Learning Japanese - Part Two: Method Part 2
Let s start with the experiences:
„I decided early on to learn on my own rather than attending any school or course. The reason for this is partly because it's cheaper for the number of hours involved and partly because I found self-study more motivating. I decided to make my program quite intense, and set a goal of 40-80 hours a week, depending on the week”
Here is the schedule:
1) Kumon
I started with reading, writing, grammar, kanji, and vocabulary by using Kumon's Nihongo self-study program, albeit at 5 times the normal pace. Foreigners can either study through Kumon's Kokugo program, the same program Japanese kids study by, or by Nihongo, created by and for foreigners. (1-2 hours a day)
2) Volunteer Programs aka language exchange
Meguro-ku at least has a great variety of volunteer programs that range from one-to-one language classes with retired salary men and others, to small group classes with trained teachers. (My weekly schedule included around 20 hours of volunteer time as primarily one-to-one study.)
3) Paid Teachers.
Because a really good teacher can provide valuable training as well as input into your overall study plan, I regularly worked with paid teachers a couple of times a week. I tried out new teachers on occasion and continued with the best ones. Many paid teachers are little better than an average Japanese volunteer teacher, but the best ones are worth more than 10x the time spent with a normal Japanese person. (Weekly 2-6 hours)
At-home Study
In addition to Kumon, I’ve also tried a variety of other self-study methods to make use of every spare moment.
To be continued with additional advices…
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