MKSong Tutor Interview

Q. Hello MKSong, can you introduce yourself to Cafetalk community?: A. Hello, I’m a Korean tutor, Song Mi Kyung. I graduated from the university majoring in French and had worked in a multinational company for 13 years. I went to Washington D.C with my family and started volunteering as a Korean teacher. I am a certified Korean teacher (level 2) and fluent in English due to my work experiences in the multinational company and staying in the U.S.
Q. Can you talk about your town?: A. I currently live in Seoul, Korea. Seoul is such a dynamic city. There are things you can taste, experience and see here. We have places where you can see Korean history and go for shopping. I often encounter foreigners asking me to recommend places to visit. I say Seoul is a good place to visit. It is a fun place to visit.
Q. According to your profile, you lived in Washing D.C. How was your life in there?: A. I lived in the town named Fairfax in Washington D.C. Because of my husband’s job, our family could visit many places such as East and West of America, Canada, and Cancun, Mexico. When I stayed in D.C, I could meet many foreign friends and learn about different cultures. One memorable moment was when my kid introduced Korean food and culture on an international day at his school. I remember people saying foods were great and amazing. I began to have an interest in becoming a Korean teacher.
Q. What’s your favorite Korean sentence?: A. I like a word (but not a sentence) called ‘정 (Jeong)’. It is a word you can only find in Korean. The meaning combines friendship, trust, humanism, kindness, and hospitality. You can find this ‘Jeong’ in relationship with others. I hope you also experience ‘Jeong’ in Korea.
Q. What do you usually do when you have free time?: A. I usually download and watch Korean soap operas or movies. I also like to visit famous restaurants and take pictures. It is hard to find boring Korean movies these days which means the quality of Korean movies has been advanced. Korean soap opera is a good study method to study Korean, but I also recommend to watch Korean movies. If you visit my Cafetalk tutor columns I uploaded some of my favorite Korean soap opera videos. There are many good restaurants in Seoul. Visit my Facebook. You will find not only Korean cuisines but also Korean styled Italian, Japanese, Chinese, and street foods. Come to Korea and experience our delightful cuisines!
Q. What made you become a Korean tutor? what is the most important point in the lesson?: A. I began teaching Korean when I taught Korean as a volunteer in Washington D.C. I received the certificate for Korean tutor when I came to Korea. I like to talk about Korean culture during the lesson. My students and I talk about differences and similarities in their and Korean cultures. I believe a lesson should be fun with a lot of talking.
Q. Before we end the interview, please leave your message to Cafetalk students?: A. I recommend the “Reading Korean news” lesson. This lesson is best for advanced learners. A student can learn difficult Korean words and also Korean cultures and pop cultures. I also teach a pronunciation lesson. There are some students who speak Korean really well but need to practice pronunciation. This is 5 weeks program. We go over the basics of Korean pronunciation and read out loud some Korean sentences. I recommend to those of you who want to speak Korean clearly like a native.