With my experiences of teaching English and Korean, teaching a new language is the same as helping students build their own houses to live in. In the beginning, the frame of each one's house looks very similar and the teacher has a central role in teaching how to build a sturdy foundation so that students can build upon the frame. Each student has different goals in language learning as they have different dream houses. As the frame is shaped gradually and more materials are added to it, each one develops a unique design of the house and the teacher's role in helping them build a house changes from a teacher to a facilitator.
In the process of building their own language, I think that there are three important components; first is communication, second is authentic materials provided to students and third is interactions and collaboration. I believe that communication is a key component in terms of verbal and non-verbal skills, and communication skills should be the foundation of language learning to learn the target language further and deeper such as literature, grammar, or specialized topics in language. It is one of my goals, as a language instructor, to help students incorporate the skills into real life by providing authentic materials so that they can utilize the language they learn in and outside of the classroom. Importantly, I believe that there are more advantages to the use of authentic materials. Authentic materials not only provide an opportunity for students to learn the use of real-world language in the classroom but also reinforce their motivation by providing integrated context according to research. Furthermore, I believe that interaction and collaboration are of help to students and instructors in terms of both language learning and class management such as in-class or Blackboard discussion or poster presentation. At the language learning level, it promotes active engagement and communication during classroom activities, and students at different levels can help each other by collaborating during class activities.
Teaching language is not entirely about teaching a language. Language is more than a tool of communication; language is more than speaking, writing, reading, and listening. Different languages contain different values, cultures, histories and different components. In other words, distinctive cultures, mindsets, perspectives, and histories are reflected in each language. Learning a new language means that students are going to see and hear different aspects of the culture where the language is spoken even if it is in the classroom. In that sense, I believe that language teaching makes it possible to broaden learners' perspectives in class indirectly without immersively experiencing it on their own. I think, as an instructor, I should have a sense of responsibility in guiding them in the right direction where learners incorporate non-linguistic aspects of a language with the language for more profound comprehension and continuous learning. In the classroom with a limited amount of resources and time, I think that this is where technology is found to be useful in language learning such as YouTube videos, educational websites, and apps so that students can experience the language and culture indirectly but authentically.
When it comes to teaching Korean, I feel a sense of responsibility as a native-speaker instructor; I become an ambassador, representative, and instructor of Korean. With my teaching experience, I realize that even though the popularity of Korean is increasing as K-pop gets popular, there are many stereotypes that I need to break for teaching language because most students are exposed only to certain types of pop culture or some are exposed to very little about Korea, which might result in misconception and misunderstanding in Korean culture. This is, in fact, where critical thinking becomes an essential and crucial skill. At the beginning level, it is important for learners to think critically and find appropriate resources for their own learning; many students are highly and easily exposed to internet resources and as an instructor, teaching critical thinking skills is significant. In my class, I have received many questions about Korean culture that they see on websites or social media such as “poop wines” as Korean traditional alcohol. In my opinion, critical thinking is a highly useful and important tool for general learning in the 21st century where all sorts of information overflows on the internet.
Teaching a language is not as simple and easy as it seemingly is even for native speakers of the language. Nevertheless, it brings me great joy and accomplishment me when I see my students struggling with learning Korean but when they do not give up, they keep trying and eventually achieve their goals with my help. Some of my students asked my help to voluntarily start a Korean study group; I assisted them with extra materials and we discussed many other aspects of Korean culture that we did not have a chance to do in the class within a limited time; it ended up helping many other students and get them more involved in and outside of the class. It motivates me to continue to do research and study further about Korean language and culture for my students.