Japanese Lessons with Mayuna

  • Why and how to use podcasts for learning Japanese

    Why and how to use podcasts for learning Japanese

    Podcasts and language learning go hand in hand. You don’t have to sit at a desk all the time, you can learn wherever you are with your smartphone. If you have a busy day or lack the motivation to study, you can use your early morning or bedtime to get to grips with your target language. It’s not just about learning, it’s about staying motivated and inspiring new ideas.

    As you can see, it’s easy to point out the benefits of podcast itself, but how do podcasts fit in with learning Japanese?

    How can podcasts help learn Japanese

    According to the “Survey of Overseas Japanese Language Institutions” conducted by the Japan Foundation every three years, the most common motivations for studying Japanese are “interest in Japanese culture (modern and historical)” and “interest in the Japanese language itself”.

    (Copyright: Japan Foundation)

    It is a curious phenomenon, that people living outside of Japan have the opportunity to become interested in Japanese culture before they understand the Japanese language. In other words, the Japanese language is probably already a familiar part of life in your country, before it is deliberately acquired through learning. Needless to mention about anime and manga, you may already be familiar with the names of Japanese companies such as Toyota and Nintendo, and words with Japanese roots such as Ninja, Tsunami, and Kaizen. It’s always better to make use of existing knowledge in your learning. Podcasts allow you to gain a comprehensive knowledge of a language without having to separate worlds for cultural understanding and formal language learning. After all, the podcast is an effective way for learning Japanese online.

    In the next section, I will introduce my Japanese podcast that can be used for learning regardless of age or gender. If you haven’t used podcasts to study Japanese yet, or if you haven’t found your favorite Japanese podcasts, I hope you will find this useful as a starter. 

    How to pick the best Japanese podcasts for you

    Please check my podcast on my profile. I started this podcast at the suggestion of one of my students. It was originally distributed on an external website, and I started uploading it on italki from episode 12. I talk about my daily events in about 3 minutes, using natural expressions commonly used by Japanese people. The content is aimed at intermediate learners, and each episode comes with a transcript and an English translation (due to the character limit in the italki community, please see my website for the full transcripts and translations: japanesemayuna.com). I upload a new episode every week.

    Many language-learning podcasts, like my podcast, consist of chats or lessons by a single host. Some podcasts have more than two hosts or have a different guest to interview each time, but if you are not an advanced level learner, I recommend a podcast with no more than two fixed hosts so that you’ll be able to get used to the flow.

    Another important factor in choosing a good podcast is the frequency of updates. The newer the information, the better. If the update schedule is regular, you can use it as your learning schedule. The length of an episode is also important. For example, a podcast that is more than 60 minutes long, no matter how great the content is, may be difficult to focus on if you are often interrupted by urgent work or children. Think about when and under what circumstances you will be listening to the podcast, and examine the length that best suits your lifestyle, without causing you strain. That’s the key to continuing.

    Here are some really good Japanese podcasts (and YouTube channels) which I recommend. Some of the hosts are online Japanese tutors you can book lessons with: 

    Nihongo Con Teppei – Japanese Podcast for Beginners, Japanese with Noriko, YuYuの日本語 Podcast, Japanese Ammo with Misa, Let’s Ask Shogo

    Are you ready to start using podcasts to study Japanese? Even if you’re already using them, try the tips in the next section to make podcasts more effective for language learning.

    Tips for learning Japanese using podcasts

    Here are some of the most effective ways of using podcasts that I have heard from my students in lessons:

    Listen while you walk

    One of my students said that she is able to concentrate better if she listens while walking outside rather than sitting still in her room. The positive effects of serotonin and exercise on the brain have been highlighted by many experts, so it’s worth a try. If you’re too busy working or studying online to exercise, getting into the habit of listening to podcasts while you walk can help you get outside more effectively. By improving your lifestyle, you will not only improve your concentration but also your motivation to study.

    Listen repeatedly

    Another method is to listen to the same episodes incessantly without concentrating on the content as if you were listening to music until you can recite them. This may seem pointless, but it is actually a very effective way of developing your sense of rhythm and syntax. Once your sense is developed, you will start to feel uncomfortable when you see unnatural Japanese sentences. In fact, my student, who taught me this method, is very good at making sentences. Even when he learns a word for the first time, he can immediately come up with a natural way of using it.

