She Was Here

Why Korean?

Let’s start off with the obvious question: how/why did I decide to pick up Korean as my third non-native language? The short answer is simply for the challenge. The drawn out answer is: I have been studying Spanish since I was 12 and Portuguese since I was 19, both in the same language family, and I became somewhat bored with my language learning. The desire for something entirely different coupled with an English teaching job offer in my grasp propelled Korean to the top of my language priority list.

Despite being excited to learn three years of attempted (and failed) self study yielded minimal results. Although I ended up taking a different language learning related job that honed in on my Spanish and Portuguese proficiencies, the desire to learn Korean never subsided. Imagine the match I felt ignite under my butt when my manager mentions our platform soon introducing Korean language content. That’s another reason: career prospects.

Finding The Program

Now that my mind was made up and I was determined to learn Korean I knew my current method was not working. What did work in the past was having a foundation built in the classroom that forced my brain to grasp the language and cling to dear life. Truth be told, I’d already been looking into the SKY universities and KAIST as potential grad school prospects with a particular interest in Seoul National University. Just my luck that a day of mindless internet surfing led me me to SNU’s Language Education Institute’s page.

However, the SKY universities are not the only ones that offer a Korean language learning institute. For example Sogang University has a rather popular language program well known for their emphasis on speech. I highly recommend looking into multiple programs and running a comparison between them not only in cost but also curriculum as it relates to your language learning goals.

Class Structure

Either the rough and screeching riffs of Psychosocial or strangled calls of the neighborhood rooster would jostle me awake an hour or two before class which started at 9 AM KST sharp. We alternated between three teachers in the five day weeks. For the sake of privacy I won’t use their names. Seongsaengnim 1 on Mondays and Fridays, Seongsaengnim 2 on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Seongsaengnim 3 on Wednesdays to conduct our midweek quizzes. At first I did not fully understand the logistics behind this arrangement, however, it began to make sense as we trudged along. The constant switching helped us not get too comfortable hearing one singular voice. Something incredibly useful as I went out in public and interacted with Koreans.

Regular class days began with a quick review of the previous lesson from the day prior– usually in the form of a paragraph role play that we were expected to memorize and recite in a believable way. Once that was finished we would be swiftly ushered into the introduction of new vocabulary and grammar. Then a listening segment, followed by reading and writing in which we were required to make use of the vocabulary and grammar of the day. Speaking had its own dedicated segment in the lesson plan, however, the emphasis on speaking was present throughout the lesson. Case in point, classes concluding with practicing the role play skit. In between the teacher frequently put us in break out rooms where they would pop in and help as needed. My online classroom was already pretty small but these rooms eased much of my anxiety over speaking in front of the class.

Quiz and test day structures were intense but did not feel nearly as hectic. Our Wednesday quizzes were in large independent workbook assignments as we waited our turn to do the listening/speaking portion of prompts received the day before we were expected to memorize. This structure was basically our midterm and finals structure in reverse. The midterm and final were both spread over two days. The first day focusing on reading, writing, and listening. The second day focused entirely on speaking. While a study guide of outlined prompts were provided this portion of the test was a grab bag of possibilities to test your conversational skills.

Oh yeah! We had homework. Everyday we had to utilize the grammar structures of the day to create two short dialogs and upload them to Google Classroom.

The Result

Unfortunately I missed to requirement to pass by three points. As bummed as I was, I’ve learned to pat myself on the back for remaining dedicated because Korean has not been easy for me to catch onto like Spanish and Portuguese. And my unfavorable result does not change the fact that I would recommend SNU’s Korean Language Program to anyone serious about learning Korean.

We can chalk my not passing up to testing anxiety as I have noticed a significant improvement in my overall comprehension of Korean. I have the program’s quick and steady pace to thank for that as well as its structure providing me a framework to continue my independent language learning. As previously mentioned, I recommend this program for those who are genuinely serious about learning the language. Not just because of the money but the rigor that calls for each student to give it their best effort each day. All the while providing a fun and nonjudgmental space for learners.