Self-study

I received an e-mail over the weekend from Chris, who is studying Korean on his own. With his permission, I am posting it here for your feedback.

I’m currently in the process of studying Korean. I attend a school where many people from Korea attend. I have recently made some friends (very good friends I may add) and have taken an extreme interest in Korean. I have made flash cards (tons) on vocab. I was seeking guidance on studying Korean. Since my friends really don’t know how to respond to “why” questions, I sometimes have to take matters into my own hands. I have been to many many sites on the subject and have found some many useful things. I cannot, however, find a site that has all three forms of each verb type, extensive vocabulary, etc. I have been to a couple that give basic grammar, but don’t give what most Koreans would speak. Some teach me just a little then just put me into the pool without getting in (if you catch my drift) by showing a video about things that they haven’t explained. I have been to my local bookstores and some books I pick up just use the Romanization (no person who is really studying Korean wants that) and I actually had one say that 있 was “iss-” *sigh*. I am also having trouble studying vocabulary. None of the words are cognates (other then the ones that are in English) and, as you know, something like “antidisestablishmentaryism” could be 담 (just an example). So, I don’t have an idea on how to pound those into my head. I really would like to visit there when I get a bit older and possibly live there for a bit. I really don’t have a real solid reason for why I’m studying it. It is so interesting and I love it so much. It has become one of my life goals and I won’t give up. If you could give me some good sources with your comments and some guidance that would be great. I wish I had people to study with day-in and day-out as
that would help a lot to master the language.

Please tell me what you suggest! Thank you! 안녕히계세요!

Posted by kangmi on June 15, 2004 at 7:00 AM5 comments

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huang
15 Jun, 2004
09:22 AM
Hmmm,
Sounds awfully familiar !

If all serious beginners of Korean studies were like me, online Korean learning sites with 'cursory' content do not provide any satisfaction very soon.

Wonder if Chris has actually checked out the Sogang website. If he's a real beginner, I have put together a starter's kit of sorts at http://kr.blog.yahoo.com/huangsy88/451745.html

If he wants to test his understanding of the basics he has learnt thus far, I wud recommend David's site at Cyworld, which 강미 has listed (see list in right column of this page).

And not forgetting Arirang's LSK, of course. A must watch !
Andi
15 Jun, 2004
01:24 PM
I'm also learning Korean on my own, and I've found that the Seoul Dae Hak textbook very helpful (so long as you can get a Korean friend to check your homework) in conjunction with the Yonsei University's Korean Grammar for International Students, which provides the explanations that the Seoul Dae text does not. Furthermore, the Seoul Dae book (or any similar text/work book combination) introduces basic vocabulary in a contextual manner. No romanizations, which means that you can kick the habit. There are also tapes which are very useful.

I've also done a little with the Learn Korean Through English tape set. Its major advantage is that, compared to Seoul Dae's book (which is fairly grammatical and starts you off with chong-dae-mal), it sounds much more natural.

I still recommend getting the Yonsei grammar, though...that thing is SAVING my Korean right now.

And just talk. Your friends will probably be happy to help you out with conversational Korean, as well as help with pronunciation. If you can get a drama on DVD or download it off the internet, that's a fun way to just listen to natural Korean.

Good luck!
Chris
16 Jun, 2004
04:09 AM
Thank you for your replies. I have been to Sogang many times and they do have some good stuff, however it is not exactly what I'm looking for. They teach you little then show you something that just blows you away that you haven't learned. I'm getting a shipment of books from a friend in Korea. I hope those go well, I'll keep you updated. I will look into the Seoul Dae Hak textbooks. I haven't heard great things about the "Learn Korean Through English", is it that great? I try to talk to myself and to my friends and put 한글 around the house so the alphabet will become more natural so it's easier to memorize vocabulary.

Thank you!
강미
16 Jun, 2004
04:33 PM
MSN: kangmi
I have to admit that whenever I encounter a mass of new material, I experience a day or two of shock and thoughts of "I'll never be able to learn this." Repeated exposure to that material takes the edge off the shock, and eventually I'm able to learn it and move on to the next shock.

It's great that you have friends with whom you can speak Korean. I have a few, but I don't see them regularly.

Of the online Korean language courses available, the Sogang course is the only one with which I am familiar, and I have grand ideas of eventually completing the course. If I weren't studying that course, I'd probably look at Learning Korean or Teen Korean (even though I'm no longer a teen...it just looks attractive).

Arirang TV broadcasts Korean sitcoms, dramas, and movies with English subtitles (they're usually not available through VOD, so you're stuck watching them when they're broadcast online). That's a great way to start getting the feel of the language. I've heard that KBS sometimes broadcasts its dramas with English subtitles, but I've never seen it. I'm not registered with any of the other network sites...their registration process is a bit sticky for persons not familiar enough with Korean. I'd recommend getting a friend to help you with the registration process if you sign up with any of the others.

The truth is, of course, that the drama I watch has no subtitles, and I probably wouldn't watch one that did, at least not for study purposes...for leisure watching, I would require them! If that route works for you, take it. Just be prepared for not knowing much about what you're watching.

Another way to increase your familiarity with Korean is to spend some time every day reading it. Reading it out loud will give you even more useful practice. You don't even have to understand what you're reading.

One other thing (and others may disagree with me): don't worry about learning all of the levels of verb usage right off the bat. You'll learn them eventually, but it's not critical at the beginning.
Blinger
17 Jun, 2004
04:44 AM
I think 강미 has provided some good solid advice here. Most of which I give to my students learning English.

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