the genkijacs system

Teaching Method

Japanese language classes at GenkiJACS consist of two main sections: an input session, and an output session. What do we mean by input and output?

INPUT session : "G" (Grammar)

Your input session is called the "G" session (short for "Grammar").

Input" basically means "putting" things "in"to your head. You will learn new grammar, sentence structures, words, kanji, and how to apply these concepts when you speak and get spoken to.

This section usually forms one half of your study day, so the amount of new knowledge that you take in can be quite intense!

Not to worry, though! Once you have learned the new content in class, teachers will give you some homework to reinforce all your new knowledge and make sure you really understood what was taught.

output session: "4S" (Four skills)

This is where the fun stuff happens! When you come to school the next day, your first session will be the output session. Here, you will apply the four language skills: speaking, listening, reading and writing.

This is where you will apply all of the grammar, new words, sentence structures, kanji and so on you learned the day before in real-world situations.

Teachers will pair you up with your classmates to practise conversation in fun roleplay situations. You'll get to do listening excercises, read interesting articles not included in our textbooks, and even prepare a presentation for your class!

If you're extra lucky, you might even get to go on an out-lesson where you'll get to use your new Japanese on actual Japanese people in the real world...

Usually, your second session of the day will be an input/grammar session, where you learn new grammar, vocabulary etc. Then, your first session of the following day will be an output/four-skills session, where you practise all the things you learned the previous day.

From Beginner 0-2 level, you will have all of your four skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) in every output session. At Pre-intermediate and above level, these will be split into one langauge skill per day, for example, conversation practise on Monday, Kanji on Tuesday, listening on Wednesday, etc.

Example beginner 0-2 lesson setup

Example pre-intermediate & above lesson setup

Teaching Philosophy

At GenkiJACS, we believe that good teaching is:

1. Purposeful
   All of our lessons are structured to give you essential Japanese in a way so that you will remember it, and be able to use it yourself.
2. Practical
   Lessons are focused on the skills and topics most useful to actually getting out there and becoming proficient in the language. Activities involve real-world situations, guest instructors, field trips and more.
3. Professional
   All of our Japanese teachers are graduates of a 420-hour Japanese teacher training course at a recognized study institution, and have extensive experience teaching to foreigners. We don't just teach whatever comes up like some other schools; we follow a curriculum designed with the needs of English-speakers in mind.