    Listen in your native language

    Just because you are learning Japanese doesn’t mean you have to choose only native Japanese podcasts. There are many non-Japanese hosts who know the language better than native speakers. If they share the same mother tongue as you, they will have a greater sense of empathy for learning Japanese and may be able to pick out the most common mistakes of yours. They may sometimes give incorrect explanations, but from a learning point of view, it’s not a waste of time. It gives you the opportunity to check the truth by yourself and ask questions in the lesson.

    Conclusion

    Do you usually use podcasts for your Japanese learning? Or maybe you’re already tired of wading through vast information on the internet to find the best podcast for you. If so, try to find a teacher who hosts a podcast, and join their class. Podcasts hosted by the teacher you usually have lessons with must be a special learning source that has been personalized for you from the outset.

    Electronic reference:

    Japan Foundation. “SURVEY REPORT ON JAPANESE-LANGUAGE EDUCATION ABROAD 2018” (2020), Objectives of Japanese-language learning, [https://www.jpf.go.jp/j/project/japanese/survey/result/survey18.html]

    Read on italki

  • 14. カレーを作る

    はい、こんにちは。今回は、ポッドキャストの14回目です。私は一昨日の夜、久しぶりにカレーを作りました。前回にもお話ししたように、私は普段、カレーを食べる時は近所のインド料理レストランでテイクアウトをしています。最近、コロナウイルスの影響で、このレストランが午後の4時までしか開いていないので、夕飯が買えません。なので一昨日は自分で作ることにしました。

    Hello. This is the podcast episode 14. I made curry the night before last, for the first time in a long time. As I told you last time, when I eat curry, I usually get takeout from an Indian restaurant in my neighborhood. Lately, due to the coronavirus, this restaurant is only open until four in the afternoon, so I can’t buy dinner. So the day before yesterday I decided to make it myself.

    材料は、人参と、玉ねぎと、じゃがいもと、牛肉と、カレールーで、カレールーというのはスパイスや、スープの素を固めたものです。野菜を炒めて、煮て、水を入れて、カレールーを入れると、カレーが完成します。ものすごく久しぶりに、自分でカレーを作りました。作り方は間違っていなかったはずなんですけど、このカレーはすごくまずかったです。

    The ingredients are carrots, onions, potatoes, beef, and curry roux, which is a hardened mixture of spices and soup stock. Stir-fry the vegetables, boil, add water, and add the curry roux, and the curry is ready. It has been a very long time since I made curry by myself. I’m sure I made it right, but this curry was really bad.

    私は子供の時、カレールーで作るカレーをすごく美味しいと思っていました。でも最近は、レストランのカレーばかり食べています。やっぱりレストランのカレーと比べると、カレールーで作るカレーは味が薄くて美味しくないですね。そして調べてみたら、スパイスから作るカレーは、そんなに材料が高くないし、作り方も簡単なことを発見しました。だから今度挑戦してみたいと思います。

    When I was a child, I used to think that curry made with curry roux was very tasty. But recently, I have been eating only restaurant curry. Compared to restaurant curry, curry made with curry roux has a thinner taste and is not as tasty. Then I did some research and found out that curry made from spices is not that expensive and easy to make. So I’d like to try it next time.

    先週はほとんど記事の仕事をしていました。前回の Podcast でもお話しした通り、日本のポッドキャストについての内容です。おすすめのポッドキャストや、 自分に合った Podcast の選び方や、ポッドキャストを使った勉強方法についてお話ししています。是非読んでみてください。

    I spent most of last week working on an article. As I mentioned in my last podcast, it’s about Japanese podcasts. I talk about recommended podcasts, how to choose the right podcast for you, and how to study using podcasts. Please check it.

    私は最近、1日1回散歩に出かけることにしています。散歩と言っても、だいたい30分から1時間ぐらい家の周りを歩くだけですが、外に出て、外の空気を吸うことは健康に大切ですね。これからも続けたいと思います。

    Recently, I have been going out for a walk once a day. It’s just a walk around my house for about 30 minutes to an hour, but I think it’s important for my health to go outside and breathe the fresh air. I would like to continue this practice in the future.

