AmethystEnd
Member
I'm an expert, I have only one question: why "Jgo"? Trying to sound all cool and fancy mayhaps?
Every time I read one of his posts:
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
The Big Ass Superior Thread of Learning Japanese
- Thread starter RevenantKioku
- Start date
- Status
Every time I read one of his posts:
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
This was something of a foreigner joke in Japan, put j in front of amything. However I type a lot on my phone between whatever so it's just a quicker abbreviation for me.
The very front page of NHK Easy has a grammar point I just learned. Fucking awesome.
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
It's meant to be a learning tool, not a test. You obviously should be looking up the Kanji, etc. too. The Furigana is just a shortcut to tell you how to phonetically read the thing (which allows you to look it up in the first place).
I almost made the joke myself!
Doesn't your j-phone have j-auto-completion?
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
I use a windows phone in America, but no I dont use predictive text or autocomplete on any of my electronics. For English that is.
Porcile
Member
That headline on NHK Easy:
フランスが「テロを計画した男は死だ」と発表
France announces "Man who planned terrorism has died."
Is that right? I should really read this site more often.
フランスが「テロを計画した男は死だ」と発表
France announces "Man who planned terrorism has died."
Is that right? I should really read this site more often.
AmethystEnd
Member
Yeah, that's right.
Yeah, that's my interpretation.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
Oohhhh now everyonneeeee wants to read nhkeasy.. Mhmmmmmm
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
Minor, but you're missing the ん in 死んだ
AmethystEnd
Member
There's a thread specifically for otaku?
What the hell am I wasting my time in here for, then?
What the hell am I wasting my time in here for, then?
/s
Hey expert, is it worth it for a uni student to exchange for a year and study in Japan? friend is trying to decide. surely if he studies the jgo hard style while doing his course studies he should come back relatively smart smart?
Edit: this question is for anyone who has done it cause I know there are a few. I asked just cause expert suggested moving over isn't necessary for jgo mastery
Edit: this question is for anyone who has done it cause I know there are a few. I asked just cause expert suggested moving over isn't necessary for jgo mastery
we can always request a name change for this thread
AmethystEnd
Member
But the word "Superior" definitely needs to stay.
Porcile
Member
I think his point was more that living in Japan doesn't mean you automatically become good, or anywhere close to it. On the other hand, I'd imagine that anyone who has genuine aspirations of getting becoming highly proficient, as in a natural level beyond just JLPT tests, would at some point need to go and live there.
Studying Japanese for a month this summer over there and it definitely gave me a small boost so one year should be great.
It's not automatic of course, but if you're curious/outgoing enough it can only be a beneficial experience. Facing the "real world" without textbooks just gives you a whole new perspective.
Obviously this applies to every language.
mm, i just told him that it's only gonna be worth it if he studies hard there, otherwise to treat it as a GAP year.
GAP year = Australian term for when you put your uni degree on hold for a year, take your parents money and travel Europe to gain life experiences via Contiki tours.
Studying in Japan is invaluable I say. There's no escaping the language, and you can differentiate leeway and meanings.
Expert was prob talking about people who live in Japan, but use English at work 40 hours a week, and then meet their English speaking friends at the bar after. People in this lifestyle aren't engaging society and then obviously won't get any better. They're also not in Japan to learn Japanese.
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
Wasn't directed at me, but if your friend is serious and motivated about learning the language, then he will gain a ton of knowledge during his time there.
Is he taking classes in English? If so, he'll have to make extra effort to not get caught up just hanging out with his classmates and speaking English all the time.
I've noticed that especially among JET members. They travel in little packs together and don't actually make an effort extending beyond their English safety blanket. At which point Japan is basically an extended vacation.
Edit: I should stress that this is anecdotal and not indicative of everyone.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
I shall not take the bait.
maybe not now, but at some point I'm gonna get you.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
'never forget'
No for real though.. why wouldn't anyone take the chance to live in different places. I've lived in like 6 countries, it's insane to me there are people who have never left their home. Forget language, learning about yourself in this limited time on earth is way more important. Would be my general response to anyone wanting to go abroad for whatever reason.
No for real though.. why wouldn't anyone take the chance to live in different places. I've lived in like 6 countries, it's insane to me there are people who have never left their home. Forget language, learning about yourself in this limited time on earth is way more important. Would be my general response to anyone wanting to go abroad for whatever reason.
the majority of 20 somethings that do this from Australia are complete shits. i'd say out of 100 people that do this in their 20s in Australia, only 1 comes back and actually learns something from it. the other 99 proceed to fluff their way through uni/defer and travel to "find themselves" and complain about their lack of employment/income.
Jintor probably knows the kind of people I'm talking about. I'm not calling you out btw Jintor
I'd say so, I don't know what they call them though
Gap year is British English. fairly sure NA English is just "year off".
Expert, that English teacher write up was amazing.
Curious about Remembering The Kanji. Do people still use it? Is it relevant?
I started some weeks ago and made it to about kanji 600 (using kanji.koohii.com by the way). I'm still going to finish it because I feel like it works for me, at least for the set purpose, but I was curious about its current reputation.
I started some weeks ago and made it to about kanji 600 (using kanji.koohii.com by the way). I'm still going to finish it because I feel like it works for me, at least for the set purpose, but I was curious about its current reputation.
IMO it's trash
We talked about it a few pages ago. General consensus is that it only works if you use all 3 books, but IMO it's a massive waste of time, that you can spend on better forms of study. The main problem with RTK1 is that you don't learn how to actually read the word, so when it comes to reading a sentence, sure you might recognise it and have an idea of what the sentence means based on that context, but you don't know how to read or speak, which is a useless skill IMO.
