dampingwire's JP & DE

[dampingwire]

Wow - first update this year!

Japanese

Still working on it. I'm working through 新完全マスター N1 読解: I'm currently about twenty pages ahead of where I've go to in tutorials. I'm not using the grammar book much anymore but I have 15000+ sentences in Anki to keep that fresh.

I'm using several SUBS2SRS decks with JPOD101 advanced lessons and 新完全マスター N2 聴解 in them; rather than adding more, I'm trying to concentrate on some of the harder (and usually longer) passages.

I've also gone back to re-watch some series that I've watched in the past.

German

I'm still slowly working through the grammar book but most of my German study time (apart from audio during the regular commute) is working through A-grade easy-readers with my son. Since that requires me to have worked out things in advance, it's making me intensively read more than I perhaps otherwise would.

[furafura]

Welcome back!
Good to see you're still making good progress.
How were the results for the JLPT N2?

[dampingwire]

How were the results for the JLPT N2?

88, so one point more than last time and two points off scraping a pass!

I'll try again in December and then keep trying every six months until I pass or run out of money ... at my current rate of progress I may pass in July 2020

[dampingwire]

Just a quick status report.

For German I've bought few easy readers. These are mostly so I can go through them with my son to give him a bit more confidence for his GCSE next year. I'm hoping that having to work through them beforehand will help me with my German a bit too.

I'm still working through 新完全マスター N1 読解 in tutorials. I'm still a few pages ahead of where we are in tutorials and since I'm going through things in detail, we usually only manage maybe three texts each lesson. So I've started to simply pick the ones I have issues with and skip the ones where I'm more comfortable at least for now. Although I am working through the texts with one eye on the exam (well, the N2 exam ...) my real purpose is to be able to read Japanese, not to pass exams. So if I can't properly understand part of the text, that's what I want to concentrate on. It's a long book with plenty of passages, so there's no danger that I'm going to run out any time soon.

[dampingwire]

I thought I ought to get around to signing up for the December JLPT and it seems I'm way too late. Although the official closing date is in the future, the online applications opened up on Aug 20 (or maybe Aug 27) and closed on Aug 29!

There's a new test centre in Cardiff, but that too is already full for N2 (and for N1, in case I fancied failing that one ).

Looking back in the twitter feed, applications for the July test closed on 28th of March, only 8 days after it opened.

When did the JLPT become so popular!

Anyway, obviously I'll be scanning twitter much more closely in March 2020!

(Edinburgh still has places, but that's a hugely inconvenient location for me - I don't need that much encouragement to study Japanese!)

[dampingwire]

So should I register for July 2020 JLPT in London or not? The Imperial College paper suggests that it has a decent chance of not being held.

The main risk is that I register but then cannot travel (due to lack of public transport, even though no travel restrictions may be in place) or that I am ill and cannot sit the test. Otherwise either I get to sit the test or we're in lockdown and I get my money back).

What are other people doing about this sort of near-future commitment?

[dicentra8]

I've been checking it for curiosity. So far there isn't any official statement from Japan Foundation or anything on the JLPT's official site. From SOAS University the relevant information is that

No refund will be available under any circumstances once your payment has been accepted unless cancellation is made by the Japan Foundation or SOAS.

And there's a pdf (JLPT COVD-19) where pretty much the same is stated

If the test was cancelled by the official decision(by the Japan Foundation/ university / the government and so on), all the test-fee will be refunded to the applicants.

[dampingwire]

I've been vacillating: should I should I not apply for the July JLPT.

Unsurprisingly the decision has been made for me and SOAS have cancelled it.

Interestingly it looks like if you didn't claim a refund in time then you got moved to the December 2020 instead.

Anyway, December it is! (I hope!!)

[dampingwire]

Anyway, December it is! (I hope!!)

Well I noticed a while ago and I'm sure I've mentioned it somewhere here before, but I might as well update my log. JLPT December 2020 was cancelled some time ago in London, Cardiff and Edinburgh. So I guess I'm aiming for N2 in July 2021!

Anyway, I've started to read novels on a regular basis now. 笑う月 is the one I'm currently reading through slowly. I'm working through it but not getting much out of it, so I'll probably switch to something else soon. (I don't know if it's above my level or I just don't "get it").

I've also started to watch various series. Some have hard-coded subs and some are things I've watched before but I'm now repeating without subs. Currently I'm watching カルテット. I've watched the first two episodes without subtitles, so now I think I'll probably circle back and try watching those intensively (i.e. watch a scene and repeat sections until I either get it or give up and read the subtitles!).

I'm also planning to get in touch with my tutor and see if she would be OK with doing lessons online via Skype or similar (face to face is obviously out right now).

German is officially on hold. I'm definitely keen to get back to it, but I just can't give it any time: Japanese is too greedy

[dampingwire]

I went to check if SOAS (London) had set a date for opening JLPT registration for December 2021 only to find that it's cancelled. Not only is it cancelled, but it is suspended! I've no idea what that means: will it ever return?

Both Cardiff and Edinburgh have cancelled the December 2021 sitting. I checked and it's cancelled in Italy too and in Holland (Leiden) it seems to be restricted to those with a connection to the university (so not me).

Dublin cancelled December 2020. They don't say anything about December 2021.

It might be on in Spain in December ... at least it's not yet cancelled.

Oh well. I guess 2022 will be the year I have another go at N2 ... but where??