Several Superstitions and Customs in Korea
There are some customs that you need to keep in mind when you visit Korea later on.
It would be a good way to understand Korean people’s culture.
1. Korean people think that good lucks will leave you when you shake your legs. Shaking legs look bad and is regarded as a bad table manner in Korea. Parents often scold their children whenever they shake their legs on a dinner table or during a study.
2. Korean people avoid eating ‘Miyeok-guk (미역국, seaweed soup)’ during exam periods. 미역국 is very popular and loved in Korea but it is specifically avoided on exam days. There is a famous Korean idiom ‘시험에 미끄러졌다’ which translates as ‘I slipped on an exam’. Since seaweed is slimy, the parallelism created between the slimy seaweed and the idiom, create people to think that eating seaweed will fail their exams. Therefore, 미역국 is a symbolic meal for birthdays but not for occasions when important tests are on.
3. Magpie(까치) is regarded as a bird that brings a good luck, while sighting a crow(까마귀) is thought to bring you a bad luck or death. It would be the opposite in other countries. In some countries, crow is a symbol of a good luck. However, Korean people normally say that I am lucky (재수 있다) whenever they see a magpie while they say “I am unlucky. (재수 없다)” when they see a crow. Additionally, the traditional folk song, 까치 까치 설날 (Magpie Magpie New Year), is often sang on New Year Day for people to celebrate in hope for a lucky new year.
4.If Korean people accidentally drop a cup and the cup is broken, they think that something bad will happen.You maybe have seen a similar scene in Korean dramas. When actresses drop a cup or a vase on the floor, later on in the drama/movie, something bad will eventually occur. Therefore Koreans do not serve their guest with broken glass wares.
I can’t say that every Korean people believe in the superstitions. However, it would be helpful to understand Korean culture.
Sarah Yong (Korean Tutor)
The endless rows of apartment buildings in Korea
Hong Kong is known to be packed with apartments. However, Hong Kong is just a city. Considering the size of the country, Korea is perhaps the only one country that is covered with sprawling apartment complexes throughout the country, whether it is in a metropolitan or a rural area. It is due to high volume of population in the limited of land as well as preference of living style. Within limited space, people wanted to live in a warm cosy home without taking care of the place much. In Korea, houses traditionally used to be a common type of place to live. However, as Korea became more industrialised, the Koreans found more opportunity to get a job in the bigger city, and they prefer urban life style than agricultural life, which lead to the cities becoming concentrated. Even in the rural area, there are less people living than usual, they also enjoy living in apartments due to the convenience of home care and high security.
Given the fact that the Koreans cannot stand falling behind others, living in apartments means that everyone has the same size, design and layout shared by their neighbours. If anything is different, it immediately catches the eyes of neighbours. For example, rumours of someone having a new television would fly all over the apartment complex. Fierce competition would ensue. When there was something new, it would become extremely popular within the apartment complex, as everyone would know what their neighbours have and aim to have it too. For example, refrigerators made for Kimchi were introduced 90s and within only a few years, they became in great demand for people everywhere. The Koreans have taken their ‘equal profit sharing’ mentality to a whole new level.
Hi everyone, 皆さん、こんにちは。
My Japanese classes/lessons included practices to develop skills of speaking, reading, listening, writing (including essays), interacting, and constructing/performing students’ own dialogues by pairs/groups or by oneself and learning Japanese used in travelling in Japan. Speaking practice sometimes used the pictures, concepts or topics from the brochures of the Japan National Tourism Organizations, Nichigo Press, Daily Telegraph etc. Also, understanding and analyzing Japanese culture are important part of the course.
My Intermediate 3 is studying with Japanese for Busy People Book 2 (currently Unit 3). Also, I give handouts to increase vocab and simple sentences with use of the vocab for practical language learning for travelling or staying in Japan with use of other relevant books. With use of Japanese magazines, e.g. Nichigo Press, we read and understood some ads or articles. That included a Japanese movie magazine, “Shinema-junpoo” (Aug. ’15), its 2 page ad of a film, “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation”. The phrases shown there were very interesting.
