COURSE NUMBER: JPN 201, 202


			Text only

JPN 201, 202

I. TITLE: INTERMEDIATE JAPANESE

II. CATALOG DESCRIPTION: Intensive grammar review with emphasis on communication skills. Includes further practice in listening, conversation, reading and writing. Taught in Japanese. Japanese 202 is a continuation of 201. Both courses are of one design; therefore, the proposals for 201 and 202 are being offered together.

III. PURPOSE: Japanese 201 is designed to review and build upon the material covered in the first-year Japanese courses. Listening and speaking will continue to be practiced, while more emphasis will be placed on reading and writing. The course will include a systematic review of grammar, vocabulary expansion, and topics of cultural importance. Japanese 202 expands the four skills of speaking, reading, writing, and listening and draws them together with a view toward equipping students with the strategies to continue their interaction with the language beyond their formal language courses.
The courses also cultivate “Characteristics of the Murray State Graduate.” They
A. encourage independent thought and effective oral and written expression:

1. Students learn the structures of languages, including their own; by doing so, they refine their oral and written communication.
2. The courses focus on oral and written communication. By learning to communicate in a foreign language, students also learn to communicate more effectively in their native language.

B. have the students apply sound standards of analysis and evaluation to reach logical decisions:

Students learn and analyze a set of rules governing basic language structure. From the rules of a logical system, a grammar, students extrapolate original sentences.

C. encourage the understanding of the role and applications of technology to solve the problems of a changing world:

Students use the internet to access information about the countries they are studying: geography, culture, people, systems, and are encouraged to attend a wide variety of international cultural events that further enhance their knowledge of other cultures.

D. teach critical understanding of the world’s historical, literary, philosophical, and artistic traditions:

By including culture of the countries studied, students learn about historical, literary, philosophical, and artistic traditions beyond those of the United States.

E. teach understanding of the dynamics of cultural diversity:

1. Students learn about languages, people, and cultures that are different from own
2. they begin to compare and contrast their own culture with the varied cultures of the peoples studied and to understand the dynamics of one culture interacting with another; and
3. they learn more about their own cultural heritage by comparing it to that of others.

IV. COURSE OBJECTIVES: The objectives of the second year of Japanese language study are to:
a) have a solid foundation in all major grammatical structures of the Japanese language;
b) possess an active vocabulary for Intermediate* language production as well as expanded passive    knowledge of additional vocabulary for listening and reading comprehension;
c) be able to understand Intermediate* level spoken Japanese at normal conversational speed;
d) be able to express him/herself in writing complex sentences in Japanese;
e) be able to read and understand a variety of Intermediate* level texts, including some authentic     texts (i.e., texts written by a native speaker for a native speaker audience);
f) be able to speak with appropriate pronunciation and intonation for the Intermediate* level;
g) to improve students’ understanding of the grammar, structure, and vocabulary of English;
h) to improve interpersonal communication skills, whether in English or Japanese.
i) to increase and refine students’ awareness and appreciation of Japanese-speaking peoples and      their cultures.
j) to develop the critical thinking skills of deduction and inference in order to extract meaning from     texts and verbal discourse at a more advanced level.
k) and to learn how to problem-solve with language and how to predict patterns of form and usage.
* Please refer to the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages Proficiency           Guidelines for specific criteria for “Intermediate Level.”

The courses also
A. introduces students to fundamental concepts and ways of knowing:

Students learn the fundamental concepts involved in language study: They learn the vocabulary (grammatical terms), the methods of learning a language and how languages work, and the function and structure of language. Students also increase their knowledge of the English language.

B. promotes interdisciplinary understanding by clarifying how the content and methods of foreign language learning contribute to an understanding of its function in society:

1. Students learn how to communicate on a wide variety of topics in a foreign language;
2. they learn how read and understand texts in the target foreign language. This prepares students function in and contribute to many different disciplines, e.g., music students to understand songs and music in Japanese, journalism students to comprehend articles and reports in Japanese; students of the sciences to understand research documents in Japanese; business students to engage in basic professional dialogue; history students to interpret historical texts and better grasp historical contexts; etc.
3. students learn to compare another language and its structure to the their own language; they make linguistic comparisons with their native language;
4. they learn the interrelationship of language and culture/society and how a language contributes to the formation of a society’s world view and visa versa;
5. by studying cultures--not just the culture of the language being learned--students begin to compare and contrast other cultures with their own.

