Test Results

A boring post with a suggestive title...

In December, I took a test called the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (日本語能力試験). It is, from what I understand, one of the older (oldest?) proficiency tests for foreigners who wish to measure their grasp of Japanese, so its clout tends to come mostly from its longer existence (I hear there are other tests, more capable of measuring a students ability at things such as writing and speaking). Anyway, ...

I took Level 2, which is summed up as "mastering grammar of a somewhat high level, knowing 1,000 kanji, 6,000 words, able to discuss and read about things of a general nature, and being pretty awesome." (parts of this description might not actually be accurate).

I passed. Out of 400 points, I didn't get 400 points. There is definitely room for improvement, especially as the test really doesn't measure speaking or writing ability (writing is the worst for me, because I don't do much for it). Out of the three parts of the test, listening was best. I guess all those hours of Japanese music, podcasts, movies, TV and conversations with my students are paying off!