The students of the above class are now able to write and express some story or event for essay writing. For homework, they did very well for such tasks. One student wrote a beautiful story (fiction) about adapting a puppy at a home and hectic thing having occurred at night. Other student wrote/word-processed and also used an article about Sydney/Australia in relation to tourism and historical heritage of Sydney. Each of such essay or dialogue writings were read out in class and be understood by everyone in class. That practice was very useful and fun. I like to continue that activity whenever possible in future too. One of the very desirable teaching methods.
As for my students for weekly tutorials, one of them, who is a company executive, is studying with Unit 3, Japanese for Everyone now. He is happy with the textbook. As mentioned in my Blog before, he is taking a 2 weeks’ Japanese course in Tokyo in a month’s time, so he is excited about that plan too.
Another tutorial student (who is knowledgeable about goo/great Japanese restaurants in Sydney) is currently studying with Unit 6, Genki Book 1, very vigorously.
In the coming week, I plan to teach Japanese, traditional “bon-dance” with its cd (many well-known and beautiful songs for bon-dance are in it). In Japan, it’s bon-dance and its festivals season. Bon festivals in the summer are a big and positive part of Japanese community, public enjoyment of sharing, cultural and communal identity, peace etc throughout the land. (Recently I used the cd and taught the dance forms that I know to a few children somewhere else. They “loved” that. It was so positive-ness, relaxing, peacefulness and enjoyment creating to one another.)
As for the culture/society and news reported from Japan in the recent month/weeks, some of the things I spoke about (NHK TV News, 13.7.15, on SBS TV) are:
Seven-Eleven, Japan began using fast cash register system for customers, who are from overseas, to buy products without paying the tax, “menzei”. The new speedy system at its register for transaction, the shop assistant just presses the key of “menzei” and face the bar code of the product to the little screen of the register. Then, “menzei” management is fixed for the customer’s purchase. It is so speedy and many foreign tourists are impressed with the convenience and efficiency.
By next February, the company intends to have that system at its 3000 stores in Japan. Likewise, other internationally operated Lawson, Inc. has the services for customers that if the customer, who does not speak Japanese, faces an i-phone to the screen given in the store, immediately the screen will have the translation from Japanese to other, required language and up to 11 languages will be covered for such translation. – Fantastic!
Japanese Teacher, Toshiko Jackson
5.8.15
Part 2: Speaking tips for OET Nursing Students
In Part 1 we went through the importance of context when introducing yourself to the role player/patient giving some examples. In Part 2 we will cover two more tips that will help you to achieve the best results you can in the speaking section.
1. Refer to the role play notes as often as you like! The actor opposite you is not your assessor.
Your role play will be recorded, it will not be videotaped – therefore you are only being assessed on what you say and not your body language. You do NOT have to memorise and act out the role play. Instead, refer to the notes as much as you like to make sure you are covering everything.
2. Mentally tick off each dot point as you go – if it’s easier for you, try to follow the dot points in sequential order
In the role player card you are given they will outline the context and what you are required to discuss/explain in dot points. Try to follow these in order to make sure you cover everything and since you are only being assessed on what you say, make sure you speak clearly and empathetically.
3. Acknowledge the feelings of the role player/patient when required to show you are empathetic and caring in your work as a nurse
a. If the patient in the role play is agitated/angry for example:
“Mrs Barnes I understand that you are frustrated with what has happened but I can assure you that myself and Dr X are doing the best we can to ensure that your care is optimal” etc
b. If a patient is scared for example:
“Johnny I know you’re afraid of needles as are a lot of other people and I understand that completely. However, you have nothing to be worried about as the pain is very minimal and with practice you will feel a lot more comfortable with using your insulin injections
Good luck! I hope this two part series has helped you feel more confident in your abilities to conquer the speaking section of the OET exam.
Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Teacher
Part 1: Speaking tips for OET Nursing Students
Having tutored many nursing students in the speaking test I have noticed a number of common areas in which improvement can be easily made. In this blog (Part 1) I will explain the importance of context in shaping how you begin your role play, giving examples of appropriate introductions.