There are better alternatives to study that a lot of people have chimed in on recently in the last 100 posts or so, have a quick skim.
I dunno. I liked it well enough, but I also effectively spent about a year or so more or less just learning a huge alphabet without learning pronounciation. You don't really need to do all three books, just the first.
I think it's more useful as a way of quickly naming radicals. On the upside, I barely ever need to learn new kanji when learning new vocab. On the downside, like I said... I spent a year on it.
I think it's more useful as a way of quickly naming radicals. On the upside, I barely ever need to learn new kanji when learning new vocab. On the downside, like I said... I spent a year on it.
stump sock
Member
in that thread: a bunch of creepy weirdos trying to convince themselves and others that they're not creepy weirdos.
real talk, I've considered doing the JET/teaching thing several times, but have always backed down, partially because of knowing people like the ones Expert talked about. If I was going to do it, I wouldn't do it to hang out with a bunch of other gaijin, that's dumb. but I'm also in my 30s so I can't even say that I'd be what they'd be looking for or that it'd be best for me.
certainly not good enough at Japanese to be a CIR
e: though if I were to lose my current job, it would almost certainly be near the top of the list of things I would be applying for.
Porcile
Member
If you want to do it, and think you can do a good job, then do it. The only people who would be offended or put off from going to Japan to teach by expert's post are the ones not self-conscious enough to realise that person is them. I'll be going next year and I hope it will be a great experience, for a myriad of reasons, some of it related to teaching and some more personal. I don't even think I'm going to be paid enough to have that kind of frat boy experience, so my goal is to make the most of the teaching opportunity and really improve my Japanese in a way that self-study or university could never replicate. Anyway, you're in this thread, trying to improve yourself aren't you? That alone separates you from the vast majority of ALT's and eikaiwa teachers expert and others talk about. If you don't want be THAT teacher, then don't be that teacher.
i just started out with wanikani - about to ace the radicals and hopefully start learning actual kanji. Already know my hiragana/katakana (thanks 'remembering the...' Books).
Is there anything else I should be considering this early, or just plough on with wanikani for now until a certain level? Worth paying for?
Is there anything else I should be considering this early, or just plough on with wanikani for now until a certain level? Worth paying for?
Porcile
Member
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
To be honest, my views have changed a bit since that post. Since then, the chair of the Asian department I talked about in that post actually asked me to be on the jet interview committee at the nyc consulate and I've also done a ton of recruiting at japanese career fairs where I met a lot of people who are transitioning from a former life of 'teaching' in Asia.
I obviously had years of experiences with actual alts, but it's been great to finally meet these people before and after the life. It's nice to see the motivations and thoughts they have in their head before they go (some no different than what I've talked about) and also reassuring to see those that are finished with that life want something more for themselves.
Zefah made a great post not too long ago that being an alt is like working at a mcdonalds anywhere else. It's unskilled labor meant to give you some basic experience so you can go on to better things. And a lot of people even on this forum have done that. It was just my generalization (some rightfully so) that a lot of them didn't respect the situation they were in. They were invited into a new life, culture, and had their hand held entirely because they couldn't support themselves, and yet they treat the position and experience with such irreverence. And I still do think that. But now I also get to see why they might think that way before they ever get there as well as how the experience affected those that were there (not the lifers that stayed).
So yeah. If you want to go, go.
Porcile
Member
I think if you're serious enough about wanting to learn the language, and you really do take the time to learn while you're out there, then teaching English, especially if you can do it in a public school, is a great idea. It's also a good litmus test to see if you like living in a foreign country. Some people just aren't disciplined enough though. However, anyone who is learning Japanese but dismisses teaching entirely in want of 'real' job in Japan is just advocating a petty form of elitism, and in some ways you may only just be setting yourself up for disappointment further down the line. Not always the case of course, since expert, Zefah, Mik2121 and others on this forum have done well regardless.
Yea - I just dislike the idea of using mnemonics for upwards of 2000+ characters, it feels like capacity that could be better spent on something else. I can see why it works for people though, just not for me.
IMO that's only the case if you're literally saying "teaching is scum, I am superior for wanting a different career". I want to work in Japan and I'm dismissing teaching, but that's because it doesn't align with my career, i.e. I have no care for it.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
Full disclosure though.. you're going to teach english right lol.
for me at least mmemonics are a placeholder until the character/sound/meaning all start to fit together naturally without having to refer to the memmonic
Porcile
Member
Sure. I already mentioned that. Although, I don't really see how that refutes what I said. As a learner, my goal in the end is to pass the JLPT and move on. What huge amount of difference does it make if I do that in my own country or in Japan? If it doesn't work out, I lose a year of my life and come home and just continue what I've been doing.
stump sock
Member
I don't even use the mnemonic unless it's a character or word that refuses to stick with me. I just like it as a quiz platform that has pretty good stat tracking via the API. it's also not for people who can afford to study full-time. but as someone who can only give 1-2 hours per day to study it's kind of perfect.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
Doesn't refute anything, just the funny situation of someone equating the life changing position you're about to take to a job at mcdonalds, so of course you'd defend it and say it's a great idea before you even get there. Just a funny moment in my head, no offense meant. Though I recall you have a teaching background so you're already literally the cream of the crop compared to the people you will eventually call your colleagues. You are the kind of person I want to actually be an alt.
Porcile
Member
I wasn't offended. I view it like the equivalent having a day job (but doing it well, because I want to do well, and because I like teaching) and then going to night school in the evening. But sure, you are perfectly correct, I have absolutely no idea if it will work out, but there are worse ways of finding out.
- Status