Japanese

This course is taught in an omnibus format. Lectures and practical training will be provided on anime and video games. 
 

This course features host directors and producers who work on the front lines of animation production as guest speakers. Video materials are utilized to learn the origins of Japan's unique animation. 

Video games are now a major pillar of Japanese subculture. Thirty years have passed since the first video game, PONG, which started in the United States, achieved commercial success.  This course discusses the history of how American-born video games developed in Japan. 
Next, it looks at the current scale and trends of Japan's game industry, including some of its challenge, as well as how games are made; what kind of tasks are involved; the development process, and different jobs in game development. 

This course is designed for students who have mastered intermediate kanji to expand knowledge of kanji compound words and idiomatic expressions. While examining the structure of kanji compounds, students study kanji systematically by learning opposite and similar meanings of kanji as well as by applying suffixes and prefixes. By expanding their kanji vocabulary, students will be able to select the most appropriate kanji based on the context.

This course explores the history of early modern Japan, approximately from the 16th to the 19th century. It studies examples to understand the views and mentalities of ordinary people during the Edo period as well as discusses whether their way of thinking changed during the late Edo era and early Meiji period. Please note that this course will not always examine topics in chronological order; it will move back and forth between the 16th and 19th centuries, depending on the topics.

This course introduces oil painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture that arrived in Japan and developed uniquely with modernization since the Meiji period. It also examines the history of modern art, which was a complex mix of old techniques and traditions amid the influx of new Western ideas, technologies, and systems, with a focus on the Meiji period.

This course provides training in reading modern Japanese literature works, thereby increasing knowledge of Japanese literature and reading comprehension skills. The course discusses an overview of Japanese literature by genre, following the history of Japanese literature. 

This course covers Chinese pronunciation, greetings, and simple daily conversation through blended learning, which combines on-demand and face-to-face classes.

By the end of this course, students are expected to: 

• Acquire Chinese pronunciation, introductory-level vocabulary and grammar.
• Participate in simple daily conversations such as greetings and self-introduction.
• Foster interest in Chinese society and culture.

This course aims to help students learn Japanese for academic purposes through various familiar topics about society and culture. The target level is CEFR B1.2.

The course provides opportunities to complete various tasks using Japanese, enabling students to acquire the language skills necessary to perform the tasks and also increase their knowledge of Japanese vocabulary, grammar patterns, expressions and kanji. The final requirement of the course is a project presentation, where students present the results of their research on a particular topic. This course aims to enhance students’ Japanese proficiency and their ability to comprehend and engage deeply with the content. 

This course includes an elective component "Expand your World in Japanese." 

This course covers basic grammar and vocabulary needed for everyday life and attending university classes in Japan, learning reading and writing skills.

Eligibility: A2.1 level in the CEFR/JF Standard for Japanese-Language Education (N4 in the JLPT). 

Learning Objectives: A2.2 level in the CEFR/JF Standard for Japanese-Language Education Review. The expressions/sentence structures learned at the basic level (A1-A2.1); learn new expressions/sentence structures, and when, where, and how to use them, to achieve the below goals:  

・ Comprehend texts on every day, specific, familiar topics (reading). 

・ Writing concise texts about events, past activities, and personal experiences using simple conjunctions to connect ideas (soshite, shikashi, nazenara, etc.) (writing). 

Through collaborative learning between Japanese and foreign students, this course provides unique aspects of Japanese language and culture from contrastive views. By actively participating in discussions with students from diverse cultural backgrounds, one will deepen their understanding of Japanese language and culture, developing an appreciation of other cultures. In this class, students  will plan and carry out student-led seminars on the theme of how Japanese culture is reflected in the language.

Eligibility A2.2 level in the CEFR/JF Standard for Japanese-Language Education (N3 in the JLPT) 

Learning Objectives 

1. Through collaborative learning between foreign exchange students and Japanese students, enhance one's cross-cultural communication skills, explanatory skills and team building skills.  

2. By discussing some unusual aspects of Japanese language and culture from a contrastive point of view, deepen one's understanding of how Japan’s culture is reflected in its language and develop an appreciation of cultural diversity. 

3. By planning and actively participating in student-led seminars, gain collaborative skills through peer learning. 

Through this physical activity course, students learn about Aikido from the martial arts perspective. The course instructs on mastering basic Aikido techniques while providing insight into Japanese traditional culture and way of thinking.