Written by Sarah and Lucinda, Year 10
OHS’s first official Korean language club has been established! Thanks to the Korean Education Centre UK, students from Year 7 to Year 13 have the opportunity to learn Korean every Tuesday after school, as a response to the increasing popularity of the K-wave: 한류! We are honoured to welcome Ms Taeyeon Yoon from Oxford University our instructor. We have begun to learn the Korean alphabet, invented by King Sejong in the Joseon period. It’s one of the most intuitive alphabets in the world; the letters are designed to mirror the mouth shape when pronounced.
Students’ ambitions range from understanding K-dramas to communicating with native speakers to translating poetry to just wanting to learn a new language, but the room is united by commitment and shared goals. Korean contrasts English in many ways – from different word order to unique phonetics to speech styles- but we’re learning how to stop translating with our heads, and start learning with our hearts. Like this, our languages interact with each other, unbiased by preconceived and dividing translations of our shared experience: life. To quote Geoffery Willians: ‘You can never understand one language until you understand at least two’. 힘내세요!
If you are interested, please email Ms Yoon, as there are a few spaces left, with a maximum of 20 students. We would love to see you there! 안녕히 계세요.