I was wondering how much time people spend studying flashcards for their foreign language vs other methods (I am including Wanikani as flashcard time).
Between Wanikani and Anki I feel like I am spending too much time doing just flashcards when I could be doing more active/engaging methods. So I want to see how much time others spend between flashcards and other sources and see if I could get some advice of how to adjust my schedule.
I also study Russian and spend about 40 minutes solely on Anki each day between both Russian and Japanese. I usually spend 30mins-1hour on Wanikani. So, lets say around 1:15-1:40 hours per day just doing flashcards.
I think part of my problem is that it is really easy for me to zone out doing flashcards or click through too quickly because Iām on autopilot. Iāve been using Anki and Wanikani for quite awhile so (Anki especially) isnāt as stimulating as it used to be.
Does anyone else have suggestions for vocab retention and expansion that doesnāt involved SRS? Or any tips on how to make SRS more engaging?
My Russian is at a higher level, so Iām at the point where grammar is fine but vocab expansion is key, and Japanese is beginner so Iām constantly learning a ton of new info grammar and vocab wise.
Edit: I still do listening practice everyday for Russian, and something else everyday for Japanese whether it is grammar workbook, listening, italki session etc.
EditEdit: I also forgot to include the time spent making MORE flashcards. I donāt do this everyday, but maybe once or twice a week I spend an hour making flashcards of new words I encountered.
I probably spend 3 or 4 hours minimum on flashcards a day.
I think I do (maybe) 30 minutes of grammar a week but that changes a lot.
I do listening practiceā¦ well not as often as I should
And as for speaking practiceā¦ Letās just not talk about that
I think having a more visually appealing and interesting website like Wanikani (vs. Anki) makes flashcards more interesting. I like to use Kitsun
Sometimes switching things up a bit helps my motivation. For example, pick a cool Russian or Japanese song and learn the vocab for that!
I found this website about different language learners and their favorite methods for learning them I only skimmed through it but it might be useful
Wow, 3-4 hours is a lot. To each their own, but for me it just seems I have hit a wall with flashcards. Since each flashcard doesnāt a lot of information its like just a bunch of small disconnected building blocks that are sitting in my passive memory. So I feel like ditching one SRS situation for a shinier one wonāt do much.
I might just ditch Anki for a couple months and see if I am able to retain new words I encounter without the help of a SRS.
I think part of the reason most people are here is because we donāt want to spend as much time making our own flashcards. WK does the heavy lifting for us.
I do spend some time with cards, specifically for words that I learn in my vocab apps, or more recently, flashcards for pitch accent.
I tried flashcards last year, and never again. It was ā¦ horrible. shudders while being assaulted with memories of the past
Iāve never liked flashcards. They donāt help me. A more efficient way of studying is to just stare at the material for a while every few hours until the text is burned into my brain. At least, thatās how I study for tests.
The answer to your question: 0 minutes per day/lifetime. Flashcards never provided anything supplemental for me (I donāt know if that sentence makes sense, Iām exhausted). I would burn the flashcards and never look back. But thatās just my sleep-deprived opinion.
I spend around 90 minutes on flash cards each day, I think.
My problem is that I donāt want to do other work (like learning grammar) but I know itās more important than learning new characters for my development right now.
So im going to try to spend a little less time on the flash cards and a little more time with my grammar textbooks. Something like 60 minutes for each per day seems ideal to me.
I probably do something like 2 hours of flashcards every day. WK maybe 15 mins a day though.
I actually like to do the reviews and make new flashcards. The ones that I do are more appealing to me than WK or any other websiteā¦ Nowdays itās a mix between monolingual cards and listening practiceā¦ so having to read the definitions in japanese is also a constant reading practice, and overall keeps me interested in the language, as strangely enough dictionaries have very cool information.
Ideally this gets balanced with reading almost daily for an hour, so I can get new words to include in the SRS thingieā¦ WK lost the spotlight (I am tacking all the vocab to my Anki routine), but still I consider is doing its part in putting kanjis into my routine as wellā¦ Actually these last months using WK just for kanji Iām enjoying WK more than ever
In the end I plan to be over with SRS apps once Iām reading more adult oriented material and my vocab feels in a secure place (10K-12K perhaps ā¦) . Meanwhile Iāve been changing the routine as much as I can to make it appealing and using more and more japanese. Studying ā> immersion been my target this days.
I spend at least 3 hours every day on Wanikani and Anki flashcards. I go to Japanese language school 3.5 hours per day 5 days per week. On those days I also study 1-2 hours outside of school and watch some kind of tv/anime/video in Japanese for another hour. That comes to a total of ~9 hours per day of focused study on weekdays. That doesnāt include all the other exposure I get while living in Japan.
Iām ridiculously driven to become fluent, but progress is so much slower than I ever imagined. Iām constantly toeing the line of burnout, sometimes accidentally crossing it. I really donāt recommend my methods to anyone.
itās like just a bunch of small disconnected building blocks that are sitting in my passive memory
Reading/listening/speaking outside of Wanikani will help with that. My experience has been that there is a āmagic dayā every month or two where I wake up and suddenly all that stuff feelsā¦ more connected and less burdensome. From then on my understanding seems to be permanently increased. YMMV
Seems like a super intensive routineā¦ Iāll be going to Japan in a couple of months, and decided against language schools in turn for doing something else in japanese (Shodo) ā¦ Both for interacting with japanese people and to avoid burnout.
How do you currently feel regarding the language school routine ?
Iāve been at it for a year and a half now. I started from basically no Japanese. The particular school I chose is terrible for westerners and I wouldnāt recommend it. I only stay because switching schools would involve leaving Japan for several months. Iāve heard from several english speakers that the westerner-focused schools such as Kai and Coto Academy (in Tokyo) are really good and fun to attend.
I used to spend no time at all on physical flashcards, as I use WK and iKnow, and theyāre essentially pre-packaged, digital flashcards for kanji and vocab respectively. I try to, and usually do, clear both out once a day while also starting 5-10 new words on iKnow unless thereās a big backlog.
Recently, though, leading into the N2 and now after taking (and probably not passing, but I donāt know; depends on how poorly listening went) it, Iāve started making physical flashcards for any new kanji, vocab, or phrases I want to remember. They sell little key-rings of small cards specifically made for vocab flashcards in Japan, and theyāre super handy.
Those I review irregularly. But just the act of writing, and then having, them is a help. I keep those card sets on hand when reading so I can add to them. (And sometimes just a regular conversation will have me jotting one down when I can get to them later.)
ā¦) . Meanwhile Iāve been changing the routine as much as I can to make it appealing and using more and more japanese. Studying ā> immersion been my target this days.
