Well, I finally started taking some official Japanese Language Proficiency Test practice mini-quizzes to assess where I’m at. I’ve been studying Japanese off and on for the last decade, but my inconsistency meant that I had forgotten half of what I had “learned” each time I resumed good study habits.

All in all, not too bad:

9/14 is pretty reflective of where I am, with me failing most of the listening component. I’m also trying to review a lot of test-related vocabulary so I don’t continue to be confused by certain kinds of instructions.

I’ve set a personal goal of taking the N5 level test in 2021. For those unfamiliar, it’s offered twice a year for those living in America, and only at select sites. I’ll likely have to drive to Arkansas to take it, so we may very well make a vacation out of it and spend a few days there.

One of the current weaknesses I’m noticing is that I haven’t paid attention to the specific details of the kanji characters I’ve been studying. Several of the test questions have tiny extra (or missing) brush strokes. It’s like those “which picture is different” games you saw in the Highlights magazine as a child, except there is only one right answer and you must already know it ahead of time.

Listening is tough because I’m also realizing that my question-related vocabulary, such as “which person” or “which one” or “which place” is not as firmly cemented in my mind as I had previously thought.

I’m going to do my best, and I hope the rest of you who are language learners will do so too!