When learning a language there are predominantly two aspects to hone while studying, vocabulary and grammar. While vocabulary is much more akin to a plug and play methodology, allowing you to pick one-for-one translations and throw them in to place (less so in Japanese but essentially still a simple concept), grammar is a different kettle of fish. Grammar rules range from simple conjugations all the way to more advanced comparisons and manners of phrase. The applications of grammar are also infinitely more useful and important for good and comprehensive conversations. The downside is that the ways of learning it are much more strenuous…
I practice grammar on a daily basis and yet somehow I feel I know significantly less grammar than vocabulary. While this makes sense due to sheer volume, some of you may also feel the same. Vocabulary in many cases can feel like a crutch, “if I don’t get the meaning of the sentence I can just learn more words” and yet, even with more vocabulary the meanings are not instantly evident. In other cases, your knowledge of vocabulary can overcome your lack of knowledge in grammar and you can ascertain the meaning from context and other means, even if you’ve not mastered the grammar. The question is two-fold, “how do we build our grammar knowledge?” and “is grammar as vital as we might think?”.
For the first question I looked inwards (and backwards) to how I was taught English grammar in my youth. The funny thing is I can remember very little of it, was that down to the lessons being non-existent or me getting old and forgetful? I like to think that I was quite studious and so I think it’s likely that grammar lessons were few and far between. Even when I think in English I find it very difficult to isolate what grammar is being used, I could even say that my technical knowledge of Japanese far surpasses my English grammar knowledge even though it’s my native tongue. It may be different in other languages (possibly because English is so chaotic) but we never really learnt to approach grammar in the same way as I’ve seen for other languages. As an example, every resource I’ve found for Japanese categorizes and lists grammar points by their ease and application, so you can pin point your level of comprehension. Ask me to do the same in my native tongue and I’m stumped. And yet while it’s handy that Japanese can be broken down in this way it may not be overly necessary.
I was (and still am) overachieving and massively nerdy. I also love reading and writing so you can imagine my use of English is at least somewhat reasonable (at least I hope so…). The major difference that I’ve seen come out of this thought process is that these numerous hours of reading generate more of a “correct feeling” about grammar rather than an exact understanding. You’ve likely experienced this too. Someone may say something that just sounds off and yet you cannot put your finger on it. The likelihood is that all of the vocabulary was correct but the structure, and by default, underlying grammar, of the sentence was not as you would expect it. An argument could be made that this could also relate to pronunciation but that almost strengthens the argument. If you went out of your way to read the pronunciations of all words correctly through wrote dictionary learning you’d probably slip on a few, but if you heard them spoken correctly in natural conversation they would stick over time. The conclusion I make from this is… read lots. It’s annoyingly simple but it’s true. If you really need to verify a grammar point then it is fine to look it up in more detail or find defined texts for it specifically, but it is just as okay to simply experience the language en masse too.
For the second question I would say “yes”, grammar is vital. Conversations and understandings would not be the same without it. Your focus shouldn’t be entirely on vocabulary alone and instead should be an even balance of the two. This will be the strongest way to progress, it’s just the manner in which you acquire that grammar that might need reassessing. This also ties in to how I teach as a person. I will say from the outset that I am not a fantastic teacher in my own opinion. My strength is that I am fuelled by motivation rather than raw natural talent. When I am teaching, I tend to block my lessons out by grammar points, which is entirely counter to my above argument, however it is difficult and almost unwieldly to try to base a lesson of any sort of length solely on vocabulary. Vocabulary is an item to be learnt in your own time at your own pace and, in much the same way as my points on grammar above, can be effectively learnt through reading and listening to as much as possible.
I guess what I’m trying to say in this roundabout ramble is that you don’t need to be able to specify every aspect of grammar. Unless you are looking to get a degree in Japanese or a scholarship (or probably if you intend teach Japanese at some point), you’ll never be required to itemize names and structures of grammar points. Learn it in a natural way and look deeper only if it absolutely necessary. Don’t bog yourself down with technical terms and take in enjoyable content as frequently as you find comfortable. The grammar (and the vocabulary) will come with time and before you know it your brain will be attuned to recognising correct and usable grammar, even if you don’t have the possibly redundant knowledge to know it’s “a contraction of a conjunctive volitional form!”.
Games & Kanji 