2022 Spring Bekka Program

Course Outlines

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 2022 Spring Bekka Program Course Outlines

2022 Spring Bekka Program Course Outlines ............................................................ 2

Interaction in Japanese .................................................................................... 3

Japanese Grammar .......................................................................................... 9

Reading and writing in Japanese .................................................................... 10

Academic Japanese ........................................................................................ 11

Pronunciation of Japanese ............................................................................. 12

Self-directed Learning .................................................................................... 14

Reading and Listening in Japanese ................................................................. 17

Written Expression in Japanese ...................................................................... 18

Introduction to Japanese Business Culture ..................................................... 20

Introduction to Japanese Society ................................................................... 24

Journalistic Japanese ..................................................................................... 27

Japanese Sociolinguistics ............................................................................... 28

Culture of Japanese Language ........................................................................ 29

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Interaction in Japanese
Interaction in Japanese (Overview)
Language of instruction: Japanese
Quota: min. 3 students, max. 10 students / each level
Class: 2 times a week (90 mins x 2 times x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits
Material: original material used

This course aims to assist students to acquire three types of competence which are necessary for
interacting with Japanese speakers in everyday contact situations, namely linguistic competence,
sociolinguistic competence and socio-cultural competence. In the spring semester of 2022, this course
also includes some new content featuring online communication.
In the class, besides activities that focus on understanding, preparation and practice for the interaction
with Japanese, there will also be several “performance activities” (abbreviated as PA) with the help of
Japanese speakers as opportunities for authentic use of Japanese.
By completing this course, students are expected to improve their communicative competence through
interacting with Japanese speakers even while they are staying in their own countries. This course is
highly recommended to students who wish to be more fluent in Japanese using the vocabulary and
grammar that they have acquired.
Grading Policy
Evaluated based on the participation in activities, performance, assignments and reflections. No mid-
term or final exams.
Level and Goal
Level At the beginning of the course（Requirement） Goal
Interaction 2 Completed half of the beginners level CEFR A2.1
（Approx. JLPT N5）
Interaction 3 Completed the beginners level CEFR A2.2
（Approx. JLPT N4）
Interaction 4 Completed half of the intermediate level CEFR B1.1
（Approx. JLPT N3）
Interaction 5 Completed the intermediate level CEFR B1.2
（Approx. JLPT N3 - N2）
Interaction 6 Completed half of the advanced level CEFR B2.1
（Approx. JLPT N2 – N1）
Interaction 7 Completed the advanced level CEFR B2.1-B2.2
（Approx. JLPT N1）

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Course Overview of each level
Interaction in Japanese ２
Level：2
Lecturer: KATO Rintaro
This course is targeted at students who completed half of the beginner's level (approx. JLPT N5). This
course aims to familiarize students with interacting with native Japanese speakers online. In the class,
we will think of when and in what context we can use the grammar that students have learned so far.
It also has a lot of pair or group work. Through interacting with native speakers, students will review
their performance and acquire more practical competence.

Contents (Tentative)
1. Simple email writing
2. Conversations about hobbies and favorite things
3. Interviewing Japanese university students
(e.g. how to spend time at home, young people's language)
4. Interacting on social media
5. Short presentations about students' culture
*The contents may be changed depending on the number of participants.

The target of this course is the Performance Activity (PA) which is the compilation of what students
have learned. Students will not only do some conversation practice using some sentence patterns but
also study new expressions useful for the PA and conversation strategies. Students will practice
together with other students and active class participation is expected.

For the PA, students will set a challenging goal along with the target set by the instructor and reflect
on themselves about what they were and were not able to do by listening to and reviewing the
recordings of the PA. The recordings and reflection sheets will be checked by the instructor.

Message from Lecturer from 2021

Some of you might not have spoken with native Japanese speakers. You may feel a little upset to talk
with Japanese university students through the screen. However, you will become confident in
interacting with them at the end of the semester. Let's work hard together!

