Why People Stop Learning Japanese

When you first start learning Japanese it can be fun and exciting. You're on your way to learning a new language! First you learn the alphabet, then start learning useful words and phrases. There's a lot of progress in the beginning and learning Japanese looks very promising. But then you hit a wall in your learning Japanese. Whether it's conscious or not, you start to find a reason to stop learning. If you find a good enough reason, it won't look like you failed in learning Japanese.

I'm going to go through these "reasons" why people stop learning Japanese and give you realizations that it can still be done. There is sadly no good excuse for not learning Japanese. If you just want to stop that is acceptable, but don't try to use one of these excuses because it will just make you look bad in the long run.

Not so Secret Secrets of Japanese Language

Learning Japanese is already hard enough with all the vocabulary memorization, the grammar rules and the thousands of kanji characters you'll need to study. But all those things are just what's on the surface of learning Japanese. There's more to the Japanese language that some people may not realize. I'll be talking about those not-so-secret secrets you may hear about that can help you understand Japanese a little better. Many of these are well known but I'm going to talk about them for the people who are studying the language and may not know, and for those who may need a refresher, or for those of you who may know nothing about the Japanese language but are interested in learning.

Japanese Duolingo Review

Right now is the age of using the computer and phone apps. Old methods of studying are no longer practiced as much as they used to be. I'm not very fond of phone apps myself, as I get bored with them easily. I'm the kind of person that learns best using flashcards and textbooks. I used plenty of apps to try and improve my Japanese. Some work and I still fiddle with today, and some I have left behind feeling disappointed with all the hype they received. Today I'm going to be talking about a new section of a not so new language learning app called Duolingo. Duolingo has just released their Japanese course on their app which is a big deal since their only Asian language they had before was Vietnamese. I tried Duolingo out for a week straight and have overall enjoyed my experience with it. Even though I am fond of it, it still has its flaws just like every other learning app.

Most Common Words You Hear in Japan

Whether you know Japanese or not you can tell when you start to hear the same words while walking the streets. I know a bit of Japanese so I recognized all the common words you hear in others' conversations, but my husband who knows no Japanese was able to pick up a few words just from observation.

Here are the most common words you'll hear in Japan.

So so so so so (そうそうそうそうそう)

The original phrase this came from is sodesu (そうです) which is used to agree or confirm with someone. In actual words it means "that's right." As you can imagine, repeating it several times in a casual way of saying "right, right, right, right." In English it may sound like you're trying to shut someone up fast but in Japanese it is more of a strong agreement. This phrase is used mostly by young adults, but it can also be used by older adults in a more casual setting with a friend. This phrase is never to be used in a formal situation.

Majide (まじで)

This is a simple one. "Seriously?" Used with young adults, you'll hear this word a lot in a conversation. Someone will say something and the other person will reply with majide, seriously? This is how you casually express surprise or shock at something someone has said. I've only heard this getting popular in the last two years, so I'm not sure how long this has actually been used.

Sumimasen (すみません)

The word sumimasen has many meanings and usages. You will hear it everywhere such as the station, a restaurant, and even at a store. Sumimasen initially means "excuse me" but can be used as a quick "I'm sorry." For the restaurant you'll hear it used to get a waiter's attention as in Japan they don't come check on you unless called upon. You'll hear it used at the store for the same reason. For the station there could be two scenarios. The first being if you need to pass through a crowd you can use it as an excuse me. The second being if you accidentally bump into a person while trying to catch a train, in that case it would be used as a sorry. It's a common word used in everyday life situations. It's an extremely useful word to know if you plan to travel to Japan.

If you're ready to learn Japanese, here's where to start on how.

Not looking to learn the language but would like to know important words for travel, here's material for that.

This was just a small post to get myself back into writing after being gone for three weeks after going to Japan. It's like playing an instrument. It takes a lot of practice and once you know how to do it you need to keep at it or the ability to do so will slowly disappear.

These are three words my husband noticed while in Japan. I used him as my source since he doesn't know Japanese. He knows no Japanese but picked out these three words from overhearing strangers' on the street. Once he kept on hearing these over and over again he began to actually learn these terms and how to use them.

