BA (Hons) Japanese Studies Bachelor's degree at Oxford Brookes University

In this module, you'll gain a strong understanding of Japan and the Japanese language. You'll gain a broad knowledge of Japan's geography, history, language, working life, religion, arts and culture. You'll survey these topics from a variety of perspectives, and understand core themes and concepts. You'll highlight key areas for study, that you'll explore in greater depth in your upcoming modules.

In this module, you'll go from knowing almost no Japanese to developing an effective knowledge of the language. As a beginner or near-beginner, you'll gain good skills in speaking and writing, as well as reading and listening in the language. You'll gain unique skills for your future career as you work constructively in teams, meet deadlines effectively and use Japanese creatively and precisely for different audiences.

In this module, you'll gain a strong grasp of Japanese language skills. As someone with some knowledge of the Japanese language, you'll gain good skills in speaking and writing, as well as reading and listening in the language. You'll gain unique skills for your future career as you work constructively in teams, meet deadlines effectively and use Japanese creatively and precisely for different audiences.

In this module you will acquire reading and writing skills at the beginners' level. You will learn the Japanese writing system, especially focusing on developing a systematic knowledge of kanji as well as general reading and writing skills.

You will continue working on the reading and writing skills you acquired in Japanese Reading and Writing 1A. By the end of the year, you will be able to read and write 180 characters and recognise over 360 compounds using these characters.

In this module, you'll get to understand language and how to study it. You'll look at language as a system, and how we use it in different instances of communication. You'll understand language and its associated terms and definitions. You'll gain core linguistic skills as you explore linguistic analysis in: sound (phonetics and phonology) language as meaning (semantics) language as structure (syntax). You'll gain a strong grounding in these concepts by studying instances of written and spoken l

In this module, you'll use anthropological perspectives to make an in-depth investigation of contemporary life in Japan. You'll cover factors and topics that affect Japanese everyday life such as: child rearing education and early socialization households, marriage and kinship work and employment gender and sexuality religion and ritual immigration and diversity Japanese popular culture and the globalization of Japanese culture. This will give you a good base of knowledge for taking more advance

Immerse yourself in J-Pop and develop your Japanese grammar and usage skills. You'll explore the J-Pop music genre that originated in the early 1990s. You'll experience the look and sound of J-Pop, through video, live recordings and online content. You'll then use digital tools to look at the origins and meaning of J-Pop songs. Including artist and fan communities. While building a deep understanding of the history and culture of Japanese popular music

In this module, you'll go from strength to strength in your grasp of Japanese. You'll increase your repertoire of grammar and improve your speaking and writing, reaching an upper beginner's level. You'll gain key teamwork skills as you work with your peers to meet deadlines effectively, giving you a strong grounding for your future career.

Continuing on from Japanese 2A, you will strengthen your language skills, giving you the confidence and competencies essential to succeeding in your year abroad. You'll also explore the relationship between culture and language, and how some expressions and language use are underpinned by social and cultural values.

This module focuses on the Japanese writing system, especially focusing on developing kanji learning as well as general reading and writing skills. You will learn to write 180 new kanji, and to recognise 360 compounds using those kanji. In addition, you will work on developing your reading comprehension skills to prepare you for reading a variety of texts during their Year Abroad. You will also learn to write in various writing styles.

Continuing on from Reading and Writing 2A, you will learn to write an additional 170 new kanji, and to recognise 340 more compounds using those kanji. In addition, you will develop deeper reading comprehension skills to prepare you for reading a variety of texts during your Year Abroad. You will also continue to work with a variety of topics and writing styles.

In this module, you'll investigate Japanese popular culture through live-action cinema, manga (Japanese comics) and anime (Japanese animated films). You'll understand how these media have developed in Japan, how they are presented and received in Japanese culture and how they reflect social and cultural issues. You'll gain core analytical skills as you examine their narrative and stylistic themes, and what they can tell us about the social, political and cultural issues of late twentieth-century

In this module, you'll explore traditional Japanese arts. You'll learn to understand and appreciate the style and techniques of art forms such as: Ukiyo-e (wood-block prints and paintings) Haiku (famously brief poetic form) Kabuki (classical dance-drama) Ikebana (the art of flower arranging) You'll also gain core critical skills for work as you address key issues such as: the representation of gender and sexuality class issues religious and philosophical assumptions You'll gain a broad knowledge

You'll be able to focus in depth on a study area that you'll discuss with your supervisor. You'll exercise your research skills and carry out an independent academic project that will help you develop your critical reflection and academic writing skills.

In this module, you'll accelerate your success in your placement year, as you gain the skills you need to communicate effectively in Japanese. You'll gain key skills in presenting to an audience, as well as expressing your ideas to someone at an upper beginner's level.