C. emphasizes international perspectives:

1. An international perspectives is inherent to foreign language and culture learning;
2. besides class discussions and readings in the text materials that introduce students to other cultures, students are encouraged to attend a wide variety of international cultural events that further encourage understanding and appreciation of other cultures .

V. CONTENT OUTLINE: Japanese 201covers chapters 7-9. Japanese 202 covers chapters 10-12

VI. INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES:
Classes are conducted in Japanese only. The instructor establishes various contexts in each lesson and teaches through the use of Core Conversations (CCs). Memorizing the assigned CCs is essential. Students act out the assigned CCs within the given social contexts and apply them to other related situations with the instructor’s coaching.
Class Preparation: Each student is responsible fore making a tape of the CC and memorizing it outside of class. They are never to depend on the romanized text.
Assigned Reading: Students read English equivalents of the CCs, notes on structural patterns.
Drills: Students practice drills with tapes at home which are constructed to develop a full range of specific tasks. Frequent quizzes are given on the drills.
Participation: Participation points are given for punctuality, preparedness, alertness, and diligence.
Oral Interviews: Each student will give two oral interviews with the instructor one at midterm and one at the end of the semester.
***Late assignments will receive half-credit.

The courses also
A. promote student engagement in and responsibility for learning through the use of active learning methodologies:

1. As stated indicated in the syllabus, students take an active role in their learning through writing compositions, completing listening comprehension exercises and listening to and discussing a radio play, reading a story, giving an oral presentation, and engaging in an oral interview with the instructor. Active learning methodologies also include:
2. communicative teaching is an approach which focuses on maximizing the four communicative skills as opposed to the traditional grammar-translation method. It includes the use of the target language in class. Students prepare grammar assignments outside of class and are prepared to implement them in class in given situations involving students sharing information, asking questions to elicit information, answering questions, asking and receiving directions and instructions, exchanging information, etc. Communicative teaching elicits production of language from students in writing and speaking; students learn the language more than learn about the language;
3. student-centered learning, which involves communicative interaction (see above) in the form of group-work and partner-work, problem-solving, role play, short skits, and other interactive activities,
4. group discussions,
5. partner- and teamwork,
6. frequent role play situations, etc.
and as demonstrated in the communicative assessment at the end of each semester and formally at the end of the first & second years of instruction as well as part of the entire language program.
The courses also focus on problem solving:
7. students employ problem-solving techniques as part of the foreign language learning process and in particular in Japanese 202. Students are expected to study grammar at home, figure out rules, apply them, and come to class prepared to begin immediate application. Students learn to take a given grammatical, lexical, or syntactic rule and see how it may be applied to other instances. Examples of significant problems are rules of conjugation and their variations, rules of word order, and the differences and similarities between the native language and the target language. Thus, students learn to solve language problems without having to learn every word as an isolated instance.

B. require a significant amount of speaking, writing, critical thinking, as well as reading within the limitations of their second year reading skills in a foreign language:

1. Students have daily written homework assignments;
2. speaking is heavily emphasized every day in class;
3. students learn to read and decipher a variety of intermediate level texts; and
4. students learn critical thinking as it applies to both languages (the language being learned and English) and cultures (a foreign culture and our own culture).

C. promote the use of computer technology to solve the problems of a changing world through

1. student creative writing assignments using a word processor
2. student homework assignments using the World Wide Web and the Internet to access information about the countries they are studying: geography, culture, people, systems, etc faculty who teach in the multi-media classroom employing the internet to show students cultural information
3. the Japanese 201 textbook, which provides a wealth of Internet resources. These resources are designed to be interdisciplinary, to build on chapter themes, and to motivate students to use Japanese to read authentic documents (written by a native speaker for a native speaker), read and respond to bulletin board postings, and to send and receive e-mail messages.
4. student use of e-mail to contact the instructor, and the occasional submission of assignments through e-mail; and faculty use of e-mail to contact the students to disseminate information to them and to aid in explanations.
5. the use by some faculty members who have access to the multi-media room to use PowerPoint to demonstrate or illustrate a grammatical, communicative, or cultural point to the students; and
6. utilize the instructor’s homepage to access information and data more efficiently. A growing number of faculty have web pages, and the use of the web page increases every semester. Eight of the 10 faculty members in our department have learned how to develop a web page as of January 1998.

