What are your goals for Japanese in 2022 and have you been able to reach your goals for 2021?

Japanese Language
#102

I just started taking Japanese seriously about a month ago, so my goal for 2022 is to just keep learning! I would say my main goals are:

  • Do a textbook lesson every week
  • Actually do my lessons and not only my reviews on WK (try to get between level 20-30 by end of 2022)
  • Spend more time reviewing and speaking (even if it’s by myself)
  • Lastly (the big one!) be able to read shounen manga with little assistance by the end of the year

I feel super confident when I look at some kanji and am able to recognize various words or even a full sentence, hopefully I can keep that going as I continue learning!

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#103

The screenshots you posted, is that both the first and second books? Just to add to the JLPT level assessment, the first page looks pretty much like N3 to me and the second page nicely covers N2, but I think I only spotted 2 or so grammar points that I didn’t encounter in my N2 studies (with Shinkanzen Master). So I guess for N1 one would need a different textbook.

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#104

I didn’t set any definite goals for this year.
In 2022, I want to

  • Finish BunPro N4, N3 grammar

  • Reach level 60 on Wanikani

  • Pass JLPT N3

That’s all! :hugs:
Thanks!

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#105

I joined Wanikani this year after a big break from learning Japanese (and a canceled birthday+Olympics trip). Wasn’t expecting much but proud of how much I can do now!

2022 Goals:

  • 365-day review streak :muscle: :triumph:
  • Keep durtling, avoid burn out
  • Don’t chicken out on Tadoku group meets
  • Take a language proficiency exam of some kind (if they don’t all fill up like JLPT)
  • Read a short story in Japanese (something other than manga)
  • Stream/record live translation of Oshiritantei game (? :eyes:)
  • Apply for MEXT scholarship (??? :eyes: :see_no_evil: :crossed_fingers:)

Thank you for all your support and comraderie this year, Wanikani Community! 明けましておめでとうございます！:fireworks: :confetti_ball:

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#106

Guess it’s time to check what goals I set, because to be honest I don’t even remember them myself.

I did not get to level 60(as the 51 below my profile picture probably would make clear), I don’t remember what series I was thinking about with the second one, but I probably did it. I finished exactly three games in Japanese so that one checks out, and I did not write anywhere where I could get corrections and I have no idea where that even would be in the first place. I did write a little bit, but mostly just for fun and without getting any feedback on it.

Let’s try to set some new goals, I guess(maybe this time a bit more focused on things that will help me do what I want to be able to):

  • Get to level 60 on wanikani
  • Learn 3000 words aside from the wanikani vocab
  • Write some(no idea how much would be a reasonable goal though. 52000 characters, maybe? That’s just about 1000 per week. Also, I obviously mean writing on my phone or laptop and not by hand, so this goal is more focused on grammar and word choices and stuff and not on kanji writing)
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#107

Well, my goals for Japanese in 2021 was to be able to read untranslated doujin

I have, in fact, been able to read untranslated doujin

My goal for 2022 is to begin making my own doujin translations

I’m so happy with this state of affairs that the rest of WaniKani could be a virus that makes my monitor explode in such a way that a shard of glass lodges itself directly in the smell centre of my brain so that I perceive nothing but eggy farts for the rest of time and I’d still rate WK 5/5

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#108

Interesting. How does it explain grammar? All in Japanese or it does have English?

#109

Indeed the first screenshot was from book 1 and the second from book 2.

Do N1 textbooks beside the kanzen master books even exist? I mean I already browsed many different textbooks even super hard ones but later on you usually just find textbooks full of hard to read texts without any kind of explanations or exercises.
The question is, is it even worth buying textbooks like that or won’t it be sufficient just to read some hard books. There are people online, who claim they passed N1 just by reading lots of different things.

The grammar explanations are in english but rather short. To better understand the grammar I watch the youtube videos from ToKini Andy where he explains the grammar. I know he is somewhat goofy and his jokes are lame but it still helps me to understand the grammar.

The only other part in english are the reading strategies where they give you advice how to understand texts in japanese.

1 Like
#110

Well the Shinkanzen master books are not textbooks. The grammar one only throws the grammar points at you, together with lots of test questions in JLPT style, but there are no texts that use these grammar points, nor are there exercises.
But quite a bunch of textbook series go up to N1. In my school they use the Try! series which goes up to N1 (I do own a copy but it’s at a friend’s place so I cannot post a screenshot rn). Each chapter consists of a text, and a handful of grammar points with explanations, exercises and some test questions. I think they also have a listening part. I liked it a lot when I studied for N3 but I could not get myself to look at the N2 one, so I just went with the Shinkanzen grammar book.

