A Reflective Summary of My Language Growth
Journal logs of language growth
Sept-October
At first, I thought my language skills were basic tourist level. I was able to ask how to get places, and went to the koban if I had questions. This proved to be useful my first night and the first few days. I found out my reading skills though were lacking, as kanji was a weak suit of mine. This month was more about finding my level than anything else. When I took my tests at the college and discovered I was mostly level 3, I was shocked, as the person who I considered the smartest of all the Japanese classes got into a level below me. It was strange, but kind of eye opening to me. I also was able to understand that I have a long way to go with particles. Japanese particles have many specific rules, and some of the things I had learned before seemed off, like for instance, the usage of “を” to indicate a starting or passing point. This was one of the first lessons we covered in my Grammar class, and was completely new to me.
Outside, during trips, I was able to gain a little more confidence however, in basic things, such as how to pay for bills or how to sign off on paperwork. I had troubles with my school check, so going through Western Union for money from my father was…very interesting to say the least. Luckily, they had a sheet that was able to help with information transfer, as far as filling out paperwork. This also helped with maps as well. My first few trips to the mini city within the whole of Tokyo, Tachikawa, was filled with mystery. The trains station maps were hard to navigate as I was unsure what a choume was, or which way a map was pointing. Learning how to read better for this helped me know my way around better.
November
This was when my homesickness was starting to hit, with birthdays and all. But my school visit I was able to do was very fun, getting to speak Japanese with grade schoolers. I realized that I still have a very low proficiency, but they did have a student who could speak English, so if my dictionary was unable to provide a word or phrase that I couldn’t understand, she was able to help.
I also was reinvigorated by being able to talk about American politics in Japanese, through my conversation course. Through this I was able to gain a bit more confidence in my speaking skills, which I was not confident in the least. During floor parties, I was always so focused on listening rather than speaking, so that way I could get used to verbal patterns and try to make sense. This made for tough communication with my RA, as I was not able to speak Japanese very well and he was unable to speak English very well either. Looking back, I would have been better being more proactive in my quest for speaking and building relationships in my dorm.
Outings were about 50/50 of me having a good idea of what to do and being lost. I figured out that gakuen, meant school, even if that school was not the college, as I became hopelessly lost and had to ask a very kind obaa-san for help. But as well, my language skills were getting better for purchasing goods as well. Finding brands and types of things that were essential, such as my obsession with watercolors, leading me to research types of paint names.
Overall I felt like I was growing in a sense, but I still had a long way to go.
December
School communication was exceedingly important. Midterms were few, but also had a lot of importance to them. I remember being in Kanji and just some of the kanji were really difficult. I believe we also had a midterm for grammar, and I remember getting it back and being disappointed, but knowing that I still needed work. mostly again, on particles. I really wish I had my particle guide with me during this time, or the ability to find one. But I was quite swamped for December.
The big part of this experience for language learning was through experience. I was able to talk about my country some in Japanese, and realized that translations were a lot more complex. I did tarot for a middle school to show them about Halloween, and the card translations were hard to put out there as complex words in english might have different meaning in Japanese, so I needed a teacher to help with this. However, after this getting to go out to eat was a very wonderful experience, with going to a traditional style restaurant, and trying to figure out what is what. I got to learn better about the ordering system for food, which is very nice.
During this time I also went to a drinking party with my professor and his students. I was able to talk much more than the last time, which surprised him as I was very withdrawn the first time we met. One large thing I discovered though is the ability to ask about landmarks and sizing. I went in to do kimono, and we had to figure out what could fit. As well, being able to read the charms we bought at Sensouji was very interesting. I was able to get some for my friends too, as it was for academic success. We still got lost though, and the difference in names of shops was very alarming. Still, it was a lot of fun, and I realized that I grew somewhat since I had arrived.
January
A strange time for learning. The focus in grammar turned to politeness forms, which I knew well in America, while in comprehensive we focused on graphing and interpretation. I remember being proud because I figured out the formula and my teacher complimented my skill with the area. I felt like I had come a long way. In writing I felt very frustrated though. We were writing about more complex issues, and this translated into more errors in translation as I didn’t have the skillset to talk about the educational issues I wanted to press about. Things like bullying, diversification, tailored learning were all very difficult. Listening though was a class I never felt different about. The teachers style was something that didn’t sit right with me, even if she was a wonderful and kind teacher. Being able to communicate effectively with my teachers in Japanese though was a real boost for my confidence, as I asked for some time off for a trip.
During this time, I wasn’t able to make real leaps and bounds as focusing on studying a reviewing took its toll.
