Name: Catherine Truluck
E-mail: ctruluck@nd.edu
Language: Japanese
Location of Study: Hakodate, Japan
Program of Study: Hokkaido International Foundation Japanese Language and Culture Program
Sponsors: Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures and the Liu Institute for Asia and Asian Studies
Blog URL: http://sites.nd.edu/sla2017/author/ctrulucknd-edu/
A brief personal bio:
Hello, my name is Catherine Truluck. I am a first-year English major who is hoping to acquire at least a minor in Japanese. I have traveled internationally before, both times for Notre Dame program. However, my destinations of Rome and London are within the boundaries of Europe, so I wanted to experience traveling to a different kind of country, like one in Asia. Therefore, with my studies in Japanese, I applied to study abroad in Japan.
Why this summer language abroad opportunity is important to me:
The SLA Grant gives me such a big opportunity to follow what I want to study and succeed in. With it, I am able to fund my study abroad experience and stay in Japan, learning about its language and culture for eight weeks. Thanking and connecting with my sponsors, who allowed me to accept such a great gift, are important steps in fully realizing the potential that I have attained with the help of the SLA Grant. It also creates connections with similar students who have received the grant, fostering important peer relationships that I can rely upon as I travel.
What I hope to achieve as a result of this summer study abroad experience:
From living in Japan for the duration of the program, I hope to become more acquainted with the language through my interactions with the people there and the study that occurs within the classroom. I wish to learn about the Japanese culture as well, through real-life experience rather than books or the Internet. The opportunity of living with a host family will additionally develop my language proficiency and understanding of their society. The independent study that we have to conduct for my specific program will begin to foster a devotement towards research and learning from the community itself. Overall, my hope is that I thoroughly enjoy my stay in Japan while retaining what I learn about the language when I return to my studies in the U.S.
My specific learning goals for language and intercultural learning this summer:
At the conclusion of the program, I want to be able to discuss conversational topics in Japanese with my peers and the native speakers, be able to successfully travel around Japan with little to no trouble, and use my newfound knowledge to become more involved with the cultural groups and events occurring on the Notre Dame campus.
My plan for maximizing my international language learning experience: