What do you do when your Japanese class is hard?

Over 130 million people speak Japanese, making it the world’s9th largest language. Apart from Japan, 5M plus people are speaking Japanese, mainly Japanese in Hawaii and Brazil, with some level of competence. 

Japan has become one of the leading industrial powers in the world and, given its low natural resource levels, it is notable for its economic growth since World War II. Japan’s strong work ethic and the high standard of industry-government partnership are well-known to its people. Since in Japanese society most relationships are not equal, one person is typically higher. This position is determined by a number of factors, including work, age, experience or even mental health.

1. Brief yourself with the basics again. Most likely the reason why you aren’t able to keep up with the Japanese classes is that you aren’t thorough with the basics as of yet. Japanese is notoriously one of the most difficult languages to master especially due to the 3 different alphabets and variations in the vocabulary. Focus on Hirangana and Katakana, to begin with and then approach Kanji. It is important to keep in mind that Kanji tends to be an extremely difficult set of alphabets to master even for native Japanese speakers. So do not be very hard on yourself, instead give yourself space to properly internalise all the basics.
2. Focus on reading. One of the best ways to master any language is to read all sorts of literature that you can get your hands on. This literature could be written by different authors, could belong to different time periods and could be based on different genres. There is no need to restrict yourself to a single type of literature. You could read children’s books, research papers, newspapers, reports or even poetry. In fact, the Japanese is known for their poetry. While reading I also suggest maintaining a journal in which you could note down all the different complicated words and sentences that you come across. You can also note down some simpler sentences which you could use while conversing in general.
3. You also need to focus on speaking. To master any language you have to utilise your speaking skills. This is one skill that you cannot run away from. Obviously, there is no point in learning a language if you do not practice speaking it. You are definitely not going to be the best at it in the beginning, but practising on a daily basis will get you better at it and at some point you will get the hang of it. You can converse with your fellow Japanese students or you can talk to Japanese natives or you can ask your professional tutor for some guidance. You can also ask the Japanese native or your tutor to help you identify your areas of improvement.
4. With all that said, try to figure out the root of the problem. Are the classes too tough for you to keep up with? Or is the tutor not teaching you well? If you aren’t able to keep up with the classes due to your own personal problems, then speak to the tutor on a personal level and let them know about the problem. On the other hand, if it’s the tutor that’s the root problem, then I strongly suggest enrolling on a different group of classes. Japanese is one of the toughest languages in the entire world to master even for those who are born in the land which speaks this language as their mother tongue. Therefore, this language is not one to be messed around with.

In contrast to most Western languages, Japanese has a broad grammar system to express polite and formal language. In Japanese spoken overall, there are three principal levels of political politeness: the plain (‘kudaketa’), the simple polite (‘teinei’) and the advanced polite (‘keigo’) forms. The lower person should have a polite speech, while the other person may use a clearer shape. Strangers will also talk politically to each other. Japanese children seldom speak politely until their teens, so they are supposed to start talking to adults. Japanese is an honorific language of Asian origin. You could learn this language with a great language provider Multibhashi. It’s never too late to begin; start learning!