The English Program

Fact: My program is in English.

Fact: Most of the people are Korean or Chinese

Fact: ONLY the classes are in English.

 

Yes, the courses are in English. But to call it an English program is actually kind tricky. I don't fault the school or department or students at all, after all, this is indeed South Korea and the national language is Korean. But I find myself hesitating to participate in activities and whatnot because of language.

My "classmates" (Yes, the Radiant Ones) usually speak slow enough that I can understand (though I don't know if that's on purpose or just a really lucky break), but I know that once we get into social situations, I'm done for.

Many of the other foreigners I've run into tend to hang out with only other foreigners, since they have common languages and they don't know Korean at all, or have a very limited ability. It’s a bit better because we’re on campus and some people are taking Korean classes, but I've lost count of the number of times I’ve had someone say to me “I can’t speak English”...IN ENGLISH...and then we proceed to have a conversation in English and they hardly make a mistake. Come on now, guys. You’ve been accepted to a program taught in English. You obviously can’t suck that bad. And even if you do, I promise not to laugh at you. Even if you tell me about the “animals in the jew [zoo]” or how  “the bitch [beach] is too hot in the summer”, I won't laugh at you. My Korean is bad. My Japanese and Spanish are worse. My Chinese is non-existent. I promise to be kind(ish).

*RANT*

Try. I know it's scary. I know it's hard. But get away from people you know and try something different. So what if you look stupid? Everyone does at some point (I actually do it quite regularly, it's kinda my thing). Just...ugh. It just pisses me off that there are so many people who come to another country and only hang out with people who speak their own language and always fall back to their own little safety zone. I mean that as tourists, employees and students. All of you. Yes, it's comfortable, and as an English speaker/Chinese speaker it is painfully easy (most of the foreigners I've run into are Chinese or English teachers), but QUIT IT ALREADY!

Maybe it is too easy for me to say that because I'm strong-willed and get bored easily. I need constant change. I thrive on new isht. Despite being painfully shy at first *like with the Radiant Ones and the elder students*, once I'm good, I'm good.

To anyone planning on going to a foreign country, I've got a bit of advice for you.

Context clues are your friends.

It's quite awful, actually. I only actually understand about 80~85% of the sentence (depending on who's talking), but based on what I did understand, I can guess what the rest of it was. Add in social cues and behavioral responses and I'm pretty good to go.

Body language truly is a global language.

Bring on the World Charade Championships, because I am so ready. After 4+ years of living in South Korea, I have had to mime just about everything. Headache? Yep. Potato? Yep. My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die? Yep.

a) hiiii! b) You have a huge booger c) Drip coffee d) What?

e) Squid f) I have bad gas g) I' did something bad/ need money  h) Yeah sure ok stop talking  i) good job  j) Beer!

TV and Music teach you practical things you'd never learn otherwise.

Korean, like all other languages (except for perhaps Latin), is a living language. Read all the textbooks, take every class, get a perfect score on your exam. Good job. Now, go out and talk to someone. Listen to music. Watch a TV show. Not the same thing now, is it? There are always quirks in language that can only be learned firsthand in actual usage. I love TV because 1) I love TV and 2) I learn slang and speech patterns that will NEVER be in a textbook. Example? “고맙당”. The textbook will say “고맙다”. No translation engine or dictionary will have it because it’s not proper speech, yet you’ll hear and see it every five seconds.  It’s the difference between “Imma head home” and “I’ll head home”. No dictionary will have “Imma” in it, despite the fact that you’ll hear it every day.

  

With all of that in mind: I’ve got it easy. I have some knowledge of the language. Going somewhere completely new (like Greece or France), where I know nothing of the language and culture, I think it’d be even more difficult. Study abroad programs often say that there’s no language requirement. Perhaps not, for the courses themselves. But if you want to have the most kickass experience, a little (lot of) language is a must.