As a half Japanese, half America, I’ve always wanted to learn East Asian culture and linguistics. Even though I am part of Japanse, I don’t have any knowledge of Japanese linguistics or difference between japan and other countries.  Most of the material that Professor Idemaru taught us in the class was new to me. I never thought that there is such a difference in Korean, Japanese and Chinese writing systems. It was quite surprising that when professor Idemaru thought us Korean used to use Chinese. Because I knew Kanji is based on Chinese characters but I had no idea Korea used to use Chinese characters. But I still don’t know why was Korea able to remove kanji but japan wasn’t able to?

The discussion class also helped me to understand the concepts of this class deeper. The research report achieved existing knowledge and gave me a chance to interact with other students through group discussion. Since there were a lot of Asian students in our class, it was always fun to talk to them about cultural differences and the conversations always helped me to write a good research report. I realized face to face interviews/conversations can probe for more explanations of responses compare to online research.

This class was not challenging for me. But I definitely developed some reading skills. Most of all reading assignments were quite interesting and enjoyable. Of course, class lectures were helpful but I feel like reading assignments made me think a lot and it was also good preparation for the class.

Even though I am not majoring in Asian studies or anything, I feel like I gained the skill of Asian languages cultures. The class lecture and all of the readings I’ve done in this class made me think about how diverse East Asian linguistics is. If I have a chance, I will definitely continue studying East Asia culture and linguistics.

Throughout this term, the topics that were covered in this class allowed me to learn more about the East Asian language and culture. The main issue that intrigued me the most would be the topic of gendered differences. Before I took this class, I always thought that both genders would speak the same way in Asian cultures. But when I learned that they have gendered differences in their languages, it was a cultural shock to me because I have been taking Chinese for ten years and I never thought about the differences there were. An example would be when both genders would use different ways to say “I am” in Japanese.

Another issue that was interesting to me would be the Chinese parenting styles because I am raised by Chinese parents. I feel like Chinese parents today are becoming more lenient to their children. From my experience, my parents were strict and controlled what I did but eventually, they allowed me to be more independent. They felt that if I made my own decisions and had my own freedom, I could learn from my mistakes and choose what kind of person I want to be in the future. I feel like they made the right choice to let me be independent most times because it made me work harder in everything I did, find out what I want to achieve in life and who I want to be in life.

The readings, class discussions, and lectures definitely helped with my learning process because Professor Idemaru and the GE, Hyunji, went in-depth on the topics which allowed me to learn more about East Asian culture. The readings specifically helped me a lot because it helped me prepare for the lecture and understand the discussions that were going on in class.

I approach learning in this course by taking notes on the lecture slides the night before because it helps me mentally prepare for class and I won’t have stress out about making sure I took notes on everything on the slides. Taking notes ahead of class time helps me learn more about the topics we are covering during class because I can focus on listening to the professor and process what she is saying mentally. This class is changing my sense of “linguistics” as a field because I am learning things about the three East Asian languages that I didn’t know before. I came into this class having a minimal amount of knowledge on the languages but after taking this class, I learned more about the different aspects of them and how they were created.

This class is not challenging me to change how I think because I was raised in a community where the population mainly consisted of Asians, specifically Chinese, Japanese and Koreans. Throughout my life, I have learned a lot about East Asian culture because my family and everyone in my life is from an Asian background. Thus, this led me to be open-minded about the material that I learn in class about East Asia because I am exposed to the language and culture.

What questions or issues have intrigued you? What reactions have you had about readings, class discussions, and lectures? How do you approach to learning in this course? Is the class changing your sense of “linguistics” as a field? Is the class challenging you to change how you think or how you prepare (If so, can you describe the change?)

I thought our lecture about different parenting styles was especially intriguing. As an Asian-American who was raised in the United States, the different parenting styles between Asians and White-Americans has been a significant part of my life. Especially because I’ve lived away from home since I was 15 years old, with three separate White-American host families. I’ve been able to observe the cultural differences when it comes to raising kids, and it’s significantly informed my view of the world and how I would like to raise my kids.

After thinking deeply about this topic, I have found that the lecture in class about traditional Asian parents versus White-American families are quite accurate within my life experience. My family did emphasize education and independence and less about self-esteem. This manifested in extra tutoring and an emphasis on my problem solving ability in figuring out my own problems without intervention. Whether this be homework, laundry, or social development, my parents wanted me to figure it out myself in hopes of becoming independent. With the White-American families that I have lived with, all of them were more involved with my social life and encouraged socializing. Whether that be allowing me to stay out late, hosting parties, or asking about my personal social life, these families emphasized meeting new people and finding new experiences.

With my past experiences, learning about the observations of these cultural differences from academics and my classmates significantly educates me on this matter in a relative sense. How these differences affect others in their development and their views on life has helped keep me openminded about the pros and cons of both lifestyles that I have been a part of.

I think that these observations has elevated my self-awareness and education beyond linguistics in this class, and goes deeper into cultural differences that have been developed over thousands of years. I think at the end of the day, these help me understand the nuances in language at a deeper level and why cultures communicate differently.