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Interaction in Japanese ３
Level：３
Lecturer: SUZUKI Sayuri
This course is aimed at students who have completed the beginner's level (approx. JLPT N4). This
course covers interactions that learners of Japanese would encounter in daily life and university life
situations. Students are expected to be able to express a certain amount of their feelings and opinions
about themselves and familiar topics using acquired knowledge with the help of a conversation partner.
Three or four topics will be covered through the semester. Each topic go through several learning stages
and leads to the Performance Activity (PA) that involve actual interaction with Japanese speakers.
Students will use worksheets to study with classmates from different countries. This course will have
a lot of pair work and group work, therefore active participation is expected. Students will reflect on
their performance after each PA and think of the attainments and challenges. The evaluation will be
made comprehensively based on the participation, assignments, reports and the PA.
*The contents may change depending on the number of participants.
Planned: self-introduction, introducing familiar things, email writing, presentations with slides, chatting
with friends

Contents (Tentative)
1. Introducing
Introduce yourself to the person you meet for the first time and introduce your university and your
daily life. You will also learn how to make friends by drawing information from the other party.
2. Chatting
Talk casually with students of similar age about hobbies and daily life. Students will exchange
information about what you have in common and differences, and what is popular there now.
3. Email writing
Use e-mail or social media to write and send Japanese messages while paying attention to your style.
Learn casual expressions, formal email composition and idiomatic expressions.
4. Consulting
Research and give a presentation about tourist attractions or fascinating culture of your country. Talk
to your visitors during the preparatory stage and get support for a better presentation.

Message from Lecturer from 2021

This class is recommended for the students who wish to have strong conversation skills and want to
improve their communication skills. If you are feeling like "I studied Japanese, but I have no chance to
speak", "I don't have the confidence to speak", and "I don't know how to speak", let's take this
opportunity to enjoy speaking Japanese with Japanese learners from all over the world and KUIS
students, etc.

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Interaction in Japanese 4
Level：4
Lecturer: UEHARA Yumiko

This course is targeted at students who completed half of the intermediate level (approx. JLPT N3). It
aims to enable intermediate students to deliver their feelings and thoughts and keep relatively longer
conversations about daily life and university life. It also includes thinking about somewhat abstract
concepts such as society and culture and expressing their opinions.

Contents (Tentative)
Students will learn one topic in a couple of weeks. At the end of each topic, we will have the
performance activity (PA) to experience the actual situation with Japanese university students and
classmates. In the PA, discussions, presentations, chats, interviews, etc. are held, but the content
should be from your own interests. Through the preparation of PA, you will also study expressions and
strategies to convey what you want to say. We also think about society and culture through activities
with classmates in various parts of the world and Japanese university students. After the PA, we will
review what we have learned.

1. Introduce your major and university.

2. Write a polite email.
3. Make friends through chatting and social media.
4. Research and present about Japan.
5. Collaborate as a group to think and announce new apps.
6. Interview former students of Bekka about their present and future work.
*The contents above may be slightly changed.

As one of the intermediate level tasks, you will learn Japanese in both formal and casual situations so
that you can properly use formal expressions for people you meet for the first time and teachers, and
casual expressions for friends and close people.

Message from Lecturer from 2021

In this class, you will have a lot of opportunities to talk with your classmates and Japanese university
students. It may seem a little difficult at first, but by the end of the semester, you will surely feel the
ability and confidence to express your thoughts and opinions in Japanese.

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Interaction in Japanese 5
Level：5
Lecturer: SETO Ayako
This course is aimed at students who have completed the intermediate level (approx. JLPT N3-N2).
Simulating interactions in daily life and university life, students are expected to be able to express what
they want to say only in Japanese. In particular, it aims to enable students to keep longer conversations
about familiar topics and personal interests, to report the facts and deliver their thoughts based on the
information gathered, and to give their opinions on somewhat abstract concepts such as the society
and culture with reasons.

