The Syllabus for Applied Japanese (1) Kanji and Pleasure Reading

A-Semester, 2017

Time: Thursday, 2nd period
Room: #103, Bldg. 10

Type: Elective

Credit: 2 credits

Instructor: Tatsuhiko Matsushita
E-mail:******@******

Phone (office)： 03-****-**** or ext. *****
Office: ******
Office Hour: Afternoon on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays (appointment preferable)

The First Half (A1 Term) - Kanji
Course Objectives/Overview
This course is designed for students at the elementary level. In this course students will acquire basic Kanjiknowledge (mainly targeted at non-Kanji background students) and reading skills to understand texts ongiven topics.
Specifically, by the end of the course, students are expected to be able to at least
1) recognize and type/handwrite basic Kanji.
2) understand common Kanji signs, basic sentences and short simplified passages on specificsituations or topics.
3) use various effective ways for reading and learning Kanji by themselves including the use ofdictionaries, reference books, smartphone applications and web-based tools.
4) for Chinese-background students, pay more attention to the similarities and differences between
Chinese and Japanese in terms of the use of Kanji vocabulary.
Keywords
Kanji, recognition, basic reading, learning strategies, Chinese and Japanese
Teaching Methods
For the first couple of class meetings, lectures on Kanji will be given, followed by the reading program andindividual (one-to-one basis) conference with the instructor on Kanji learning. ‘Genki’ Kanji resources will
be used partly for the course to assist your learning in the core courses i.e. Intensive Japanese or Integrated
Japanese. The methods of learning Kanji will differ depending on the student’s background, i.e.
Chinese/non-Chinese background. Individual mode of learning will be encouraged partly particularly forleaning Kanji if the students’ language backgrounds are various. Students are expected to exercise Kanji athome while they learn the tips and strategies for learning them in class.

Tentative Schedule*Subject to change

9/28 Orientation, Introduction to Kanji
10/5 Introduction of different exercise/reference books
10/12 Number of common Kanji and practical goal of learning Kanji,
Origins of Kanji, Hiragana and Katakana, Genki L.3 Kanji
10/19 Principles of stroke order, Radicals and Structure of Kanji, Common radicals and their meanings,On-yomi (On-reading) and Kun-yomi (Kun-reading), Importance of On-Kun relation, Genki L.4 Kanji
10/26 Rules of Okurigana, Common phonological components of Kanji, Font-based variations in form
Useful online tools and smartphone apps, Genki L.5 Kanji
11/2 How to handwrite Kanji more neatly and beautifully, Genki L.6 Kanji, Orientation for reading activities
11/9 Sharing the ideas of Kanji learning, Genki L.7 Kanji, Reading activity
11/30 Genki L.8 Kanji, Reading activity
12/7 Genki L.9 Kanji, Book Talk (presentation), Reading activity
12/14 Genki L.9 Kanji, Reading activity
12/21 Genki L.10 Kanji, Final exam for Kanji (Kanji analysis, Compounds, Genki Kanji)
12/27 (Wed.) Exam feedback, Submission of portfolio, Genki L.11 Kanji(1/8 (Mon.) Due: Assignment (E-mail attachment))
1/11 Genki L.12 Kanji, Reflection, Plan for spring vacation and forward
Textbooks, reference books, exercise books and databases
No textbook is designated; however, preparing a Kanji dictionary (including an online tool) and an exercise
book/notebook is required. Some recommended dictionaries and exercise books will be introduced inclass. You have to come by some dictionaries and books by yourself. You can order books at either Seikyo(coop) or online e.g. Amazon. A Kanji database edited by the instructor will be provided.
Advice for Students*Plan out the whole Kanji learning. Allocate the number of Kanji to learn at each step. Fix your time forlearning at a certain period of time in your daily/weekly schedule.
*Be persistent and patient in learning Kanji up through to 1,000 Kanji at least (, and hopefully to 1,500).
Otherwise, your effort will not be paid. Number of known Kanji and the degree of comprehension is not inproportion. You are expected to reach to the threshold level which we assume is at around 1000 Kanji.
* Different students have different learning styles. Find your favorite way of learning Kanji for yourself.
*Copy common Kanji outside so you can be familiar with the daily Kanji use of your needs and interests.
*Chinese-background students are also encouraged to take this course for learning the differences
between Japanese Kanji and the Chinese characters.
Course-Related Websites
Stroke Order Movies
Gahoh http://marinebat.com/gahoh/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=27&Itemid=41
Kakijun http://kakijun.jp/ Paste a Kanji in the box on the upper left of the web-site and click
漢字筆順 button to the right of the box.

