Korean Job Discussion Forums

[dogshed]

I think I remember seeing a discussion about taking Korean classes.

What are some tips for learning Korean?

Can I become a language leach?

-Jeff

[NAVFC]

Classes? Sure.
Also I highly recommend, "Elementary Korean" and "Continuing Korean" by Ross King. Both can be likely found on amazon.com
Stay away from anything which tries to teach korea using romanization, as it confuses the entire process and will lead you nowhere.
A language leach? Sure, you could, practice by hanging out with Koreans and that will help you. Maybe you can pair off with someone who wants to leach you for English, then it will be a symbiotic relationship of the linguistical kind.

[JLarter]

Tune in to Korean radio, watch Korean TV, listen to people's conversations. It's all about what you pick up around you. Maybe try and learn a couple of words a day from a dictionary.
Practise as much as you can, on anyone. Many people struggle because they have a fear of getting it wrong. At least making an effort will give you respect from others.
Maybe getting a good 'learn yourself' book and cd can help depending on how you learn. I do a lot of reading to pick up the knowledge.

[Guri Guy]

Get a Korean girlfriend/boyfriend.

[Homer]

Take classes.

Listen to K-radio, watch K-movies and TV, practice reading hangul (and I agree you should stay away from romanization here).

Leeching is fine but it will not take you very far unless you study at the same time....

Memorize vocabulary and perhaps certain sentences.

and, last but not least: practice...practice..practice.

[ChristyMum]

if you choose to make a b/f or g/f for your Korean, make sure he/she will talk with you in Korean. Otherwise, just like me, can't speak Korean at all after 2years marriage with a Korean

[Homer]

Christy...I am married to a Korean woman and we speak in Korean because I went out and studied it hard. Between us we spoke English and Korean but the topics were limited and the vocabulary was also repretive.

Also, I found that a spouse is the worst possible choice for language learning....

So...take classes and supplement what you learn with your spouse...don't expect him/her to teach you!

My wife helped me improve as I studied but most of my improvement came from talking with my in-laws, nieces and with the old dudes I play Korean chess with on sundays.

[inkoreaforgood]

[noguri]

I have the textbook Elementary Korean by Ross King, and a few other texts that I work out of...The texts explain the grammar well enough but I don't feel that I get adequate practice.

I find that I need someone to "grade" my homework or give more would benefit from taking a class. I do have Korean in-laws and I try to practice a bit with them...

I want to take a class but not at the beginner's level 1, but maybe middle-beginner or beginner level 2. What exactly do I need to learn in order to qualify for taking a class that is above the novice level?

Right now I can manage any verb with the ha-da form in past, present and future tense. Like, kongbu hada...(with my toddler we say "poo-poo hesayo!)

I also manage some of the other verbs related to basics of daily living, like mok-da, mashi-da, etc.

But if I have to write or speak in a complete sentence that is intelligent, it is unlikely to happen. I can say things like "the car is blue," or "I like kimchi chiggae" but I can't really converse at all. When I say something correctly, Koreans think maybe I do know Korean and they respond, but then I don't understand their response.

So, am I getting anywhere near stage 2 of beginner's Korean, or do I need to just begin from scratch with a novice class?

[bluelake]

I know Ross King--nice guy and great Korean speaker.

The only way to learn a language is to use it. Learn the basics and then practice everything you learn.

[Juregen]

You guys make it seem easy.

But is sure isn't

The last person i want to learn Korean from is my Wife. hagwon class didn't help. So now i just listen and try to understand and slowly build a vocab.

[tomato]

Here is a previous thread on the subject:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=60124&highlight=

[noguri]

I just found the Sogang Univ online course, linked through the galbijim wiki. This seems to provide me with some better materials and also gives me a sense of what I want to work on next.

Is this a course that I can take online by registering, or is it just something that one uses on one's own?

Thanks Tomato, for the the links to previous posts. I especially liked your post on how you learn Korean. I like your methods a lot.

I do actually read children's books but most children's books are way above my level! I can sing two songs that my also daughter likes to sing, "the three bears" [gom se mari] and "mountain rabbit" [san tokki]. I won't win any noraebang contest but it is fun to sing with her.

[stevieg4ever]

in my opinion some kind formal learning is essential, so to is plenty and plenty of independent studying and book work. The structural and grammatical differences between English and Korean are vast (and thus you will also have an appreciation of how hard it is for Koreans to learn English). a basic working knowledge of fundamental grammatical terms is also essential imo, some people i study still dont understand the difference between a subject and an object.

its not just a case of going to a hof or norebang either. after 18 months studying listening is still by far and away the hardest element of this language for me, i can say some pretty neat stuff but maintaining a full flowing conversation is still a tremendous challenge. one problem i find is the relative disparity between texts and their descriptions, also many suffer from poor descriptions, vague translations and bad publishing in general.

i cant wait till i get to Korea and start using Korean on a day to day basis. it will be challenging but totally enriching i expect... try this website http://www.zkorean.com/index.shtml - some excellent speakers on here.

[stevieg4ever]

the sogang books are really good in my opinion. some faults here and there but generally tight.