American Association of Teachers of Japanese

National Standards for Japanese
Language Learning: Comparisons

Develop Insight into the Nature of Language and Culture

All cultures have unique features. Likewise, the languages that grow out of those cultures have distinctive characteristics. Comparison of different cultures and languages raises students' linguistic awareness and cultural understanding. In Japan, the use of loan words, the popularity of certain American practices and products, and the perseverence of certain very traditional language practices and customs offer a unique and intriguing venue for comparisons and discussions. Students are able to view the great similarities between Japan and other countries while identifying the intriquing differences that make Japanese study exciting.

Standard 4.1
Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparison of the Japanese language and their own.

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 4
--Students realize that there are loanwords in most languages and identify examples of words used in Japanese borrowed from English ("aisukuriimu," "hanbaagaa," "basu," "jiinzu") and from other languages ("pan," "zubon," "kasutera," "kurowassan," "karuta"). (Some English discussion may be necessary.)
--Students demonstrate an emerging awareness that word order in Japanese and English is often different ("aisukuriimu o taberu" vs. I will eat ice cream).
--Student demonstrate an awareness of formal and informal forms of language in greetings and leave taking, and try out expressions of politeness in Japanese and in their own language ("arigatoo" vs. "arigatoo gozaimasu" and thanks vs. thank you).
--Students recognize the existence and various usages of the three Japanese orthographies and of romanization.

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 8
--Students are aware of the existence of idiomatic expressions in both their own (raining cats and dogs) and the Japanese language ("kao ga hiroi").
--Students demonstrate awareness about the historical and present-day interaction between Japanese and other languages in loan words such as "pan," "karaoke," "tsunami," and the Japanese use of kanji borrowed from Chinese.
--Students demonstrate awareness of ways of expressing respect and communicating status differences in their own language and in Japanese ("keigo," choice of vocabulary).
--Students demonstrate awareness that languages have critical sound distinctions that must be mastered in order to communicate meaning ("byooin" vs. "biyooin," "obaasan" vs. "obasan").
--Students demonstrate awareness of the role of dialect, slang, and age-, status-, and gender-differentiated speech, and explore the cultural significance attributed to their use (verbs of giving and receiving, sentence-ending particles, contraction, "boku" vs. "watashi").

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 12
--Students recognize that loan words undergo changes in meaning and form in Japanese and other languages ("konsento," "toreenaa," "rimokon," "pasokon"; typhoon, hibachi).
--Students demonstrate awareness that there are words, phrases, and idioms that do not translate directly from one language to another ("shakai-jin," "natsukashii," "hara ga tatsu," "otsukaresama").
--Students analyze elements of the Japanese language, such as time, tense, and aspect, and comparable linguistic elements in English, and conjecture about how languages use various forms to express particular meanings.
--Students report on the relationship between word order and meaning in Japanese and other languages ("daigaku no doko" vs. "doko no daigaku").
--Students compare and contrast the writing systems of the Japanese language and their own. They also examine other writing systems and report about the nature of those writing systems (logographic, syllabic, alphabetic).

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 16
--Students gain skill in analyzing the linguistic features of Japanese and other languages.
--Students demonstrate an awareness of language change and the historical development of Japanese and other languages.
--Students demonstrate their understanding/awareness of different communication styles based on variations such as regional, socioeconomic, gender, and age differences to communicate messages in Japanese and other languages.
--Students analyze the difference between spoken and written Japanese and other languages.
--Students analyze the various styles such as private vs. public, formal vs. informal, narrative vs. expository in Japanese and other languages.

Standard 4.2
Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of Japanese culture and their own.

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 4
--Students recognize the interests and practices that they have in common with their Japanese peers (video games, fast foods, clothing).
--Students point out similarities and differences between the American and Japanese cultures in simple patterns of behavior or interaction in various settings--social (school, family, community) and cultural (dining, bathing, toilet etiquette). (English may be necessary.)
--Students demonstrate an awareness that gestures are important methods of communication and that gestures used in Japanese language communities and America are often different (waving goodbye, indicating oneself, handshaking vs. bowing).
--Students compare and contrast tangible products (toys, clothes, housing, food) of the Japanese culture and their own.
--Students compare and contrast intangible products (children's songs, selections from children¹s literature, games, holiday celebrations) of the Japanese culture and those of their own.

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 8
--Students contrast verbal and nonverbal behavior in activities among friends, classmates, family members, and teachers, in the Japanese culture and their own (hugging, kissing, holding hands, bowing, endearments, levels of formality, "aizuchi").
--Students demonstrate an awareness that they, too, have a culture, based on comparison of sample daily activities (study time, amusements, personal hygiene routines) in Japanese culture and their own.
--Students speculate on why certain products (sports equipment, household items, tools, foods, clothing) originate in and/or are important to particular cultures by analyzing selected products (carpenter's tools, cooking utensils, umbrella, snack items) from the Japanese culture and their own.

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 12
--Students explore the relationships of practices and perspectives in Japanese culture and compare and contrast these with their own (school roles, entrance examinations, role of "juku," "miyamoode," "hakamairi").
--Students explore the relationships of products and perspectives in Japanese and compare and contrast these with their own ("pokeberu," "purikura").
--Students reflect on how they feel using or thinking in Japanese compared to their first language and articulate cultural differences they perceive (awareness of status, consciousness of in-group and out-group communication).
--Students hypothesize about the relationship between cultural perspectives and practices (games, sports, entertainment, holiday celebrations, study habits) by analyzing selected practices from the Japanese culture and their own ("oendan" vs. cheerleaders, New Year's Day, tutoring).
--Students hypothesize about the relationship between cultural perspectives and expressive products (visual and performing arts, both traditional and contemporary; appropriate forms of literature; architecture) by analyzing selected products ("bunraku," "renga," "junia shoosetsu," "rogu hausu") from the Japanese culture and their own. (English may be necessary.)

Sample Progress Indicators, Grade 16
--Students explore how sayings and idiomatic expressions reflect culture, citing examples from the Japanese language and culture and their own ("ishi no ue nimo san-nen," "deru kugi wa utareru").
--Students compare nuances of meanings of words and expressions ("buta no yoo ni taberu" vs. eat like a horse) and vocal inflections ("soo desu ka?", "soo desu ka?") in Japanese and in their own language.
--Students analyze the relationship of practices and perspectives in Japanese culture and compare and contrast these with their own ("omiai," "shin'nyuu shain kyooiku," student life style, political campaigning).
--Students analyze and discuss the relationships between products (education systems, religious institutions, department stores, types of housing) and perspectives in Japanese culture and contrast these with their own.