NSLI-Y 2024 Korea – Week 2
Miracle on the Han River
Weekly Announcements!
Happy Birthday to our RD, Madeline-seonsaengnim!
As we enter the second week in Yongin, South Korea, we begin with a special announcement!
Yongin RD, Madeline-seonsaengnim, introduces a photo contest during this week’s check-in meeting. Starting this week, students may enter a photo of themselves and a fellow community member following a special theme. As a result, we 학생(students) have taken to the streets to try and capture a “Hot Summer” in Korea. A mystery reward and bragging rights are on the line, so come back next week to see who comes out on top!
As previously mentioned, we have begun our weekly check-in meetings wherein students review the week and offer any questions or concerns.
What are We Learning?
Dankook University Korean Language Instructor, Jude, Hazel, Hanan, Abby, Karen, Jake, Stephan.
Classes continue to run from the morning to the afternoon, and the teachers encourage us to stand and engage in the language. After all, it’s time to introduce ourselves!
“Hello, my name is__. I’m an American.”, “I’m a student.”, “Do you have __?”
Hazel and Hanan having a conversation in Korean during class. Andrea and Enzo practicing Korean together. Andrea introduces herself in Korean with Dankook University Korean Language Instructor watching.
“Hello, this is__. __ is Korean. __’s hometown is __. __ is a student.” Our peer language partners helped along with this exercise on Thursday, so that we may introduce them to the entire class. From there we were off to learning native Korean numbers, family terms, and household items. Finally, we put the week’s knowledge of vocabulary and grammar to the test in a character guessing game. Ready? Hana, dul, set, and begin!
NSLI-Y students with their peer language partners. Hanan stands up to introduce her peer partner to the audience.
As we move away from Hangul to grammar and sentence formations, we find ourselves participating in real conversations. We are no longer limited to asking where the bathroom is in class, but where the trash can is during an ice cream break at a Seven Eleven.
Understanding and communicating through new vocabulary makes it possible to engage in conversation with our community, and to visit 노래방 (karaoke) or order 빙수 (shaved ice dessert) during free time.
A snapshot of 노래방 on the left. On the right, Avril, Hanan, Jude and Doris share strawberry and green tea 빙수 after lunch.
Events
This week, we had the chance to explore the local cuisine around Dankook University: both immersing ourselves in a delicious culture and One-Piece-themed decor. ACES Manager, Henry Pratt, joins us this week in trying the popular street food, 떡볶이 (spicy rice cakes). For dessert, we made a quick stop at Seven-Eleven. Together, we sat as Mr. Pratt reminisced over bottled chocolate ice cream – recounting his tales of walking down Japanese roads with younger host siblings.
NSLI-Y students had 떡볶이 for lunch with ACES NSLI-Y program manager, Henry Pratt, and Dankook University student interns at a One-Piece themed restaurant near campus.
Students sit at the wheel to make traditional style bowls in Dankook University’s very own Art Hall. Ceramics is an art that requires precision and patience. After a deceivingly (and masterfully) quick and ‘easy’ demonstration, we try our hands at bowl-making – assisted by a ceramics professor and student. Seconds become hours and before we can realize, our bowls are finished, and our hands are caked in clay. With the weekend so near and the week having been so long, this activity presented an enriching experience alongside a lively atmosphere. The room was filled with much merriment as some bowls fell to ruin while other students discovered an unknown talent.
Avril, Jude, Andrea, and Gigi in a very telling before and after picture. No one left the room unscathed, but Gigi wore her clay-stained battle wounds from head to toe. She emerged swathed but nonetheless triumphant, having made not one, not two, but four bowls.
Karen and a Dankook ceramics student. Ceramics professor and Avril.
Dankook ceramics student and Arjun. Ceramics professor and Stephan with Emilio captured slightly on the right.
Ceramics professor and Hazel. Ceramics professor and Andrea.
On the final day of the week, ACES welcomed Benjamin Engel to give a presentation on the rapid growth of the Korean economy from the Korean War to the present day. We covered a multitude of topics: recent Korean political figures, economic strategies, chaebols, etc. To conclude the session, Engel opened the floor to questions from students. Beyond history-related inquiries, he was eager to answer many questions and concerns about living in Korea. Given his own experience after living abroad for fourteen years, he was a role model for those who wished to do the same, and he encouraged the NSLI-Y students to continue immersing in the culture and learning the language whenever possible.
Students listen raptly to Seoul National University Professor, Benjamin Engel, and his presentation on the history of Korean economics following the Korean War.
I believe that I speak on behalf of the students when I say that this week has been exhausting and exhilarating. With every chance we get, we go and explore. With every conversation, we throw in all the Korean vocabulary we know. The activities and excursions bring our lessons to life and provide new perspectives on Korean culture. We are only two weeks into the program, and it is only going to get more exciting from here. What next week will bring is on everyone’s mind. What will we learn? Where will we go? What will we do? Check out the ACES NSLI-Y Blog for South Korea 2024 next week to find the answers. Until then!
Written by Abby.