The majority of the chapters are between 10 and 20 pages long, and the longer chapters can take a fair amount of time to read. Progressing through these chapters involves reading a lot of text, similar to the introduction chapter. There are 45 of these in the first course. ChaptersĪs mentioned, the Human Japanese material is divided into chapters. You’ll likely need to take your own notes and introduce some additional study methods to commit things to memory. While the course is full of information and thorough explanations, it doesn’t hold your hand when it comes to sufficient practice. The material in the program is presented in chapters, much like a textbook, and there are review quizzes at the end of each chapter that test your understanding of the content.Īlso similar to a university course, there’s a fair amount of self-direction involved. I found the Human Japanese course to actually feel quite a bit like a university language course. I ended up favoring the PC version quite heavily. It’s certainly still usable, and how bothersome it is will depend on the device you use, but it’s worth considering when deciding which device to purchase the program for. It involves more scrolling and occasionally made me feel lost while navigating the chapter pages. I found reading this much text to be noticeably less natural on the mobile app. This kind of information is available in each chapter. The content here touches on some of the fundamental differences between English and Japanese (especially with regard to grammar and phonetics), and does a good job of setting the stage for the beginning learner. It’s casual, does a good job of anticipating potential confusion, and full of information that the truly motivated learner will find invaluable. Luckily, the tone of the writing never becomes overly academic. It’s a bold move that, in the era of apps designed to keep your attention at all costs, could turn some less-motivated learners off before they even get started. Nine pages of introduction may sound like a lot, and it kind of is. Next, you’ll jump right into the first chapter, which happens to be a nine-page introduction. This is just so multiple people can use the resource and save their progress, it otherwise doesn’t have any importance. You’re first greeted by some slick visuals and the chance to set your username and avatar. I also find it less likely that I’ll get distracted by the web if I’m studying in a standalone program. The set-up might not be quite as fast as a browser-based resource, but I like that it’s available offline. For this review, I tested the Windows computer version as well as the Android mobile app.ĭownloading and installing Human Japanese on your computer is very easy. The Human Japanese platform is available to download on your computer or phone, Mac, Windows, iOS, or Android. The textbook vibe means it isn’t the resource for someone looking to quickly grab a handful of phrases for an upcoming vacation it’s for the serious learner that wants to develop a well-rounded understanding of Japanese language and culture.Īside from a few Miyazaki films, more episodes of Terrace House than I’m comfortable admitting, and a brief Duolingo endeavor, my experience with Japanese was limited before starting this review - after using Human Japanese for a just few days I could read Hiragana confidently and string together a few sentences. Instead of relying on videos or frequent games, the casual conversational tone of the writing keeps it from ever becoming too dull. Unlike some other language resources that feel like a game or like they’re trying to force language acquisition through osmosis, Human Japanese is more like an interactive textbook. It’s focused on Japanese and Japanese only, and the written instruction maintains a personal feel while delivering extremely thorough language information. The word ‘boutique’ comes to mind when describing this program. In the words of its creators, “Human Japanese was lovingly crafted by a small group of people,” and it shows. I mostly fall into the second camp, and that may have something to do with why I liked this resource so much. Others consider it essential to form a more comprehensive understanding of a language, including its grammar concepts and the reasons it works the way it does. Some believe that learning too much grammar is a waste of time, that it’s all about exposure and practice. There are plenty of ways to go about learning a new language.
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