EhimeAJET.com - Studying Japanese

CLAIR / EPIC / The JLPT / Getting a Teacher / Tips and Tricks

Studying Japanese

If you only plan to stay one year, have no desire to step outside your apartment and don't really give a toss for human contact of any sort then studying Japanese is probably of limited use to you. For anyone else JUST DO IT! Even the smallest morsels of spoken Japanese open an incredible number of doors to you. Yes, Japanese is regarded as a difficult language, but that is largely due to its cumbersome writing system - spoken Japanese is fairly logical in its grammar and extremely simple in its pronunciation. So how do you go about acquiring ability? See the hints below and gambatte kudasai!

CLAIR Distance Education
At the Tokyo orientation, CLAIR will hand out a package in which you will find a sign up sheet for the JET Programme Japanese Language course Beginning/Intermediate/Advanced). Don't forget to sign up and to submit the form to your host institution. Every month, you will receive the course materials by mail. For enquiries regarding the Jet Programme Language Course, please e-mail or FAX the help line.

Tel.: 03-3235-8854 (10:00 - 16:00 Monday-Friday)
E-mail: jethelp@ala-japan.com (24 hours)
FAX: 030-3235-0004 (24 hours)

EPIC Japanese Courses
The Ehime Prefectural International Association (EPIC) holds free (after costs of printouts, 500 yen) Japanese courses twice a year in its office in Matsuyama.

Ehime Prefectural International Center (EPIC)
Fee	500 yen
Place	Ehime Prefecture international Centre Niihama city Welfare Centre Museum of History and Culture (Uwa Town)
Date & Time	1~2 weeks in August or March (excluding Sat & Sun) Mornings and afternoons
Level	Beginner~Intermediate
TEL/FAX	089-917-5678/089-917-5670
E-mail	haiku575(at)lib.e-catv.ne.jp

*For other courses in Ehime, please visit EPIC's webpage.

The Japanese language Proficiency Test (JLPT)
The JLPT is held every year in December, and has 4 levels. Even if you arrived in Japan with zero language ability you should have no problem passing level 4 by December (assuming you do at least some study!) Make this a goal for this year. Make sure to register by early September! Applications are available in most bookstores across Japan (Kinokuniya in Matsuyama for sure). For more info, please visit the Association of International Education, Japan.

Great sites for your study:

This site contains a list of vocabulary used in previous tests, along with a bunch of other useful things. The download page is here: http://www.mlcjapanese.co.jp/Download.htm

Review the basic theory in a fun way with the Sushi Test at http://momo.jpf.go.jp/sushi/index.php?LangFlag=e

Kanjis and kana for the JLPT http://www.kanjisite.com/html/start/index.html

Getting a Teacher
JASL (info at EPIC) can arrange regular lesson for you (1000 yen for one and a half hours or 500 yen for 45 minutes).

Tips and Tricks

Set clear and measurable goals, no matter how small (e.g. 1 kanji a day, or 5 new words a day, and stick with it).
Find someone who only speaks Japanese (teacher or not, friend, boyfriend/girlfriend, penpal, etc.)
Japanese is not French or Spanish. Don't feel disappointed if you are not able to discuss the socio-economic ramifications of the Meiji Restoration after a year's study.
Learn hiragana and katakana ASAP. You will then be able to read menus and simple signs, and the furigana (hiragana written above kanji) in manga and books.
Get yourself a decent dictionary.
Use a notebook. Carry it everywhere. When you hear a new word write it down and also write down where it was you heard it, who said it etc. When you review your notebook the context will make the words easier to recall. Take your notebook with you when you have lunch with your students. Get them to teach you new words, and let them check your entries for errors (assuming you don't have obscene references liberally sprinkled throughout the notebook).
Associate Kanjis to the first thing they make you think about in connection to the actual meaning.
Make flashcards
Go Karaoke. It's a fun way to practice your reading skills and pronunciation.
Rehearse conversations: if you went to the beach on the weekend make sure you know the word for beach so when the topic of your weekend comes up you already have the vocabulary.
Let people know you are studying Japanese - it is a great icebreaker, and most people will take a great interest in whatever you happen to be studying at the time.
Don't give up.