The Part You Already Have,

and the Part You Need to Train

The Last lecture for international students learning Japanese.

Hilofumi Yamamoto, Ph.D.
Institute of Science Tokyo

Introduction

• You already have something
• Remember what you already do in your own language.

Q.1 You already have something. What are they?

Q.1 You already have something. What are they?

You have already learned universal language skills.

• You use them unconsciously every day.
• It is available in Japanese too.

Q.2 What is language?

Q.2 What is language?

Language is interaction.

• Language is not just "carrying meaning."
• Consensus is always established between sender and receiver.
• It progresses by creating agreement.

Q.3 You have two layers in your brain. What are they?

Q.3 You have two layers in your brain. What are they?

Two layers: think fast and think slow.

• Fast: very quick, automatic, intuitive, and emotional, but sometimes prone to errors.
• Slow: deliberate, logical, and analytical, but requires more effort and time.

Daniel Kahneman's System 1 and System 2: Thinking, Fast and Slow in 2011

Q.4 There are two layers in grammar. What are they?

Q.4 There are two layers in grammar. What are they?

Immediate and Adjustive.

• Immediate grammar: speaking when time does not stop
• Adjustive grammar: organizing when writing/explaining

Q.5 Why do you get stuck when speaking Japanese?

Q.5 Why do you get stuck when speaking Japanese?

You cancel your universal skills.

• Suddenly focus only on "accuracy," and you get stuck.

Q.6 Why do you stop using your universal skills?

Q.6 Why do you stop using your universal skills?

Because you believe "I have to understand everything."

• Even in your native language, you do not understand everything.
• It is not a Japanese problem but a "comprehension problem."
• It causes double stopping in both languages; native and Japanese.

Q.7 What do you consider while conversation goes on?

Q.7 What do you consider while conversation goes on?

Conversation time does not stop.

• You cannot ask for clarification every time.
• You cannot stop the time for thinking.
• Your communication partner keeps talking.
• There is no assumption of perfect understanding.

Q.8 What is the real technique?

Q.8 What is the real technique?

Let's "pretend to understand."

• Pretending to understand and moving forward is not cheating

Q.9 Another technique?

Q.9 Another technique?

Let's "pretend not to know."

• Pretend not to know and let the partner explain it again.
• You can recover your understanding later while listening.

Q.10 What part do you need to train in Japanese?

Q.10 What part do you need to train in Japanese?

Use the part you already have. Train the part you need.

• Vocabulary and fixed expressions enhancement
• Phrase construction and operation
• Training of adjustive grammar (writing/explaining)
• Remember your language behavior and use it in Japanese as well.

Conclusion

Conclusion

Remember what you already do in your own language.

The answer is...

Of course, adjustive grammar.

But conversation lives in immediate grammar.

One last message

One last message

• Japanese is not a special language.
• You are already excellent language users.