say it both formally and informally, which is a vital aspect in the Korean language.

For the classroom life and survival, I used Mango to learn the basics of what is necessary. I am learning to translate certain phrases and increasing my vocabulary knowledge.  

This helps me understand that the process of acquiring a language is a multi-step process that occurs within my brain. There are localized regions within the brain that aid more towards language. For example, as a right-handed person, I’m more likely to use the left hemisphere of my brain to process my acquisition of language. There are a number of steps taken by the brain to process information within a language. Even within pronunciation of a word, the brain takes steps to spell out each sound. Although it is difficult to technically apply to this to my studies in Korean, it still helps to understand the basic structures of language, and how everything connects to the sounds we make to the meaning words have.

Another way that this can help is through the way we analyze meaning in certain words. This is done through collocation, and how words are defined by the context around them. An example, that the passage provides is the phrases “green with envy”. Even though green doesn’t correlate to envy, we can analyze the meaning of it based on the words it’s used with. This is why vocabulary is so important, and this can help me shape my language learning process by understanding more vocabulary and the phrases that Korean uses.

Lastly, by understanding that different languages have different lexemes, I can expand my knowledge of not only my language learning process, but understanding the cultures behind the language.