Class structure
There will be only two levels of classes: Beginner and Intermediate.
Generally, beginner classes will consist of learning how to read ひらがなhiragana/カタカナkatakana, basic grammar, some vocabularies, and simple conversations.
Intermediate classes are for those who already have a certain level of Japanese speaking skills, and wish to polish their conversation and pronunciation. Classes will generally be held majority in Japanese, and it will be a free reign conversation class, revolving around different topics of the student's interests.
Pros and Cons of Mei's classes as compared to most institutions outside
- Smaller teacher to student ratio.
Having a smaller teacher to student ratio would definitely increase the student's learning progress greatly, as the attention and guidance will be much more concentrated on the student. In big group classes, the pacing of the class would usually either be too fast or too slow for some student's, and that tends to hinder their learning progress significantly.
- A more personal environment.
Due to the low teacher to student ratio, the teacher's young age, the lack of an organization between the teacher and the student, and the venue of the classes being the teacher's own home, the professional gap between the teacher and the student will be much smaller, and this should provide the student with a more comfortable environment to get friendly with the teacher ^^
- Learning practical Japanese.
In most language schools, what they teach will definitely have to be grammatically correct Japanese. However, most of these "grammatically correct" Japanese that are being taught, are not very commonly used in day to day conversations within Japan. For those who wish to learn Japanese in order to be able to converse with the natives one day, or watch and understand Japanese anime or movie without having to rely on subtitles, they will have to understand the "incorrect" Japanese that the natives themselves use, and that includes slangs, shortforms, memes, internet speak, and so on.
Usually these knowledge will not be taught in normal classes, and that is why most students who may be able to sit for the paper and pass with flying colors, may not necessarily find themselves to be able to hold a smooth conversation with the natives. This is where my classes will help those who wish to have the practical skill, rather than having the paper cert.
- No JLPT prep class
As I've mentioned above, I will be focusing more on practical Japanese rather than text book stuff, so my classes may not follow the standard syllabus most schools have out there. For beginner classes however, there will still be some basic foundation layed out first so there may still be a bit of textbook learning involved, but as far as my lessons go, they will not be very helpful for those who wish to prep for the JLPT exam.
Teacher's profile
I am a half Japanese half Chinese who was born in Japan and raised in Singapore by a Chinese family. My Japanese was actually mostly self taught, as I have not been living with my Japanese parent since young. I started learning Japanese around the age of 17, and got a N2 cert in 2012, worked in a two Japanese companies before for about a year, and have been a free-lance translator on and off. Also, previously was an English tutor to Japanese students for a couple of years, and have been an online streamer/broadcaster on a Japanese website/community for over 4 years.
Schedule
The schedule for classes are flexible timing. Because I am currently a college student persuing a degree, my free hours are pretty irregular. There is also no set time table or lesson plan to follow, as the pacing of lessons are all up to the students' preferences. Students can chose to have lessons as frequent as twice or thrice a week, to as little as once a month (which I would most absolutely not recommend, as it would not be very efficient, but to each their own commitments).
Duration of each class is recommended to be between 2 to 3 hours per lesson.
Tuition Fees
- Beginner classes:
- One on one - S$50/hr
- Two on one - S$35/hr
- Three on one - S$30/hr
- Four on one - S$25/hr
- Intermediate classes:
- One on one - S$60/hr
- Two on one - S$45/hr
Payment
Payment is either in cash, or bank transfer, and payment is to be done in advance, in the beginning of each month, latest by the day before the first lesson of the month.
Venue
Lessons will be held at the teacher's place, which is located in Ang Mo Kio.
For those who do not wish to travel to AMK or are unable to (e.g. you are overseas), online lessons are an alternative, and those will be held over Skype. Those who wish for such arrangements may make the request, and I shall make preparation and arrangement. Tuition fees for online lessons will be charged at a 20% discount from the normal classes.
Contact
Line: meixperiaz1 (preferred medium)
Mobile/whatsapp: 9697 4658
Skype: mei_niconama
For those who have an interest in finding out more, feel free to leave me a message or give me a call (I may not be free to pick up at times, so leave me a message to call back and I'll call back when I'm free).
For those who already have a keen interest in taking up my classes, drop me a message to arrange a date and time to meet up, and we shall discuss your goals (purpose for learning), the lesson plan, payment, and schedules.
