Course

Basic Japanese I

Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Department
Modern Languages
Course code
MODL 1171
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15 weeks
Max class size
22
Method(s) of instruction
Lab
Seminar
Course designation
Certificate in Global Competency
Industry designation
None
Typically offered
Fall
Winter

Overview

Course description
This course is designed for students who have little or no knowledge of Japanese. It is aimed at developing basic oral and written communicative skills through the study of vocabulary, grammar, and culture. Japanese is spoken in class as much as possible.
Course content

Systematic introduction of:

  1. Basic syntactic structures
  2. Basic lexicon
  3. Elements of hiragana, katakana, kanji
  4. The phonological system of Japanese
  5. Some aspects of Japanese culture
Learning activities

The communicative approach is used. 

Classroom activities may include:

  1. presentation of material by the instructor, in person or online synchronously or asynchronously;
  2. practice in pairs and small groups;
  3. listening comprehension;
  4. audio-visual activities;
  5. task-based conversation practice;
  6. student presentations;
  7. conversation labs in small groups.
Means of assessment

Assessment will be based on course objectives and will be carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. Instructors may use a student's record of attendance and/or level of active participation in a course as a part of the student's graded performance. Where this occurs, expectations and grade calculations regarding class attendance and participation must be clearly defined in the Instructor Course Outline.

Example of Evaluation Scheme:

 Written Evaluations
(May include but not limited to writing and reading exercises, lesson quizzes, paragraph writing, written homework, preparation, final written exam)   		   60%  
Oral Evaluations
(May include but not limited to oral tests, oral presentations, listening comprehension, conversation lab, attendance, preparation, class participation, final oral exam)		 40%

No single evaluation will be worth more than 20%.

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate understanding of simple spoken discourse (in formal style of speech);
  2. Demonstrate understanding of simple written texts (hiragana, katakana, and a minimum of 50 kanji);
  3. Conduct simple communicative tasks and conversations, such as extending greetings, describing daily activities in present and past tenses, extending invitations, and making simple requests;
  4. Construct simple written expressions, such as short paragraphs and dialogues, using hiragana, katakana and kanji;
  5. Articulate understanding of target cultures.
Textbook materials

Textbooks and materials are to be purchased by students. A list of required textbooks and materials is provided for students at the beginning of the semester.

Example texts may include a beginner level Japanese textbook such as:

  • Banno et al. GENKI: An Integrated Course in Elementary Japanese I. The Japan Times. (current edition)

Requisites

Prerequisites

None

Corequisites

None

Equivalencies

None

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for MODL 1171
Camosun College (CAMO) CAMO JAPN 100 (3)
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU JAPN 100 (4)
Coquitlam College (COQU) COQU JAPA 100 (3)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU JAPN 1100 (3)
Langara College (LANG) LANG JAPN 1115 (3)
Okanagan College (OC) OC JAPN 111 (3)
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU JAPN 100 (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU JAPA 1110 (3)
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU JAPA 101 (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO JPST_O 100 (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV JAPN_V 100 (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC INTS 121 (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV JAPN 101 (3)
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU JAPA 100 (3)

Course Offerings

Fall 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
22
Currently enrolled
0
Remaining seats:
22
On waitlist
0
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S3603
Times:
Start Time
12:30
-
End Time
14:20
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S1802
Times:
Start Time
12:30
-
End Time
14:20
Section notes

MODL 1171 001 - Students must ALSO register in conversation lab MODL 1171 L01, L02 or L03.

This course is for students with no previous knowledge of Japanese. If you already know some Japanese, please see the Calendar for other Japanese course pre-requisites and placement test information.

This course can count as a relevant course in an Associate of Arts specialization in Modern Languages or in an Associate of Arts specialization in Intercultural and International Studies.

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
22
Currently enrolled
0
Remaining seats:
22
On waitlist
0
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S3603
Times:
Start Time
8:30
-
End Time
10:20
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S1802
Times:
Start Time
8:30
-
End Time
10:20
Section notes

MODL 1171 002 - Students must ALSO register in conversation lab MODL 1171 L04, L05 or L06.

This course is for students with no previous knowledge of Japanese. If you already know some Japanese, please see the Calendar for other Japanese course pre-requisites and placement test information.

This course can count as a relevant course in an Associate of Arts specialization in Modern Languages or in an Associate of Arts specialization in Intercultural and International Studies.

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
22
Currently enrolled
0
Remaining seats:
22
On waitlist
0
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S3603
Times:
Start Time
10:30
-
End Time
12:20
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S1802
Times:
Start Time
10:30
-
End Time
12:20
Section notes

MODL 1171 003 - Students must ALSO register in conversation lab MODL 1171 L07, L08, or L09.

This course is for students with no previous knowledge of Japanese. If you already know some Japanese, please see the Calendar for other Japanese course pre-requisites and placement test information.

This course can count as a relevant course in an Associate of Arts specialization in Modern Languages or in an Associate of Arts specialization in Intercultural and International Studies.