Language acquisition is definitely one of the hardest processes. This may be my STEM brain talking, but it is significantly harder to learn a language then to understand a science concept. The latter can be done with studying and asking questions, but the only way to improve a language is practicing it. As a generally shy person, I think it is even harder to practice a language. I do not talk much as is in English. Therefore, I find it infinitely harder to muster up the courage to talk in a language that I am less confident in. That being said, I think that my goals for this program were a little bit on the unreasonable side. However, I do think that my understanding of Korean news and articles has improved significantly. Although i still do not understand every work, I think that I am picking up more and more of what the announcer says. I think this is because I watched a lot of soccer this summer as the FIFA World Cup was taking place, and Koreans love soccer. I also think that my writing skill have improved; even though it is still not perfect, I received less and less red marks on the assignments I turned in as the summer progressed.
I honestly think that I earned so much more than I had dreamed of attending a language study abroad. I did not think that I would gain much insight because I have a Korean heritage, and I have been back to Korea several times since moving to America. However, being in Korea away from my family was a very different experience, and I felt like I learned more about how I fit into the culture and the country in tandem with the influences I have received from growing up in the States. I think that I (and other Korean-American students) have a hard time figuring out exactly which society I fit into because even though I have done all of my schooling in American, I live in a very traditionally Korean household. Therefore, there are some cultural disparities between me and my caucasian friends. In addition, I never felt like I fit into Korean society because it runs so differently than that of the US, and I have never been able to fully adjust to it. However, on this trip (being let loose), I feel like I got to the point where I understood why the Korean society runs the way it does and how I fit into that as a “foreigner” who does not look foreign. I think that before this program I thought that I would never be able to live in Korea or anywhere else abroad, but now it is an idea that is very appealing to me.
I think the best way to improve my Korean at this point is to read a lot of books in Korean and to watch Korean TV shows. Obviously it is important to practice my speaking as well, but on a realistic scale, there are not many native Koreans that I can speak to at Notre Dame. Before leaving Korea, I stopped by a book store and bought a few Korean books, and I also know that the Notre Dame library and public library in my hometown have some Korean books to offer as well. So I will slowly start to work my way through those. As the world has become significantly technologically advanced, many Korean shows have become available on the internet, and I received many recommendations for shows to watch from the Korean friends I made over the summer.
