JLPT 1 Results - and Pictures

It looks to become a yearly tradition, this: A year ago I took the JLPT 1, the Japanese proficiency exam, and failed it. This year I again took the JLPT 1 - and failed it.

A JLPT examinee in deep thoughts during the morning break between Vocabulary and Listening.

Failing it is fine by me, and I didn't expect otherwise. I had a vague idea that I'd start preparing for the JLPT a bit after last year, but I've since started a new job and a new project that's kept me rather busy. It's been a struggle just to keep to regular language lessons every two weeks; test preparation has been far from my mind.

A trio of fellow examinees, probably from India (check the bag on the left if you need convincing), taking the test somewhat more seriously than I did.

So how did I do? 196 points out of 400, or just about half. And all three parts - kanji and vocab, listening, and reading and grammar - individually reached the halfway mark too. If we do the (overly simplified, not-to-be-relied on) analysis I did last year, I "knew" 128 points worth of questions this year compared to 93 a year ago¹. The improvement (if there actually was any) was completely in the reading section; that would make sense as most of my limited study time this year has been spent reading.

Next year I'm going to take the test for real. Not pass it, perhaps, but at least make a serious attempt. I'm going to ignore the listening, as I already listen to Japanese all day, every day, after all. I've begun reviewing the vocabulary and kanji². My regular book habit on the train every morning should cover the reading. Soon I'll start going through the grammar as well; not a prospect that fills me with unalloyed joy, exactly, but there's no helping it I guess.

I don't have the time to really go through everything by December, but I should be able to get within shouting distance of a passing score. The big question for next year is the new test format. The JLPT is changing, with a new intermediate level and the new level 1 is reportedly going to be slightly more difficult. There's also rumours that the new test will require a passing score on each of the subsections, not just an overall pass. If that is true then it's a welcome change, but it would also make the test substantially harder. We'll see, I guess.

Practice makes perfect. A baseball team at Osaka International University, where the test was held this year.

Kayashima station, near the test site, is pretty cool. The line and platform is elevated, and there's a large tree growing right through the platform and up through the roof above. I like this area for this reason alone

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#1 This is accurate only if you assume that I guessed exactly 1/4 of the unknown answers correctly. If we wanted to know if I really improved, we would need to take the expected random variation of answers into account and see if this improvement is likely to be due just to chance or not. That starts looking uncomfortably like work, however, so I happily leave it as an exercise for those who are interested.

#2 On the off chance that you intend to take any of the lower levels (n5 to n3) of the JLPT this year, here's a tip: when you study the kanji, take the time to memorize all the normal readings and meanings, not just the ones you need for your test level. You will thank yourself when you study for level 1 a couple of years down the road.

But you'll also find it immediately useful once you start reading real texts. They don't restrict themselves to the readings you learn for the JLPT, and there's few things as annoying as when you know the character but still have to stop and look up the reading. If you know the full range of readings it becomes much easier to start a reading habit and to pick up new vocabulary.