The results of the JLPT are out, and a common theme for those who got high scores- especially on the N1- is that they did a lot of immersion. But see, it's that word we need to talk about. What exactly is meant by "immersion"?
For my own take on it, immersion seems to mean "surround yourself with Japanese 18/7" (I'm accounting for sleeping here, but I guess there are audio tracks that are designed to be played even in your sleep). Technically speaking, I'm in immersion almost all the time- I actually live in Japan. And I will say I have gotten better, but living in the country itself is never a guarantee of passing the test (there's the infamous foreigner bubble, where you learn just enough Japanese to survive but otherwise stay in your native language- which I try not to do).
Which brings me to the next part, and we'll see if y'all are going to give me the answer I think you will. The biggest hurdle to immersion is, IMO… you're always going to be surrounded by stuff you don't know. In other words: yeah, being surrounded by the language is all well and good, but it means jack shit if you can't understand it. So, how do you go about getting to understand it?
My own take on it is this: I like a measured approach- I believe in SRS, but I also believe there's a limit to how much you can do at once- this may be the controversial part. I'll tell you right now that I can only do maybe 15~20 new words a day. The problem with immersion? You can expect to be hit with a HUNDRED new words… Every. Day. Proof? See: newspapers, especially regarding subjects like politics, finance, government, and especially science. And remember, news stories are published every day, so the words are always changing.
Then for SRS and especially Anki, you talk about putting those words in. So, are y'all about to tell me that adding a hundred new words every day to Anki is something you're willing to do? This is why I prefer textbooks: you do get maybe a hundred new words… but they're organized into chapters, and you can stick with the same words for a while without fear of overloading before moving on.
But these are my thoughts- I'm curious about yours.
EDIT: oh yes, before I forget. Anyone remember the idea of All Japanese All The Time? Not only do i remember this splitting opinions all over the place… it also no longer exists. So, any other suggestions for immersion stuff?
by the_card_guy