How Long It Takes to Learn Japanese (and how to make a study schedule)
Summary
TLDRThis video addresses common questions about learning Japanese, emphasizing the need for realistic expectations and consistent effort. It explains that the time required to learn Japanese varies based on daily study time, personal commitments, and study methods. The video highlights the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) levels and the hours needed to pass each. It stresses the importance of balancing study and immersion, learning kanji, and tailoring a study schedule that includes vocabulary, grammar, and engaging with Japanese media. The key message is to be honest about your goals and sacrifices, and to commit to regular practice.
Takeaways
- 😕 The idea of becoming fluent in Japanese in a short time is unrealistic without considering personal circumstances and study habits.
- ⏰ The amount of time one can dedicate daily to studying Japanese is a critical factor in determining progress and language proficiency.
- 🎮 Willingness to sacrifice leisure activities, such as gaming, is essential for making significant strides in language learning.
- 📊 The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) levels indicate the hours of study required to achieve each level, with N5 to N1 representing increasing proficiency.
- 📚 Studying for 30 minutes a day might take years to achieve even the lowest JLPT level, emphasizing the need for more substantial daily study time.
- 📈 Three hours of daily study and exposure to the language can significantly speed up the learning process, potentially allowing one to pass N3 in a year.
- 🌐 Immersion involves getting a lot of input through listening and reading, but it also requires active study, such as looking up unknown words and studying kanji.
- 📚 Regardless of the method, a combination of targeted study and immersion is beneficial for language acquisition.
- 📅 A practical and enjoyable study schedule is crucial for maintaining consistency and achieving language learning goals.
- 📝 Learning kanji is an important aspect of studying Japanese, and dedicating time to it daily can be beneficial, especially if time is limited.
- 🔄 Adjusting and personalizing the study schedule to fit one's lifestyle and maintaining consistency is key to making progress in language learning.
Q & A
What factors determine how much Japanese one can learn in a certain period?
-The factors include the amount of time available for study each day, the tools used for learning, the learner's current responsibilities (e.g., being a student or a parent), and their prior knowledge of other languages.
Why is it difficult to answer the question 'How much Japanese can I learn in six months?'
-It is difficult to answer because the amount of progress depends on various personal factors such as daily study time, study methods, and the learner's individual circumstances and prior language experience.
What is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) and what are its levels?
-The JLPT is a test that measures Japanese language proficiency. It has five levels, ranging from N5 (the lowest) to N1 (the highest).
How many hours of study and exposure are needed on average to pass the JLPT N5 level?
-An average student who doesn't know Chinese characters needs about 462 hours of study and exposure to pass the JLPT N5 level.
How long would it take to pass the JLPT N5 level with 30 minutes of study per day?
-At 30 minutes of study per day, it would take approximately 924 days, or about 2.5 years, to pass the JLPT N5 level.
What level of Japanese proficiency does the JLPT N3 represent?
-The JLPT N3 level represents a stage where learners start to really be able to understand and communicate in Japanese, provided they have practiced speaking.
How many hours of study are required on average to pass the JLPT N3 level?
-To pass the JLPT N3 level, an average of 1,325 hours of study and exposure is needed.
How can one reach JLPT N3 level proficiency in a shorter period?
-One can reach JLPT N3 level proficiency in a shorter period by studying for longer periods each day. For example, three hours of study per day could enable passing the N3 level in a little over a year.
What is the role of immersion in language learning according to the transcript?
-Immersion involves getting lots of input through listening and reading in the target language. It is important for language learning, but should be complemented with targeted studying, such as looking up unknown words and making flashcards.
What is a suggested daily study schedule for learning Japanese?
-A suggested schedule includes 30 minutes to an hour per day for kanji, 30 minutes for vocabulary flashcards, and 15 to 30 minutes for grammar study. Additional time can be spent on fun activities like watching TV shows or reading in Japanese.
Why is it important to mix structured study and immersion activities?
-Mixing structured study and immersion activities is important because it makes the learning process more enjoyable and sustainable. Structured study provides a foundation in grammar and vocabulary, while immersion helps in practical application and maintaining interest.
How should one handle days when they feel unmotivated to study Japanese?
-On days when motivation is low, one should still commit to doing at least a small amount of study, such as five minutes of flashcards or watching a short anime episode. This helps maintain consistency and progress.
Outlines
📅 Planning Japanese Language Study: Realistic Expectations
This paragraph addresses common questions about learning Japanese, like how much one can learn in a specific timeframe. It emphasizes the importance of understanding one's own schedule, dedication, and available study time. It outlines the necessity of honesty about personal sacrifices, such as reducing time spent on hobbies like gaming, to make substantial progress in learning Japanese. The focus is on setting realistic expectations and committing time consistently.
