UPDATE (March 23) — This class is online-only and will begin on March 30. Registration is required to participate.

Asia Society Texas Center is pleased to announce our new Japanese Language and Culture classes for adults wanting to learn the Japanese language through a beginner course.

In this two-part introductory course, learn the basics of Japanese language and culture. Study Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji, and learn the differences between the different writing systems. Learn greetings, introductions, grammar, and vocabulary. Enrich your language study by taking a dive into the culture to expand your appreciation and understanding of Japanese customs. Have fun and build a foundation for further study while developing valuable cross-cultural skills. No prior knowledge of Japanese language is required.

Materials for the course will be provided. In this second part, students continue their course of study to build on what they learned in Part I.

Course Dates

Mondays, March 30 – May 11, 2020
Time: 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Part I Course
Mondays, February 3 – March 16, 2020
Time: 6:30–8:30 p.m.

About the Instructor

Naoko Ozaki is currently the Japanese Language instructor at Rice University. She received her Ph.D. in Literacy, Culture, and Language Education from Indiana University Bloomington. Her doctoral research focused on issues regarding Arabic-speaking immigrants in the United States.

Prior to teaching at Rice University, she taught introductory, intermediate, and advanced levels of Japanese, mathematics, humanities, and foreign language teacher education at universities and a community college. Ozaki-sensee’s students learn not only the language structure but also the cultural background to enhance their ability to use the language they study in the class. In addition to teaching, she serves on the Board of Global Education Center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Major support for Education & Outreach programs at Asia Society Texas Center comes from Nancy C. Allen, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, and Mary Lawrence Porter, as well as The Brown Foundation, Inc., and The Houston Endowment. Additional funding also provided by the George and Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation, as well as through contributions from the Friends of Asia Society, a dedicated group of individuals committed to bringing exceptional programming and exhibitions to Asia Society Texas Center.