Other useful sites to learn Kanji
Memorize Japanese Kanji with Asahi Kanji http://www.japanese-kanji.com/index.htm
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~ik2r-myr/kanji/kanji1pa.htm#intro
Web CMJ Japanese Kanji Online http://opal.ecis.nagoya-u.ac.jp/webcmjk/index.html You canlearn basic 300 Kanji through this site. If you use ON YOUR OWN mode, you can record andmanage your learning.
Java Kanji Flashcards 500 http://nuthatch.com/java/kanjicards/ You can look at all cards by"Browse", search for cards by "Search" and review a subset of cards by "Drill".
A Door to the World of 漢字 http://www.neverland.to/kanji/This site introduces common Kanji used in daily life settings with photos.
Extension system
You are expected to become an autonomous learner. For this, we employ a self-directed learning system called“Extension”. You are encouraged to extend your learning of Kanji and reading by studying in your own way, andto create a portfolio as a record of your study. The portfolio for this course can also include your learning
records with in-class materials for the “Baseline” study. The portfolio will take account of 40% of your course
grade.

==============================================================================The Second Half (A2 Term) – Pleasure Reading
Course Objectives/Overview
This course is designed for students who are at the first half of the elementary level. This course aims tohelp students find pleasure in their reading. Through graded readers and other materials, students will not
only gain fluency on processing vocabulary and grammar but also learn Japanese culture and society.
By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to:1) enjoy reading Japanese and engage in independent reading,2) expand knowledge of Japanese culture and society, and
3) process lexical and grammatical knowledge more fluently.
Keywords
independent reading, fluency, literature, culture
Teaching Methods
In principal, students choose what they want to read from reading materials according to their own levels
and interests. There is a presentation opportunity called ‘Book Talk’, where each student will give a talk torecommend a book within 3 minutes. Details are explained later in class.

Method of Evaluation
The performance on following items will be taken into account for the course grade of the first half of this course
1) Participation in class activities

10%2) Kanji assignments

5%3) Kanji final exam

25% *to measure your progress on Kanji learning.

4) Kanji portfolio

15%5) Comment sheets on reading activity 20%6) Writing assignment (Letter/Diary)5%7) Presentation (Book talk)5%8) Reading portfolio

15%

The proportion is subject to change within ±5% based on the evaluation of the assessment items themselves.
Attendance Policy
Second language learning is a cumulative process and success in your proficiency depends on how much you devote to it.
Missing even one class will affect your subsequent study. Please be on time to avoid disturbing the class. You are required
to attend 70% or more of the scheduled classes in order to receive credits for PEAK Japanese courses*. If you attend aclass, but miss 30 minutes or more, it will be considered as one absence. If you come late or leave early three times, thiswill also be considered as one absence.
* Missing 4 times out of 13 times per course (per semester) equals less than 70%.

Makeup Policy-Final exam: If you are absent for the final exam, you may request a makeup exam with a valid, documented
excuse. You cannot take the final exam prior to the assigned date and time.

Due date
Students must submit each assignment at the beginning of the class on the assigned date. In principle the instructor will
NOT accept any homework after the due date. It is each student’s responsibility to keep the deadline; instructors will nottell you the due date of each individual assignment. Confirm the schedule carefully so as not to miss the due date.

Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty, either in the form of cheating or plagiarism, will not be tolerated. Students are expected
to understand that all the assignments to be submitted are their own ORIGINAL piece of work. All the sources of
information must be acknowledged. Any proven instances will result in an automatic grade of "F", not only for thecourse concerned, but for ALL the courses taken in that semester. This is a general regulation of the University of Tokyo.

We hope you enjoy your journey of learning Kanji and reading!