Japanese Beginners 2021 HSC exam pack

In 2021, due to COVID-19, the HSC examinations for some courses were cancelled or the requirements adjusted, and no HSC feedback is available.

Please refer to marking feedback previously published for this component.

Listening and Responding

Students should:

• read each question carefully
• make notes in the Candidate’s Notes column on the right-hand side of the page
• transcribe their response on to the lines, using the space provided for each question
• use the lines provided as a guide to the length of the response required
• ensure their responses are clear and address all parts of the question
• use their own words and respond in English
• avoid translating text as part of their response.

In better responses, students were able to:

• identify and understand structures such as being able to do something, verb koto ga dekimasu, or if you do something then you will be able to -tara, verb koto ga dekimasu
• justify their answers clearly giving enough detail to support their answer
• identify a specific, correct piece of information from the surrounding text, for example, do a drawing class (Q5) or able to buy/have a dog (Q3)
• understand plain form morau + koto ga dekimasu – able to get/receive a free yukata
• demonstrate their understanding of why the specific change of transport would take place through providing a range of reasons (Q8)
• understand the connection between the Christmas present and the resolution of the problem (Q8)
• apply their knowledge of Japanese vocabulary to various means of transportation and distinguish between words which sound similar in Japanese, such as, train and bicycle (Q8)
• organise their thoughts in a logical way and provide several examples to support their response (Q9)
• distinguish between words that have a similar sound, such as, pet and bed
• clearly identify the attitudes demonstrated by each speaker’s actions (Q10) and provide an effective comparison, for example, determined, uncertain, persistent, unmotivated (Q10)
• understand clearly which plans belonged to which person (Q10)
• understand what actions had already been taken and which were planned for the future (Q10)
• make effective use of the dictionary to research vocabulary, for example, kashu (singer) rather than guessing the meaning (Q10).

Areas for students to improve include:

• revising vocabulary  ‘next week/next month/next year’
• understanding relative clauses and nominalisation, for example, e wo kaku kurasu (Q 5)
• learning structures, for example, koto ga dekimasu and the verb tara
• practising understanding and spelling of katakana words such as sports (rugby (Q 7)) and the name Kim (Q 1)
• practising numbers, for example, the prices of the expensive and cheap kimono (Q6)
• listening to the whole item carefully and not assuming the answer is at the beginning of the text
• relating their answers back to the question instead of translating information from the text
• understanding the connections between key words in the text and not jumping to conclusions (Q8-10)
• carefully considering the question and ensuring responses clearly address the key words, for example, benefits, what will happen or (Q8-10)
• ensuring they have developed effective dictionary skills in case an unfamiliar word is needed rather than guessing (Q8-10).

Reading and Responding

Students should:

• read the whole text(s)
• address all parts of each question
• use the lines, table, chart allocated for the response
• provide all necessary details to respond to the question fully
• support their responses with evidence from the text where required
• use their own words rather than giving a literal translation

In better responses, students were able to:

• create a response for ‘comparing’ which is a sustained comparison, looking at aspects one at a time (Q12b)
• give direct comparisons between different aspects, for example, food v food
• differentiate between kirei meaning tidy/clean and not just pretty
• translate vocabulary accurately and not make careless mistakes, for example, confusing open and closed
• effectively summarise the main points in the text, rather than just translate the whole text (Q14)
• include an evaluative comment, not just paraphrase the main points in the text (Q15)
• understand relative clauses (Q14)
• understand the past tense in a sentence to identify the intended audience (Q14)
• engage with the article text type and understand that it was written in third person.
• use their dictionary appropriately to find the correct meaning of the word(s) in context.

Areas for students to improve include:

• being able to recognise adjectives in all their forms including past negative   
• learning to identify the subject of a sentence
• learning the conditional ‘if’
• giving specific details from the text, not just making general comments with no supporting evidence
• paying careful attention to joining words and structures for before and after
• learning how to properly answer comparison questions without just listing information
• learning to answer ‘to what extent’ questions properly
• understanding how to summarise (Q14)
• correctly translating katakana words (Q14)
• reading for detail, rather than just picking up isolated words and making assumptions (Q15)
• avoiding quotes in Japanese as part of their response.

Writing in Language

Students should:

• write to the word length required
• address the audience, purpose and context required by the question
• apply the conventions of the type of text indicated in the question
• use the correct register throughout the response
• use a range of tenses, sentence structures and a variety of vocabulary
• avoid repeating the same expressions throughout the response
• use the dictionary carefully to access vocabulary and expressions that are meaningful in the context of their response
• avoid listing
• edit their work.

In better responses, students were able to:

• include conventions of a note name + e and sign off as a sender name + yori (Q16) and appropriately address a host mother hosuto no okaasan e / okaasan e (Q17)
• write using consistent plain form to meet the context of writing to a close friend (Q16)
• effectively structure their writing using conjunctions such as demo, sorekara, dakara
• link their ideas using sono + noun
• structure their ideas to fit within the context of the question
• write using the past tense correctly (Q17)
• use a wide range of sophisticated grammar structures and vocabulary accurately.

Areas for students to improve include:

• understanding how to conjugate the plain negative form (Q16)
• understanding how to conjugate the past tense (Q17)
• structuring ideas succinctly and allowing senior structures to be included in their writing (Q16)
• writing to demonstrate their understanding of the question, for example, writing about a recent family event such as a wedding, family gathering or a birthday party (going to Japan and talking about studying Japanese is not a family event)
• writing consistently in the past tense to describe a recent event (Q17)
• editing their work to correct avoidable spelling errors
• using squared paper correctly
• using prescribed kanji in their writing.