Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore   

Learn Japanese, Chinese at home

By K. Satyamurty

Bangalore July 4. The Chinese are coming and the Japanese are already here. Those who have had business dealings with them know how important it is to know their language for a successful relationship. Making this possible is S. Madhumitha, perhaps the only trained linguist in Bangalore with equal proficiency in Chinese and Japanese. The best thing about her Karthick's Foreign Language Centre (ph 5325721/5325724/5325800) is that you do not have to attend classes to learn the language; her distance learning modules enable you to learn right at your office desk or at home. Ms. Madhumita, a law graduate who has worked for the Straits Times and the broadcasting corporation in Singapore, also trained as a linguist there.

"Distance learning has been in existence for some time now, and with the development of Internet and electronic communication media, it has started to realise its potential,'' Ms. Madhumitha says.

Especially in learning languages, it has become a dynamic and interesting learning experience because participants can reflect on what they are learning while they are working with and perhaps, living in the society about which they are studying.

Her programme is designed to take care of basic conversations in Japanese/Chinese and also written Japanese. "While the Japanese script has become westernised and standardised, there are many variations and too many characters in Chinese,'' she explains. The aim is to help a language student develop language skills, and at the same time, deepen their understanding of Japanese or Chinese society.

By the end of the fourth level of study, many students will be able to read any straightforward Japanese text with the help of a dictionary and carry on conversation on a range of topics in formal or informal Japanese/Chinese in typical work and social situations.

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