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How to Memorize Japanese Vocabulary

I'm currently learning Japanese, as many of you may be learning too. I have mastered hiragana and katakana and have learned all the particles such as は、の、を、が、に、etc. Basically what I'm missing are the words. I don't know why, but I have the hardest time trying to remember vocabulary. And if I want to start speaking Japanese, I think it's pretty important to have some vocabulary down.

Well, lately, I've been studying like crazy (crazy meaning when I have the time which is like a hour a day). I think I've finally got the swing of things with learning the vocabulary and I'd like to share it with you. I'm pretty old school when it comes to studying so my method of studying involves flashcards.

So here's how I do it, in two easy steps.

Start Learning Japanese

I have a ton of ideas for blog posts in my head but I haven't done one on learning Japanese in a while. I know there are people who are trying to learn Japanese like myself. We're all doing what we can to learn in our own way whether it's taking formal classes, watching anime and dramas, or studying with friends. Each of these sadly has a flaw. Taking formal classes cost money and you learn in the order of the textbook being used. Watching anime doesn't get you far in your studies and you only pick up small words and phrases. Studying with friends can be a good idea, but at the same time you all are either distracting each other from actually studying or you all look to each other for guidance and get stuck. I did all of these things and still do some of them. Japanese is a hard language to learn and it will take years if you are not fully dedicated everyday, like myself.

To a Japanese person my level of Japanese is at the lower intermediate level. I can read and write hiragana and katakana and make basic sentences. A beginner is not knowing anything, a total beginner. The upper intermediate level is when you know the grammar but you can't understand conversations in Japanese. And finally, advanced is when you know how to converse in Japanese and can understand Japanese television and newspapers. I really hope one day I can get to the advanced level but I'll be lucky enough to just get to upper intermediate. The obvious way to learn fluent Japanese is to live there for a few years but me and most other people don't have that opportunity to do so (it's just not in our cards we've drawn). I'm in no way qualified to teach Japanese to others, but I don't mind helping out with giving tips and stuff like that.

Grammar/ Sentence structure

There is one thing that we should all focus on studying though and that's what we NEED to study. Open up a Japanese textbook, go ahead. The first introductory chapter is useful because of the hiragana, katakana, and helpful phrases but then the chapters start to teach you vocabulary you don't need to know. I find that a textbook doesn't challenge you enough like an actual person does. The one thing a textbook is good for is all the sentence structure and grammar rules in it. Collect all of those into one spot and study those each day to keep yourself refreshed. Even form the sentence, leaving out nouns, subject, time, adjective/adverbs, and verbs so you can practice making your own sentences.

Understanding the particles is a critical part of learning the sentence structure.

Vocabulary

In order to form sentences you need to know some vocabulary. Don't just learn random words. Be smart about what you learn. Ask yourself, "What am I going to Japan for? A job? A vacation?" If it's for school or a specific job learn the vocabulary related to those occupations. If it's for a vacation learn words for everyday conversation or what you think you would use like directions and asking questions. To study these vocabulary I suggest going back to the basics of studying and writing some flashcards. Learn 10 words at a time, adding 10 more everyday. Don't stop studying the flashcards for that day until you make no mistakes. If you miss a few days of studying you will have to start from the beginning because you won't remember anything, so make sure you study those flashcards everyday (it shouldn't take you any longer than a hour). 

Good old flashcards. They really do work.

Writing Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji

Learning how to write Japanese is important so you can read signs and other important information. With hiragana and katakana you just need to practice once a day, tallying how many you've got wrong. The goal is to keep practicing until you can write each one without any mistakes. Kanji is a little more work. Each day study 5 kanji, adding the previous 5 to the mix. Make sure that the 5 you are studying that day you have memorized it's English and Japanese meaning and are able to write the kanji. The next day, your goal is to be able to regenerate the previous kanji and it's meaning. If it can;t be done you need to study those thoroughly again with the next additional kanji. This method has worked for me previous, letting me comprehend 80 kanji at once.

You will keep getting better with each day!

I hope these study tips help you reach closer to your goal of learning Japanese. If you have any tips to help others please leave a comment below on your methods.

Like always, thanks for reading. I appreciate it all the time.

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