📊 Understanding JLPT and Study Time Requirements
Here, the paragraph discusses the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) levels and the average study hours required to pass each level. It highlights that passing the lowest level, N5, typically takes around 462 hours of study, which translates to approximately 2.5 years at 30 minutes per day. For higher levels like N3, which allows for basic communication, it requires 1,325 hours, achievable in about a year with three hours of daily study. The importance of daily exposure and varied study methods is underscored.
💬 Balancing Study Methods: Immersion vs. Structured Learning
This paragraph explores the debate between immersion and structured studying. It argues that while immersion (listening, reading, etc.) is crucial, it must be supplemented with structured learning, especially for languages with complex scripts like Japanese. The text criticizes the notion that immersion alone is sufficient, explaining that targeted studying and making flashcards are necessary for effective learning. The paragraph emphasizes the need for a balanced approach to language acquisition.
📚 Combining Fun and Practical Study Techniques
The final paragraph outlines a practical study schedule that incorporates both fun and essential learning activities. It suggests dedicating time to kanji, vocabulary, grammar, and immersive activities like watching TV shows or reading in Japanese. The importance of consistency and adapting the schedule to one's daily life is emphasized, with a recommendation to engage with the language daily, even for a few minutes. The paragraph concludes with a motivational note, encouraging learners to find a sustainable study routine.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT)
💡Study Schedule
💡Kanji
💡Immersion
💡Input
💡Vocabulary
💡Grammar
💡Exposure
💡Fluency
💡Sacrifice
Highlights
New language learners often ask about the amount of Japanese they should know in six months or how to become fluent in three months.
The time you can dedicate to studying Japanese daily, and the tools and resources you use, significantly affect your progress.
Understanding your personal schedule and commitments is crucial in determining how much time you can devote to learning Japanese.
To pass the lowest level (N5) of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT), an average student needs approximately 462 hours of study.
At 30 minutes per day, it would take about 2.5 years to pass the N5 level, which still leaves the learner struggling with basic Japanese.
Passing the N3 level, where you start to understand and communicate effectively, requires around 1,325 hours of study.
At 30 minutes per day, it would take about seven years to reach the N3 level of proficiency.
Increasing your daily study time to three hours can significantly reduce the time needed to pass the N3 level to a little over a year.
Combining various activities like studying, watching anime, reading, and practicing speaking can make the learning process more engaging and effective.
Immersion, which involves getting lots of input through listening and reading, is an important part of language learning, but it should be combined with targeted studying.
Relying solely on immersion without studying kanji or vocabulary can extend the time needed to learn Japanese.
Having a foundational knowledge of grammar and vocabulary can make immersion in native content easier and less frustrating.
Balancing between structured studying and immersive activities can make the learning process more enjoyable and sustainable.
Consistency in daily study, even if it's just for five minutes on challenging days, is crucial for steady progress.
A flexible study schedule that includes kanji practice, vocabulary learning, grammar study, and engaging with native content can lead to effective language acquisition.
Transcripts
how much Japanese should I know in six
months how can I speak fluent Japanese
in three months what should my study
schedule look like
questions like this actually plague a
lot of new language Learners you might
recognize what's wrong with these
questions but to a lot of people it's
not that obvious I'll give you all a
schedule later in the video but first we
should address those first two questions
this is an impossible question to answer
the show do you have 30 minutes per day
to study four hours what tools do you
intend to use are you a student a mom do
you already speak three or four
languages there are a million reasons
why no one can answer this question
instead you want to take a look at how
many hours you have to work on Japanese
every day what are you willing to
sacrifice are you a League of Legends
addicts
I didn't even know you played video
games
Sports
okay anyway are you willing to cut back
yep I'm not talking to you
anyway if it is no that's fine but if
you're playing league for four hours
every day after work you are not going
to get very far in Japanese in six
months or six years and that's fine you
don't have to but what you do have to do
is be honest with yourself
what do you want to learn and what are
you willing to sacrifice let's take a
look at the Japanese language
proficiency test and how many hours on
average of study and exposure it takes
for someone to pass each level of the
test the levels go from N5 at the lowest
to N1 at the highest it's not a perfect
test by any means but the numbers on
this chart from the website Koto Academy
illustrate the point I'm trying to make
perfectly I'll link the blog it's from
in the description to pass the lowest
level of the jlpt your average student
who doesn't know Chinese characters has
to study Japanese for
462 hours
[Music]
yeah but what are you complaining about
you can already read Japanese
hmm
so 462 hours that means at 30 minutes