There is also the Sou Matome series which is split up into different books just like Shinkanzen, so maybe it’s also less of a textbook in reality…

4 Likes
#111

Thanks! I know it’s maybe a lot to ask, but if you have time, could you post a pic of some pages of the second book? Maybe also the grammar ones?

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#112

My goal for 2021 was to reach lvl 60 in Wanikani.

My goals for 2022:

  1. Go through N3 on BunPro.
  2. Read a Japanese manga. I am thinking of ビンランド・サガ, atm.
  3. Get a Japanese pen pal.
  4. I am not really interested in speaking Japanese, but I will try to get better at listening too. I don’t have a measurable goal at the moment though.
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#113

My Japanese goals for 2022 are:

  1. Reach level 30 of WK
  2. Know (JP-EN, EN-JP) 3000 of the most frequently used vocabulary
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#114

Welp, 2021 sure went quick and very slowly at the same time! This year was a mixture of new motivations and a sense of forgiveness around lack of motivation in studying. I went from feeling completely unprepared for the N3 at the start of the year to taking the N2 and not doing terribly by december (I did literally zero studying for N2, so anything more than 0 is good). Outside of Japanese (yes I know you didn’t ask), I climbed Mt Fuji, improved my photography, and did a little bit of Korean on the side.

This is my fourth or fifth year posting my goals in these threads so I’ve gained a little insight into how good I am at realizing my goals. Spoiler: I suck. A lot. So for my goals for 2021:

So was I successful? Nope. But I’m not upset about that and I also don’t blame myself. In the past I was really harsh on myself towards learning Japanese, and I think this attitude was partially to blame for some burnout I had. Not to mention it made the whole learning process infuriating and agonizing. I’m not a god though and I understand better what I’m capable of. I didn’t meet my goals, but at the same time I surpassed my expectations, so I’m still proud of what I’ve accomplished in 2021. Even if a lot of other people can do a lot better.

So cutting to the chase, here are my goals for 2022:

  • Get to level 60. Surely this time I must be able to get to level 60, I’m only 11 levels off now.
  • Pass N2. Hopefully by actually learning the N2 content in my textbooks.
  • Restart my lessons.
  • Tied to the last one, but improving my speaking to the point of not having to look up words every 20 seconds when talking to someone.
  • Finish a book. Literally any book I have. I have a few now, surely one of them is interesting enough to stick to.

みんな、来年も頑張ろう！

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#115

my husband “forced” me to watch anime now and then and suddenly it just clicked

Ha, this is what happened to me! I made some weak attempts at learning Japanese in the past and it was something I always “sort of” wanted to do. Schooling and whatnot was intense and never presented the opportunity to force myself to learn one seriously, but ~2 years ago I finished grad school and settled into my job, so that new “free time” was there alongside the ability to devote some brain power to the task.

One of my good friends has tried to get me to watch anime for probably 15 years at this point; I watched an episode of this or that, but would always say “nah, not for me”. Maybe it is just a different life stage or I watched the one that broke the wall, but I’ve had a total change of heart around it and have been actively trying to find new series to watch as I finish up others.

But it was a big decision in my move towards putting a serious effort towards learning Japanese. I’m a big fan of trying to blend learning with fun / activities. I figured that if I was going to sit here and watch a bunch of these shows, I would double up and try to make it meaningful by using it as supplemental material while learning the language. I’m still short when it comes to vocab and whatnot, but it has been very rewarding to catch words here and there, or see text on the screen like a sign and recognize what it says / parts of it.

Keep it up!

5 Likes
#116

Looking back on Japanese studies during 2021 I was able to:

  • finish the first 5 volumes of Rurouni Kenshin. Just a general read to see more of the kanji I’m learning. I will most likely re-read the entire series once my level is higher.

  • take the N5 in December. I had thought of N4 but I didnt feel quite ready. More on that later once the results are posted.

  • continue lessons, even though certain grammar points and -ない form have been particularly frustrating.

  • retain and recall kanji readings in simple articles without furigana.

As for 2022, I would like to continue improving on the points listed above, with the addition of refreshing my conversation skills. This year was quite heavy on written comprehension!

