In this blog post, I will summarize my reflections, focusing on the academic experiences and school activities I accumulated during high school, as well as examples of how I practiced consideration and cooperation.
Academic Experiences and Reflections
During high school, I read a wide range of modern poetry and novels, but I focused particularly on gaining a deeper understanding of modern poetry. I believed there were four main approaches to interpreting poetry. First, a literary-critical perspective that analyzes the work itself; second, a contextual perspective that considers the background of its creation or the historical context; third, a reader-centered perspective that interprets the work from the reader’s standpoint; and fourth, a perspective that seeks to understand the author’s creative intent. Among these four methods, I concluded that the approach focused on understanding the author’s intent was the most meaningful.
The reason I prioritized the author’s perspective is that I felt poetry is ultimately a product of the creator’s life and experiences condensed into a single work. While perspectives that consider the historical background or the reader are also important, I believed that the creator’s life and values underlie the work. In particular, since poetry tends to speak in a more concise and symbolic manner than prose, and the author’s thoughts and intentions are densely packed into a small number of words, I found the process of uncovering the stories hidden beneath the surface to be particularly compelling.
Therefore, when studying poetry, I made it a habit to look up information about the individual poets. I read biographical materials and commentaries on both traditional poets and those from modern and contemporary literature, striving to grasp their lives and the concepts of their eras. For example, books that included personal encounters with poets, interviews, or collected materials with added interpretations helped me understand how the author’s life was reflected in their literary world.
As I repeated this learning process, I organized a list of authors and related information. By cataloging information I wanted to review later, I could quickly find the materials I needed, and even when encountering works by unfamiliar authors on the CSAT or practice exams, my background knowledge made interpreting the works much easier. Ultimately, this attitude of seeking to understand the author’s life led to a deeper ability to read the text.
Major School Activities and Reflections
During my freshman year of high school, I first became interested in calligraphy while taking an after-school POP lettering class. In this class, we analyzed our own handwriting and learned techniques to improve its appearance. I had always wanted to write more beautifully, and I decided to join the class because I believed that having a consistent handwriting style would help with performance assessments, essay writing, and note-taking.
In the POP calligraphy class, we engaged in activities such as creating our own menus and signs, and through this process, I experienced improvements in both my drawing skills and handwriting. After building a solid foundation through the class, I joined a calligraphy club formed by friends who shared the same interest during my sophomore year. This club was a space where friends who met in the after-school classroom voluntarily gathered to practice and develop their handwriting.
Our activities primarily consisted of practicing various fonts and experimenting with materials. While pencils and ink were the basics, we used a variety of materials—such as crayons, art brushes, and markers—to observe how the same lettering would change depending on the medium. It was fascinating to see how the character of the letters changed when the material or tool was altered.
We gradually progressed to the stage of developing fonts tailored to specific situations and purposes. For example, when creating a typeface suitable for a movie poster, we intentionally designed it to reflect the film’s atmosphere and characteristics. So, for each activity, we set a theme and purpose and experimented with typefaces that fit them. Since I loved poetry, I practiced by creating typefaces that complemented my own poems.
I experimented with creative poetry by applying not only modern poetic forms but also Japanese haiku and classical poetic forms, and I completed these as calligraphy works to exhibit. For the exhibition, I submitted works that captured the essence of the seasons. My pieces expressing the vibrancy of summer and the freshness of fruit received high praise for their use of watercolors, brushes, and nail polish brushes to create a lively atmosphere with bright colors. Club activities were a time to learn how to visually express literary creativity, going beyond simple handwriting practice.
Examples of practicing consideration, sharing, cooperation, and conflict management, along with my reflections
During my senior year of high school, I joined a small religious group at school and was introduced to Christian music. This group, which I joined at the recommendation of a visiting pastor, prioritized activities such as singing hymns, sharing the Gospel, and strengthening our community through prayer. Through Christian music channels, we explored various genres—including gospel, CCM, hymns, and worship music—and laid the foundation for our creative activities.
At first, I was captivated by the melodies and lyrics of CCM and gospel music, which inspired me to start learning the drums so I could play them myself. For our meetings, we rented a music rehearsal room and practiced with drums, electric guitar, bass, and synthesizers. I took on the role of drummer, responsible for driving the rhythm. Through repeated practice to achieve a powerful drum performance, I learned how to synchronize with the rest of the team.
In the beginning, we focused on playing existing songs, but we gradually began creating our own music as well. We worked by having the synthesizer player improvise chord accompaniments and experiment with arrangements based on basic rhythms and lyrics, while the bassist held the rhythm and the electric guitarist adjusted the tone to complete the final arrangement. As a result, we created songs like “Blessed People,” “For a Beautiful World,” and “Grace for the Marginalized,” which we performed at school festivals and club recitals.
Through this experience, I learned the importance of fulfilling my role in the collaborative creative process, as well as the importance of an attitude that embraces and coordinates with others’ ideas. Experiencing music that is only truly complete when each individual’s role comes together, I realized firsthand that cooperation and consideration enhance the quality of the creative work.
