Despite the CoVid-19 pandemic, the third year students of Bachelor of Arts in Foreign Languages (BAFL) continued to embrace the opportunities in Internationalization by immersing for a month with a Korean University for the Korean Language Immersion.
The Korean Language Immersion is an academic requirement and privilege for Korean majors to learn the language with instructors from Pusan National University in South Korea. The immersion kicked off May 24, 2021 and ended June 25, 2021.
Supposedly, the top students from the class were the ones to experience the conduct of the immersion during the summer break last year but due to travel restrictions, they were given a single option—a virtual learning.
The Korean Language Immersion is highly beneficial to these students who study foreign languages because they were able to have conversations with native Korean speakers.
“We are not just memorizing or observing things, but we have the chance to practice or execute what we learned in present and future social encounters,” says Jeho Nicolas Cantara, Chairperson of BAFL-3A.
“Through learning another language, it is not just knowing various grammar rules, speaking tones, spelling and vocabulary, but you’re also exposing yourself to the country’s history, culture, and traditions. There, you get to see the beauty of the language.”
The online immersion aims to introduce the BAFL students to the Korean rules of grammar, content reading, essay writing, various Korean proverbs, traditions, and festivities.
According to Cantara, the intermittent internet connection was their greatest enemy during the immersion. He pointed out how lucky they are on their Korean instructors who were very considerate of their situations. “We had kind and understanding PNU teachers. They were truly concerned with our circumstances and were willing to help us out.”
“They may be far away from us but they made us feel comfortable, ” he added.
The BAFL students take pride in their class presentation. Many of the students stepped out of their comfort zone. They gained confidence in speaking Korean through various online activities.
“Plus, our teachers got the chance to know us better and get a glimpse of our personalities which we don’t usually show on a regular online class,” Cantara stated.
– Zennia L. Mirasol/CILPI