Course Description Study of fundamentals of Japanese:  conversation, writing, listening and reading comprehension, vocabulary building, grammar and culture.  No prerequisites.

Required Texts/Materials

            1)  Yookoso!  Book I, An Introduction to Contemporary Japanese, 3rd edition

            2)  Workbook/Lab Manual to accompany Yookoso! Book I,

            3)  Listening exercises require either the purchase of a set of CDs found in some bookstores or the checking out of CDs at ACC library.

Instructional Methodology During class the components of listening and speaking will be emphasized.  We will spend most of the time using the language, not talking about it.  The grammatical explanations will be kept to a minimum and you will be required to work in pairs and small groups.  Your active participation in group work is required for the success of the class.  A portion of each class will be spent learning the Japanese writing system and students are expected to practice writing at home on a daily basis.  The Workbook and written assignments will be helpful in developing both reading and writing.  The tapes and the lab manual will aid you in the comprehension and pronunciation of Japanese.

Course Rationale/Objectives In addition to offering the fundamentals of the Japanese language, this course is intended to fulfill one semester of the foreign language requirement as needed for Associate Degree plans and transfer credit to four-year institution.  The number of courses required varies from discipline and institution.

Japanese 1411 Student Learning Outcomes

The main objective of the course is to help students to continue developing skills in the areas of listening, speaking, reading and writing in the Japanese language at a basic level.  The skills you learn from this course will enable you to engage in simple yet useful Japanese conversations, read and understand basic written Japanese and feel comfortable using hiragana, katakana and some kanji. Your ability to understand and communicate will develop along with your knowledge of the vocabulary and grammatical structures of the language.  You should allow two or three hours a day for the study of Japanese (at least two hours outside of class for each hour in class).  At the end of one semester of Japanese 1411, students should be able to do the following:

At the end of one semester of Japanese 1411, students should be able to do the following:

READING 

• read hiragana, katakana, and forty-eight kanji.
• recognize English borrowings encountered in Japanese.
• understand simple questions based on familiar topics.
• recognize the main idea and basic details of a text dealing with familiar topic, such as daily life, classes, or written directions to a place.

LISTENING

• follow common classroom instructions.
• comprehend simple questions based on familiar topics.
• understand basic details when listening to a passage based on familiar material.

WRITING

• use hiragana and katakana.
• ask and answer simple questions based on familiar topics.
• fill out a simple registration form with name, address, phone number and nationality.
• write a brief description of daily activities, their classmates, home town and neighborhood.

SPEAKING

• use comprehensible pronunciation, distinguishing between single and double vowels and consonants.
• introduce themselves using appropriate gestures and use daily greetings.
• express gratitude and apology.
• ask what items are and identify them.
• count using common counters and use numbers in giving information such as telephone numbers and prices of food items.
• tell the day, date, and time.
• order food at a Japanese restaurant.
• buy simple items at a store.
• inquire whether something exists.
• introduce people.
• describe people, places and things.
• ask and tell where something is located.
• express varying degrees of likes and dislikes.

CULTURE

• understand the history and structure of the Japanese writing system.
• have a basic concept of registers of speech and levels of politeness.
• be familiar with common mannerism and interjections in conversation.

Discipline Student Learning Outcomes

At the end of the fourth semester of Japanese, students should be able to:

• apply a variety of reading strategies to increase understanding of written material and state the main idea and some details of a text based on familiar material and authentic texts;
• use a variety of listening strategies in order to increase understanding of basic everyday conversations and state the main idea and some details when listening to a passage on familiar material;
• maintain simple everyday conversations on a variety of topics (including descriptions, comparisons, recommendations, narrating in the past, expressing likes and preferences, making hypothetical statements, talking about the future) while demonstrating awareness of the sequence of tenses, use of prepositions and levels of speech politeness;
• write organized short compositions on a variety of topics (including descriptions, comparisons, recommendations, narrating in the past, expressing likes and preferences, making hypothetical statements, talking about the future) while using connectors and transitional words;
• demonstrate some knowledge of traditional Japanese food and housing.

General Education Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate competence in:

• Critical Thinking

Gathering, analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating and applying information

• Interpersonal Skills (Teamwork)

Interacting collaboratively to achieve common goals

• Civic and Cultural Awareness (Social Responsibility)

             Analyzing and critiquing competing perspectives in a democratic society, and

             comparing, contrasting, and interpreting differences and commonalities among

             peoples, ideas, aesthetic traditions, and cultural practice

• Personal Responsibility

             Identifying and applying ethical principles and practices, and demonstrating effective

             learning, creative thinking, and personal responsibility

• Written, Oral and Visual Communication (Communication

             Communicating effectively, adapting to purpose, structure, audience, and medium

Common Course Objectives:  The main objective of this course is to develop competencies that align with the general education goals of critical thinking, interpersonal skills, civic and cultural awareness, personal responsibility, and written, oral and visual communication, in the Japanese language, at an appropriate level. The ability to understand and communicate and comprehend Japanese will develop along with the knowledge of the vocabulary, grammatical structures of the language, and exploration of how culture shapes communication. Two to three hours a day should be dedicated for the study of Japanese (at least two hours outside of class for each hour in class).