Hello to everyone who decided to click on this post. I would like to share my opinion on the Japanese language study, and what I would recommend someone looking for the most efficient way to reach a decent level in Japanese (somewhere between N2-N1 minus all the useless grammatical constructions). However, before I get to the individual points, let me clarify that this post is devoted to proposing the most efficient rather than the most effective way to learn Japanese. Therefore, the key assumption is that you want to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible. Since there are many effective ways to reach a high proficiency in Japanese, I don’t find there is an intriguing discussion to be had about the most effective approach, but rather I wonder what learners think about the most efficient way to attain a decent level in Japanese. I won’t recommend any specific learning materials in this post, so if you are looking for that you won’t find it here. The time period estimated to achieve each step won’t be mentioned as well, as it is highly dependent on the individual. I will discuss the following five domains: a) kanji (reading), b) grammar, c) vocabulary, d) listening, e) speaking. For obvious reasons, learning to write kanji, the formal speech known as keigo, and classical Japanese won't be mentioned in this post.
KANJI
Step 1: As soon as you acquire the basic grammar, learn at least 300 most frequently used kanji.
Step 2: Soon after Step 1, learn additional about 200 most frequent kanji, that should enable you to recognize about 75% of all characters within a text. However, do not try to read any authentic Japanese text, yet.
Step 3: When you start studying intermediate level (N3) grammatical constructions, learn additional 500 kanji (still according to their usage frequency, but it is also a good idea to group together kanji that have the same component and the same on’yomi, such as 敵 and 適), keep reviewing them until you master the majority of N3 constructions. Start reading some easier Japanese texts to practice your well-deserved kanji knowledge.
Step 4: Learn additional 200-500 kanji (depending on your motivation), and this will be all you need to recognize around 95% of all characters within almost any text, so make use of it! From this point on, you should not learn new kanji, you should acquire new kanji through vocabulary you encounter when reading authentic Japanese texts. The reason for this is simple: almost all kanji that are not within the 1,500 most frequent ones appear in only one or two commonly used words (the top 10,000), so what’s the point learning them separately, if you can learn the word instead?
GRAMMAR
Step 1: Cram the basic grammar anyway you deem efficient.
Step 2: Make sure to master all N5-N3 level grammatical constructions.
Step 3: Do not bother learning N2-N1 grammatical constructions, you will acquire some of them naturally from reading authentic Japanese texts. There is no point in learning advanced grammatical constructions that are mostly used in the formal speech or written language. You can fill the gaps later, when you encounter them in the specific context in a text.
VOCABULARY
Step 1: Download an Anki deck with 1,000 most frequent words and learn them. Furthermore, learn a few basic words related to your interests (music, sports, etc.).
Step 2: Learn around 3,000 most frequently used words. Along with the passive knowledge of about 500-1,000 kanji, this should enable you to comprehend about 70-80% of words in almost any Japanese text.
Step 3: Learn additional 2,000 commonly used words and 1,000-2,000 words related to you interests. Congrats! Knowing about 7,000 words along with 1,200-1,500 kanji and the majority of N5-N3 grammatical constructions should enable you to understand approximately 90-95% of all words within a text, enough for a decent level of comprehension.
LISTENING
Step 1: Do not practice listening until you have completed Step 2 in all previously mentioned areas. After that, start listening to some podcasts that you can somewhat understand. Since it might be difficult to imagine what kind of podcasts I have in mind, I will use this Youtube channel as a point of reference.
Step 2: Once you mastered at least 1,000 kanji, N5-N3 grammar, and at least 5,000 commonly used words, switch to more difficult podcasts, or Japanese news.
Step 3: Try to listen to anything, even your neighbors arguing in Japanese in the next room.
SPEAKING
Step 1: Do not practice speaking until you have completed Step 2 in the first three areas. Of course, you can practice some speaking, but you should focus on the other areas.
Step 2: Once you are able to understand less difficult podcasts without many issues, start practicing speaking with other friends who learn Japanese or with your new robot friend called Chat-GPT.
Step 3: After you feel comfortable talking about common topics, and you are able to comprehend more difficult podcasts or Japanese news, find a way to speak with native Japanese friends as much as possible.
I am looking forward to your feedback and hopefully some people will find this helpful.
I deliberately avoided including various sources I would recommend to use (because 十人十色), but feel free to contact me if you would like a few recommendations.
by KnowYourJapan