The Aptitude Test Redux

 Japan, Japanese Language  Comments Off on The Aptitude Test Redux
Dec 072011
 

Today we had the 実力 じつりょく jitsuryoku or aptitude test. It was the same test I took when I first got here. It’s a good chance to see how far I’ve really come since I got here. As always, though, it’s long, and makes my brain hurt.

In JBPP, we took more phone messages.

After that, I met up with S-buchou to talk about calligraphy over tea. It was a lot of fun. He showed me some of his work, and gave me a piece he did of a peacock. I really appreciated that. It’s a lovely piece.

He also gave me the address of the brush shop in Toyohashi I need to go to, and told me to tell the owner that he sent me. Cool.

He also gave me some great advice about calligraphy in general. He thinks I shouldn’t worry so much over getting the forms right, since he thinks I have those down pretty much, and I should try to be more bold and adventurous in my calligraphy.

I can do that!

Not to Brag, But I Think I Did Well on My Tests…

 Japan, Japanese Language  Comments Off on Not to Brag, But I Think I Did Well on My Tests…
Nov 172011
 

The writing and conversation exams weren’t as bad as I thought they would be. It turned out that we could use what we had written beforehand and just copy everything over in class. I’m glad K-san pointed that out to me, or else I would have been totally screwed.

Part of the whole Yamasa experience is learning how they do things here. There’s so much they do here that’s just not how I’m used to doing things, and sometimes the details that everyone just sort of “knows” can slip by a newbie like me.

I really have to ask even more questions than I normally ask!

Fortunately, the conversation exam was pretty much the same as we had practiced in class. I decided to raise the politeness level a bit, and use some of the business Japanese knowledge I have picked up here. I made a couple of mistakes, but overall I think I did okay.

Regardless of test scores, I know that my speaking and writing ability have improved a great deal over the last month of class. Class here is intense, and every day feels like a week of Japanese compared to when I took it in grad school. I wish I had more time and money to spend more than just three months here, but that’s life. I’m trying to wring as much out of this experience as I can, both in polishing my Japanese, gaining marketable skills, and enjoying being here.

One of the lessons I have learned many times over in life is to enjoy things while I can, because I can never take for granted that “Oh, it’ll always be there, so I can just go back.” Sadly, the world is not that predictable.

There’s a Right and a Wrong Way To Open a Door.

Today’s JBPP class was on “How to Conduct Yourself in a Job Interview.”

There’s a whole pile of social knowledge tied into how to open doors, when and where to bow, how to sit, where to put your hands, where to look, all of that. It’s somewhat stressful, because there’s so much to keep straight without one’s head exploding.

Yes, there is a right way to open a door, and a wrong way to do it, down to the number of times you knock. Even approaching and sitting down in the interviewee’s chair is a task that is fraught with peril. For example, never, ever, stand to the right of the chair. Why? Because it implies that you think you’re better than the company, which is represented by the chair.

I had no clue.

Also, never sit back in the chair. You have to sit on the edge of your seat. I’m not sure exactly why– I think it has to do with a feeling that if you sit back in the seat, you think you’re hot stuff, and an interview is not some place to get comfortable and show off. You need to show a certain amount of respect with your body language, and using the chair back does not convey that to Japanese interviewers.

You’re also not supposed to show off. In the US, interviewers expect a certain amount of self-marketing, to the point where job-seekers will point out how often they’ve been indispensable to every organization they’ve worked with. (In which case, why are they unemployed?)

In Japan, you have to walk a really careful line about that, because the culture here frowns on boasting, and loves the whole modesty thing, even if it’s false modesty. As my mother would say, “It’s just not done.” Germans and Japanese have a lot in common that way.

I imagine it’s going to take me a while to figure out how to walk that tightrope.

ZigZag Heals All Wounds

In the evening, I went to ZigZag again for dinner, socializing, and the cheapest Guinness stout in all of Japan. It’s one of my favorite places to kick back and relax.

Yay, ZigZag!

Placement Test!

 Foreign Languages, Japan, Japanese Language  Comments Off on Placement Test!
Oct 032011
 

Today was my last private lesson.

But first, we had a placement test at 9 a.m. I knew were going to have it, but I didn’t know it was such a big deal.

When I came to Yamasa four years ago, right after I got off the train and came into the teachers’ office, I was given a placement test. It was relatively short, and not too difficult. It pretty much confirmed that I knew some Japanese, but needed a lot of work.

So when I heard that there was a placement test this time, I was thinking, “Oh, it’s probably like the one I had four years ago. No biggie.”

Boy, was I ever wrong.

If I had known that it was going to be that thorough, I might have actually studied for the thing.

Note: If you’re reading this while considering going to Yamasa, you should study some for the placement test. It’s a whopper.

First off was a monstrous grammar test, the likes of which I hadn’t seen in a while. It seemed to just keep going on and on… I think if you do bad things in a Japanese language school and die, this is a bit what Japanese Language School Hell would be like. This test. Over and over.

The questions started off pretty easy. And then they kept increasing the tension until something in my brain snapped.

I have no idea how well I did, because they never told me.

Then we all sat in a room and watched Howl’s Moving Castle while we waited our turn to be interviewed. I never did find out what happened in the movie. I suppose I need to rent that sometime.

So I had an interview test in Japanese with S-sensei, which I floundered through. He’s a very nice guy, who did a good job of pointing out that I really don’t speak Japanese all that well at all, despite what random people may tell me.

Well, that’s what I came here for, so I’m not shocked or anything. I’m glad he was honest with me, and I hope they fix my bad habits.

I went back home after that.

The test started at 9, I got done at about 11:30. It was very thorough. At least this time I wasn’t jet-lagged like I was four years ago. But it would have been better if I had studied a bit… and could speak better.

I wish I had known how big a deal the placement test was going to be, just for my pride’s sake. But it’s kind of tricky– if I study for the placement test, then I might wind up in a class I really don’t belong in, because I don’t really have all of the previous material mastered, instead I know it just well enough to pass the test.

After the conversation test and my talk with S-sensei, I realized that I needed to get into a section that would help me with my speaking a lot. It was rough. So I’m not going to get too worked up over where I wind up. The main reason I’m here is to get better.

Then after I had lunch, I came back to campus for my last private lessons. More tutoring in things I have forgotten (mostly speaking), and then a CALL session, but the teacher wasn’t there. We’ll have to make it up or something.

Tomorrow we’re free to do whatever.

Me? I dunno.

Nagoya? Probably.

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