Intermediate

Intermediate to Advanced

Kanji I : Kanji for Zero Beginners

To acquire knowledge of kanji in everyday life, and the structure of kanji characters.

Kanji II : Step Up Kanji

To increase the number of Kanji that can be used in the future for those who have already learnt 150-200 Kanji characters.

Class for Japanese beginners. Students study the basic structure and vocabulary of Japanese, and aim to be able to do simple communication. The main tasks will be "listening" and "speaking", but hiragana will also be taught. The lifestyle of international students or foreign researchers is considered in the contents used in class, and what students learn will connect to everyday life. The class is held 3 times a week, so that students busy in their research etc. can easily attend. If there is an opening in the number of students, the spouse of international students/foreign researchers may also attend this class.

1. Although lessons start from studying hiragana characters, students should try to memorize them as soon as possible (Students do not need to be able to write hiragana, however, should try to be able to read them). A hiragana reading test will be conducted in about two weeks after the class begins. Students who score less than 70% will be given a makeup examination. If the result of the makeup examination is again less than 70%, the student will be asked to discontinue the course.
2. The class does not teach kanji characters. Students interested in kanji or wish to proceed to more advanced classes should sign up for the “ Kanji” class.
3. Instructors sometimes use English for explanation. Students who are not well-versed in English may find it difficult to understand the class.

Class for upper Japanese beginners. Students study grammar and vocabulary suitable for this level, and aim to be able to do more complicate communication compared with Level1. The main tasks will be "listening" and "speaking", but there will also be practice of reading textbooks written in hiragana.  The lifestyle of international students or foreign researchers is considered in the contents used in class, and what students learn will connect to everyday life. The class is held 3 times a week. If there is an opening in the number of students, the spouse of international students/foreign researchers may also attend this class.

1. This course does not teach "kanji" characters. Students interested in "kanji" or wish to proceed to more advanced classes should sign up for a" Kanji "class.
2. Instructors sometimes use English for the purpose of explanation. Students who are not well-versed in English may find it difficult to understand the class.

Class for students that have finished their beginners' class, who want to acquire firm Japanese ability of the beginner level; refine their communication, listening, reading, and kanji ability; and smoothly lead to the intermediate class. Many students feel the intermediate class "is difficult and hard to understand" or "teach us new things but can't use them in life", so this class is held as a step to smoothly shift from beginner to intermediate. The class is held 3 times a week. If there is an opening in the number of students, the spouse of international students/foreign researchers may also attend this class.

Class for Japanese lower intermediate learners. Students study grammar and vocabulary suitable for this level, and aim to improve their communication skills. The main tasks will be "listening" and "speaking", but there will also be practice of reading text written in hiragana and kanji. The class is held 2 times a week. If there is an opening in the number of students, the spouse of international students/foreign researchers may also attend this class.

Class for Japanese upper intermediate learners who want to get close to advanced level. Students study grammar suitable for this level, which connect to real life communication. They also practice dialogues, listening (by using TV/radio programs, etc.), reading (by using books, magazines, etc.), and aim to improve comprehensive Japanese skills. The class is held 2 times a week.

Class for advanced Japanese learners. Students read text and watch TV programs about contemporary Japan, suitable for this level; discuss about them; and study grammar and vocabulary that appear in the process. By doing that, students aim to acquire even more comprehensive Japanese skills. The class is held 2 times a week.

Intermediate Japanese for CommunicationⅠ: Class to learn how to perform natural Japanese conversation and expressions useful for communicating with Japanese people in various aspects of their daily lives, such as “request, get permission, ask questions” in Japanese. Students practice speaking Japanese, but the class is NOT for students to “talk freely and abundantly” a lot. The curriculum also includes listening comprehension exercises necessary to practice conversation. The class is for intermediate learners (Comprehensive Japanese Level 3 or above) who can understand the various situation settings by listening to and reading them in Japanese.

Intermediate Japanese for CommunicationⅡ: Class aims to be able to speak and conduct in a way that is closer to native speakers with advanced Japanese expressions and conversation in various aspects of everyday life, such as “request, get permission, explain reasons” in Japanese. In addition, students consider the difference between the Japanese that they know as knowledge and the actual Japanese in conversation, and practice to be able to speak using more natural expressions. Students practice speaking Japanese, but the class is NOT for students to “talk freely and abundantly” a lot. Students must have intermediate to advanced knowledge of Japanese (Comprehensive Japanese Level 4-5 or above) and be able to express their opinions in Japanese.

Kanji I : "Kanji for Zero Beginners". Class for students who have never studied Kanji before. In order to cultivate the "viewpoint of looking at Kanji", students will learn to look at the shape, structure, ideographic points, radical("bushu"), origin... of Kanji characters. They will also learn the basic Kanji characters (approx. 150). By doing this, students will aim to be able to presume the meaning of Kanji that they encountered for the first time, and also to be able to study more Kanji characters on their own.

Kanji II : "Step Up Kanji". Class for students who already know about 150-200 Kanji characters, and want to increase the number of Kanji that they can use. We will support students to learn 400-500 new Kanji characters, considering the shape, meaning, and usage. Through learning Kanji, students will also aim to obtain Japanese vocabulary.

a) Those who understand about 150+ kanji characters (for example, about 60%+ of Basic Kanji Book vol.I (Bonjinsha)). b) Those who have enough Japanese ability to understand lectures held in basic Japanese.

This class is for students who wish to study what kind of Japanese is used in what ways, in business fields. During class, students virtually experience Japanese business situations by watching videos and reading text of business situations. They study expressions used in business, keego (respect language), explicit speaking, concise writing, etc.

-The required Japanese level in order to attend “Business Japanese” is as follows: General Course Level 4 or higher / upper intermediate to advanced level / JLPTN2 level or higher. Students cannot attend this class if they also attend General Course Level 3 or lower classes. In addition, students eligible to take this class must be able to understand basic honorific speech (keego). Students are required to take a short test in the first class.

-Although the target of this class is students who consider working for a company in Japan, tutorials of the correction of entry sheets will not be offered in class.

This class aims to improve the ability of advanced learners to reason about “Japanese culture and society” from their own perspective, and exchange opinions on the topic with classmates. In the classroom, we will study videos and reading materials, not only to understand what these materials tell us about Japanese culture and society, but also to compare what we learn with what we know about our own societies. Through comparison, we aim to deepen our understanding of Japanese culture and society.
Recommended for those who want to study up to the advanced level and acquire the ability to debate and discuss using Japanese, and those who want to further improve their Japanese.

[Prerequisites]
1. Advanced (General Course Level 5, JLPT N1 level, etc.) or higher.
2. Active participation is strongly encouraged.
*Even if you are at the above Japanese level, if your Japanese proficiency (speaking / listening) does not reach the level at which you can engage in learning activities, you may be refused to attend.