Looking to improve your skills or learn Korean faster? Here are 10 habits and learning strategies you can adopt to speed up your language learning process. Follow along and see if any of these suggestions might be beneficial to you!
1. Using AI Assistant
AI assistants such as Siri, Cortana, or Bixby are very beneficial for making our daily lives easier, but did you know they can also help you learn?
In the same way you use AI assistants for asking questions during your daily routine, they can also be used to help improve your vocabulary in Korean. For example, if you’re reminded of certain words that you may have forgotten or want to know in Korean, AI assistants are there along the way to make the process easier. For example, try asking Siri or the AI assistant you use: “Hey Siri, what is quantum physics in Korean?”. Challenging words can be difficult to learn on your own, so take advantage of the tools already available! If your AI assistant isn’t able to provide the answer you’re looking for, you can ask to set reminders to continue your learning at a more convenient time.
2. Listen to Korean Songs
While learning a new language should have some structure in order to maintain growth, making the experience enjoyable as well as educational will speed up the process. If you have not already, try listening to Korean songs during your day! Not only is this a fun way to connect to Korean culture, but it's also a great way to test your language skills. See if you can recognize some of the words or phrases in the song, and practice your Korean speaking skills by singing along!
3. Read the Lyrics
Not only should you try to incorporate listening to more songs in Korean, try reading the lyrics! If you’re a complete beginner or unfamiliar with Hangeul, read the translated versions while listening to improve recognizing words to their meaning. If you would like to practice reading Hangeul, we suggest listening while reading the exact lyrics in order to see how the written form is adapted to a stylized song!
4. Go the Extra Mile
When you find yourself in the process of using a Korean dictionary or spending time doing Korean coursework, go one step further! Read one more page, complete another chapter, or push yourself to learn one more word! Pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone is the best circumstance in which to learn faster.
5. Turn on Korean Subtitles
Whether you are watching a show in Korean or not, try turning on Korean subtitles. In moments when we are casually enjoying content, adding a bit of educational information can help us make associations to what we learn. This can help you learn new vocabulary and improve conversational Korean by seeing direct translations in real time.
6. Subvocalization
When we are reading material in our native language, we tend to internalize the information by repeating it with our “inner voice”. This technique is called subvocalization and while we generally do it subconsciously, it can be used to help with language learning! When reading in Korean, slow down your pace and practice using subvocalization. Repeating words with our inner voice can help our pronunciation and better our understanding of the content we are reading.
7. Read News Articles
Try spending some time reading the news or professionally written articles in Korean. Whether this is news about your home country or Korea, news articles are written clearly and in an accurate speech pattern which can be easier to read for beginners. Compared to opinionated articles or blogs which may use more stylized wording, news articles are a great way to practice reading in Hangeul.
8. Share on Social Media
Sharing your language learning process on social media is beneficial in so many aspects. Social media is a great tool to connect with others, try communicating with other Korean language beginners or native speakers to practice writing in Hangeul. By connecting with others not only can you make new friends, but it will encourage you to maintain your skills in order to keep the conversation going! Not only can social media connect you but it is a great source of healthy competition and seeing what you’ve learned! Sharing how far you’ve come can be healthy motivation for other language learners, and is a great way to look back at how far you’ve come! If TTMIK is helping your learning journey, feel free to tag us on Instagram or Twitter to see where other beginners are at!
9. Use the Social Media Algorithm to Your Advantage
Social media algorithms across platforms cater the content on your profiles to the desired media that you are interested in. You can turn this to your advantage by using social media more to watch and engage with Korean learning content. By frequently viewing this type of content, your platforms will continue to suggest posts that align with what you want to see. You will start to see more Korean learning content and by passively engaging in educational content and it will help maintain your skills.
10. Add one more Word
When you find yourself writing or speaking in Korean, try adding one more ‘transition’ or ‘continuation’ word to the end of each sentence. By doing so, we are pushing ourselves to expand our thoughts and practice creating more complex sentences. Even if this can be challenging for you, try it anyway to see how far you can get.
Sprinkle these habits into your daily routine and watch how they brighten up your Korean learning journey!
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