Due to the global pandemic, the government has issued Circuit Breaker measures that have successfully put a halt to many of our plans. Institutions and businesses are to cease physical operations until the circuit breaker measures are lifted and the citizens are advised to stay home. If you’ve signed up for Japanese classes in Singapore, you may have decided that learning will have to temporarily halt until you can step foot into the classroom once again.
However, it doesn’t necessarily have to be as such! You can still continue your learning in spite of the stay-at-home measures. Here’s how you can continue learning and accelerate your grasp of the Japanese language.
Put Your Books Aside And Start Practicing
Textbooks are your primary learning materials for any subject and you must’ve had your fair share of Japanese books when you first start on your learning journey. But these books have a limit. Language theory will be obsolete if you don’t put what you learn to practice.
Languages, as with most skills, will get rusty when not used often. The best way to avoid such an outcome is to use it as much as possible and in ways that are not passive such as reading Japanese books or watching Japanese films. It is crucial that you actively engage and practise the language through speaking and writing. Sign up to online Japanese speaking communities and engage with the members – especially native speakers who can brush up your grammatical rules, for instance. Or you can try your hand at language games such as AccelaStudy and Lexicon to help you jog the memory of some of the words you’ve just learnt.
There are several other resources, aside from books, that you can tap on to ensure that you have more holistic learning.
Reading Japanese Books But With A Twist
This may seem counterintuitive, especially after the first point, but you can enhance your learning by reading a Japanese book, but with a twist! As we’ve mentioned prior, passive learning will not maximise the learning that you’ve just spent your time and efforts in. Turn passive reading into something more active by making time to review and discuss the book with your fellow Japanese learners or an online Japanese book community. Perhaps, you can even request your tutor to recommend a book and have a discussion with them!
Best Of Both Worlds: Japanese Online Classes
Of course, taking steps towards active learning are meant to supplement your passive learning. In a Japanese online course, whilst it is still not ideal if compared to a physical classroom, you can still engage in both active and passive learning. You’d be able to absorb and digest the lesson materials taught, and practice it with your teachers whether it’d be speaking or writing.
Ultimately, the benefits are maximised if you were to combine all three together. Balance your learning tools and you’re on your way to being fluent and proficient in Japanese, even if you’ve been doing so in the comfort of your homes.
