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The sentence and word structure is significantly different to English. Koreans do not conjugate verbs using agreement with the subject. A reference to the past in Korean would be made through a single past tense. In English, there would be many other possibilities such as past simple, present perfect, past perfect continuous. The Korean language also uses a subject-object-verb grammatical structure. For example, I am learning Korean would be pronounced I am Korean learning. All this information can be found through some simple research online. There are many educational sites that teach these important concepts of the Korean language. I think a reference grammar would be beneficial in reinforcing the structural ideas of the Korean language. It would helpful in the beginning of learning the language because all the grammatical differences compared to English would be new to me.

• 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 South Korea, the meetings and greetings is very distinct from American culture. While in America and most other western cultures it is sufficient to wave or simply give a nod while passing by, in South Korea the traditional greeting is to give a bow. A bow may signify both a greeting, or a signal or respect or gratitude towards elders. In a similar manner, it is normal for men to shake hands in South Korea, whereas Korean women will simply nod at each other. Korean women do not shake hands with western men, but some women do shake hands with a Korean man.

When addressing a Korean professional, it is important to use titles such as “teacher” or “doctor.” These terms can be seen as the equivalent to “Mr” “Mrs” or “Dr” here in the western world. In regards to eye contact, sometimes direct eye contact with a superior (someone older than you) can be viewed as disrespectful, almost as though you are challenging them. 

Step One:  Assess Your Abilities

I have zero experience with Ukrainian. Up to this point, I have learned the alphabet, but that is all I know. I do have a background in Russian, so I think that my background with another Slavic language can help me in my Ukrainian learning process.

Step Two:  State Your Learning Goals

Because I will be spending next year in Ukraine, the most important thing for me to learn how to do is communicate through spoken language. While reading and writing are also important skills, I think that because I have a limited amount of time, I will need to focus on my speaking and listening skills the most. Ukraine is a functionally bilingual country, and since I speak Russian fairly well, I will be able to supplement my writing and reading gaps with my Russian knowledge.

Step Three:  Determine Tasks and Activities to Meet Your Goals

Tasks:

• Greetings
• Introductions
• Talking about myself and my family
• Date and time
• Ordering in a restaurant/ grocery shopping
• Film terms
• Swimming vocabulary 

In order to master the Korean language, I think I need to know how the grammar structure works and how language changes in different situations. From my previous knowledge, there are difference in how we may interact with peers and how we interact with those who are older, or more highly respected in the society. There seem to be invisible rules that outline how I may speak depending on those certain situations. In order to acquire this knowledge, I would have to search for a website or teaching video that writes these rules out. Just as in an elementary school, the English grammar is taught at younger ages to enforce the idea that grammar should come subconsciously, the grammar in Korean would be taught the same way. So moving backwards, I would have to find a site or rulebook that reinforces such ideas, and presents them in a learnable manner. I see a reference grammar being useful because it can help explain the basic concepts and rules behind the language. Being able to understand the structure to which the Korean language is structured would boost my knowledge of the language. 

BradFischerLearningPlanIndonesia.docx

The Korean culture has a large emphasis in respecting one's elders.There is a system of hierarchy that plays an important role in the culture.The level of respect based on age or social ranking is a lot more strict compared to America.  As a result, it is expected of Koreans to speak in a formal manner when interacting with someone who is older than them. The Korean language has a whole system of formal words that can be used to speak to ones' elders. It is also expected of one to bow or use two hands when greeting someone older. Even if the age gap is separated by only one year, one would need to behave formally to the older person. People do not call someone who is older than them by their first name. This would be considered very rude and informal. Koreans would only call someone by their first name if he or she is a peer or is younger than them. It is Korean etiquette to use both hands when handing something to someone who is older. These are some of the significant aspects of Korean culture.

