Young, John and Yuriko Uchiyama Rollins. Japanese for Young English Speakers. 2 vols. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1994, 1997. ISBN 0-87840-286-1. $21.95. The program includes audiotapes, a Workbook, and a Teacher’s Manual.

Japanese for Young English Speakers is a two-year, proficiency-based program designed to teach American high school students how to communicate with native speakers in grammatically correct and idiomatic Japanese. The authors hope that by the end of the second year students will be able to function at the intermediate mid level as defined by the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines for Japanese, which is a realistic enough objective, I think, despite the fact that Japanese Kana and Kanji are not fully implemented until volume II. Despite some initial reservations about methodology that I will address below, I have concluded that this program will give beginning students enough confidence to “make the leap of faith,” go to Japan, and speak Japanese with some ease.

The program is geared toward making students use conversational Japanese in a series of target-oriented tasks that cover a variety of everyday situations. In class, students interact with each other in pairs and small groups to practice using the language. While the format of the text could be more exciting, by including a greater number of color graphics and photos (these days students are spoiled!), each chapter contains a plethora of activities that are practical and teach students about Japanese culture. The blend of language and culture is well balanced and should appeal to students with no prior knowledge of Japanese. Admittedly the text does cover a lot of ground, so the instructor will likely be unable to cover all the material in it and will have to omit some sections. Also, some constructions introduced early on appear unnecessarily complex for the high school level and, in some cases, appear downright awkward to native ears.

Volume I consists of 30 lessons each of which is to be completed in one week. Every third lesson consists entirely of review and can be used at the discretion of the instructor. Above, I hinted at some of the limitations of the program, which have to do with the fact that Volume I uses modified Hepburn romanization. However, Hiragana, Katakana, and some Kanji are introduced on a trial basis as “enrichment,” and the instructor could build on this feature to make students use the Japanese script. In volume II, Kanji/Kana are used more consistently, and by then students should be comfortable enough to make the transition. While there is something to be said for using a Western alphabet to teach beginners, it has been my experience that one is in fact not doing students any favors by making them believe that Japanese is easier than it is. However, I teach college and can afford to be a hard-liner on this point. In high school some students are probably not ready to learn the “real thing” and can afford the luxury of waiting until college before going all the way. Both methods have their ardent proponents; suffice it to say that any instructor will have to choose between them in selecting an appropriate text.

The organization of both volumes is clear and convincing, making it easy for instructors to teach and students to learn in a step-by-step fashion, moving from greetings in chapter 1 of volume I to expressions of preferences and intentions in chapter 29 (chapter 30 is review). Each chapter clearly lists its objectives and thus provides a context for its content. A sample conversation and culture notes introduce the chapter theme, which is further presented through a series of participatory activities that vary in level of difficulty, the authors’ hope being to involve the whole class in the learning experience. There is something for everyone here, and neither the weakest nor the strongest student need feel alienated. The activities are well suited for young learners and include role-play, word-puzzles, and native Japanese games, such as Sugoroku (a Japanese dice game). Grammar explanations are based on model sentences and are not overly complex. The review chapters incorporate materials from the two immediately preceding chapters and give students ample opportunity to test their knowledge, all in a non-threatening way.

Teaching the second-year sequence can be a challenge because not all students will be at the same level, so volume II creates different “learning routes” for 1) students who have concentrated only on oral communication, 2) students who, in addition, have been exposed to written Japanese, and 3) students who have more thoroughly covered both the oral and written Japanese presented in volume I. The 30 lessons in volume II rely more on Kana and Kanji but include a romanized version of all texts as well as English translations that reach out to those students who are not yet comfortable using written Japanese.

The accompanying Teacher’s Manual is an excellent resource that even the seasoned instructor will find useful. It contains helpful techniques for grading and classroom management, teaching tips, and answer keys to all exercises.

Japanese for Young English Speakers is clearly a program that will appeal to its target audience. American high school students will learn the basics of the language and culture and, more importantly, I think, will feel inspired to move on to the next level and study Japanese in college. Students who master the material covered in these two volumes will indeed become reasonably proficient in Japanese and eager to accompany Peter (the high school student whom they met in chapter 1) on his first trip to Japan.

Dr. Ikuko Torimoto

Associate Professor of Japanese

St. Norbert College