INTEGRATIVE NARRATIVE
Before entering CSUMB, I had several colleges and had a number of interests. During high school, I had taken an interest in mathematics and decided to pursue that in university. I moved to Los Angeles (LA) to attend California State University Northridge (CSUN) where I enrolled the standard general education classes. At the time, the state university system, especially CSUN, were experiencing a kind of of budget crisis which made enrolling in math classes nearly impossible. After a year I was forced to enroll in Los Angeles Community College (LACC) to supplement my then lacking math education. After a semester of commuting through rush hour LA traffic, and with the enrollment situation at CSUN not improving, I decided to move back home. I graduated from Hartnell Community College in Salinas with my two-year math degree. It is worth mentioning that during my time at Hartnell College, after I graduate I enrolled once more to fulfill two remaining requirements; the anthropology class I completed was one of the most insightful classes I have taken in my college career and set the stage and perspective for multicultural understanding, which was a recurring theme throughout the CSUMB’s Japanese program.
While I was still attending Hartnell College, I began taking a computer programming class at CSUMB; it was interesting however, I could not see myself engaging in a career where I would spend hours staring at a computer screen editing code, nor could I picture myself becoming a mathematician. Although still interested in math and science, I decided to change my major to Japanese Language and Culture which was one of the better decisions I have made in my life. As mentioned previously, there are several reasons why I chose to change majors: to better understand my own cultural heritage, to be able to communicate in Japanese with my father and relatives, to be able to live in another country and travel, to be able to understand the world through another perspective, and many more. After I finished my programming class, I met with Professor Saito, and was immediately scheduled to go to Japan where I would have one of the greatest experiences of my life.
Through CSUMB’s Japanese program, I have gained a wealth of knowledge about Japan: Its culture, history, society, and of course language. Before going to Japan, I recall that under Professor Andy Painter, we gained knowledge about Japanese history and society, both current and modern, which helped prepare us for what to expect when arriving in Japan. Some of the classes were intensive study classes, others were more creative and interesting and through the mix of the two, myself and peers enjoyed learning about Japan and its various and sometimes unusual characteristics.
Within the Japanese language courses, we expanded our communicative abilities, having studied grammar, vocabulary, kanji, pronunciation, writing style, and the like. One point to make is that most of my improvement in spoken Japanese was observed during my time studying abroad at Chuo University in Tokyo. The classes were very straightforward, and the class sizes were very small. The simplistic organization and small class size ensured we maximized improvement of spoken Japanese. Living in Japan of course provided us with innumerable chances to practice our Japanese in real-life situations. In many instances and social interactions, necessity was the mother of retention. If I was not able to communicate, I would not be able to function; communication in Japanese was imperative during a number situations.
My initial goal when beginning the major was to study abroad in Japan and become fluent in Japanese; I accomplished the first, the second I am still working on, and will be for years to come. My improvement in Japanese has evolved into a series of study methods. I have learned how to study a language properly to maximized my retention. I was somewhat setback when returning to America though; classes here focused on deadline based assignment completion over in-class language improvement. There are no classes that focus on pronunciation and the classroom organization is noticeably more complicated than the classes I took in Japan. I learned how I learn best; independent study outside the classroom.
What I am most proud of is surviving my experience in Japan. I lived the majority of my life in a small town called Spreckels, California. The only other foreign country I had been to before going to Japan was Canada, which hardly counts as foreign. I made many friends along the way, many who I will never forget. I am also proud of myself for losing weight in Japan, but not proud for gaining it back.
In the future, I plan to take another look at the Japanese language books I used in Japan, they were the most concise and easy to use study guides I have used. I also plan to work with the friends I have made to further my communication abilities in Japanese. I also plan to read short stories in Japanese as well as take the Japanese Language Placement Test.
- Why you chose the Japanese Language and Culture major?
- What have you learned from this major? What was your initial goal and how has that evolved?
- What areas are you most proud of through your learning in this program.
- Describe what areas you want to develop in the future.
Before entering CSUMB, I had several colleges and had a number of interests. During high school, I had taken an interest in mathematics and decided to pursue that in university. I moved to Los Angeles (LA) to attend California State University Northridge (CSUN) where I enrolled the standard general education classes. At the time, the state university system, especially CSUN, were experiencing a kind of of budget crisis which made enrolling in math classes nearly impossible. After a year I was forced to enroll in Los Angeles Community College (LACC) to supplement my then lacking math education. After a semester of commuting through rush hour LA traffic, and with the enrollment situation at CSUN not improving, I decided to move back home. I graduated from Hartnell Community College in Salinas with my two-year math degree. It is worth mentioning that during my time at Hartnell College, after I graduate I enrolled once more to fulfill two remaining requirements; the anthropology class I completed was one of the most insightful classes I have taken in my college career and set the stage and perspective for multicultural understanding, which was a recurring theme throughout the CSUMB’s Japanese program.
While I was still attending Hartnell College, I began taking a computer programming class at CSUMB; it was interesting however, I could not see myself engaging in a career where I would spend hours staring at a computer screen editing code, nor could I picture myself becoming a mathematician. Although still interested in math and science, I decided to change my major to Japanese Language and Culture which was one of the better decisions I have made in my life. As mentioned previously, there are several reasons why I chose to change majors: to better understand my own cultural heritage, to be able to communicate in Japanese with my father and relatives, to be able to live in another country and travel, to be able to understand the world through another perspective, and many more. After I finished my programming class, I met with Professor Saito, and was immediately scheduled to go to Japan where I would have one of the greatest experiences of my life.
Through CSUMB’s Japanese program, I have gained a wealth of knowledge about Japan: Its culture, history, society, and of course language. Before going to Japan, I recall that under Professor Andy Painter, we gained knowledge about Japanese history and society, both current and modern, which helped prepare us for what to expect when arriving in Japan. Some of the classes were intensive study classes, others were more creative and interesting and through the mix of the two, myself and peers enjoyed learning about Japan and its various and sometimes unusual characteristics.
Within the Japanese language courses, we expanded our communicative abilities, having studied grammar, vocabulary, kanji, pronunciation, writing style, and the like. One point to make is that most of my improvement in spoken Japanese was observed during my time studying abroad at Chuo University in Tokyo. The classes were very straightforward, and the class sizes were very small. The simplistic organization and small class size ensured we maximized improvement of spoken Japanese. Living in Japan of course provided us with innumerable chances to practice our Japanese in real-life situations. In many instances and social interactions, necessity was the mother of retention. If I was not able to communicate, I would not be able to function; communication in Japanese was imperative during a number situations.
My initial goal when beginning the major was to study abroad in Japan and become fluent in Japanese; I accomplished the first, the second I am still working on, and will be for years to come. My improvement in Japanese has evolved into a series of study methods. I have learned how to study a language properly to maximized my retention. I was somewhat setback when returning to America though; classes here focused on deadline based assignment completion over in-class language improvement. There are no classes that focus on pronunciation and the classroom organization is noticeably more complicated than the classes I took in Japan. I learned how I learn best; independent study outside the classroom.
What I am most proud of is surviving my experience in Japan. I lived the majority of my life in a small town called Spreckels, California. The only other foreign country I had been to before going to Japan was Canada, which hardly counts as foreign. I made many friends along the way, many who I will never forget. I am also proud of myself for losing weight in Japan, but not proud for gaining it back.
In the future, I plan to take another look at the Japanese language books I used in Japan, they were the most concise and easy to use study guides I have used. I also plan to work with the friends I have made to further my communication abilities in Japanese. I also plan to read short stories in Japanese as well as take the Japanese Language Placement Test.