Eng 
日本語 
It’s easy to lose motivation when commitment is one sided.
In this blog, we’ll look at a few ways to keep yourself engaged when you’re taking Japanese classes.
Tip 1: Don’t Overpromise and Under-deliver
How many times have you found yourself excited to learn Japanese, but then frustrated with the slow progress? Setting a clear and realistic expectation about what you want to achieve can help manage this.
So how do you set a realistic expectation?
One of the ways that you could do this is to communicate with your teacher and the school staff about what goals you want to achieve and in what time frame, and they can help you to develop a realistic learning track to accomplish this.
At Coto Academy, we have recently begun offering a learning plan to help students achieve their immediate, mid-term, and long term Japanese learning goals.
Tip 2: Be Prepared
It’s a tired cliché at this point, but if you’re failing to prepare – then you’re preparing to fail. Showing up to class on time, and having reviewed the material that you need to learn will allow you to better engage in your Japanese classes.
Would you rather be in a panicked and guilty state of mind, scrambling to remember what certain words mean? Or would you prefer to be relaxed and enjoying the ability to understand new concepts.
The difference in these two states will come down up to your preparation in your free time. Learning Japanese is a commitment to yourself, your teacher, and if it is a group class your fellow classmates.
How can you better prepare for classes?
Self-study and review in an engaging way – (that can be tracked) is a sure fire way to give yourself a good class.
One of the ways that we do this at Coto is by offering self-study resources that have a tracking function. A great example of this would be our JLPT Vocabulary and Grammar Mega List
But you can also use other tools and Japanese Learning Apps
Tip 3: Lean on your classmates
Are you deciding between private or group Japanese lessons? Both have their merits and can be suggested for different purposes.
One of the great benefits of learning in a group is that you have the motivational resource of other classmates. We’re always surprised and excited at the different innovative ways that Coto students help each other learn Japanese.
A recent example of this can be seen here – where one student created an innovative fix to not being able to find stroke order and then shared it with his classmates. Learn more…
But even without being able to create a cool software program that helps you find Kanji stroke order, you can use your classmates as a support system to keep yourself accountable and interested in your learning.
At Coto we encourage all of our students to commit to their learning – and this helps each student seek each other out for advice and in understanding certain concepts.
Tip 4: Get a goal
Having a goal for your learning is a great way to keep yourself engaged and get the most out of your Japanese lessons.
What makes a great goal for Japanese learning?
A great goal is something that is:
- Verifiable (You can prove that you have achieved it.)
- Not too big (It should be reachable within around 2-3 months, if it can’t be, you should segment that goal into a smaller goal.)
If you want to learn more about goal tracking and want a cool resource to help you keep track of your goals – we have shared about it here in a previous article: Japanese Learning Goal Tracking Spreadsheet
Tip 5: Make it a lifestyle
Learning Japanese is not a “classroom” activity. It’s a lifestyle. This means that in your freeetime you should be finding ways to integrate the Japanese language with your life.
You can do this by:
- Watching Japanese Movies
- Watching Japanese Youtube
- Listening to Japanese Podcasts
- Listening to Japanese Music
- Playing Japanese Video Games
The more time you spend engaging with the Japanese language in your day to day life – the easier it will be to learn Japanese.
Are you looking to learn Japanese?
Connect with us at www.cotoacademy.com/contact – we are now offering all of our Japanese classes online