Activities (Tentative)
 Conversations with university students
Have conversations with university students.
 Presentation
Conduct a presentation to Japanese university students and have a Q&A session
 Debate
Have a debate session with classmates

Contents (Tentative)
 Output
Share your experience and thoughts with classmates
Exchange opinions with classmates in a pair
Brainstorming of ideas
Create a draft for the presentation
 PA（Performance Activity）
Record your own presentation
Listen to it and reflect on the performance

過去の学生のコメント / Comments from the students who took this course before
 国にいるとき、日本語を勉強しているけど、日本語であまりしゃべらないから、勉強した文法や単語などの使い方は苦手です。
でもインターアクションの授業で日本語でしゃべるチャンスが多い、短い時間で考えて、すぐ日本語でしゃべれるようになりました。
もちろん間違うことがまだ多いけど、話さないなら、上手になれないと思います。（20 春）
 PA をできるだけ楽しんだらいいなと思います。PA は日本語を学ぶことだけじゃなく、色々な人とコミュニケーションができ、日本
や自国や他国についても知ることができます。プレゼンテーションなど、大変だと思いますが、楽しんでやったら、きっと貴重な思
い出になるでしょう。(^_^) （19 春）
 この授業が楽しいか厳しいかを判断できませんが自分で試してみないと意味がありません。しかし、日本語能力が絶対に高く
なって、役に立つはずです。（21 春）
This course is recommended for those who want to...
have more opportunities to speak in Japanese, make friends with students from other countries, and
be more confident when you speak in Japanese etc.

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Interaction in Japanese 6
Level：6
Lecturer: FUJIOKA Ryoko

This course is aimed at students who have completed half of the advanced level (approx. JLPT N2-N1).
Students will experience interactions in daily life and academic situations. It aims to enable students to
actively participate in discussions with classmates. Students will set their own goals for each language
learning unit, gather information about the topics, prepare and practice for the performance activities.
Through the activities they can understand each other, cultural background and diversity more deeply.
After each activity, students will review their performance in order to improve their learning skills.

Planned: meetup online, presentations, interviews, practice job interviews

This course is recommended for those who want to improve their communication skills in Japanese.

See 2022 年春学期 科目概要(Japanese ver.) for more details

Interaction in Japanese 7
Level：7
Lecturer: YI Young

This course is targeted at students who completed the advanced level (approx. JLPT N1). It simulates
various interactions with other Japanese speakers to improve students' linguistic competence,
sociolinguistic competence and socio-cultural competence, and to enable students to use Japanese
appropriate for each situation. It mainly focuses on the production and output of what students can do
in each scene, and students will do activities after recognizing what they can do and what their target
is. After each activity, students will review their performance and think of what was good and what
should be improved.

This course is recommended to advanced students of the Japanese language who wish to speak more
fluently or who are struggling to understand how to use what they have learned.

See 2022 年春学期 科目概要(Japanese ver.) for more details

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Japanese Grammar
Japanese Grammar (Overview)
 Language of instruction: Japanese
 Quota: max. 10 students
 Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
 Credit: 1 KUIS credit

Contents (Tentative)
Students will learn useful grammar in real communication (speaking, listening, reading and writing)
focusing on how to use them in the specific contexts or situations.

Among the grammar items necessary for the Japanese level students are placed, we will focus on the
items that are considered to be more important in terms of necessity, frequency of use, difficulty of
learning, etc. About one third of the standard grammar items of the level will be covered though the
semester.

Material
Course materials will be provided in the class

Lecturer
Level 2: SUZUKI Sayuri
Level 3: UEHARA Yumiko
Level 4: TAKAHASHI Wataru and ABE Chieko
Level 5: FUJIOKA Ryoko
Level 6: YI Young

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Reading and writing in Japanese
Reading and writing in Japanese (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 1 KUIS credit

Contents (Tentative)
Students will read several kinds of sentences and practice writing in Japanese. This course aims to
assist students to improve their ability to use the Japanese sentence patterns, vocabularies and
expressions through reading and writing. We aim to be able to read and understand the contents and
write sentences using appropriate written words.

Material
Course materials will be provided in the class

Lecturer
Level 2: YI Young
Level 3: FUJIOKA Ryoko

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Academic Japanese
Academic Japanese (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 1 KUIS credit

Contents (Tentative)
Students will mainly learn “reading and writing” among the Japanese proficiency required for study
and research at university. Students will read various materials and practice writing in Japanese. This
course aims to enable students to write appropriate reports and research papers in Japanese through
learning the writing styles, expressions, and sentence structures etc. of the written word. Activities of
“speaking” and “listening” may be included as needed.