My main goal for this course is for me to improve my writing as well as my speaking in my native language. Through my assessment, I have learned that I am at a wide range of proficiency in my language. The part that I want to focus most on is interpersonal communication. I would like to be able to hold conversations with my parents and grandparents over text messages. I have created my tasks mostly around that goal. My main tasks are to be able to have a fluent conversation with my parents over text message, write a personal text message to a friend, read an article and understand it, hold a verbal conversation for 5 minutes, improve my pronunciation, and ask for directions. I also have different tasks for when I go visit Korea such as being able to talk to a cab driver. 

If and when I do achieve these tasks, I will increase my level in Korean in more practical areas.

My main goal in this class is to be at a more proficient level in my skill in communicating and listening. Through the Levels of Competence document, I assessed that my abilities in Korean were all either novice beginning 1 or beginning 2. I have a basic understanding of the Korean language. My knowledge on vocabulary and grammar is very weak. I know enough to answer simple questions and can provide basic descriptions about who I am and where I am from. I hope to become competent enough in Korean that I can speak my mind without the meaning being lost in translation. The main reason I took this class is to be able to communicate better with my parents because there usually is a language barrier between us. I hope this class will be my chance to break that barrier and have a deeper connection with my family.

My goal for this week was to be able to say, "I am," and "you are not," etc. in order to help describe the people around me. I also wanted to learn greetings and farewells. In order to accomplish this, I studied the proper words with the help of my textbook, Aurrera, and then practiced by writing down what I saw around me in the dining hall. I came up with sentences like, "I am short," and "they are not students," and continued until I felt that I had the ability to build sentences competently. I also looked at the Basque books in to global studio in order to study proper greetings, like "kaixo," for "hello," which is said to people you are unfamiliar with, and then "epa," for "hi" which is said to friends and family. I also learned the word for goodbye, "agur," which is said for all people.

After some thought, I decided to do my third cultural post on the concept Basque naming. The Basques have quite a few specific first names, like Amaia, Miren, or Itziar, but it has a never ending list of possible last names, all based off of the characteristics of the family farm, especially pertaining to where it was located. I've decided to use Basque last names in my own family as examples, in order to also better understand my own heritage, and what being Basque means to me. Because the language is made up of root words with suffixes added in order to modify them, last names are very similar. Some simple ones include Etxegorri, which means "red house," Etxeberri, which means "new house," and Etxebarne, which means "interior house." Etxe is clearly the Basque word for house, while adding suffixes changes the house's description. Some other names take after where the house is located, like Bidart, which means "way between," or Carriquiri, which means "twisting street." Hegoburu means "southern summit," while Chabalgoiti means, "above cattle." Even the last name which means "downstairs,"Estabay, is made up of the words for "below," and "story." Jaureguiberri, which means something along the lines of "place of the new palace," is connected to the name Castejuri, which although not pertaining directly to the house, connects to the family by saying, "noble lineage." Such connections are common throughout the last names of the Basque Country, like Gorostibar, which means "upward valley," with the root word ""ibar" going into Ibarrondo, which means "high valley," and then Ibarrondogaray, which means "nearby high valley." The "ondo" of these names also goes into Mendiondou, which means "near the mountain." Despite all of these connected words, some Basque surnames were simple one word descriptions, like Erreque, which means "stream," Ezpel, which means "box tree," and Txocou, which means "corner."

There are many differences between the American culture and the South Korean culture. The first main difference is respect. There is a hierarchy of respect in Korean that largely comes down to age and experience. If a person is older than you, you are supposed to talk to them in an elevated, more formalized Korean. When you see these older or more experienced people, you are expected to bow down to them as a greeting. Hand shakes are common in Korea, but bowing is expected. 

The drinking culture is also very different compared to America in Korea. You must never pour your own alcohol and you must always use two hands to pour alcohol for elders. You are also expected to turn your head away from the elder while you drink your alcohol also. When you receive alcohol, the glass must be tipped 45 degrees towards the elder. Also, when it comes to pay, the elders are almost always expected to pay for the younger ones.

