First Assessment of the Year- January 2021

My overall proficiency in Japanese is sadly low despite the experiences I have had in the past. It has been four years since I have had any actual practice learning and using any skills from class apart from catching words here and there and very basic speech through online gaming, and I have reverted, in my opinion, mostly to novice low to novice mid.

It might just be a matter of re-exposure, but I anticipate needing to start from the beginning in reading and writing. My strengths are definitely interpretive and based off of the first class of the year as a level four student, I believe the greatest barrier I will find in my practice (especially with presentational skills) is my lack of confidence and anxiety speaking in front of others. I can understand vocabulary that is dotted into speech and writing, but I find it hard to get the full picture without grammar and more vocabulary knowledge.

My goals for the semester are to strengthen my bases for reading and getting more confidence in speaking with people not close to myself. I tend to have less issues remembering or interpreting with context or familiarity, and that is what I would like to work on the most. Specifically, I want to be able to connect to others in a non-professional setting, because I believe that would be more helpful to my goals for the future, but I will do my best to become well rounded.