I couldn’t find a single topic/thread to post my suggestion/request. So I’m copying what other users did and starting a brand new thread. I really hope I’m not doing anything wrong. And I hope I make sense below.
Would it be detrimental to WK’s teaching process, to implement a far more flexible version of Lesson Batch feature for the Kanji which lets the users choose any kanji they like from upper levels, for example all N3 kanji, to study?
Here is what I had in mind: When they get to level 36, giving the users the option to choose and study the remaining 15 kanji for N3 along with their radicals and vocabulary so they may study N3 items ahead of time if they like and then move on to level 36.
It does not seem to be efficient for any other JLPT level.
I agree that it would be a good idea but only for the higher levels, maybe past level 30 or so when you should be reading and you can use that to decide what kanji you want to learn based on the ones you encounter in the wild.
Early on the fact WaniKani makes all these decisions for you is sort of the point: it removes a lot of stress and hesitation. You just do your lessons and reviews and trust the process for the rest.
Exactly what I had in mind. Being able to choose and study the remaining 15 kanji for N3 as well as the vocabulary they will unlock ahead of time after finishing L35 and before moving on to L36.
I definitely remember being frustrated that I had to wait a long time to learn kanji I encountered often in the stuff I read while WaniKani kept feeding me kanji that were clearly not aligned with my interests.
But with the benefit of hindsight it wasn’t that big of a deal. Studying a given kanji now or in 5 months won’t matter that much in the long run. It’s frustrating while you’re still in the middle of the grind though.
Also the content team has done a good job of shuffling kanji around this part year or so to move some of the most “overlevelled” kanji back down. I remember that 俺 and 誰 for instance used to be around above level 30 back when I did my run and it was quite silly.
Learning kanji (and vocab) in context helps a lot with retention.
Learning a kanji now or in 5 months is not a big deal, but learning it now in a context you can relate to and are interested in, or in 5 months when that context may not be there, can be a big deal.
I think the lack of the possibility to choose to learn now a kanji or vocab of your choosing is the main default of wanikani, particularly as any other kanji learning tool has it.
The technical basis for it is already there, as can be seen when some items are reordered: some people have in their active review items from upper levels (that they unlocked when they were on lower levels), so clearly it can, technically, be done.
Thanks to everyone for their valid points. I hear you. I guess I’ll just try my best to make it to L52 and clear all the accumulated vocabulary lessons by June 2025.