    はい、じゃあ今日はこんな感じで終わりたいと思います。また来週お会いしましょう。どうもありがとうございました 。

    Well, I think that’s it for today. See you next time and thanks for listening!

  • 13. 日本のポッドキャストについて

    はい、こんにちは。今回はポッドキャストの13回目です。私は昨日フライパンを買い換えました。フライパンの表面のコーティングが剥がれてきて、食べ物が焦げ付いてしまい、使いづらくなってたんですけど、調べてみたら、フライパンの寿命は2年ぐらいらしいですね。フライパンは10年ぐらい使えるのかと思ってました。私は学生の時、海外に住んでいて、家具付きの家に住んでいたことが多かったので、自分でフライパンを買い換える経験があまりなかったんですね。だから知りませんでした。皆さんももし、2年以上使っているフライパンがあったら買い換えてはどうでしょうか。

    Hi, This is the podcast ep13. I bought a new frying pan yesterday. The coating on the surface of the frying pan was peeling off and food was getting burnt and it was getting difficult to use. I thought frying pans were supposed to last about 10 years. When I was a student, I lived abroad, mostly in furnished houses, so I didn’t have much experience of buying new frying pans myself. So I didn’t know that. If you have a frying pan that you have been using for more than two years, why not replace it?

    そして私は今、italkiの記事も引き続き進めているんですけれども、今回のテーマはポッドキャストです。おすすめの日本語のポッドキャストとか、あとはポッドキャストを活用した勉強方法について書いているんですけれども、おすすめの番組を探すのが少し大変です。実は日本ではまだポッドキャストってそこまで一般的ではない、わけでもないですけど、もちろん個人で配信している人はたくさんいるんですけれども、大きい会社とか、芸能人とか、そういう人でポッドキャスト配信してるのはまだ一部ですね。

    And now I’m continuing with the italki article, this time on the subject of podcasts. I’m writing about recommended Japanese podcasts and how to study using podcasts, but it’s a bit difficult to find recommendations. Podcasts are not that common in Japan yet, but of course there are a lot of individuals who do it, but only a few big companies or celebrities who do it.

    日本の ポッドキャストの専用アプリみたいなものもありますが、やっぱりアップルとかグーグルとか Spotify の方が一般的にはよく使われているみたいで、なかなか日本特有のポッドキャストの情報を探すのが大変です。音声が聞けるサービスだと、クラブハウスとかが人気みたいですね。それでもコロナ以降は、少しずつポッドキャストも人気が出てきているみたいで、番組も増え始めています。

    There are Japanese apps for podcasts, but Apple, Google, and Spotify seem to be more commonly used, so it’s hard to find information about Japanese podcasts. As for audio services, Clubhouse seems to be popular. Nevertheless, after Corona, podcasts are slowly becoming more popular, and the number of shows is starting to increase.

    もう2月なので、昨日ウェブサーバーの会社から、今年１月に開設したウェブサイトの1月分の請求書が来ました。すぐに払おうと思ったのですが、アカウントにトップアップするタイプのクレジットと、クレジットカードの自動引き落としと、二つの方法を登録していたので、どちらから引き落とされるのかわからなかったんですね。で、メールで質問したらすぐに返事が返ってきて、無事支払いが完了したみたいです。よかったです。この会社はアメリカにあるはずなんですけれども、何時に連絡してもすぐに返事が返ってくるので驚きます。サポートはアウトソーシングなんでしょうか？

    It’s February already, so yesterday I got a bill from my web server company for the month of January for a website I set up in January this year. I wanted to pay it immediately, but I didn’t know which way it would be deducted, because I had registered two ways of payment: top-up credit to my account, or automatic debit from my credit card. So I emailed them and they replied straight away and the payment went through. I’m glad. This company must be located in the US, but I am surprised that they reply to me immediately no matter what time I contact them. I wonder if their support is outsourced?

    はい、じゃあ今日はこんな感じで終わりたいと思います。また来週お会いしましょう。どうもありがとうございました。 

    Well, I think that’s it for today. See you next time and thanks for listening!