for any of you that are in japan i am curious about how much should i expect to pay for japanese classes. i am moving there in a few months and i need to plan for this. any input would be appreciated. thanks ~Steve
i would recommend paying a little bit for japanese classes where you live. you'll probably lose a LOT less money.
yeah, i thought about that but the only places i can find to learn japanese here are the local colleges and between the cost and the times they offer classes it is way too difficult. when i get to japan i get some tuition assistance so i figure i can use it to study the language but its not a lot of money so i am just curious to know what it would cost. i will be living there for 3 years and i am sure i will pick up quite a bit regardless of whether i take classes but i thought it would be good to hit the ground running when i get there.
Where are you going to be living and what are you going to be doing in Japan? Do you expect to have lots of freetime or no? Also I take it you've considered learning simple stuff like the alphabets and all that before you go?
i am going to be in yokosuka. my wife is a naval officer so we are getting stationed there. i am not sure what i will do for work but as for free time i will be triathlon training, and practicing martial arts. i took 2 semesters of japanese and minored in chinese in college (the writing system is very similar to kanji). i am ok on the reading and writing by and large but i need to learn conversational japanese. all i want to know is what i should expect to pay.
Ok makes more sense now! I'll ask some of my friends who are living over there and taking language courses what they pay. Doing language exchanges and that kind of thing would obviously help too though it's probably easier to set up if you already have contacts. From what you've said i.e. going to be living there for 3 years it might be worthwhile investing in the beginning in a decent intensive conversational course. I'm sure you'd progress without it but if you can afford it and you've got the motivation and time I think it would be extremely beneficial.
Most language courses taught here are fairly expensive...Aim for at least Ichi man yen for starter lessons, and around 5000 yen for each lesson subsequently...They aren't cheap..That said, there may (And should be) lessons offered on base as well as in the local town, and these are considerably cheaper. The local Community Centre in my town offers conversation classes, so if you can manage ANY Japanese at all they will help you learn more as you go for practically nothing.. Personally I've survived 3 and a half years by learning on my own, with books, tapes and listening to people using Japanese around me, and my Japanese is far more than passable..That might be another option if you have the time and patience to try it. Also, if you enroll in a local club to train there is a good chance that the lessons will be in Japanese and you'll be shown physically what the words mean, which helps make the connections in your mind I think..Although rather limiting perhaps, this is certainly another option.. I'd suggest trying the local community centre and if nothing there then working out how much you have to spend..There are good classes taught in Takadanobaba in Tokyo I've heard...But they aren't cheap.. Regards.
thank you. i recently got the pimsleur and rosetta stone japanese courses and i will begin learning them now so i can get the jump start plus using my old college text books to refresh what i have forgotten. the community center idea is a good one. i will look into it. thanks again this was very helpful. only about four more months til i move. i am getting excited/nervous.
