Soko Gakuen Japanese Language School
1881 Pine Street
San Francisco, California 94109
Telephone: 928-9608
Course Syllabus
TERM: Fall 2023 (33 hours)
SECTION: Beginning 2 SM
INSTRUCTOR: Ms. Halper, email
  http://www.halper-sensei.halper-sf.com
CLASS HOURS : Saturdays, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Upon completion of this level, the student will be able to:
  • talk about who you will meet, talk about making telephone calls, state how frequently one does something, ask what is recommended at a restaurant,
  • talk about the characteristics of things and places,
  • entertain a guest and receive hopitality, talk about the weather,
  • express one's thoughts about experiences, express gratitude,
  • state something that differs from expectation,
  • talk about tourist destinations and one's hometown
  • say what or who is at a certain place, ask the meaning of a word you do not know,
  • talk about the number of things or people in a certain place, ask if a certain place is near or far from some other place,
  • talk about giving and receiving gifts, compliment someone about clothing, talk about what one has,
  • talk about someone's likes and skills, talk about what you like to do,
  • tell where a certain event is taking place, invite soeone to an event,
  • receive or decline an invitation, state a reason for declining an invitation.

It is strongly recommended that the student purchase the Japanese For Busy People I Kana VERSION as well at this level.

TEXTBOOKS AND MATERIALS:

EVALUATION:
  1. One final exam (2.5 hours).
  2. Upon successful completion (80% or higher attendance rate and 80% or higher final exam score) of the course, a STUDENT PROGRESS REPORT will be written if requested at the time you take the final exam.
  3. Your final exam score and attendance (%) will be kept in a digitized form @STUDENT GRADES AND INFORMATION REPOSITORY.

TEACHING STYLE:
The instructor will create a relaxed, low-anxiety atmosphere in which you can acquire the previously mentioned course objectives with less effort and with ease. The instructor will use an eclectic teaching method.

PROCEDURES:
  1. The instructor will follow the calendar printed on the back page.
  2. In class, student and teacher (and student and student) will engage in interactive language activities, a variety of exercises, using as much Japanese as possible. The instructor, however, will use some mechanical and meaningful drills, when necessary, to develop your kinetic memory for the training of the perceptual motor skills.
  3. Students will reinforce and develop vocabulary, structures, listening and conversational skills through weekly assignments.
  4. The class, however, may be conduted in accordance with the needs of the students in class within the course objectives.


CALENDAR:
Week 1 Sep      23 Brief Review, Lesson 8 and Lesson 9 --- Doing Things
Week 2 Sep      30 Lesson 9 and Lesson 10 ------------ Describing Thins / Quiz
Week 3 Oct         7 Lesson 11 ------------ Describing Impressions / Quiz
Week 4 Oct       14 Lesson 12 ------------ Asking about Places / Quiz
Week 5 Oct       21 Lesson 13 ------------ Asking for a Place / Quiz
Week 6 Oct       28 Review and Quiz ------------ Giving Compliments
Week 7 Nov        4 Lesson 13, Review and Quiz
Week 8 Nov      11 Lesson 15 ------------ Talking about Preferences / Quiz
Week 9 Nov      18 Lesson 15 and Review
  Nov      25 NO CLASS  THANKSGIVING DAY WEEK
Week 10 Dec        2 FINAL EXAM
Week 11 Dec        9 Lesson 16 ------------ Making an Invitation

PLEASE NOTE:
  1. You are expected to listen to the audio files, memorize new words, read the grammar explanation in the textbook and to complete all assignments before coming to class.
  2. A quiz will be given in class every week.
  3. Please be on time for class; otherwise, you interrupt the lesson for others. Regular class attendance and participation are essential for language learning.
  4. Excessive absences(more than 3 class meetings) may be cause for repetition of the course.
  5. The results of your final exam (%) and attendance (%) will be kept in a digitized form @STUDENT GRADES AND INFORMATION REPOSITORY. Your PROGRESS REPORT will be kept in the Soko Gakuen Records Office, and the Office will release it only upon your request.
  6. When you obtain a score of 80% or higher on the final exam, you move up to a higher level class. Soko Gakuen's exit criteria for each class/level are based on the 1987 ACTFL Japanese Language Proficiency Guidelines.

POLICY ON FINAL EXAM:
If you are unable to take the final exam on the scheduled date due to circumstances beyond your control, the exam may be given only in a similar test-taking situation (under supervision of an instructor at Soko Gakuen). Unless the final exam is made up, NO CERTIFICATE can be issued.

ALL THE ENDEAVORS OF THE TEACHER WILL FAIL TO INSURE SUCCESS UNLESS YOU PREPARE WITH DILIGENCE AND CONSTANCY THE EXERCISES TO BE GIVEN IN CLASS!

YOUR PROGRESS IS MY MAIN CONCERN!