Material
Course materials will be provided in the class

Lecturer
Level 4: SUZUKI Sayuri
Level 5: TAKAHASHI Wataru and WAKATSUKI Rie
Level 6: KATO Rintaro
Level 7: SETO Ayako

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Pronunciation of Japanese
Pronunciation of Japanese (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Course Overview of each level

Pronunciation of Japanese 2・3

Level：２・３
Lecturer: TAKAHASHI Wataru and WAKATSUKI Rie

Contents (Tentative)
In this course, students will learn about the pronunciation of Japanese such as its phones, rhythms,
accents and intonations and prominence. In the class, pronunciation practice methods and tool will be
introduced, and students will try to overcome their weak points. Additionally, students will practice
their pronunciation and participate in activities with their classmates, and get feedback from their
instructor and classmates.

Students will record what they practiced in class and hand in the data as assignments. As for the final
assignments, students will share their activities they tried to better their pronunciation.

*Class contents are subject to change.

Material
Course materials will be provided in the class
OJAD（Online Japanese Accent Dictionary）http://www.gavo.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp/ojad/

Grades
(1) Class participation
(2) Assignment
(3) Final assignment

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Pronunciation of Japanese 4・5・6
Level：4・5・6
Lecturer: INABA Kazue

Contents (Tentative)
In this course, students will learn about various elements of Japanese pronunciation such as its phones,
rhythms, accents and intonations. Students will be aware of what can be improved through not only
individual practice but also working in pairs or groups.

In class, each student will record their own pronunciation, check it with teachers and classmates, and
incorporate activities to think about challenges and points for improvement. The first goal of this lesson
is to understand the characteristics of your pronunciation with the feedback of teachers and classmates.

The second goal is to think about effective pronunciation learning methods that match your
characteristics so that you can continue to focus on your pronunciation outside the classroom. In order
to find an effective learning method, we will deal with "basic knowledge of pronunciation and voice
(knowledge)", "practice to hear and understand sounds (understanding)", and "practice to make sounds
(production)". All explanations will be given in Japanese.

The following are some of the specific contents that will be covered in class. The topics handled in the
class will be flexibly adjusted to the needs of the students enrolled in the course.

(1) Japanese sounds (Japanese syllabary, foreign language sounds (example: sounds written in
katakana), etc.)
(2) Japanese rhythm and beat sensation (example: foot)
(3) Pronunciation of spoken words (reduced form (example: personal computer), devoiced (example:
"su" of "Yamada desu")) Spoken language role play (pair / group work)
(4) Noun accents (head-high type, middle-high type, tail-high type, flat plate type, accent core)
(5) Adjective and verb accent (accent of conjugation ending)
(6) Intonation (Intonation and expression intention (example: ascending / descending / flat)

Materials
Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in class.
Prepare your own smartphone or IC recorder to record the pronunciation of the assignment and submit
it to Moodle.

Evaluation criteria
Class participation: 20%
Assignments (including recording submissions): 60%
Presentation (role play): 20%

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Self-directed Learning
Self-directed Learning (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 15 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Course Overview of each level

Self-directed Learning 2・3

Level：２・３
Lecturer: TAKAHASHI Wataru and WAKATSUKI Rie

Contents (Tentative)
The aim of this course is to cultivate students’ Japanese proficiency as well as their ability to self-direct
their language learning. Students will make their own goals and plans, choose the skills and knowledge
they wish to focus on improving, and facilitate their own learning process. Students will reflect their
study by writing learning diary at the end of each class.

The instructor will assist students in understanding various language learning strategies, introduce or
recommend learning materials, and provide individual advice throughout the course so that students
can discover the most suitable way(s) to learn for themselves.

*Although vocab&kanji course are not available this semester, students can study them autonomously
in this course. In addition, students can study Japanese related to their favorites such as manga, music,
food and fashion to achieve their own goals.

