Course name: Japanese Language 4
SCQF Level: 10
SCQF Credits: 10
Course Delivery Information: Full Year (S1: weeks 1-11; S2: weeks 1-11)
Course Organiser: Yoko Sturt
Availability: Not available to visiting students
Rationale
Past Japanese 4 course questionnaires identified the need of an advanced core
Japanese language course for some years. Due to the staff shortage, we were not able
to realize this. However, we have since recruited two new language instructors in 2013,
and so the new language course can finally be put into operation.
Short description:
The aim of the course is to promote sociocultural/sociolinguistic awareness and
learning for advanced leaners of Japanese to use language beyond the academic
classroom. Students are expected to develop their intercultural, interpersonal and
linguistic competences for professional purposes upon entering the work force.
Students as effective intercultural communicators use Japanese to engage in ‘real
life’ situations, to understand and interpret spoken and written text on professional
and daily life topics that may cause conflicting situations of comprehension and
communication, and articulate thoughts and ideas effectively in a variety of forms and
contexts in face-to-face interaction with professional Japanese native speakers.
The course aims to help students to become effective communicators in ‘real life’
situations by developing skills that enable a near-native ability to judge
cultural/linguistic appropriateness in a given situation. This will be done both
through academic-led seminars and also through more dynamic and student-led
exercises that are based on a Task-Based Learning (TBL) approach.
All students will be given formative feedback exercises that will be helpful for the
assessment of this course and students’ general academic development.
Components of assessment: Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Breakdown of course work:
1. Writing reflective course reports in Japanese (four pieces of written work:
500-800 Japanese characters per report) (40%)
2. Writing five short peer reviews in Japanese (20%)
3. Semester 1 presentation (15%)
4. Semester 2 presentation (10%)
5. A class test (10%)
6. Class participation/contribution (5%)
Contact hours: 3h/week
Breakdown of Learning and Teaching activities: 100 hours (Lecture Hours 20,
Seminar/Tutorial
Hours
20,
Supervised
Practical/Workshop/Studio
Hours
22,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent
Learning Hours 34)
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes:
Students who have completed this course successfully will have:
1.
Developed interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational communication skills
for professional situations
2.
Acquired insight into what they can do with language by solving real world
tasks/project work
3.
Read/watched/heard a range of authentic Japanese spoken and written materials
and analysed them in order to enhance an overall interpretive competence
4.
Worked in groups or individually to complete language tasks on a regular basis
5.
Engaged in informed discussion about key issues in Japanese social practices,
culture, and language
6.
Collaborated on small project(s) – researched, produced, presented, and
completed self/peer-review as part of formative exercises
Students who have completed this course successfully should be able to:
1.
Appraise patterns, make predictions, and analyse similarities and differences
between two languages and cultures
2.
Deal with one-way spoken language and written text with conflicting situations of
comprehension and communication
3.
Sustain meaningful two-way interaction with a near-native ability to judge
cultural/linguistic appropriateness in a given situation
4.
Present accomplished oral and written information to various audiences for a
variety of purposes
5.
Apply knowledge and skills gained on the course elsewhere
Course syllabus: 9 units in total

One unit (6 hours) typically consist of a seminar (2h), two tutorials (2h), and a
workshop (2h)

Each class covers: (1) Intercultural issues, (2) Advanced Japanese language
skills, and (3) research and oral/written presentation skills in Japanese
Semester 1 (5 units: 33 hours) on Living in Japan
One 1 hour orientation class, one 2 hour presentation class, five 2 hour seminars, ten 1
hour tutorials, and five 2 hour workshops
Semester 2 (4 units) on Working in Japan
One 1 hour class test, one 2 hour presentation class, four 2 hour seminars, eight 1 hour
tutorials, four 2 hour workshops, and one 6 hour independent work
Suggested topics for each academic year (they are subject to change):

How to break the ice in any situation

Understanding Japanese customs/manners (e.g. kami-za & shimo-za)

Listening to and/or making recorded messages

Searching survival/safety information

Useful speech formula (expressing/understanding one's formal appreciation,
apology, congratulations, condolence, invitation, etc)

Making a judgement on formality shifts during conversation

How to solve/avoid conflicting situations (knowledge, judgement and
negotiation)
Reading list: the course will be using a combination of original materials and realia
rather than a textbook.