I use Mango Languages, Talk to Me in Korean, and Cyber University of Korea as my main resources to studying the Korean Language. Talk to me in Korean (TTMIK) is a resource I stumbled upon the Internet one day when surfing the web and learning about what other learners used. It provides videos, podcasts, and free pdf worksheets in Levels 1 through 10. This covers vocabulary, tense, and sentence structure. The owners of the website/company are native Korean speakers who are also learners of other languages, so they are familiar with the process, and what works and what doesn’t.

Tia introduced Cyber University of Korea to me and it is another very useful tool for learners who value classroom-based learning. The website has 30-40 minute videos on certain conversational topics; this is the primary source I am using to practice Korean.

I am already familiar with introductions, greetings, and farewells in Korean, but I have been learning life survival phrases such as: asking where the bathroom is, asking/answering the location of certain objects, asking to order food, etc. I make flashcards for vocabulary words and familiarize myself with sentence structure/pattern. I work with my tutor twice a week and use Cyber University of Korea to practice this. 

Basque is a complex culture to understand in terms of non-verbal communication, etc. because the modern Basques are technically French or Spanish, two countries which are very different in culturally. Because of this, there are a few overlapping similarities, but there are many cultural differences between the Basques of France and the Basques of Spain. One is that French Basques are some of the least reserved people of France, while Spanish Basques are some of the most reserved people of Spain.  Because of this, the space between two people during a conversation would be much closer between French Basques than it would be between Spanish Basques. Both sides are considered more collectivist cultures however, with the historical concept of a baserri, or family farm, which would be passed on to the eldest child, son or daughter. Basque culture has always been located around the home, with most people giving their houses names, and taking their own last name from their house, like Carricaburu, which means end of a street. Becuase of this, Basques are very family-oriented.

Similar to Russian, Ukrainian uses the system of patronymics for naming. The patronymic is created by using the person's father's name, and adding an ending to it. For girls, the ending is -евна and for a boy, the ending is -вич. A person's patronymic is typically used during introductions, in formal situations, and on official documents. Addressing someone without their patronymic, especially upon first introduction, is a major faux pas because it is considered incredibly rude. In addition to patronymics, Ukrainian has a lot of different diminutive versions of a person's name. For example, the name Tatiana has several variants, and you can use them based on the level of familiarity you have with that person (in this case, Tatiana). Until you develop some sort of relationship with Tatiana, you are to address her with her full patronymic (for example: Tatiana Ivanovna). Once you start to see each other as acquaintances, you may address her as simply Tatiana. If you become friends, you can call her Tanya. Her family members or her boyfriend may address her as Tanechka, Tanyusha, Tanyura, Tanyukha or Tatianka. As you can see, there are many different names that a Ukrainian person can answer to, and knowing which names you can call someone is a very important social concept to understand. 

• 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 Korea and several Asian countries being respectful and polite is the most crucial aspect of the culture. Specifically in Korea, they have specific honorifics depending on the relationship you have with the person. It is similar how in the States we have slang/informal language and formal/professional way we talk in business or with elders. In the Korean language there are very specific speech acoustics ranging from pitch, volume, and tone depending on who you are talking to and your relationship. There are seven levels of speech level in Korea from highest level of formality to informal: Hasoseo-che, Hasipsio-che, Haeyo-che, Hao-che, Hage-che, Haera-che, Hae-che. In Korean culture there is also a way for showing respect through body language. Korean people bow a lot especially towards elders to show respect. Also, even small acts like passing something or receiving things there is a standard. If you were to hand something or receive something from an elder or someone in high power you would use two hands instead of only one hand. 

I took Spanish all through high school and I absolutely hated it. I thought that language learning was just not something I was good at, and I had no interest in pursuing languages once I got to college. However, I discovered a passion in myself for Eastern European history, and I decided to enroll in Middlebury’s summer Russian program. I was expecting to struggle a bit during that summer of intensive language learning, but I actually thrived in that environment. The atmosphere at Middlebury was encouraging and fun, and I did not feel like the language pledge to only speak Russian for those 8 weeks was overly challenging. This summer, I spent two months in Russia completing a similar program to Middlebury, except this time I was fully immersed in Russian culture, and I lived with a host family. I feel like I got a lot out of that type of environment too.

