Now I wonder, when I was a kid, was this what it was like to continue to learn English? Every time I could associate the word with new contexts and feelings, did I get this same dopamine rush? Was I just always stoned out of my mind because of all the dopamine from all the English words I was learning? Maybe this is what fuels the intrigue and desire to know what people are talking about when they use a word in a way unfamiliar to us. Maybe, just maybe, when someone uses a word like “becomes” in an atypical way such as “that hat becomes you”, we continue to ask “what do you mean?” for the sake of even the tiniest burst of dopamine, giving us a good bit of high, and fueling us to continue to wonder what EXACTLY people mean by what they’re saying.

I don’t know, but I do know that learning is the most exhilarating thing in life for me, and to learn an entire language, culture, and outlook on life is simply the greatest thing I can imagine. To constantly see and experience new contexts, and broaden and even narrow those contexts. It’s simply so grand.

Ahh~ I love it so.

I have never, and never intended to take the N1 JLPT (I’ve never done N2-5 either)….

However I’m aiming to practice as a doctor in Japan. I learned yesterday that to take the National Medical exams in Japan as a graduate of an overseas medical school (Australian), you must have an N1 pass.

so feck.

The JLPT, like so many things Made-In-Japan, is a test of compliance. It’s a test to make sure you understand that even where there is no logical justification for you to waste your time, you must do it anyway simply because it is expected. I will be immensely pleased when I no longer have to indulge this triumph of power-play over genuine educational value. And don’t worry, JEES, that time will most certainly come.

Basically, if your goal is learning Japanese, you’ll eventually reach a level when you’ll be able to pass JLPT (so you’ll have your proof), yes, but you’ll also be able to do so much more in this language by then. But if your goal is to pass a test, then you’ll probably pass it eventually, but that’s where your knowledge of the language is going to end – with textbooks and graded examinations.

As to whether Khatzumoto had failed JLPT when writing this post, well, that’s only for him to say :p

Any thug or gangster down the street can probably easily pass JLPT level 1…..yeah…tell that to your Japanese teachers..

I hate standardized tests, but so many recruiters and HR departments want to see that certification that the time and money are trivial in comparison to lost opportunity.

Don’t take ANY JLPT tests below N1 until you are absolutely fluent..I mean freaking native level fluent.

When you reach that stage, then go take the test.

It will probably be a walk in the park.

Those who study Japanese for the JLPT will be proficient at JLPT testing, and envy others who can actually function in a -Japanese- environment. As seen by those proficient in Japanese: the JLPT is almost an insult.

If you need the test, you don’t need Japanese.

Also, I salute to AJATT, I think it’s a really awesome method to learn any language. BUT, I also believe that reading some old books about grammar can give you a good foundation to stand on. Japanese is my third language; I am Swedish. And yeah, I learned English from school, and I find that having that piece of grammar in the back of my head has nothing but helped me to get that awesome intuition of when a sentence sounds “right” or wrong. Haha now because I’ve said all this I’ve surely gone and done some newbie mistakes here and there, but w/e. Anyway, I really love this site and your posts are incredibly motivating, khatz. Don’t ever stop writing! ;P