Reflective Self-Assessment Survey on Learning through Folktale  (Link)

Sample Student Reflections

“I personally had not grown up reading a lot of these folktales that are common knowledge in Korea.” “For me as a non-native speaker, folktales were very helpful, because they use a lot of “simple” native Korean words that I didn’t know from previous reading but are really important to know. (For example: 튀어나오다; 욕심쟁이. It’s also good practice for narrative skills. The folk tales were very helpful.” “Folktales were interesting to read + improving cultural literacy. These stories are vague memories from my childhood that are really deeply ingrained in Korean culture, so being able to relearn them is definitely important. I would honestly read more folktales and may even have us write book reports on Korean books. I want to read more Korean literature as well.” “Reading folktales helped me realize which values and traditions are the most prioritized in Korean culture (as opposed to another culture).” “It’s important for understanding some cultural references. Especially since I didn’t grow up in a Korean home—I’ve heard some of these stories just once, but it is important to review them to remember the meanings (like 흥부와 놀부, 호랑이와 곶감).” “(I learned )Many words or phrases come from these stories that Koreans use in everyday life.” “Reading folktales helped me realize which values and traditions are the most prioritized in Korean culture (as opposed to another culture).” “Being exposed to different speech patterns, words we weren’t familiar with, and seeing grammar patterns utilized in stories helped the general understanding of the language.” “It helped me understand more phrases that are used colloquially in Korean language.” “There’s a lot of references to these old stories in popular culture now, from K-pop songs and dramas, to just people speaking. It definitely made some of my interactions more understandable.” “Analyzing other stories allowed for us to learn about 유교, 불교 and many others that we weren’t familiar with in the beginning of the semester. We got to learn where the values of people in Korea stemmed from and how they came to learn those values starting from a young age and was helpful in learning about culture.” “Comparing folktales was useful as we saw consistent cultural patterns emerge in multiple stories throughout time.” “It helps the general understanding of Korean culture and these stories are read to Korean children from a young age. It helps with language as well as the general understanding of what Korean people come to value.” “It used a lot of vocabulary that I was unfamiliar with, so I did learn more vocab. On the other hand, a lot of the vocabulary we learned was more “old” words, so I wonder about the applicability of these new words.”