Braving the challenges of studying a foreign language, students from BYU-Hawaii shared their experiences as they took on a different kind of adventure through learning languages outside of their own native tongue.
Kristi Aurich, a sophomore from Arizona majoring in TESOL education, said she has taken two semesters of Mandarin at BYUH and expressed that it might be the hardest class she has ever taken.
She explained how in the beginning, she was very excited for the class. Aurich studied Spanish before for five years and was happy to try a new language here at BYUH. However, after a few classes, she started getting overwhelmed from all the things she had to learn and how the class was fast-paced.
Aurich shared one of her techniques for studying for the class through writing the Pinyin and the characters for certain words and then she would stick those notes all over her room. “So, I put 洗澡 on the shower and 宿舍, it’s dormitory and put that on the front door, like the hale dormitory. Then I would put it on paper, desks, and ‘Oh, this is dresses.’”
Overall experience: “I’m glad I did it because it really taught me to respect everybody who comes here and learns English. I couldn’t imagine going to China, trying to learn this language, taking classes in this language, trying to communicate with people around me while just trying to learn it…
So, it’s just like, ‘Wow. People come here and learn a totally different language like English.’ Obviously, it’s different for everyone on different levels, but it made me appreciate the people who come here and learn English here.”
Advice: “Even though learning a language is so frustrating, those little moments where you get it are so worth it. Or if you want to learn another language, don’t just dream about it, just start doing it. You never know where it could take you.”
Jonna Lorente, a senior from the Philippines majoring in elementary education said that she firmly believes that being able to communicate in sign language is a great skill to have especially since she wants to earn a master’s degree in special education.
She said the class was an eye-opener for her because for the first time in her life, she couldn’t say a single word during class as they were not allowed to speak. She said that she was both enthusiastic and nervous at the same time towards the class because she had doubts whether if her professor would understand her while she signed and if she would understand her professor.
Overall experience: “It was just amazing how possible it is for people not to say a word but completely understand each other. I guess that's the work of the heart. My ASL professor, I must say, is one of the most patient and versatile teachers I have met. She perfectly knows when to slow down so we can have some time to process what she's teaching us.”
Advice: “There is no easy road to learning a new language. It requires time, dedication, diligence, hard work and patience to others and self. Above all, a motivation to learn it, not only for the sake of passing the course but because you want to make a difference sooner, in the life of at least one person, who has always been taken for granted because of the incapacity to communicate with words. And I would (like to) be that change-maker one day.”
Will Kawamura, a senior from Japan majoring in peacebuilding chose to take Samoan classes this semester. She shared how she was deciding between Maori, Tongan or Samoan. She decided to learn a language from the Polynesian islands since she was graduating soon. She ultimately chose Samoan as she has closely worked with them because of her job as a tour guide for the Polynesian Cultural Center.
Kawamura said Polynesian languages are not completely different from each other. She said that she has noticed similarities between them especially when it comes to how you read. Her biggest challenge in learning Samoan is trying to remember the vocabulary.
Overall experience: “Because I’m a tour guide, I feel like I’m really close to the Polynesian islands compared to the time before I went on a mission. But then, since I started to learn Samoan, I kind of wanted to talk to a Samoan and practice so I feel closer.”
Advice: “I think it’s better if you take this great opportunity. Because if I go back to Japan, I don’t think I can find any Polynesian in Japan and I don’t think I will probably have time to learn. And even though if you learn it, I have a lot of friends who [are] learning Korean or Chinese in Japan but then they don’t have any opportunity to speak. They can’t make friends like here and I think we have awesome professors and real awesome people in here so take that opportunity.”
Ephraim Insigne, a senior from the Philippines majoring in accounting, is on his fourth semester of taking French. He said that he wanted to learn one of the romantic languages and hopes to live in France one day or go on a vacation there.
Insigne said that he struggled with the language in the beginning as he could not listen to people very well but got better as they went along. He shared how he and his close friend took the class together and often practiced speaking in French.
Overall experience: “It was great. I now possess a good command of the language. It’s a lot better than when I first started…
“I honestly believe that if you’re in a place that gives you an opportunity to learn a language, you should take that chance. Because where else can you learn a different language? You can learn, I guess, on your own, but where else would you actually get an education on a language and know people who actually speak it and could help you.”
Advice: “Do not give up. Because if you give up during that first day or first week- because there will come a point in time that you feel like you want to give up, but if you give up, you won’t learn a thing. You can’t speak what you have in confidence if you never actually try.”
Lyon Jerry Almanda, a junior from Indonesia studying finance took Japanese classes because he wanted to learn how to communicate with his future in-laws. He also expressed interest in working in Japan one day.
Almanda said he was trying to learn Mandarin during high school for three years and noticed how in the first month of learning Japanese at BYUH, he understood more about the language in such a short time compared to his experience with Mandarin before.
Overall experience: “It’s pretty good– positive. I didn’t feel like I was going to drop the class or drop the minor so, I feel so positive in the future when I’m learning Japanese. I heard it’s going to be hard, from my adviser, to take a Japanese minor, especially around the 200 or 300 class levels, but I’m just going to stay positive.”
Advice: “Nowadays, every country is trading globally. So, I recommend learning at least 2 languages, other than English, so that they can just speak and negotiate with people from different countries.”
Writer: Esther Insigne