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#117

Goals for 2022:

  • WK Level 60
  • JLPT N2
  • Exercise regularly
  • Sort out life and data

Happy New Year

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#118

What would such a “study buddy” be? I mean, how would that work, what would we do? :smiley:

#119

Mine was to be satisfied with my level in Japanese. I am not but I did reach breakthroughs so for this year mission complete in my eyes.

For 2022 I want my listening ability to be a great, it is lacking. And to actually start doing the JLPTs given covid.

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#120

I’ve been thinking about what goals to aim for in 2022 and how to achieve it for a long while now, even before reaching level 60. Waited till the last day of the year to make this post. I’m still not entirely sure what direction to go in, now that I can start learning Japanese from native material. My goals for 2021 were a bit wishful thinking, but yeah nobody can really plan that far ahead. So for my goals in 2022, I have adjusted it accordingly.

Goals in 2021

I had these split in two types, longterm and short goals.

Long term goals:

  • Aiming for level 60 in WaniKani
    I actually didn’t think I would hit that goal, but I did reach level 60 on November 14 and have been chipping away and the remaining items. As I’m done with the regular kanji studies, I’ll need a new goal to aim for.

  • Revisting and solidifying the basics of Japanese grammar
    I’m not sure how much I reinforced it, but I have been using bunpro a lot more consistently this year and my average of N4 grammar has finally gotten above the global average. Have referenced back to the dictionary of basic Japanese grammar every now and then, but maybe not as much as I had hoped. If I had a physical textbook of genki (used a pdf), I probably would used it more. Might still consider getting a beginner textbook for completion’s sake, but it’s obviously not a priority anymore.

  • Starting intermediate Japanese grammar
    Been using Tobira’s intermediate textbook since September. Initially I thought I would be able to finish it, but things turned out differently. What worked for me was study a chapter for about a week, then add the grammar points to bunpro and after a week or more of reviewing I would start a new chapter. This year I finished chapters 1-9 of Tobira. I’ll be continuing with Tobira next year as well.

  • Reading on a regular basis
    Reading took off really well. What started out as a little distraction of studying for my degree, turned out to get me into reading on a daily basis. I’ll spare the fine details as I have posted them in other threads already, but I had a streak of about 6 months of reading where I read 30 volumes of manga and a book of short stories. I wanna continue this next year.

  • Listening on a regular basis
    This didn’t really took off. I did like listen to some songs, but that’s about it. This will require more attention next year.

  • Watching on a regular basis
    A start is there sorta. I’ve been watching an anime called Komi can’t communicate on Netflix with Japanese closed captions. It’s not the best place to start as it is pretty fast, but it is something. Hoping it takes off next year.

Short term goals:

  • Reading at least one manga volume in Japanese from start to finish (Read 30 volumes)
  • Reading at least one article in Japanese top to bottom
  • Playing through at least one game in Japanese to completion (Finished Skyward Sword HD)
  • Watching at least one anime series in Japanese through
  • Watching at least one film in Japanese from start to finish
  • Listening through at least one album in Japanese (Haven’t really tracked the count)

Conclusion: you don’t really know where life will take you in a year. I think I made a lot of progress in some areas of Japanese and not as much in others.

Goals in 2022

Have consolidated my goals into these few points.

  • Aiming for N2 level
  • Finishing Tobira and starting advanced Japanese grammar
  • Reading 5 books and 50 volumes of manga
  • Playing 5 games in Japanese
  • Watching 10 anime series and a movie

Wishing everyone a healthy and successful 2022!

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#121

When I started learning japanese this year I thought I would only learn hiragana and thats it.
But after I was able to read a few very easy tweets or slogans with this limited knowledge I got motivated to go further than that.
I’m still very motivated but I know that life will keep me busy at unpredictable times. So my goals are:

  • get to Level 30 on WaniKani (maybe thats a bit much, maybe not, but I want to try)
  • Finish Genki 1 and start Genki 2 (it’s harder for me to sit down and learn grammar, so I hope I can reach that)
  • Read a least one manga
  • watch at least 5 episodes of an anime
  • Take the N5 this year and hopefully pass it
  • Write a kind of diary on a weekly basis (doesn’t have to be exactly weekly, but I want to have around 50 entries at the end of the year. I will start with 1-3 sentences per entry and see if I can improve on that)
  • do listening immersion (i dont know how helpful watching Vtubers will be, but since I can’t cheat while watching I will hopefully learn something along the way)

I don’t know how realistic all of these goals actually are, I pretty sure I could do the first two without problems if I focused only on that, but this alone wont bring me a that far.
I will probably adjust those goals in summer when I have a better grasp at what’s realistic and what not

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