Soko Gakuen Japanese Language School
1881 Pine Street
San Francisco, California 94109
Phone (415) 928-9608
http://sokogakuen.org/

 

COURSE SYLLABUS

Term (Contact hours):          WINTER 2009 (33 hours)
Class & Section:          BEGINNING 2  ME
Instructor:               Mari Ota  (email: ohchanma@gmail.com  URL: http://www.oocities.org/mariotajp/)
Meeting day & Time:          Monday 6-9pm

COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to: ask and tell time, express specific time and periods of time; ask and make comments on places, things, and events; express agreement and disagreement, uncertainty, intention and purpose; give reasons; express what one does, express likes and dislikes; compliment; combine nouns; make comments about something; express the action of going, coming, and returning to do something, and write the KATAKANA characters, used for telegrams and foreign names of place and person.

TEXTBOOKS AND MATERIALS
1. Required:  a) Pegasus Language Services. (1987). Basic Functional Japanese (Lessons 9-15). Tokyo, Japan: The Japan Times.  b) Shimazu, Y. M. (2005).  Handy Katakana Workbook (1st ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Custom Publishing. [Available at Kinokuniya Bookstore, San Francisco--Geary at Webster. Phone 415-567-7625].

2. Recommended: Mizutani, O., & Mizutani, N. (1977 & 1979). nihongo notes (Vols. 1 & 2). [Available at Kinokuniya Bookstore, San Francisco Japan Center. Phone 415- 567-7625.]

3. Audio cassette tapes  related to the textbook lessons--signed out in Room 201, office.

4. Online software programs for you to practice KANA, etc. at home.
http://www.ichigo.se/kanaflash/kana.swf
http://www.realkana.com/katakana

EVALUATION
1. One final exam (2.5 hours).
2. Upon successful completion (80% or higher attendance rate and 80% or higher final exam score) of the course, a STUDENT PROGRESS REPORT will be written if requested at the time you take the final exam.
3. Your final exam score (%) and attendance (%) will be kept in a digitized form at http://sokogakuen.org/grades.html

 

TEACHING STYLE
The instructor will create a relaxed, low-anxiety atmosphere through which you can acquire the previously mentioned course objectives with less effort and with ease. The instructor will use an eclectic teaching method.

 

PROCEDURES
1. The instructor will follow the CALENDAR /Weekly Schedule below.
2. In class, student and teacher (and student and student) will engage in interactive language activities, a variety of exercises, using Japanese as much as possible. The instructor, however, will use some mechanical and meaningful drills, when necessary, to develop your kinetic memory for the training of the perceptual motor skills.
3. Students will reinforce and develop vocabulary, structure, listening (audio cassette tapes checked out regularly) and conversational skills through weekly assignments.
4. The class, however, may be conducted in accordance with the needs of the students in class within the course objectives.

CALENDAR / Weekly Schedule

Week 1.                    (January 12)                   Brief Review and Lesson 9

Week 2.                    (January 19)                   Lesson 9 ... TIME EXPRESSIONS / Kana Quiz

Week 3.                    (January 26)                   Lesson 10 ... MAKING COMMENTS ON JAPAN / Kana Quiz

Week 4.                    (February 2)                    Lesson 11 ... GOING ON A HOLIDAY / Kana Quiz

Week 5.                    (February 9)                    Lesson 12 ... AFTER THE HOLIDAY / Kana Quiz

Week 6.                    (February 16)                    Review and Quiz

Week 7.                    (February 23)                    Lesson 13 ... EXPRESSING WHAT YOU USUALLY DO / Kana Quiz

Week 8.                    (March 2)                            Lesson 13 ... EXPRESSING WHAT YOU USUALLY DO / Kana Quiz

Week 9.                    (March 9)                            Lesson 14 ... EATING, DRINKING, AND SHOPPING / Kana Quiz

Week 10.                   (March 16)                           FINAL EXAM

Week 11.                   (March 23)                           Lesson 15 ... DAILY ROUTINES

PLEASE NOTE
1. You are expected to listen to the audio cassette tapes, memorize new words, read the grammar explanation in the textbook and to complete all assignments before coming to class.
2. Except for W1, 10 and 11, short KANA quizzes will be given in class.
3. Please be on time for class; otherwise, you interrupt the lesson for others. Regular class attendance and participation are essential for language learning.
4. Excessive absences (more than 3 class meetings) may be cause for repetition of the course.
5. The results of your final exam (%) and attendance (%) will be kept in a digitized form at http://sokogakuen.org/grades.html.  Your PROGRESS REPORT will be kept in the Soko Gakuen Records Office, and the Office will release it only upon your request.
6. When you obtain a score of 80% or higher on the final exam, you move up to a higher level class. Soko Gakuen's exit criteria for each class/level are based on the 1987 ACTFL Japanese Language Proficiency Guidelines.

POLICY ON FINAL EXAM
If you are unable to take the final exam on the scheduled date due to circumstances beyond your control, the exam will be given only in a similar test-taking situation (under supervision of an instructor at Soko Gakuen). Unless the final exam is made up before the PROGRESS REPORT is submitted (from the teacher to the Soko Gakuen Records Office), NO CERTIFICATES can be issued.

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ALL THE ENDEAVORS OF THE TEACHER WILL FAIL TO INSURE SUCCESS UNLESS YOU PREPARE WITH DILIGENCE AND CONSTANCY THE EXERCISES TO BE GIVEN IN CLASS.

YOUR PROGRESS IS OUR MAIN CONCERN.