As I begin my
language-study this semester, I modified my Individualized Study Plan to
reflect my professor’s and my classmates’ advice. Dr. T noted that my original
plan didn’t necessarily account for my goals, nor did it see me practicing
conversation, particularly listening to genocide survivors’ testimony. I
modified my plan to accommodate these goals, but I also understand that my
approach might change if I think of more appropriate ideas throughout the
semester.
My
classmates, however, indicated that my goals might be too lofty and my
activities too burdensome to be contained within the semester. I totally agree
with them! In a way, my schedule is even a bit intimidating, but I intentionally
structured it so that it will be challenging. I more-than-likely will not
finish every task listed on my ISP, nor reach every goal to satisfaction.
However, at the beginning of the semester- right now-, I can confidently say
that I believe in myself enough to set these goals with the knowledge that I
can modify them if necessary. As the semester proceeds, I will always have
something to do, even if it does not always get done, and I will never grow
complacent or feel superior to my language study. And at the end of the
semester, if and when I do not reach the goals I set, I can say, “But look at
what I have done” and have a clearer picture of what still needs to be done.
Language-study, in and of itself, is a lofty goal. It seems appropriate that my
sub-goals building up to it are similarly lofty.
As
for my activities this week, I had a lot of fun experimenting on Quizlet and
Memrise. Admittedly, I think I like Memrise a little better, but that’s just an
initial assessment as of right now. On both sites, I’ve been looking at other
people’s courses and lessons, and I’ve identified one source on each website
that I particularly like; however, they do not come without their flaws, which
is probably a further indication that I should make my own material for the
sites. Regardless, on Quizlet, I can indicate that I would like the word shown
to me in English, and I am then expected to produce it in Kinyarwanda; however,
the source also tries to type his own “phonetic” version of the word after the
word itself. When I don’t type the phonetic version, I get the word wrong,
which is a little annoying. As a consolation, however, Quizlet will allow you
to indicate that you are, indeed, right, and the computer is wrong, which I
like for the purposes of proper scoring.
The
source I like on Memrise is occasionally incorrect in word meaning. For
example, he/she states that Murakaza Neza
means “You are welcome,” which is technically true insofar as it originates
from the verb kuza (to come to) and
it is conjugated in second-person (plural/proper); however, I think of the
English phrase, “You’re welcome” (as a response to “thank you”). Accordingly, I
would say the definition of Murakaza neza
is “Welcome,” and my other sources would agree with me; however, in order
to get the question correct, I have to accommodate his/her definition, as
Memrise has no “I am correct” function like Quizlet. In addition, the source
arbitrarily uses U-/Mu- (second-person [singular/casual; plural/possessive]) without
indicating which he/she wants. For example, he/she asks for the definition of “Thank
you” and desires Murakoze, while
he/she asks for the definition of “Thank you very much” and desires Urakoze cyane. To complicate things
further, he/she asks for the definition of “I’m fine, thank you, and you?” and
desires, as a response, Nibyiza,
murakoze, nawe se? And this is fine, because they’re all technically right,
but I have to memorize the phrase as he/she stated it in order to get it “right.”
The
solution? Simple! Make my own Memrise material!
Finally,
I have also been working on a Kinyarwanda lesson this week to present in class,
identifying the parts of the body featured in the children’s song, “Head,
Shoulders, Knees and Toes (And Eyes, and Ears, and Mouth, and Nose).” I hope
the amount of vocabulary isn’t overwhelming, particularly as some of it sounds
very similar, but I recall enjoying learning vocabulary from the languages my classmates
were studying, particularly if and when I could detect similarities between it
and Kinyarwanda. In addition, as the lesson will be partly musical (though not
to the same tune as “H, S, K, and T”- too many syllables!), and as it requires
movement, I am curious to see if my classmates will retain the information any
better.
Mugire amahoro. (Go in peace.)
Oooh! Fun! Something to look forward to in class today. :)
ReplyDeleteYour point about being able to tell Quizlet that you are, in fact, correct about something is one of my favorite things about it. I frequently type too fast and mis-type a word I know I am spelling correctly, or provide an answer that is correct but doesn't match the original answer (as in greetings), and I like that I can tell Quizlet not to count it against me. In some ways, I find that this ability to check my own work in the moment helps with my learning.