1. Introduce yourself according to the context of the role play.
*Do not use the same introduction blindly each time (eg “Hi my name is Sarah, I am the nurse) as it may be inappropriate for the context.*
a. Sometimes you may be a nurse in the emergency department and you can simply introduce yourself by name, position and by asking what has brought the patient in today:
“Hi my name is Sarah I am the nurse here today. May I know your name? What has brought you in today? etc
b. Other times your role play may require you to make a house visit – in which case it is inappropriate to introduce yourself in the same manner as you would if a patient had come to the hospital. In this second scenario it would be more appropriate to introduce yourself by name and position (eg community nurse) and explain to the patient why you have come by to visit them:
“Hi Robert, my name is Sarah and I am the community nurse. I have been sent here by your GP to show you how to administer your insulin injections. How are you today?” etc.
c. In another scenario you might be relaying a message from the doctor in a hospital to a patient who is agitated at having to wait. In this case you will already know the name of the patient, and should communicate empathetically by acknowledging their frustration/anger and try to defuse the situation:
“Hi Mr Smith? My name is Sarah and I am one of the nurses here at the hospital. I have been sent here by Dr X to let you know that she is still attending to an emergency call and will be another ten minutes. I understand you must be frustrated but she is doing all she can to attend to you as quickly as possible.” etc
Good Luck!
Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Teacher
Reading Part B – Simple Tips to Improve your Approach to Answering Questions
Reading Part B can seem particularly daunting after the quick pace of Part A. Many students do well in Part A because they can quickly match the relevant word(s) to fill in each gap. However, many of these same students struggle to complete Part B as it requires a much deeper level of reading comprehension.
Here I will provide two tips to improve your ability to pick the correct answers in Part B, and hone your approach to answering each question.
- Read the questions before the text. Most of the multiple choice questions in Part B refer to one particular paragraph in which the answer is located. For this reason it is better to get straight to reading the questions and then reading the relevant paragraph only. This way you are not wasting time by reading the entire piece provided, then having to go back and re-read each paragraph as dictated by each question
- Once you have read the relevant paragraph look at the multiple choice answers to pick the correct answer. Many students make the mistake of reading the question and then reading the multiple choice answers immediately BEFORE reading the relevant paragraph. This is problematic sometimes because you may end up putting your own bias into the interpretation of the paragraph because your own prior knowledge or opinion on the topic has led you to have a pre-formed notion about which answer that you have read is most correct.
Hope this was helpful! Good luck!
Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Teacher
Tips for Improving Reading at Home
Many of my students struggle to complete either part A or part B of the reading for a
number of reasons. Part A requires you to be able to quickly skim read and pick out key
words that will guide you to the answer, while Part B is a test of your reading
comprehension and will highlight a need to improve general vocabulary and understanding
of the written language. Below are some of my suggestions on how to improve your reading
at home.
1. Get into the habit of reading every day. Whether it is an English novel, the
newspaper or a magazine it is very important to read something every day, or as
regularly as possible to improve your reading speed and comprehension. For the OET
in particular it would be a good idea to read scientific journal articles online from
wites such as Medline, EBSCO and PubMed, or read information on https://levitralab.com medical websites
such as the BMJ (British Medical Journal).
2. Following on from the above suggestion, when you find a word that you do not
understand while you are reading, copy it down into a book with the dictionary
definition for future reference. I find that a lot of my students miss out on choosing
the correct answer in Reading Part A and B because they come across a word that
forms part of the answer but they do not know what it means. Therefore, it is
extremely important to read regularly and write down new words when you come
across them. To really improve your vocabulary put some time aside in your day to
also revisit the new words you have written down so that you learn them for the
future.
3. Finally be smart about what you read and try to summarise the meaning to test
how well you understand the text. This is an exercise you can do to see how well
you are able to understand what you have read. While you are reading a
book/newspaper/magazine pick a page, or a few paragraphs and read them, then try
to summarise what you have just read either verbally or by writing a small summary.
Hopefully these small tips will help improve your reading skills immensely. Best of luck in the future with the OET!