Material
Course materials will be provided in the class

Evaluation Criteria
Evaluation is based on class participation (including attendance) and assignments (learning diary and
reflection, etc).

Precautions for taking this course

Make sure to meet the deadline for submission of assignments. Evaluation will be deducted if
submission of assignments is delayed. Doing homework or preparing for tests of other courses of KUIS
or your home college/university in this class is not allowed.

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Self-directed Learning 4・5・6
Level：4・5・6
Lecturer：KOBAYASHI Kumiko

Contents (Tentative)
The aim of this course is to cultivate students’ Japanese proficiency as well as their ability to self-direct
their language learning. Students will choose the skills and knowledge they wish to focus on improving,
and facilitate their own learning process.

The instructor will assist students in understanding various language learning strategies, introduce or
recommend learning materials, and provide individual advice throughout the course so that students
can discover the most suitable way(s) to learn for themselves.

*Although vocab&kanji course are not available in this semester, students can study them
autonomously in this course. In addition, students can study Japanese related to their favorites such
as manga, music, food and fashion.

Example 1) Student A
Cycle 1 ... Read Haruki Murakami's book and write your impressions
Cycle 2 ... Do the same thing as Cycle 1
Example 2) Student B
Cycle 1 ... Study Kanji for Japanese Language Proficiency Test N2
Cycle 2 ... Read the manga "One Piece", list the words you don't understand, and learn the meaning
Example 3) Student C
Cycle 1 ... Search and summarize Japanese Kabuki on the Internet
Cycle 2 ... Study the grammar of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test N1

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation criteria
Based on the attendance and assignments

Precautions for taking this course

Assignment Deadline: Meet the deadline. Points will be deducted.
Attend every class and report what you have learned.
Do not do other assignments during this class.
Do not do other things during this class.
During the cycle I and II, you will study what you have planned.

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 Self-directed Learning 4・5・6 Overview

Class Contents

1 Introduction, setting an objective, materials/resources

2 Study plan, time management, setting an objective for Cycle 1

3 ＜Contents for every week＞

１ Reflection, Introducing materials that are useful (10min)

4
２ Study Plan (5mins)

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Cycle １ ３ Self-study (50mins-60mins)

４ Reflection (5mins)
6

8 Reflection on Cycle 1, setting an objective for Cycle 2

9 ＜Contents for every week＞

１ Reflection, Introducing materials that are useful (10min)

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２ Study Plan (5mins)

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Cycle ２ ３ Self-study (50mins-60mins)

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４ Reflection (5mins)

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14 Reflection on Cycle 2, Self-evaluation for the semester

15 Presentation about Cycle 1/2

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Reading and Listening in Japanese
Reading and Listening in Japanese (Overview)
Level: 2 and 3
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits
Lecturer: ABE Chieko

Contents (Tentative)
This course aims to comprehensively improve reading and listening comprehension through various
autonomous reading and listening activities.
This course consists of three sessions; "listening session", "reading session", and "activity session".

In "listening session" and "reading session", each student chooses what he / she wants to listen / read
from online resources and reads it by him / herself. Students can find the videos and audio materials
on their own, and bring your own books or manga.

At the end of the class, students write a learning journal (title, contents, impressions, etc.). For the
journal, students can also use their first language.

In "activity session", students participate in various activities. For example, students share their favorite
characters and quotes (Book Talk), write a letter to their favorite characters, write a book review etc.

To wrap up the course, students work on a project based on the books they read throughout the class
session. Students design their own project such as writing a story / poem, drawing a manga, making
a game, book presentation. In addition to the classmates, external audience will be invited for the final
presentation.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Tasks (learning logs, reflections, Book Talks, writing tasks)
Final project (final project and presentation).

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Written Expression in Japanese
Written Expression in Japanese (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 15 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Course Overview of each level

Written Expression in Japanese 4・5

Level：4・5
Lecturer: SETO Ayako

In this course, students will develop their strategy to read and understand various writings, and will
acquire Japanese vocabulary, expressions and techniques necessary for writing, so that they can
improve their comprehensive writing skills.

In addition, this course will aim to deepen our understanding of Japanese society and culture through
the contents of sentences picked up in class and to increase our knowledge in order to understand the
background and context of sentences written in Japanese.