per day it'll take you 924 days or 2.5
years to pass
at this level of Japanese you will
struggle to do just about anything in
Japanese to pass N3 which is a level of
Japanese where you start to really be
able to understand and communicate if
you've practiced speaking you would need
1
325 hours on average which according to
this chart is almost how long it takes
to become a licensed architect in Japan
what
[Music]
foreign
anyway it will take you seven years to
pass the N3 at 30 minutes of Japanese
per day now keep in mind this is study
and exposure if you could do three hours
per day you could pass the M3 in a
little over a year that means studying
watching anime reading playing video
games in Japanese doing speaking
practice
etc for three hours per day so it
doesn't have to be boring textbook study
three hours per day would also be enough
to pass N5 in less than six months so at
three hours per day that's what you
could accomplish in six months
regardless of the particulars of your
study method now I can hear some of you
screaming just immerse and honestly
you're kind of annoying and need to work
on your debate approach a little bit
I think we should have this conversation
immersion in the modern sense of of the
word just means getting input getting
lots of input through listening reading
Etc and that is an important part of
language learning with that said those
doing immersion are also studying
regardless of what they say they just
don't do targeted studying they look up
what they don't know in dictionaries and
piece it together from there they spend
hours making flash cards from their
input material and study those so no
they are not just immersing and those
that are just listening without looking
stuff up or studying kanji are going to
take a lot longer than 1 325 hours to
get somewhere with Japanese
that might work well for other languages
which use the same script as your native
language but you're not gonna learn
Japanese kanji by just watching anime I
promise it doesn't make a whole lot of
difference whether you learn a bunch of
words and grammar before jumping into
watching native content and reading
material or if you do it as you go along
except jumping into native material when
you have a base is easier and less
frustrating for most people in my
experience at least in fact the majority
of people I hear screaming just Steamers
studied grammar and vocabulary at the
beginning discovered immersion later and
then completely discounted all of their
earlier study you even see major
influencers in the space pretending they
never studied their target language
before immersing and pretending that
study had no effect on how fun they
found input when they finally did start
anyway it's much easier and fun to spend
five hours watching a TV show in your
native language than it is to read a
textbook for five hours which is why I
think doing a little of both is
important even in the beginning it's not
faster to just immerse it's just easier
to do it for longer periods of time
because it's fun when you start
understanding things in Japanese
but if you only have 30 minutes per day
and just immerse it's still going to
take you seven years to reach a quote
and three level point being you need to
spend time with the language lots of it
and if you want to get good you have to
sacrifice other things you like doing
for a while simple as that
I wasn't talking to you sorry
can't you already speak English
but you can understand me can't you
hmm
short answer you probably can't but if
you study and get lots of input for
eight hours per day every day for three
months you can likely get to a jlptn
4-ish level
which isn't bad but it's not fluent by
any standard same answer
why do you want to learn English anyway
foreign
study schedule needs to be fun and also
practical no matter what anyone tells
you you should learn kanji so you'll
need to decide on a way to do that I
talk about this in a bunch of other
videos which I'll link in the
description so I'm not gonna do it here
although I will soon be starting a
series on kanji on this channel so get
subscribed if you're interested in that
I actually kind of like kanji
30 minutes to an hour per day of just
kanji is probably enough if that's all
you can do right now it might be the
best place to put in effort until you
have more time next studying some
vocabulary and grammar will give you
valuable tools for the fun stuff do some
flash cards for vocab or something for
30 minutes per day or more for learning
new vocab then study one or two new
grammar Points each day maybe 15 to 30
minutes so oh now we're at around an
hour and a half of daily Japanese if you
still have time left to give try to
watch a TV show or anime you like read a
graded reader story like the ones we
have on tokenyandy.com listen to a
Japanese podcast or YouTube video
anything you like as long as it's in
Japanese
have some fun in Japanese over time you
can spend more and more time on this
kind of input and even speaking to
people but in the beginning at least
getting some Basics will help you out a
lot most importantly toy with this
schedule yourself until you find a
pattern you're able to do every day and
then do it every day don't be scared to
take a day off here and there but for
the most part do it every day even if
you feel like crap commit to doing even
just five minutes of flash cards or
watching an anime even on those days you
may find you have it in you after all to
get the rest done once you start if you
do this you'll get there and if you like
this video let me know by hitting the
like button and telling me about your
experience so far with Japanese in the
comments smooth you like that
yeah I should have known
check out this video for some free
Japanese learning tools
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