It is clear to me that I do my best language learning when I focus intensely on the language of study, and try to only speak that language. Obviously, that type of environment is not possible here at Richmond, but I plan to recreate that environment as much as possible with my language partner. Once I have learned a little bit more, I will only speak Ukrainian with my language partner when we have our lessons. For now, our Skype sessions usually consist of me asking questions about grammar forms and trying to understand the differences between Ukrainian and Russian.

The types of language activities that tend to work really well for me are drill-like activities. I need to practice vocabulary (usually using flashcards) and then repeat them over and over until I know them cold. Based on the FIRE model, I fall firmly within the parameters of the “factual” and the “evaluative” learner. I have shared these results with my language partner, and he knows how I learn, so we have decided to have incorporate some vocabulary drill sessions and lots of grammar practice into our routine. For now, however, we are focusing a lot on pronunciation because I have become somewhat stuck in Russian pronunciation, and I need to practice a lot to break those habits. That being said, we have started to watch some Ukrainian kids shows to get me used to the sound of Ukrainian. I think this has been helpful for me, but I still sometimes find myself slipping back into my Russian habits. 

In order to begin my language learning, I looked at the University Library website in order to see if there were any books on learning Basque. I discovered that I had access to an online resource, Aurrera, which is a Basque-learning textbook written by Linda White, a prolific author when it comes to Basque language studies, and published by the University of Nevada Press. I began learning the first chapter, which focused on learning how to say I am, you are, etc. I also went on Memrise and studied vocabulary flashcards, and also used the Global studio to look at some other books that Dr. Scinicariello had ordered for me, which were also very helpful for survival language too.

Formality and Informality:

After quite a bit of research, I have discovered that Basque has very little distinct language features for talking to people based on class, etc., because it was a, for the most part, classless society. Historically the Basques had no rulers or hierarchy for themselves, except what foreigners placed over them, like the Kings of France and Spain. Because of this, the language has similar rules of formality as English, like saying "good day" to someone you are not as familiar with instead of "hi."

This week, I went to the Global Studio Center, and I looked at the Indonesian resources. I chose to from the Indonesian section. I am using Let's Speak Indonesian:1. This book is great core material for the tasks and goals I had outlined last week. It includes speaking, writing, listening, and reading activities, which are all categories I wish to work on. Next, I checked out the Indonesian dictionary. This tool is, of course, helpful in translating the words from Indonesian to English. However, it has good contextual translations as well.

Unfortunately, my computer did not allow me to download BYKI; however, Mango language is a great program to supplement my language learning process. This program allows me to reinforce my core material that I receive from other sources, and it is convenient as I can practice it pretty much anywhere should I not have my core language sources on me. The Indonesian category it has is a good refresher, and it allows me to practice my accent and speaking skills. It also gives me good cultural information.

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

To start, my language partner and I have met twice this week.
My goals and tasks were: (From the Let's Speak Indonesian:1 resource)
1. How to greet people at various times of the day; 2. How to use terms of address; 3. How to ask what someone's name is; 4. How to ask where someone is from; 5. How to make an offer (for greeting purposes); 6. How to ask what something is

My goals and task were: (From the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture)
1. Greetings: hellos, goodbyes, asking for forgiveness, thank you's, farewells.
2. How to read and write a basic e-mail / letter

In addition to using these two resources, I also used a great online translation website to assist my learning.

The two core resources included reading, writing, and speaking and listening (conversation) activities.

In my meetings with my language learning partner, we conversed using the material that I learned. We worked on my accent and pronunciation, and we talked about basic etiquette and sentence structure. Moreover, we practiced writing a letter to her sister.

I focused on vocabulary and grammar, selecting words and grammar points to discuss with my language partner, and using them to converse.

Lastly, I started reading Indonesian news to become familiar with its cultural, political, and social features.