Teacher in Charge: Ms R. Sugiyama.
Recommended Prior LearningRecommended Prior Learning
You do not need to have taken Japanese before to enter and achieve Scholarship, but it could be advantageous. A curious mind and the desire to read and listen widely based on Japanese people’s life, tradition, economy, modern culture and current issues in Japanese would be beneficial to potential candidates.
Course description
Japanese Scholarship is an exciting opportunity to broaden your understanding of the language and the culture, and how they influenced our lives in NZ and globally today. By doing Japanese Scholarship, you are engaging in critical thinking, detailed analysis, and synthesis of complex material that allows you to make informed judgments about the language and culture. These skills are transferable in all facets of further education and the workforce. By taking a Japanese Scholarship, you are not only learning about the language and the culture, you are also preparing yourself for a future career.
The scholarship course would take place outside of normal class time to be determined by the staff and students involved. Students need to attend regularly in order to reap the benefits of the preparation programme as well as making sure they are doing the extended learning for the theme provided.
The Japanese Scholarship exam for 2023 is on Tuesday 28 November at 9.30am.
Format of the assessment
Resources or information supplied
a question-and-answer booklet for each candidate
an audio file of the Listening passage(s)
a laminated 'Speaking Task' card.
The school will provide a device and software on which to play the Listening passage(s), and to record the candidate’s spoken response.
Format of the assessment
The exam consists of TWO parts, held in a three-hour time slot:
first, a two-hour Writing section with two questions in response to spoken and written stimulus material in Japanese
second, a short individual Speaking section, scheduled within a one-hour time slot, with one question in Japanese and English.
SECTION ONE: Writing (two hours)
Question One
This question will require a response written in Japanese, to passage(s) spoken in Japanese, and provided as an audio file.
The Listening passages(s) will:
require approximately 30 minutes listening time
be repeated 3 times: the first time as a whole, the second and third times in sections, with a pause after each section
consist of no more than 3 passages
be linked around a common theme.
Question Two
This question will require a response written in English or te reo Māori, to stimulus material written in Japanese, provided in the question-and-answer booklet.
The written stimulus material will:
consist of no more than 3 texts
be linked around a common theme.
SECTION TWO: Speaking (individual sessions within a one-hour time slot)
Question Three
Candidates will be required to give a spoken response of 3–4 minutes to a question related to the listening passage(s) and/or the written text(s). The question will be in Japanese and English, and the response will be in Japanese.
In the recording room, candidates will be given:
a straightforward question
paper and pen
10 minutes to make notes for an oral response to the question.
At the end of 10 minutes, candidates will speak for 3–4 minutes, in Japanese, in response to the question. Candidates may use their notes as they speak.
Information for candidates (PDF, 28KB)
Submission instructions
Submission instructions for NZ Scholarship Languages (Japanese) will be available to schools in Term 3.
Courses will only run based on minimum entries
Selecting a course does not guarantee entry into this course
You may apply for an exemption if you do not meet the prerequisites of a course or if the course requires this for entry
Standards offered can be altered at the discretion of the HOF or HOD of the Department
Some standards in NCEA courses might be optional depending on student strengths