February
With the close of the semester brought about a realization, that while I have grown, I have a long way to go. After a mishap with my wallet being stolen, I had to conduct business with the police, with immigration, with my bank, and with my insurance which was from city hall. I had to ask for help a lot. Government labels had me very confused on where to go and what to bring. As such, I had a hard time with some of the vocabulary. It was very frustrating, as I thought I had made a lot of progress. And I had, just not to the extent that I could deal with filing all of this on my own. However, with help from my Residential Director, my school, and the police, I was able to file everything fine. Intermediate proficiency plateau’s are very difficult to handle, especially in a situation as complex as this. I had more confidence in my speaking afterwards, including talking a bit more formally and asking for help when I needed it.
March
School’s still off at this time. However, my friends and I had a trip to Osaka that helped me learn more about my proficiency growth. Having to rely on your own language skills to get around in a new area is very invigorating. I remember all of us were very excited at the thought of a bath, so we went to LUSH, and we legitimately held a conversation with three of the store clerks. I remember feeling very proud at the fact we held conversations on our own with these ladies who didn’t speak English at all. Being able to rely on my own skills was very uplifting. As well another issue was that I had left my iPod on the Shinkansen and figuring out how to retrieve it briefly, before opting to procure a new one. Figuring out specs in Japanese and being able to discuss them with the clerk in Japanese also showed me that I was growing in my confidence to speak at least.
April
I was able to take a placement test to figure out where I would be put as far as level wise. I was decidedly placed into the same levels. This was kind of discouraging at first. It felt kind of like I hadn’t grown, and I was tempted to do as other students had and go to the class to show my grades and bump up a level. However, what happened first semester had a thought behind it. I was surrounded by a variety of speakers, some I knew were above my level, and some who were about the same level. The plateau of intermediate held a large amount of students and is hard to get out of, and while I thought I had made progress, I realized I still wasn’t proficient enough to make that just out of level three yet. While this hurt, I knew that this next semester would get me some new teachers who could help me lay down pat the foundation for better understanding of course content.
In this, much of what was gone over the first month was review.
May
Despite the same classes being taken, the use of new books and different teachers for a few classes has made a huge difference. Kanji is much more comprehensible. Conversation is less speech based and more based on studying and completing everyday conversations. A new book makes comprehension have more grammar points, which are easier to comprehend. Composition with a different style has more similar vocabulary and more grammar patterns that were easier to comprehend. This month was highly focused on conjunctions and consequences.
Thanks to all of these factors I felt I had a stronger grip on the material. Even though new material was being introduced, it was mixed with familiar, evolving into a great mix of scaffolding to support further learning.
Reading had been harder before, but during this month it seemed to be a strengthening skill. I was able to read menus and labels more effectively, including at the Gudetama cafe and working on reading ingredients while cooking more complex dishes.
While cooking I was also able to be more involved in conversations more actively in the kitchen. One of my floor mates was pushing herself very hard in her studies and I was able to appropriately express concern for her in Japanese.
June
I continue to get stronger in review areas, being more apt to do the proper way to write in Japanese and do comparisons. However, it seemed like my speaking ability in more open situations went down. Such as during an interview assignment, my shyness was a discouragement from talking with native speakers. Its difficult to talk to strangers in Japanese, even though it’s more acceptable to bother others as a foreigner.
My reading ability continues to be strengthened thanks to my composition class. As well, outings in my spare time with friends continues to help with reading as well.
Overall June has this feeling of learning, but in smaller bits. it wasn’t as quick as before, but it wasn't dull either.
July
This month was very hectic. A lot of learning was done. I did volunteering and school observations, as well more active learning with composition and conversation. Conversation focused on being able to hold a conversation about issues, such as a noisy roommate, or having a problem, and figuring out a solution. Comprehensive was more active in solidifying sentence classification as well as reinforcing writing style.
During this time, I felt I was able to talk better and read better. Getting to volunteer with school children and speak to them in Japanese was very fun, as well getting to learn more from a guide who was kind enough to help translate for a school sporting event so that way I could better understand the school.
This month had both active immersive learning and in class learning equalled, though I still had a lot of trouble in the last week, as I was saddened by having to leave.
August
This was a sort of culmination of skills. I was able to close out my accounts independently in Japanese, being able to navigate beyond where I had been before. Final parties and thanks were given, in Japanese. Everything seemed to fall together, and it felt more sad than anything else. As though I was making more headway and having to return home. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling. Though I was able to increase my listening skills in the last few days I had as well.
Overall, this experience has lifted me up to new levels of Japanese, and I feel more capable than I did before my study abroad experience. However, I feel ideally that more time abroad would have bolstered my levels to a more professional level, such as that of N3, or N2 of the JLPT. I am proud of the progress I was able to make however, and glad that I was able to experience life in Japan.
