Japanese A level

I've been learning Japanese recreationally for about 6 months now, and I'm up to a level where i know all hiragana and katakana plus maybe 20 kanji. I'm interested in taking the A level, does anyone have any info on exam boards that do it, how hard it is and revision tips? thanks (i'm 15 so i have time on my side, so is it worth taking the GCSE as well ?)

Reply 1

ShyAutumnFox

13

It depends, I personally prefer to stick to online courses

Reply 2

edzomac

OP

14

Original post by ShyAutumnFox

It depends, I personally prefer to stick to online courses

Do you have any suggestions? Like Duolingo ?

Reply 3

ShyAutumnFox

13

Original post by edzomac

Do you have any suggestions? Like Duolingo ?

I personally used this for a while, but my school got more important and I stopped
https://lingoci.com/japanese-course-online-eu?gclid=Cj0KCQjwtZH7BRDzARIsAGjbK2basltW5DDKAHokfVbp_C-MFySJMnFswic25Kgsm9o0LIJEKQ83tP0aAi4HEALw_wcB

Reply 4

neko no basu

19

Original post by edzomac

I've been learning Japanese recreationally for about 6 months now, and I'm up to a level where i know all hiragana and katakana plus maybe 20 kanji. I'm interested in taking the A level, does anyone have any info on exam boards that do it, how hard it is and revision tips? thanks (i'm 15 so i have time on my side, so is it worth taking the GCSE as well ?)

Have a look at some past papers and see if you're able to answer any questions.

Pearson Edexcel does A level Japanese. https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-a-levels/japanese-2018.coursematerials.html#%2FfilterQuery=category:Pearson-UK:Category%2FSpecification-and-sample-assessments

I would absolutely look at taking a gcse before an a level. A levels are quite a step up from GCSE and you don't want to get ahead of yourself. If you're already doing a language at GCSE, Japanese GCSE will be as difficult (if not more) as French or Spanish GCSE.

You'll be able to practice listening, reading and writing by yourself but would you have someone to practice the speaking assessment with? Or someone to mark your writing practices to see if your grammar is correct etc?

Best of luck :nyan:

Reply 5

edzomac

OP

14

Original post by neko no basu

Have a look at some past papers and see if you're able to answer any questions.

Pearson Edexcel does A level Japanese. https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-a-levels/japanese-2018.coursematerials.html#%2FfilterQuery=category:Pearson-UK:Category%2FSpecification-and-sample-assessments

I would absolutely look at taking a gcse before an a level. A levels are quite a step up from GCSE and you don't want to get ahead of yourself. If you're already doing a language at GCSE, Japanese GCSE will be as difficult (if not more) as French or Spanish GCSE.

You'll be able to practice listening, reading and writing by yourself but would you have someone to practice the speaking assessment with? Or someone to mark your writing practices to see if your grammar is correct etc?

Best of luck :nyan:

Thank you for your reply.

I'm homeschooled and have already done 5 GCSEs (Maths, English Lang, Economics, History and Geography). Currently doing Further maths GCSE, Econ and Maths A level so i have more time than most to dedicate to a language. I currently do 1 online lesson a week and do an hour of duolingo per day. Ideally i want at least 7 GCSEs anyway so if it's beneficial i'll definitely do the Japanese GCSE . I'll start working through GCSE past papers first alongside lessons and duolingo. Just out of interest, approximately what level of the JLPT is equivalent to the Japanese GCSE/ A level? As well, if i could commit to about 15 hours a week of study, is 1 year for the GCSE and another year for the A level a reasonable time frame? (obviously with more intense revision closer to the exam). Many thanks

Reply 6

neko no basu

19

Original post by edzomac

Thank you for your reply.

I'm homeschooled and have already done 5 GCSEs (Maths, English Lang, Economics, History and Geography). Currently doing Further maths GCSE, Econ and Maths A level so i have more time than most to dedicate to a language. I currently do 1 online lesson a week and do an hour of duolingo per day. Ideally i want at least 7 GCSEs anyway so if it's beneficial i'll definitely do the Japanese GCSE . I'll start working through GCSE past papers first alongside lessons and duolingo. Just out of interest, approximately what level of the JLPT is equivalent to the Japanese GCSE/ A level? As well, if i could commit to about 15 hours a week of study, is 1 year for the GCSE and another year for the A level a reasonable time frame? (obviously with more intense revision closer to the exam). Many thanks

You're welcome :h:

Unfortunately, I'm not sure what level of the JLPT is equivalent to the Japanese GCSE/A level.
http://www.jlpt.jp/e/about/levelsummary.html this might be helpful?
I read on the internet that N4 is roughly GCSE but idk how trustworthy that source is :dontknow:

so take that with a pinch of salt

1 year for the GCSE might be enough if you're studying a lot every week? I've never done Japanese GCSE so I can't really say. I did French though but I'd already been learning since year 7 so that was a bit different. And I did another language GCSE but that was in my native language so obviously that's a very different scenario.

Best of luck though :nyan:

Reply 7

Catatttttttt

4

you need to know 200 kanji for the GCSE so maybe start studying to that level first. Im going the alevel with Edexcel and I think CIE does it too. The alevel really isnt just about the language, you have to read japanese set text and be able to analyse it in japanese and also write essays on some of the issues in japan currently （see the syllabus），so if yu are mosre interested in the lingustic side maybe take the JLPT instead？Its definitely worth while taking the GCSE as it can give you a bettet gasp of how you are doing and also a good qualification to have，I wouldnt recommend doing A level without GCSE

Reply 8

Emma:-)

Entertainment Forum Helper

19

Original post by edzomac

Thank you for your reply.

I'm homeschooled and have already done 5 GCSEs (Maths, English Lang, Economics, History and Geography). Currently doing Further maths GCSE, Econ and Maths A level so i have more time than most to dedicate to a language. I currently do 1 online lesson a week and do an hour of duolingo per day. Ideally i want at least 7 GCSEs anyway so if it's beneficial i'll definitely do the Japanese GCSE . I'll start working through GCSE past papers first alongside lessons and duolingo. Just out of interest, approximately what level of the JLPT is equivalent to the Japanese GCSE/ A level? As well, if i could commit to about 15 hours a week of study, is 1 year for the GCSE and another year for the A level a reasonable time frame? (obviously with more intense revision closer to the exam). Many thanks

If you want to do it at GCSE/A-level, go for it. You will never know unless you try.
What do you want to do in future?

Reply 9

17makluska

1

OKOKOK definately do the gcse first. you need 200 kanji in the least (they come fairly easily if you stick to the course and you get used to seeing them over time). a level is 500 kanji i believe.
duolingo is awful if you intend to learn a language fairly fluently, i have a course on memrise that helped me grasp the vocab really well
i might be able to get you the link?

Reply 10

daisy.akane

8

Original post by 17makluska

OKOKOK definately do the gcse first. you need 200 kanji in the least (they come fairly easily if you stick to the course and you get used to seeing them over time). a level is 500 kanji i believe.
duolingo is awful if you intend to learn a language fairly fluently, i have a course on memrise that helped me grasp the vocab really well
i might be able to get you the link?

hey, could you send me the memrise link?xx

Japanese A level

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