Shrine

JPN 201

Intermediate
Japanese
Language & Culture


MAK D-2-136 Jeremy Robinson
Office Hours:
In person M•T•W 11am-noon
-or by appointment
robinjer@gvsu.edu

Foreign language learning is like love a la Tennyson: it is better to have had it and lost it, than never to have had it at all. What fool objects to falling in love because there may be eventual “loss through disuse?” After really experiencing a foreign language--no person is ever the same again. What before was strange has not merely been described or explained; it has been encountered in its reality, and the strangeness has gone. As in love, the words learned may fade, the grammar be forgotten; but he who has experienced a foreign language knows at first hand, and forever--as others less fortunate cannot know--what it means to transcend the limitations of a single tongue and a single culture. He has known one of the liberating forces in a liberal education.
- William Riley Parker, The Language Curtain (1966)


Student Learning Objectives

  After successful completion of JPN 201, students will be able to...
    ... analyze complex Japanese sentences, including identification of modifying clauses.
    ... differentiate between different registers of formality expressed through language context.
    ... apply learned grammar and vocabulary to create original statements in intermediate Japanese
    ... produce sustained communication on a variey of topics in intermediate Japanese in both oral and written form.
    ... translate intermediate level concepts from Japanese to English and English to Japanese.
    ... memorize Japanese vocabulary necessary to comprehend and produce sustained communication in intermediate Japanese.
    ... recognize cultural expectations embedded in language use in intermediate Japanese.
    ... write intermediate Japanese in coherent paragraphs using appropriate kana and 240 Chinese characters.
    ... infer social context and meaning suggested within intermediate Japanese communication.
    ... demonstrate cultural competence and strengthen critical thinking skills.



The following books are available at the university bookstore:
  Genki II: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese II, 3rd ed. – textbook & workbook
The Compact Nelson Japanese-English Character Dictionary

In general we will be follwing the Genki II textbook Lessons 13-18, but the instructor may change the order of assignements or supplement those materials. Be sure to check this syllabus and course schedule – both on this website and on Blackboard – regularly to keep up on assignments.

Also required for this course and available at the bookstore is The Compact Nelson Japanese-English Character Dictionary. We will be using this book not just as a kanji dictionary but for kanji-related assignments specific to it, so even if you already have another kanji dictionary, it is strongly recommended that you purchase this version. Also available at the bookstore is the Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary, but if you already own or wish to buy a different J-E/E-J dictionary, or if you wishhh to use an online dictionary, you are welcome to use that instead. This semester, we will be branching out more frequently into materials intended for native speakers, and you will be learning to use these dictionaries to explore materials beyond the textbook. Also available at the bookstore and, although not required, very highly recommended is Makino and Tsutsui's A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar. In addition to enriching your understanding of the grammar we learn in the textbook, it allows you to explore variations on the grammatical forms we have learned as well as terms we have not yet encountered.

This class is conducted in hybrid format, with new material learned through grammar videos, online practice, workbook assignments, etc. before coming to in-class sessions to actively use the language. In addition, rather than meeting as a full class for an entire class period, shorter sessions focused on individual grammar points will be scheduled with 10-15 students at a time in order to maintain required physical distancing in the classroom. You will be responsible for scheduling these sessions on your own once you have completed the necessary advance preparation. This means that the course will be, to an extent, self-paced. As long as there are other students in the class with whom you can interact, you may be able to move ahead more rapidly than the rest of the class. All onlinee learning, submission of assignments, and scheduling of in-class sessions will be conducted through the university’s Blackboard online learning environment.

The primary language of this class is Japanese. While onliine videos will explain new material in English, all synchronous sessions, classroom commands, instructions, etc. will be in Japanese and it is expected that when you have questions, you will ask them in Japanese. Even when speaking to your fellow classmates, try to use Japanese as much as possible and avoid the habit of clarifying in English what someone is saying in Japanese. In addition, avoid using dictionaries and the textbook glossary during synchronous sessions. If you forget how to say a word, ask your partner in Japanese how to say it. If neither of you know, then ask the instructor in Japanese. Class time is extremely limited, and thus extremely valuable, and you should spend as much of it as possible actively using the language.


