Term (Contact hours) .................. WINTER, SPRING, SUMMER, & FALL (33 hours each)
Class & Section ............................. BEGINNING CONVERSATION  SM
Instructor .............................................. TBA
Meeting day & Time ............................ Saturdays, 9:00 -12:00 noon

COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
1. Talk about nationalities and occupations; introduce yourself and others.
2. Talk about a nearby object and its owner; ask for telephone numbers.
3. Talk about the times of meetings and parties; ask the hours of services in stores and hotels.
4. Ask the prices of items in a store and make a purchase.
5. Ask what the size, color, and country of origin of an item is, and buy them; buy items telling the clerk how many you need.
6. Talk about where you will go, when, and with whom.
7. Talk about traveling destinations, places and people to visit, dates and times, and means of transportation.
8. Talk about tourist destinations; describe what is inside a building.
9. Talk about numbers of things or people that exist in a particular place; talk about the whereabouts of things and people.
10. Talk about everyday doings--what you will do, when and where.

TEXTBOOKS AND MATERIALS
1. Required: Association for Japanese-Language Teaching. (2006). Japanese For Busy People I (3rd ed.) Romanized VERSION (Lessons 1-10). Tokyo, Japan: Kodansha International. [Available at the  Kinokuniya Bookstore, San Francisco--Geary at Webster. Phone 415-567-7625].

2. Recommended: Mizutani, O., & Mizutani, N. (1977 & 1979). nihongo notes (Vols. 1 & 2). [Available at Kinokuniya Bookstore, San Francisco].

3.  Audio CDs available in the textbook.

4. Practice on the Internet
http://www.ajalt.org/sfyj
http://smart.fm/lists/123488-japanese-for-busy-people-lessons-1-10

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 through 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 / Weekly Schedule.
2. In class, student and teacher (and student and student) will engage in interactive language activities, a variety of exercises, using Japanese as much 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, structure, listening, and conversational skills through weekly assignments.
4. The class, however, may be conducted in accordance with the needs of the students in class within the course objectives.

CALENDAR / Weekly Schedule

Week 1.   Introduction and orientation and Lesson 1

Week 2.   Lesson 2

Week 3.  Lesson 3

Week 4.   Lesson 4

Week 5.   Lesson 5

Week 6.   Lesson 6

Week 7.   Lesson 7

Week 8.   Lesson 8

Week 9.   Lesson 9

Week 10.   FINAL EXAM

Week 11.   Lesson 10.  Last Day of Class.

*Weekly assignments on specific dates will be available from your instructor in class.
 

PLEASE NOTE
1. You are expected to listen to the audio cassette tapes, memorize new words, read the grammar explanation in the textbook and to complete all assignments before coming to class.
2. From time to time short quizzes may be given in class.
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
There will be NO MAKE-UP FINAL for this course.