- Department: Language and Linguistic Science
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: I
- Academic year of delivery: 2024-25
Learning a language can be a transformative and enriching experience. Both the process and the outcomes are beneficial at various levels, from increased neuroplasticity to improving your overall academic performance, fostering empathy and intercultural awareness, and enhancing your career opportunities. This course is aimed at students who already have some knowledge of Japanese. Over the course of a semester, it will steadily build the knowledge, skills, and strategies necessary for students to engage with structured simple conversations and short texts. It will focus on developing a communicative competence at intermediate level.
Japanese Language and Cultures: Lower Intermediate or equivalent
Occurrence | Teaching period |
---|---|
A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
B | Semester 2 2024-25 |
The aims of this module are:
to continue to develop key skills in listening, speaking, reading and writing.
to make use of language more accurately and creatively through interacting with others in various contexts.
to build up a wider range of kanji characters, and further establish their application in reading and writing.
Students will engage, individually and in groups, in activities and tasks emphasising three core communicative skills:
reception activities (oral, audio-video and reading comprehension);
production activities (oral and written production);
interaction activities (oral, written and online interaction).
The mediums of instruction are English and Japanese.
By the end of this module students should be able to:
Understand straightforward factual texts with a satisfactory level of comprehension.
Produce short, complex texts on topics of interest and briefly explain the reasons.
Express personal opinions and exchange information on topics that are familiar, of personal interest or pertinent to everyday life.
Generally respond appropriately to frequently used cultural cues.
Convey the relevant information contained in short, simple conversations or texts in clearly structured, short, simple, informational texts.
Write sentences and texts, making use of a wider variety of Japanese script.
Reflect upon language use and justify linguistic choices.
Self-monitor and self-regulate their own learning and resources.
Topics may include:
conveying to others relevant information contained in written and audiovisual materials;
describing one’s own observations of things and people;
making conditional statements;
talking about things one is pleased about or regrets;
exchanging opinions;
talking about culture and cultural differences through media such as films, simplified web articles and stories.
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled) | 60 |
Oral presentation/seminar/exam | 40 |
None
The written exam will include one or two questions aimed at assessing students’ ability to reflect on language use and justify their responses and choices when using the language (in English), and a task related to students’ ability to monitor their own learning.
Task | % of module mark |
---|---|
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled) | 60 |
Oral presentation/seminar/exam | 40 |
Feedback on exams and essays as per University regulations.
Course materials and guided readings will be provided by the module convenors via the VLE at the start of the semester.