Grades will be evaluated as follows:    
  In-class Participation
Homework
Quizzes
Chapter Tests
Kanji Dictionary Assignments
Speaking Assignments
Web Assignments
Writing Assignments
Final Project

6 x 3% = 18%
6 x 3% = 18%
6 x 3% = 18%
6 x 3% = 18%
5 x 1% = 5%
5 x 1% = 5%
5 x 1% = 5%
5 x 1% = 5%
8%

 

Note that for each of the six lessons the participation, homework, quizzes, and chapter test are all of equal value (3pts. = 3% of final grade). Learning a language requires steady regular work far more than cramming for a single exam, and the grade is intended to reflect this. Reviewing your own work is also critical and, as long as you have made your first attempt prior to class each day, all homework may be resubmitted and all quizzes reattempted as many times as you wish to achieve a perfect score until that lesson is complete. This is because you will be encountering new material – grammar, vocabulary, kanji, etc. – for the first time on your own and completing homework and quizzes before coming to class. Even if you feel you have an incomplete understanding of the material, you should always complete the homework assignments to the best of your ability and attempt the quiz at least once prior to class in order to receive credit. In general, for every day in class your preparation should consist of:

  Reading the grammar point in the textbook  
  Viewing the explanatory video for that grammar point  
  Practice applying the grammar point using the designated practice exercises  
  Looking up any new vocabulary that you encountered in the practice exercises  
  Attempting that day's quiz - quiz grade
  Completing and submitting the homework - homework grade
  Coming to class ready to make active use of what you have learned
- participation grade

This is how each leasson is set up in Blackboard and it is highly recommended that you follow that structure for preparation. Once again, late submissions of homework and quizzes WILL NOT be accepted, but as long as you have attempted them at least once you will be allowed to redo them as often as necessary.

Each lesson will also include findependent study assignments o be completed on Blackboard: "Kanji Dictionary," "Speaking Assignment," "Web assignment," and "Writing Assignment," each worth 1 pt (1%) of the total final grade. Note that, although there are six lessons, only five assignments of each type is required. This means you may either choose to skip one of each without penalty or, if you prefer, do all of them for extra credit. Kanji Dictionary Assignments involve looking up new kanji in your kanji dictionary and collecting additional information about their radicals, meaning, additional compounds, etc. Speaking Assignments involve recording yourself doing a role play with another student using the Flip website. Writing Assignments are based on the 書く練習 section of the Reading/Writing section of each lesson and involve composing writtenpassages in Japanese. Web assignments will focus on accessing Japanese web sites in order to complete specific tasks related to the theme of the Reading/Writing section. Deadlines for these assignments are posted on the course schedule on Blackboard.

The greatest resource you have available to you is your fellow students and you are strongly encouraged to collaborate with your classmates in practicing dialogues, doing homework assignments, studying for exams, etc. Work together! However, quizzes and tests should be taen on your own and copying other students’ work, using students’ materials from previous years, or otherwise submitting the work of others as one’s own is plagiarism and will result in an automatic F for the course. If you are ever unsure whether outside help is permitted for any individual project, please ask.

 

Fall 2023 Course Schedule

• click on any section to go to the assignments for that week •

 

Week One – Introduction and Review

8月28日〜31日


Weeks Two and Three – 第十三課

9月5日〜15日


Weeks Four and Five – 第十四課

9月18日〜9月29日


Weeks Six and Seven– 第十五課

10月2日〜13日

 

Weeks Eight and Nine – 第十六課

10月16日〜27日

• 秋休み 10月23日〜24日 •

 

Weeks Ten and Eleven– 第十七課

10月30日〜11月10日

 

Weeks Twelve to Fourteen- 第十八課

11月13日〜12月1日

• 感謝祭 11月22日〜25日 •

Week Fifteen

General Review

 

 

• Final Video Presentations •

Monday, December 11th
Sec 01: 10-11:50am / Sec 02: 12-1:50pm