In this blog post, I will outline my journey toward becoming a Korean language teacher and highlight my strengths as an educator, drawing on the efforts I dedicated to my studies during high school, my participation in school activities, and examples of how I practiced compassion and generosity.
Diligence: The Best Secret to Studying
To be honest, I’m not particularly bright. I can’t understand things after hearing them just once; I need to repeat them twice, and I’m not the type who can apply concepts immediately. I can solve difficult problems only through hard work, and without that effort, I can barely manage basic problems. I never breeze through even a single unit. If I hadn’t had the diligence to put in the effort and a genuine interest in studying, I believe my grades would have been below average. That’s why I take pride not in my grades, but in my effort and passion for studying. I worked tirelessly to maintain diligence while studying. I still carry the trauma of an experience from the beginning of the semester when I was supposed to solve a problem with my friends—while everyone else finished, I was the only one struggling to figure it out. To overcome that trauma, I began to prepare for and review my lessons thoroughly. If I looked at my schedule and saw that I had seven classes that day, I would prepare for every single one without exception. I always woke up in the early morning to study. Even if I went to bed late, getting up at dawn was incredibly difficult, but to overcome my trauma, I forced myself to get up and study no matter how hard it was. I also made sure to review everything without fail. During evening self-study hours, rather than tackling other subjects or solving new problems, I focused on reviewing what I had learned that day and re-solving the problems I had already worked on. Then, when I got home, I would finish the day by taking one practice exam before going to sleep. By making these efforts every single day without fail, I strived to keep my promise to myself. Through this process, I realized that diligence can also become a hobby. At first, studying every single day was incredibly difficult, and I wondered how long I would have to keep this up. But as I studied daily and saw the results accumulate, I felt a sense of pride and discovered the true joy of studying.
How I Came to Love Literature: A Day of Reading
To me, literature itself was nothing more than a homework assignment I had to complete. It was a subject I had to organize and memorize for the language section, and I viewed literature as a perplexing problem I’d never understand no matter what. But thanks to a wonderful homeroom teacher, I came to love literature. Instead of a field trip, my homeroom teacher had us participate in an activity called “Time with Myself,” where we turned off all our smartphones in the mountains and sat face-to-face with a book. It involved entering a mountain hermitage, turning off all electronic devices, and meditating while reading a book I had brought along. At first, I wasn’t particularly interested in the activity itself, and I even hoped I might be able to sleep. Since my grades weren’t improving despite my studying, I was feeling stressed, so I was mostly looking forward to taking a day off to rest. However, the book I encountered there gave me great inspiration and moved me deeply. The book I had brought was Tolstoy’s *What Men Live By*. Tolstoy’s collection of short stories contained wise words along with touching stories about various people. In particular, the story of when an angel descended from heaven and eventually flew back up after finding a treasure deeply moved me. As I read the book, the things I had been worrying about all this time seemed trivial. I realized that people do not live for grades or money, but rather by loving and caring for one another, and that we are unhappy when we forget this. Thanks to this book, I was able to break out of my slump, let go of my obsession with grades, and learn to study for my dreams while paying attention to the people around me.
Once my mind was at ease, my studies naturally improved. I also learned that literature is not merely a subject for the language section of exams, but a discipline to be felt with the heart, and from that point on, I began to read books seriously and properly.
Serving as the Flower and Tree Coordinator
The school fostered an atmosphere of love for flowers and trees. In particular, during my first year, my homeroom teacher loved flowers so much that she had each of us bring in a flower to grow. Since I also loved flowers and plants, I volunteered to become the class representative for them. Although it started as a hobby, I had to study because I didn’t know much about plants and found it difficult to continue the activity on my own, so I remember it being bothersome and tiring at times. In particular, there were times when the plants would wilt because I was so focused on my studies. Strangely enough, it seemed like the plants would start wilting the moment they sensed that my interest in them had waned. So, to keep them from wilting, I had to pay regular attention and water them. Also, since the optimal watering times varied by plant and date, I even had to mark the watering days on the calendar at the beginning of each month. The amount of water and sunlight each plant needed differed as well, so after a lot of trial and error, I was finally able to provide the right amount of water and the appropriate environment for them. While caring for the flowering plants, I realized, “If taking care of something this small is so tiring and difficult, how much harder must it be for parents raising children?” My parents knew exactly what I liked and disliked, and they would take care of things and help me before I even felt uncomfortable. Through growing these plants, I came to understand the love my parents had for me; they seemed amazing to me, and I felt both grateful and sorry. From that point on, I made an effort to take charge of my daily life on my own. I woke up before my parents woke me up in the morning, and instead of throwing tantrums, I took the initiative to help them with things. Through caring for those flowering trees, I came to deeply understand the meaning and love involved in nurturing something, and I began to make an effort not only to appreciate my parents’ love but also to be considerate of and help those around me.
My goal is to become a Korean language teacher and researcher
My goal is to become a Korean language teacher and researcher. Watching the teacher who taught me literature, I thought I wanted to become someone who could show the beauty of literature to other children who don’t know it or aren’t interested in language, and help them see things from a new perspective. I aspire to become a Korean language researcher because I feel a sense of urgency regarding the current state of education. I believe that today’s education is too focused on finding topics and providing cookie-cutter answers. While such an approach may influence children’s knowledge, I do not believe it fosters character development or emotional growth. Therefore, as I become a teacher, I also intend to pursue a career as a researcher, exploring and developing alternative educational methods through graduate school. I want to be someone who provides children with better, more engaging, and enjoyable education. I intend to pursue two main goals while studying at your university. The first is “knowledge.” I will study diligently to fully absorb all the specialized knowledge in Korean language education. In this way, I will become a teacher who can teach children with confidence. The second is “attitude.” Observing excellent teachers has led me to reflect on questions such as “How can I study effectively?” and “What attitude should a researcher possess?” Currently, I am only capable of independent study. Therefore, I will pursue my major and continue to explore the meaning of education through graduate school. I will strive to learn not just how to be a teacher, but also the mindset required of an educator and researcher.