Contents (Tentative)
１）Read and write emails and SNS messages. (Polite email, communication with friends)
２）Read and write the explanation. (Cuisine of my country, convenient things in my country, etc.)
３）Read and write an essay. (About Japan / Japanese language, university life, etc.)

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

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Written Expression in Japanese 6・7
Level：6・7
Lecturer: KATO Rintaro

Contents (Tentative)
In this course, students will develop their strategy to read and understand various writings in a wide
range of fields, and will acquire Japanese vocabulary, expressions and techniques necessary for writing
proficient sentences, so that they can improve their comprehensive writing skills.

The aim is to deepen the understanding of various Japanese social culture from the content taken up
in the class, and to accumulate knowledge to introduce in more detail about their own social culture in
Japanese. We will learn useful advanced sentence expressions in the real world.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

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Introduction to Japanese Business Culture
Introduction to Japanese Business Culture (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Course Overview of each level

Introduction to Japanese Business Culture 4・5
Level：4・5
Lecturer: WAKAMATSU Yumi

Contents (Tentative)
Taking up common situations such as part-time jobs, the Introduction to Japanese Business Culture 4･
5 course aims to help students understand business communication patterns which may be required
during interactions with Japanese in the context of corporate or other employment situations. This
course is intended to familiarize students with the Japanese expressions and communication patterns
in business situations while also heightening awareness of how these communication styles differ from
the patterns in their native languages.

Aimed students
Japanese level 4・5
This course is for those who are interested in Japanese communication in business situations.

Class Objectives
1) Language competence
Learn the basic expressions of business Japanese and become able to actually use them.
2) Sociolinguistic competence
Understand the appropriate politeness of language when working with Japanese people in a Japanese-
speaking workplace.
3) Social and cultural competence
While practicing with short skits in business situations, students understand the social culture required
for Japanese work situations, such as job hunting.
When considering future career paths, think about how to acquire Japanese social culture hereafter.

Course structure
<Flow of each class> * Taking the first half term as an example
Before class, students read the materials distributed in advance and do your own preparation tasks.

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Students will discuss their thoughts and opinions about the reading material in class.
In the first class, students will practice writing simple business emails. In later classes, students will
keep practicing writing emails during telephone answering and job interviews session.
In business email session, students submit the email they wrote as an assignment. In addition,
telephone calls and interviews are recorded and submitted as assignments.

Course schedule
1st-5th class
How to write business emails, answer phone calls, receive part-time jobs and job interviews
(introductory level)

6th-10th class
Honorifics (use of “Uchi (in-groups)” and “Soto (out-groups)” properly), business etiquette
(introductory level)

11th to 15th class

Presentation in business situations (introductory level)
(How to make a presentation, create slides, practice presentations, make presentations) * Presentation
is the final task

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Class participation
Assignment for each topic
Final assignment (presentation)

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Introduction to Japanese Business Culture 6・7
Level：6・7
Lecturer：MANABE Masako

The Introduction to Japanese Business Culture 6･7 course aims to help students understand business
communication patterns which may be required during interactions with Japanese in the context of
corporate or other employment situations. The course is intended to familiarize students with the
Japanese expressions and communication patterns in business and formal situations while also
heightening awareness of how these communication styles differ from the patterns in their native
languages.

Aimed students
This is for Japanese level 6 and 7 students who are interested in Japanese communication in business
situations and who want to work for a Japanese company.

Class Objectives
・ Communicate appropriately in formal situations such as interviews and business situations.
・ Discover and solve problems that occur in different cultures of business and formal situations.
・ Learn about Japanese business customs and culture and apply it to communication.
・ Understand written interactions in business and formal situations.

Course structure
Each time, students discover problems in cases in different cultures and discuss solutions (case-based
learning). Before class, students read the materials for each case, think about what you would do, and
write them down on a worksheet (preparatory homework). Learn about customs, culture, and
expressions of Japanese communication in business situations necessary for problem solving.

In the first half of the course, students will have a self-analysis for employment and a mock interview
online.

