This was actually a reply to a comment on a previous post and an attempt to expand upon my previous answer to whether or not the time I used to study Japanese before my study abroad last year was successful or not.
While I did learn (review) a lot of Japanese, I think my approach was wrong. I spent my time reviewing Japanese I learned from my classes rather than focusing on Japanese that would be the most useful for my time there. Most of this review came in the form of reviewing Genki I, a standard beginning Japanese textbook used at many colleges in the US. I also did a lot of reviewing or learning through apps on my iPhone. I think in the beginning of my three months of study, I had a lot of momentum and a plan in place. If you follow this blog, you probably noticed that I used to update a lot more often in the beginning as well. Then, I think I lost sight of the purpose of my study and failed to reevaluate my approach. Not to say that I wasn’t still learning Japanese or preparing to go to Japan, but the last two months were not as productive as the first month was.
I don’t think that a person can truly be prepared for all of the situations they’ll run into in a country they’ve never been to before, because there’s always something that will take them by surprise. I think the lack of what I didn’t learn, made my experience in Japan more educational. But basically, I think I tried to do too much and got burnt out very quickly by my Japanese studies that should have been more focused on Japanese that would have been more useful for living in Japan for four months. There’s also the fact that I had to prepare to live there for four months, which also took time away from studying (e.g. buying a plane ticket, packing, studying about cultural differences etc.). While I don’t think my language studies were as great as they could be, I think I was prepared for most of the cultural situations I encountered; but that may be the result of my long-term interest in Japanese culture rather than anything I did in those three months.
I think the best thing someone studying Japanese can do, especially someone with limited Japanese, aka a beginner, is study maybe the equivalent to the first semester or year of Japanese (if they took a class). It’s surprisingly easy to get around Japan without being fluent. Reviewing or learning the basics will prepare you for most of the situations you’ll come across daily. I can’t count how many times I had to stop and ask for directions from strangers, usually policeman or store clerks. I did not remember how to give and take directions from Japanese 101 class, I learned it through my Japanese classes in Japan and mostly through having to use it, because I kept getting lost. I’m probably a little bias since I went to Tokyo. But I think reviewing beginning Japanese and being open (to learning, to getting lost etc.) and not upset about any difficulties you’ll run into are some of the best things you can do.
I’ll try to write on this blog more regularly since I’m dedicating a lot of my time to studying Japanese again in hopes that I will return to Japan again soon.
Learning Japanese for Life 