Level Description

The nature of the learners

At this level, students bring to their learning existing knowledge of Japanese language and culture and a range of learning strategies. They are increasingly aware of the world beyond their own and are engaging with youth-related and social and environmental issues. They require continued guidance and mentoring but work increasingly independently to analyse, reflect on and monitor their language learning and intercultural experiences. They are considering future pathways and options, including the possible role of Japanese in these.

Japanese language learning and use

This is a period of language exploration, vocabulary expansion, and experimentation with different modes of communication, for example, digital media, collaborative performance and group discussions. Learners become more confident in communicating in a wider range of contexts through greater control of language structures and vocabulary and increased understanding of the variability of language use. They use Japanese to communicate and interact; to access and exchange information; to express feelings and opinions; to participate in imaginative and creative experiences; and to create, interpret and analyse a wider range of texts and experiences. They sequence and describe events using a range of cohesive devices, and complete communicative tasks that involve planning, performance, collaborative and independent work. They use language more fluently, with a greater degree of self-correction and repair, and use あいづち to facilitate communication. They reference the accuracy of their language use against a stronger frame of grammatical knowledge.

Learners at this level are able to read and write using hiragana, katakana and an increasing number of kanji in all texts. Their writing is more sophisticated, using connectives and conjunctions, and they engage with more complex language structures.

Contexts of interaction

Learners interact with peers, the teacher and other Japanese speakers in immediate and local contexts, and with wider communities and cultural resources via virtual and online environments. They may access additional cultural experiences through events such as school exchanges, festivals, interschool events or cultural performances.

Texts and resources

Learners engage with texts designed for language learning, such as teacher-generated materials and online resources. Learning is enriched by exposure to a range of authentic materials designed for or generated by young Japanese speakers, such as video clips or advertisements. Students take some responsibility for sourcing additional materials to support their own learning.

Features of Japanese language use

Learners use more complex language in oral, written and multimodal forms. They expand their knowledge and control of grammatical elements such as the form and plain form of verbs, for example, ~ています、~てもいい、~と(おも)います、and ~たり~たり、and conjugation patterns for both verbs and adjectives. Their language production includes elements of interpreting, creating and performing. They engage in analysis of texts such as advertisements and media reports, identifying how language choices reflect perspectives and cultural contexts.

Learners examine the processes involved in using a different language, recognising them as cognitive, cultural and personal as well as linguistic. They explore the reciprocal nature of intercultural communication: how moving between different languages and cultural systems impacts on ways of thinking and behaving; and how successful communication requires flexibility, awareness, and openness to alternative ways. They develop the capacity to ‘decentre’ from normative ways of thinking and communicating, to consider themselves through the eyes of others, and to communicate in interculturally appropriate ways.

Level of support

Support at this level of learning includes provision of rich and varied stimulus materials, continued scaffolding and modelling of language functions and communicative tasks, and explicit instruction and explanation of the grammatical system. Learners are provided with opportunities to discuss, clarify, practise and apply their knowledge. Critical and constructive teacher feedback is combined with peer support and self-review to monitor and evaluate learning outcomes, such as through portfolios, peer review, or digital journals.

The role of English

Japanese is used in more extended and complex ways. English continues to be used for discussion, explanation and analysis. This allows learners to communicate in depth and detail about the experience of learning Japanese and about their thoughts on culture, identity and intercultural experience. English is the language of analysis and critique, supporting discussion of concepts such as stereotypes, difference, diversity and values. It allows for a degree of expression and reflection that is beyond learners’ communicative capabilities in Japanese.

Achievement Standard

By the end of Year 10, students use Japanese to share information, experiences and views related to their social worlds using rehearsed and spontaneous language. They use correct pronunciation, including that of borrowed words, and adopt appropriate rhythm and phrasing to allow for others’ use of あいづち. They ask and respond to questions, elaborating responses by providing reasons or explanations, using a range of adjectives and adverbs such as ぜんぜん or かなり. Students begin to use plain form to communicate with their peers. They use kanji to read and write verbs, for example, 思います、来ます、聞きます、食べます、()みます, nouns, for example, 新聞、会話(かいわ), 外国語(がいこくご) and adjectives, for example, 早い、上手な、下手(へた). Students extract, analyse and evaluate information from extended spoken, written and multimodal texts, such as films, blogs, brochures, itineraries and journals. They predict the meaning of unfamiliar words and expressions from context, grammatical knowledge and familiar kanji, and by drawing on their knowledge of textual characteristics and features. Students produce informative and imaginative texts, appropriate to audience and purpose, using the form and plain form to express preferences, permission and prohibition and to describe past experiences. They build cohesion and complexity in written texts by using conjunctions, such as ですから、けれども, and indicate frequency by using a range of intensifiers, for example, よく、たいてい. Students discriminate appropriately in their use of kanji, hiragana and katakana. They translate and interpret texts, explaining words and expressions that are difficult to translate or that have embedded cultural meanings, such as にゅうがくしき、おぼん、サラリーマン. They discuss elements of interaction in Japanese, such as the importance and use of あいづち in meaning-making. They make connections and comparisons between their own and others’ culturally shaped perspectives, reflecting on the influence of perspectives on intercultural communication.

Students understand the functions of the different scripts within text, for example, hiragana for grammatical elements; katakana for borrowed words and some onomatopoeia; and kanji for nouns, verbs, adjectives and some adverbs. They distinguish, for example, between おくりがな and ふりがな, and understand the concept of おん/くん readings. They identify multiple readings of kanji, and begin to use kanji radicals as a tool for indicating meaning. Students use the form and plain form verbs as a basis for grammar conjugations. They use metalanguage to describe and compare language features and rules of sentence construction. Students choose です/ます or plain form based on age, relationship, familiarity and context. They identify hybrid terms that combine Japanese and English, such as コピペ、オーガナイズする、ダンスする. They explain how key Japanese cultural values such as community, (うち)/(そと) and humility, いいえ、まだです。, and consideration of others are reflected in language and behaviours.