6 minute read
Studying Language on “SNS
Ever found yourself staring at the trending topics on Twitter and not knowing what’s going on at all? (What could #としまえん even be about?)* Have you ever thought there’s no use using Facebook while you’re in Japan? (Nobody in the country uses it, right?) With a few tweaks to how you absorb information on the SNS you frequent, you can keep up with the Joneses and pick up a few words on the way. Jo Dennis (Kumamoto)
Follow accounts in your target language My best advice is to follow accounts related to things you already like doing, in the language you want to learn. The information that you seek is usually hidden behind a few minutes of looking up translations. Or, if you want to dedicate yourself to some more serious study, set up a block of time for reviewing grammar forms that appear in the post.
I’ll lay out my recommendations for how to do this on Twitter and Facebook below, but this can apply to any social media you use. Similarly, this works for any language you’re planning on studying, not just Japanese!
Twitter With posts that are short and sweet, Twitter is one of the best places for learning a little bit every day. Twitter is also one of the most popular apps in Japan, so there will be no lack of content to sift through.
Follow any account that posts about your hobbies or interests in Japanese. Search for keywords such as サッカー (soccer), 編み物 (knitting), etc. and follow the accounts that pop up in the results. Follow any and every account at first. If it ends up being too much, feel free to sparse it down later on. I personally started my Japanese language learning quest by following Japanese Twitter accounts that covered video game news (shoutout to @famitsu). You’ll be able to read about things you want to know about, but in small enough chunks that you don't get demotivated.
But as the English language posts and Japanese language posts jumble up in your feed, it becomes easy to skip the tweets that you can't read. It's your precious relaxation time—you opened Twitter to decompress, not study! To counteract this, I recommend dedicating the first five minutes on Twitter to reading the Japanese tweets you come across. Or, instead of a time limit, read and study the first ten tweets in Japanese that show up in your feed. Afterwards, you’re free to ignore any tweet you want.
If, like me, your Twitter usage has fried your attention span, I recommend making a point to economize on the tweets you read. For example, follow bots that repeat the same or similar phrases, or viral accounts
Some bots to follow: @wadainotweetRT Retweets the most relevant trending tweets. The topics covered run the gamut, with the account retweeting politicians to the most absurd manga panels.
@limitedboard Similar to the account above. Seems more inclined to retweet cat videos though. Occasionally overlaps with what @ wadainotweetRT covers, but that means more exposure! I see you scrolling! Read the tweets twice for good measure.
Celebrity Accounts: @55_kumamon If you follow this account, Kumamoto’s favorite mascot, Kumamon, will give you a nice おはくま and おやくま (good morning and good night respectively, but with bear puns!) every day. Kumamon has been traveling around the world recently, so this is the best place to keep up with their travels!
@hanae0626 Hanae Natsuki, famed voice actor in anime like Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans, Food Wars!, and Samurai Flamenco. Loves sharing pics of his cat. Has also been uploading to his gaming channel recently. (Some of his videos have subtitles if you really need a break!)
@lotusjuice Rapper and musician known for his work on the soundtrack of Persona 3. Sometimes posts in English, sometimes posts in Japanese. Has a gaming channel as well.
Accounts I follow for Eikaiwa (English cram school) ideas: @OdenEnglish This twitter is connected to their long-form blog, where they really flesh out the topic. For instance, the difference between lay and lie was recently featured. When I get difficult questions about how or why English grammar is the way that it is, I usually bring up this page.
@KoalaEnglish180 Their charts are extremely handy, with a cute koala motif to boot! Learners of all ages will appreciate their clear design and how they cover common mix-ups of English learners that are native in Japanese, and vice versa.
Facebook While regarded as the app forgotten by Japan in favor of LINE, Facebook hosts many pages dedicated to social figures, organizations, and events within the country. Your best bet on Facebook is to follow professional organizations dedicated to cultural exchange between Japan and the world. International associations, tourism pages managed by CIRs, multilingual newsletters, and other community based pages can expose you to more day-to-day vocabulary and writing style.
Other than that, many online Japanese language teachers host their material here, including pages by the Nihongonomori group, Sanbon Juku’s Akkie-sensei, and even a recently formed JET-exclusive Japanese language learning group.
Pages Types of pages likely to have bilingual (EnglishJapanese) posts: International AssociationsExample: 1.Ashikita Town International Association 国際交 流協会 2.Japan Foundations, Sister Cities, Japan Societies Example: Japan-America Society of Washington DC
FB pages dedicated to Japanese language learning: 1.Nihongonomori 2.Sambon Juku 3.JET-Exclusive Language Exchange!!!
Changing the App’s Language A further step in your SNS language learning quest can be to change the language of the app itself. With this forbidden knowledge you can bump up your motivation to post in your target language as well. Just be sure to know how to switch it back, if absolutely needed! (Access 設 定, and click on 言語)
One of the most interesting things I found out while turning my entire phone’s language to Japanese was that many apps use the same word in Japanese for “post” and “posts”: 投稿. You can upload content yourself by clicking on 投稿, and you can see an account’s posts by clicking on 投稿. This can vary, with Facebook displaying 作成 in the uppermost blue bar where you would create a new page or group. But both words appear in the “What are you doing?” box, as 投稿を作成.
You might also be surprised at just how many things are communicated through katakana. On Twitter, to tweet is simply ツイートする. To get back to your main feed on Facebook, click on ホーム. The trends page on Twitter is just おすすめトレンド. I’m not sure if this is a characteristic of SNS platforms made outside Japan or not, but it seems to be working for Twitter.
In the end, the least following some accounts can do is expose you to the language. With some time and effort put into learning something you want to know, you can build up your vocabulary related to the topics close to you.
Happy studying!
*The hashtag #としまえん trended on Twitter after Toshimaen, a long-standing amusement park on the western side of Tokyo, announced that it would close.
Jo Dennis is a CIR in Kumamoto Prefecture. Originally from Virginia, USA. Spends all their time in Book Off, Hard Off, Home Off, Mode Off, etc. when not trying to budget for a Nintendo Switch.
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