JAPANESE LANGUAGE 2

The course is one of the core courses of the Master's Course in Languages, Economies and Institutions of Asia and the Mediterranean. It aims at:
a) develop the students' level of Japanese proficiency up to an upper-intermediate/advanced level through the study of the diverse registers of the Japanese language and specialistic texts;
b) provide the students with the methodological toolkit to conduct their research on primary sources in view of the completion of the Master's Thesis.

To this end, special attention will be paid on the one hand to the development of the students' listening and interaction skills in authentic contexts and on the other, on text reading, re-elaboration, and translation (and argumentation of the latter).

At the end of the course, the students are expected to
1. express their thoughts and ideas in Japanese with technological devices (such as Power Point presentations);
2. produce written texts in Japanese, also using specialized language;
3. develop fast reading skills (especially with regards to academic papers and articles in Japanese).
4. re-elaborate and writing in the target language.

The course will also focus on the following aspects:
5. correct use of different linguistic registers in spoken Japanese;
6. comprehension of long texts in Japanese;
7. translation.

Expected level at the end of the course: C1 (CEFR)

There are no prerequisites for the language examinations of the master's degree, but students must have at least a level corresponding to JLPT 2 (or CEFR B2l).

1. Lessons by Dr. Lauri Kitsnik (30 hrs.): seminar lessons with active participation by students on the topic "Japanese Popular Music" with questions and discussions in class.
2. Exercise lessons by Mrs. Utsumi Ayuko. The lessons will concentrate on the production of written texts in Japanese, analysing and developing specific skills in writing various textual typologies.
3. Exercise lessons by Mrs. Suzuki Masako. The lessons will concentrate on the study of the correct use of Japanese linguistic registers (e.g. keigo, taigū hyōgen, etc.) and students will practice within the frame of various social situations (including the so-called "business Japanese") as well as reading comprehension.

Besides the language instructor's teaching materials, the texts to be analyzed during the course will be academic and journalistic in nature on the topic of Japanese popular music.
They will be uploaded on the course Moodle page on a weekly basis.

The use of the following Japanese dictionary (available on the students' electronic dictionaries and online) is recommended:
Kōjien, (7th ed.) Tokyo: Iwanami
Sanseidō Web Dictionary (also available for smartphones) online at: http://www.sanseido.biz/
Weblio Kokugo Jiten, online at: https://www.weblio.jp/
Kotobank, online at: https://kotobank.jp/

The final score will be assigned based on the results of written and oral tests.
The written exam comprises five parts.
- Writing and submitting a CV in Japanese (see “Contents” section, item 2);
- A grammar test (relational language);
- A paper in Japanese language;
- A test of comprehension of texts from those covered in class in Italian/English;
- oral interview with CEL

written and oral

Regarding the grading scale (how grades will be assigned), regardless of attending or non-attending mode:
A. Scores in the range of 18-22 will be assigned when:
- Adequate knowledge and applied understanding in reference to the curriculum are demonstrated.
- Limited ability to collect and/or interpret data and formulate independent judgments.
- Sufficient communication skills, especially regarding the use of specific language.
B. Scores in the range of 23-26 will be assigned when:
- Good knowledge and applied understanding in reference to the curriculum are demonstrated.
- Fair ability to collect and/or interpret data and formulate independent judgments.
- Adequate communication skills, especially regarding the use of specific language.
C. Scores in the range of 27-30 will be assigned when:
- Good or excellent knowledge and applied understanding in reference to the curriculum are demonstrated.
- Reasonable or excellent ability to collect and/or interpret data and formulate independent judgments.
- Fully appropriate communication skills, especially regarding the use of specific language.
D. Honors will be granted when there is excellent knowledge and applied understanding in reference to the
curriculum, exceptional judgment, and communication skills.

The course is structured in frontal classes, practical exercises with the language instructors and class discussions. Traditional activities will be coordinated with weekly in-class assignments (translation and discussion of translation choices) to be carried out with computers and online working tools such as the Google Suite.
It is highly recommended that students bring their laptops/tablets with suitable writing devices to class for Dr. Kitsnik's module.
Beside in-class work, students will be required to complete weekly tasks (individual or group work) such as translation, transcription of audio/video, presentation and report writing.