In the second half of the course, students will learn about written interactions such as business emails
written in Japanese. Also, students will actually write it ourselves.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Reflection 20%: Write and submit after class
Quiz 10%: Confirmation of understanding of what students learned in class
Homework 20%: Case-based study Worksheet

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Assignment 20%: Submissions of worksheets used for mock interviews (performance) and class.
Final task 30%: Submit a report on Case-based learning

Precautions for registration

The quiz does not have a make-up.
If the submission is delayed, points will be deducted by 50%. Make sure to submit before the
deadline.
Evaluation is not based on Japanese language ability.
This is a discussion-based class, active participation is required.

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Introduction to Japanese Society
Introduction to Japanese Society (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Course Overview of each level

Introduction to Japanese Society 2・3・4
Level：2・3・4
Lecturer：WAKATSUKI Rie

This course is aimed for students at the beginner and pre-intermediate level of Japanese who wish to
deepen their knowledge about Japan and Japanese society. Topics to be covered are related to life in
Japan including geography and natural disasters. Students will also learn about Japanese society and
culture through researches and projects. Taking into consideration students' personal interests,
students will understand various opinions and thoughts through presentations and group discussions.

Contents (Tentative)
Week 1: Guidance, ice break, Deciding communication tool etc.
Weeks 2-4: Information session (geography of Japan, living information in Japan)
Gain knowledge about life in Japan.
Weeks 5-12: Research & Presentation Project
・ Research what students are interested in or want to know according to the theme. Interview and
survey KUIS students.
・ Students will present what they have learned through the research. (Students will take a video by
themselves.)
・ After viewing the presentations of your classmates, we will discuss in class.
Weeks 13-14: Discussion about the topics decided in class

Week 15: Review

*Cultural exchange events with KUIS students may be held during the above class time.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Quiz 10%: Confirmation quiz from the Information session
Assignments 60%: Project (50%), other submissions (10%)
Reflections 30%: Submit reflection for each class by forms

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Introduction to Japanese Society 5・6・7
Level：5・6・7
Lecturer：MANABE Masako

This course is aimed at students at the pre-advanced level of Japanese language study. In this course,
students will study Japanese customs/behavioral patterns, cultural/social phenomena in modern Japan.
Students will develop their understanding of Japanese culture and society through discussions and
interactions. Through interactions with others, students are expected to recognize different values and
deepen their understanding of Japanese culture and society. Each student will choose a topic on
Japanese culture/society and will present the result of the survey and write a paper.

Class Objectives
Be able to explain terms and ideas related to different cultures handled in class.
Be able to explain the relationship between language and culture / society, and organize and state your
thoughts.
Be able to understand and cope with problems that arise in different cultures.
Be able to ask questions about cultural and social topics and seek answers through dialogue.

Course structure
One theme is handled every one or two class(es).
Understand basic terms and concepts about different cultures through class work (1-3).
Think about language and culture (4-5), the relationship between art and culture (6-9), and
multicultural society (10-11).
Students Ask and present their own questions about cultural and social themes, and discuss these
questions in class (keyword presentation, 12-14).
At the end of each topic, students review their learning and summarize their opinions.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Quiz 10%
Students are given a quiz to confirm the understanding of words and ideas related to different cultures
handled in class.
Assignments 60%
Homework (20%): There are assignments before and after class. Write on the designated sheet and
submit.
Keyword presentation (40%): Contents and their submissions (PPT, worksheet)
Review 30%
Students write and submit their opinions about what you have learned.

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Precautions for taking courses
The quiz does not have a make-up.
If submission is delayed, evaluation will be deducted. (Minus 50%). Make sure to submit assignments
before the deadline.
Evaluation is not based on Japanese ability.
This is a discussion-based class, active participation is required.

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Journalistic Japanese
Journalistic Japanese (Overview)
Language of Instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Class: once a week (90 mins x 15 weeks)
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Journalistic Japanese 6・7

Level：6・7
Lecturer：TOKUNAGA Akane

This course aims to, through reading news articles and watching news programs, enhance students'
ability to understand current topics of the Japanese society and the background to them, and to search
for the news stories and relevant information.