Nadishi Athulathmudali, OET Teacher
OET Listening Component
As well as listening out for word stress, intonation and specific vocabulary, you will need to familiarise yourself with the 12 occupations listed in the OET. These are:
| Dentistry | Pharmacy |
| Dietetics | Physiotherapy |
| Medicine | Podiatry |
| Nursing | Radiography |
| Occupational Therapy | Speech Pathology |
| Optometry | Veterinary Science |
This is important because not only do you need to be aware of subject matter –disease, illness, ailment, procedure etc. you must acquire some basic knowledge of the topics most likely to be discussed. The more familiar you are with any given subject matter, the higher the chance you will recognise occupation specific terminology.
At the beginning of every listening test Part A, they will tell you who will be involved in the discussion. Acquiring some basic knowledge of each occupation simply by reading a page or two on each, will give you not only the confidence you need but will allow you to anticipate what is http://premier-pharmacy.com coming. Remember that at no time are you tested on medical terminology, but being as comfortable and familiar with a topic as possible will certainly be place you in the best possible position.
Listening Shorthands
It can be difficult for students to keep up in the Listening section, especially if the passage is long or they are a slow writer. One way to make sure you don’t fall behind during each question is to use shorthands that you then fill in during the breaks between questions or at the end. For example, consider a question that asks you to list the symptoms of malaria, and then the audio lists them very quickly as below:
“Headache, fever, muscle pain, dizziness, anaemia, sweating, nausea….”
It can be hard to jot all these down in full without losing track of the speaker, and this is where shorthands come in. During the audio, you could write down
“Head…, fev…, musc…., diz…, ana…., sweat…., naus…”
This would take less time than writing out each symptom in full, and would mean you could keep up with the speaker better. You would then go back and fill these words in during the break after the question. It’s important to realize we do not recommend coming up with a short form for every word before the exam – rather, you write fragments of each word you meet that are recognizable enough that you can come back during the break and fill them out. You might not recognize “ana” as being short for “anaemia” a week later, but during the test the audio should be fresh enough in your memory that you can fill it in.
Good luck studying!
Tips for Improving OET Reading
Reading B – Assigning titles to paragraphs/articles
A common question type in Reading B is one where you asked “What is the most appropriate title for this paragraph?” or “What would make a suitable title for this article?”. It is useful to consider how best to answer these questions. The general principle that works for questions like this is to ask yourself “Which title covers everything in the paragraph, but is as narrow as possible?”. This principle might seem contradictory at first – how can a title cover everything, but be narrow? However, we will consider an example to illustrate the principle at work.
Example 1
Alcoholic cirrhosis is the most common cause of hepatic cancer in Australia, accounting for approximately 60% of diagnoses, closely followed by hepatitis B virus, which is responsible for an additional one fifth of these patients. Other, less common, aetiologies include other viral hepatitides, hepatitis of non-infectious causes, aflatoxin exposure, haemochromatosis, Wilson’s disease, Type 2 diabetes and haemophilia.
Which of the following titles is most appropriate for this paragraph?
A) Complications of alcoholic cirrhosis
B) Risk factors for hepatic cancer
C) Alcoholic cirrhosis in the aetiology of hepatitis B
D) Causes of hepatic illness
At first glance, answer A looks like it could fit – the text talks about alcoholic cirrhosis leading to the complication of hepatic cancer. However, this title only really applies to the first sentence, and the rest of the paragraph has no relevance to alcoholic cirrhosis. Similarly, answer C is incorrect because it only considers terms in the first sentence, and is also incorrect as the paragraph considers alcoholic cirrhosis and hepatitis B in the aetiology of hepatic cancer. Both B and D do fit the whole paragraph, but the most appropriate title of these two will be the one that is most narrow. The article doesn’t talk about hepatic illness in general, but instead focuses on hepatic cancer – D is too broad, where B fits the paragraph perfectly.
The same principle can be applied to questions asking you to give a title to the whole article – make sure that your title choice can be applied to any given paragraph in the article. Unlike Reading A, in Reading B you have a bit more time to read and process the text to get a general feel for the information in the article, and this can help your choice of a title.
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