Beginning Japanese for Professionals: Book 1 - Open Textbook Library (2023)

Reviewed by Ayami Makino, Instructor, James Madison University on 5/24/20

Comprehensivenessrating:4see less

The text can be used for self-study, online or in-class course. The pedagogical focus is on oral communication, and the text provides comprehensive topics to teach students the practical language skills to successfully interact with Japanese speakers in a workplace.
Table of contents is complete and 'Before We Begin' section provides helpful information about the structure of lessons. Although glossary is not included in this edition, instructors can easily adapt this text to create their own. No index.

Content Accuracyrating:5

Culturally important expressions are included and explained, allowing for further lessons and learning on cultural and pragmatic expressions.

Relevance/Longevityrating:5

Contents are timeless and practical. Learners can continue to advance in levels as the authors provide Book 1, 2 and 3.

Clarityrating:4

The text is easy to navigate.
It includes 10 lessons, each lesson consisting;
-Drills and Exercises (mechanical drills, translation activity, role play)
-Dialogue
-Vocabulary
-Grammar Notes
-Grammar Review (self assessment)

Although the textbook does not indicate where and how to access the audio file, it is available through the University's page.

Consistencyrating:5

The version include only a few minor errors such as missing letters and furigana.

Modularityrating:5

The lessons are not overwhelming. It does not include much visual aids and can be supported with other sources to create more comprehensive lessons.

Organization/Structure/Flowrating:5

Well organized, and the order of the lessons are logical. Each lesson follows the same structure as stated above.

Interfacerating:5

The version has a minor issue of alignment of text.

Grammatical Errorsrating:5

no grammatical errors

Cultural Relevancerating:5

The text includes cultural expressions and phrases that are often seen and heard in real life settings.

The textbook provides enough information and structure to elaborate further. With supplemental sources, this will be a great book to use to teach/learn practical Japanese skills for adult learners seeking to work in Japan.

Reviewed by Carol Esaki Brunson, affiliate, Metropolitan State University of Denver on 3/4/20

Comprehensivenessrating:5see less

I thought it covered the necessary topics very well.

Content Accuracyrating:4

typo
spelling "stare"

Relevance/Longevityrating:5

The information is relevant and could be easily updated.

Clarityrating:5

Very simple and clear explanations.

Consistencyrating:5

Good.

Modularityrating:5

Easy to read. Some better spacing could help in certain areas.

Organization/Structure/Flowrating:5

I like the general organization of the chapter presentation. It was easy to follow.

Interfacerating:5

In the Cue/Response section, two columns were created for the English and Japanese. However, the English would run into the Japanese column probably because of the page setup. See page 40.

Grammatical Errorsrating:4

I found the listing of double adjectives inconsistent with teaching the -te form.

Cultural Relevancerating:5

Good.

I think that if this book is retyped for better spacing and with better fonts, it'd be great to use as a textbook or as a supplement to other classes. I am ambivalent as to introducing the verb forms first or the copula form first.
Also, would it be more advantageous to having a glossary? I would like to create a glossary that separates nouns, adjectives, -na adjectives, adverbs and verbs. In addition, I'd do a glossary of general expressions and one for etiquette, maybe a separate book for all volumes.
I am looking forward to using the exercises for role playing in class.

Reviewed by Susan Tanabe, Adjunct/Part time Instructor of Japanese, Chemeketa Community College on 5/23/19

Comprehensivenessrating:5see less

Topics ("Can Do" points) are part of the introduction. Lessons are arranged by practical theme. Each dialogue, drill, excercise, and vocabulary list aligns cultural linguistics and grammatical points with the theme of the lesson.

Content Accuracyrating:5

Steps are taken to include Mr. and Ms. equally/simultaneously. There is no mention of stereotypical actions, occupations, or behaviours for gender, national, or other identity.

Relevance/Longevityrating:5

This text is limited to slightly formal, proper Japanese, appropriate for those visiting Japan for work rather than tourism, and as such does not include slang or teen language. This does ensure it will remain relevant for many years.

Clarityrating:5

Great effort is taken to explain each grammar point, verb conjugation, cultural observation, and vocabulary option. Examples are plentiful and clear.

Consistencyrating:5

The Table of Contents is detailed and informative. Each lesson (0-4) is patterned in similar and consistent manner.

Modularityrating:4

As this is a language text it is sequential, therefore does need to be used in a sequential manner. Still, within each lesson and on each page it is visually clear, divided into sections, and does not use "enormous blocks of text". Subheadings are numerous and helpful.

Organization/Structure/Flowrating:5

Themes are logical and chronologically reasonable for individuals visiting Japan; Greetings, Introductions, Common Expressions, then events such as meeting new people, becoming familiar with one's work (school), neighborhood, etc., and working in cooperation with others. At each junction cultural notes are given to ensure the learner will communicate in a culturally appropriate and comprehensible manner.

Interfacerating:5

Visual and linguistic clarity is consistent throughout the Introduction and each ensuing Lesson, 0-4. Very few images are included, however those are undistorted and easily understood.

Grammatical Errorsrating:5

As a language text, grammar is a major thread through each lesson of language study. All points are carefully stated.

Cultural Relevancerating:4

Though this text is in no way offensive, thoughtless, racist, or indicative of stereotyping, it has virtually no non-textual images or pictures, and no photographs of people. There is some effort made to represent gender and age diversity.

As one with a background in Art and one who tends to be a visual learner, at first glance I felt the absence of images was a concern. Still, as an educator I have used many texts with dated images, and realize the lack of images here allows the instructor to choose images (and cultural enrichmenta) with which to enrich the text. This is an exciting opportunity and I would look forward to doing so.