At the beginning of the course, we will summarize recent news and discuss the differences in current
topics in Japan and other countries.

During the mid-term of the course, students will find a piece of news and gather relevant information,
then try to read and understand it.

In the latter part of the course, students will pick up more than one news item, find relevant information,
understand it from their own perspective and write an essay as the final assignment.

Every week, students have to watch news stories (2-3 minutes) and read the scripts (pre-study
assignment), and write their opinions on the news items picked up in the class in a reflection sheet.

Teaching materials / reference materials

Teaching materials will be distributed and introduced in the class.

Evaluation Criteria
Class participation: 20%
Pre-study assignment: 20%
Reflection sheet assignment: 30%
Final assignments: 30%

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Japanese Sociolinguistics
Japanese Sociolinguistics (Overview)

2022 SPRING SEMESTER

NAME OF COURSE: JAPANESE SOCIOLINGUISTICS A

INSTRUCTOR: Sau Kuen FAN, PH.D.

Course description
This course aims to introduce students to the field of sociolinguistics, with a special focus on sociolinguistic issues which are
significant in the Japanese society. In this semester, we will deal with two research areas, namely, language varieties and
language life. Characteristics of Japanese language varieties will be discussed by considering factors such as age, gender,
geographical regions and context. In the area of language life (or “gengo seikatsu” in Japanese), we will look at how
onomatopoeia, loanwords, kinship terms and personal names are strategically used in contemporary Japanese society.
It is expected that through gaining basic knowledge about how Japanese language is used in the society, students can develop
their ability and confidence to interact with Japanese native speakers.

Language of instruction
While lectures will be mainly delivered in English, some competence in Japanese is required for participation in discussion
due to the nature of the course (i.e. dealing with the use of Japanese in society). All written works should be submitted in
English. Note that this is NOT a language course. Students can communicate with the lecturer freely in either English or
Japanese and will not be assessed based on the level of language ability.

Requirements
1. Students should be familiar with reading and writing academic papers in English. Non-native speakers of English who
have achieved a score of 500 or above in TOEFL (or equivalent) are welcome to take this course.
2. No previous study of sociolinguistics or linguistics is required although experience of learning a foreign / second
language and previous contact with Japanese native speakers is desirable.

Quota for this course

A maximum number of 10.

Class meetings
Tuesday Period 5 (16:30 - 18:00 Japan time)

Method of presentation
Classes will be held online in form of a combination of Zoom meetings (weekly) and on-demand activities. Prior to the start
of each class, students should go through the lecture notes and brainstorming Q&A provided by the lecturer in advance. In
each Zoom class meeting, the lecturer will explain the main contents by showing in power point slides through share screen.
Students are encouraged to participate in discussion according to their own learning experience of Japanese. Students in the
course will be provided opportunities to collect firsthand data from Japanese native speakers (mainly KUIS students) for the
preparation of their final report.

References
Lecture notes, readings for assignments and other references will be available in KUIS Moodle.

Grading Policy
Class participation and feedback sheets 30%
Reading assignment 10%
Mini survey 10%
Presentation 10%
Final report (Portfolio) 40%

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Culture of Japanese Language
Culture of Japanese Language (Overview)
Language of instruction: Japanese
Quota: max. 10 students
Meets once a week
Credit: 2 KUIS credits

Culture of Japanese Language 7

Level：7
Lecturer: IWAMOTO Enoku

Contents (Tentative)

This course aims to foster students' understanding of the so-called Japanese language culture, the
system of the cultural values embodied in the grammatical and semantic structures of the Japanese
language. It is often quoted as a language that does not make clear distinction between the speaker,
the hearer and other people because of the frequent omission of subjects. However, a careful
examination of the grammatical system of the language reveals that it actually employs a strong ego
(i.e., speaker)-centric structure whereby Japanese native speakers have a clear understanding about
who the speaker is referring to. Its ego-centric nature is found across the components of the language,
syntax, semantics and discourse structure. Advanced level Japanese learners are welcome to join the
course and discuss and compare the ego-systems of Japanese and their own native language.

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