This is a course designed for students who have no prior knowledge of Japanese language. The focus of the course is on situational conversations and the aim is to equip students with very basic language skills and some cultural understanding. Students will learn some language structures, Japanese pronunciation and a few characters.

This course is the first part of the preparation for A1 in CEFR.

-        Understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases aimed at the satisfaction of needs of a concrete type.

-        Introduce him/herself and others and can ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, people he/she knows and things he/she has.

-        Interact in a simple way provided the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.

All courses on the Languages for All programme are delivered on a hybrid mode, mixing face-to-face and virtual teaching. You will be expected to actively participate in role-plays, interactive activities and group discussions. Course material is accessible on the University’s Virtual Learning Environment, Learning Central, and should be cross-platform compatible.

24 contact hours – 3 hours per week of interactive language workshops.

Intellectual Skills:

-        Enhanced cognitive skills leading to innovation, creativity and problem solving.

-        Critical analysis applied to discourse, texts, images and events.

-        Advanced listening and reading skills: the ability to scan complex texts (including audio) for gist, to synthesise information and focus on salient points.

Discipline Specific (including practical) Skills:

-        Recognise familiar words and very basic phrases concerning myself, my family and immediate concrete surroundings when people speak slowly and clearly.

-        Understand familiar names, words and very simple sentences;

-        Interact in a simple way provided the other person is prepared to repeat or rephrase things at a slower rate of speech; ask and answer simple questions in areas of immediate need or on very familiar topics.

-         Write in short and simple sentences.

Transferable Skills:

-        Ability to learn additional languages for personal/employment reasons.

-        Awareness of and sensitivity to diversity based on culture.

-        Ability to navigate and mediate between more than one culture to interpret meaning and intent beyond the purely linguistic.

-        Heightened literacy, textual analysis and oracy in mother tongue.

-        Presentation skills.

-        Ability to work cooperatively, as a member of a team or with a partner.

-        Problem solving and the ability to look at things from multiple perspectives.

Written class test (30%) and course work (30%).  

Oral and aural continuous assessment (40%).  

Theme 1: About Japanese language;

Theme 2: Talking about myself;

Theme 3: Food;

Theme 4: Home;

Theme 5: Daily life.

Marugoto: Japanese language and culture Starter A1 Katsudoo, 2013, Sanshusha, The Japan Foundation.

Marugoto: Japanese language and culture. Starter A1: Rikai, 2013; H.Kijima; The Japan Foundation.