LIFE IN KOREA: Korean Study Tips

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If you are having a hard time tackling the Korean language here are a few tips that might help you. Personally, I think the most important part of learning Korean is making the effort to practice what you learn. Learning in the classroom is obviously important, but what is really needed to supplement that is practice and repetition.

Practice at the supermarket, in restaurants, and with your neighbors and landlord. And, some of the best practice you can get for greetings and basic conversation is with taxi drivers. They are almost always willing to strike up a conversation with you.

To help with your memorization of vocabulary it’s a good idea to carry a little notebook (단어장) or electronic dictionary that allows you to save words. That way you can review what you’ve learned while you are on the bus or waiting for your lunch at Kimbap Cheonguk.

To work on listening and to learn practical Korean, the dramas that are on TV are very good. You can watch these when they come on TV or online through the websites of the TV stations such as SBS, KBS, and MBC. Some shows can even be watched for free, at your convenience, in the archived episode lists, usually found in a section of the websites called 다시보기 in Korean. If you need any help registering on these sites, or finding the shows you want to watch, please feel free to ask us at the Global Village Center.

There are also some language learning programs out there that can be very helpful. Arirang TV’s “Let’s Speak Korean” is a great show to help you improve your Korean. The archived lessons can be found on the Arirang website and on You Tube. It’s also surprising how much Korean you can learn by watching the English education shows that are always on the EBS TV network. They’re designed to teach people English, but you can learn a lot of Korean from them as well. You can start with the children’s ones and work your way up to the ones for more advanced learners.

If you are a higher level student, and you want to get as much practice as possible, you might want to get a small radio to listen to while you are at home or travelling on the bus or subway. Also, most cell phones made in Korea these days come equipped with DMB service - mobile TV and radio - that you can watch and listen to through your cell phone.

It’s also a good idea to work on your reading as much as possible. Beginners should always make an effort to read the ubiquitous signboards, posters, and flyers that are all around. More advanced learners can try picking up the free newspapers that are distributed at the subway stations in the mornings and evenings. You can keep up on Korean news that way too.

 A great free online Korean study resource is the Sogang Korean website. This site has a lot of material organized into lessons that range from beginner to advanced levels. There are listening, reading, vocab, and grammar parts to each lesson, and it’s interactive with listen and repeat exercises and checkup quizzes. There’s no fee and you don’t even have to register to use this website. (K4E Note: Additional online options/ free options/ private Korean classes.
 

Good luck and keep on studying. Fighting!^^ 

1 comment | Add your comment

Franco, 2011-02-09 14:35:35

I really apreciated the Korean language classes made by the Seoul Global Center: I have partecipated since 2009 to the complete set of courses, hold by Itaewon Global Center Village, and the improvement in my Korean ability has been great (at least for me...). Thank you, Paul, for leading the organization so well!

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