Reviews for JAPN201

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Etsuko Yamakita JAPN201 Expecting a B Raikou-Neko 12/14/2011	I really enjoy Yamakita-sensei's class. She's a personable teacher, but she does keep her home life a little more private than some of the other teachers. Her grading can be a little subjective at times (each quiz/test seems to have a random number of total points assigned to it, leading some of the students to believe it's possible to get a negative score). Especially the translations - things that mean exactly (or almost) the same thing in English are wrong if it's not the set formula that she taught. This occasionally leads to sentences that sound really awkward in English. A lot of students were complaining about her kanji quizzes, but I've never had a problem with them. The way she presents exams is also a little frustrating because she gives them to us in parts. So we must completely finish part A before we receive part B. This makes pacing impossible because if you're stuck on something difficult, it's not like you can come back to it. Therefore, most people make stupid mistakes on the translation and utilization sections. I put my grade expected as a B, but it might be an A because I'm literally right on the edge between the two. I think I have an 88 or an 89 right now, but based on my speech presentation, oral interview and final, it could go up. I'll be taking her course next semester as well.
Etsuko Yamakita JAPN201 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 01/14/2010	Good teacher, if you have a solid foundation in JAPN101 and 102. As someone who placed into 201 and didn't know the material that they covered, I struggled, especially since Yamakita does not take much time in reviewing. She's also very heavy on reading, writing, and grammar skills, and she does not take much time in practicing speaking/listening. However, those end up being large parts of the exams, so it's up to the student to study those parts independently.
Etsuko Yamakita JAPN201 Expecting an A pinklacepajamas 10/21/2007	Great professor who really knows how to teach Japanese. The workload is equivalent to that of a 6-credit class, but as long as you put the time into it, this class is not bad at all.