VII. FIELD AND CLINICAL EXPERIENCES: See VIII. RESOURCES

VIII. RESOURCES:
Audio tapes accompany each chapter and are to be duplicated in the Language/Culture Lab. Students are expected to obtain a copy of each tape and to complete each section as indicated in the Course Schedule.
In addition, students will be required to attend and write a report on two approved cultural events. These include Japanese films and Japanese festivals held on campus.

IX. GRADING PROCEDURES: (exact percentages vary according to the instructor oaf the course, but the ranges are comparable.)
Daily Performance   40%
Oral Interviews    25%
Quizzes     10%
Exams     25%
Total      100 %

There will be no make-up of quizzes. Make-up exams are given at the instructor's discretion and must be scheduled in advance of the exam. Your final course grade will be calculated as follows: 90% - A; 80% - B; 70% - C; 60% - D; 59% and below - E.
    Written homework is required daily; class time is used for extensive oral work for which students recive and “active oral participation” grade. . Also, as stated in the regular syllabus, “students will be required to attend and write a report on two approved cultural events.”
    Exams are in the form of listening comprehension, short answer, reading comprehension, sections on learned cultural awareness and extensive writing in the target language; written sections of exams are meant not only to have the students demonstrate what they have learned in the language, but also to have the students construct and develop rational arguments and points of view based on an introduction and logical elaboration in their writing. Every language textbook contains cultural information. Acquired knowledge of the target culture(s) is tested on every exam, either in separate sections dealing only with culture or in sections integrated into other parts of the exam but for which cultural awareness is necessary to attain a correct answer.
    Written homework is required daily; further student written homework assignments include independent creative writing beginning at several paragraphs and later a page to two pages in length during the course of the semester. The work is graded on correctness and successful communication skills and evaluated according to the ACTFL standards. Students are also evaluated on their reading skills. Each chapter in the textbook includes a reading text that increase in length with each chapter. Reading is a component of most major exams and the Final Proficiency Exam. Emphasis is placed on reading strategies rather than on just isolated linguistic elements.   Critical thinking is evaluated by student demonstration of understanding the connection and relationship between the native and the target language, the application of rules, the questioning why both languages function the way they do. Evaluation takes place on the homework assignments, in class discussion, and on the exams. The predominant component of the language courses is speaking. While there is variation instructor to instructor, evaluation of speaking skills takes place on a regular basis, and this evaluation is based on the ACTFL standards
    The Final Achievement exam is comprehensive. The Proficiency Exams include sections covering the four skills: There are speaking, writing, listening, and reading sections of the exam.
    High academic standards are maintained through extensive testing methods and rigorous grading procedures. There are no ACTFL specific descriptors that establish proficiency levels for receiving certain grades. The grades we assign are based on performance within each course.

X. ATTENDANCE POLICY:
Attendance is mandatory. Absences and tardiness will affect your grade. If you miss one-fourth of the class meetings (11 absences) for any reason (excused or unexcused), you will automatically receive a failing grade for this course.

XI. ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY:
1. It is the responsibility of every student to be informed about the collegiate Academic Integrity
Policy. Cheating in whatever form constitutes academic dishonesty.
2. Copies of the policy are available in: CIV workbooks, Classroom bulletin boards, Department of Foreign Language office, Dean of Humanistic Studies office, and on the College of Humanistic Studies Home page.
3. Your signature on every assignment, quiz and exam represents your pledge to adhere to this
policy.
4. I expect students to abide by the highest ethical standards.

XII. TEXT AND REFERENCES:
Jorden, H.E., & Noda, M. Japanese: The spoken Language Part I. Yale University Press, 1987
Katakana Workbook: designed by the instructor
Writing and Reading Workbook: designed by the instructor

XIII. PREREQUISITES: For Japanese 201: Japanese 102 or placement test equivalent. For 202: Japanese 201 or placement test equivalent.

XIV. CHALLENGE CREDIT: If you plan to use your completion of this course with an "A" or "B" to challenge credit for earlier language courses, you must have taken the placement exam, and you should fill out the paperwork early next semester. The paperwork must be done while you are registered at MSU.

Last updated February 14, 2000. Designed and maintained by Kyosung Koo