+- kanji koohii FORUM (http://forum.koohii.com)
+-- Forum: Learning Japanese (http://forum.koohii.com/forum-4.html)
+--- Forum: JLPT, Jobs & College in Japan (http://forum.koohii.com/forum-12.html)
+--- Thread: Kanken Exam (/thread-250.html)
Kanken Exam - chamcham - 2006-11-02
I recently took the Kanji Nouryoku Kentei Shiken at a testing center in Hartsdale, NY.
It's a test for Japanese people to gauge their ability to read and write Kanji. I am not
Japanese, but the exam is becoming increasingly popular among foreigners.
Getting there was a bitch. The street name is REALLY confusing. The street is S. Central Ave, but when driving you'll only see signs for Central Park Ave. Furthermore, the address on the application is wrong. The application says 144 S. Central Ave, but the CORRECT address is 141 S. Central Ave.
The guy on the phone at the center can hardly speak any English. You can't rely on him to give you directions. He is a nice guy though.
Anyway, after finishing RTK 1 recently, I decided to take Level 8 of the Kanken exam. The logic behind it is that I should start at a lower level since I don't know most of their pronunciation. I was really lazy and hardly studied until the day before. I literally finished the 8 kyuu book in one day(I stay up all night and didn't sleep). I don't recommend doing this. But everything stuck in my head well enough that I was able to pass.
The exam itself was very comprehensive. You really need to study everything. It is the EXACT same format as the practice exam with the 8 kyuu book.
For a Heisig learners, these exams are a fantastic way to build vocabulary.
I would actually recommend getting the books from the level 10 (the lowest level) and work your way up.
The book divides the kanji into chunks of 6 characters. So you could theoretically, do I set of characters every day and finished each book in 1 month. As soon as the exam is over, the proctor gives you the answer key. So you'll immediately know how well you did.
If anyone, has any other questions about the exam, please post and I'll reply.
There are also test centers in Harrison, NY and Los Angeles.
Here are my study tips for the exam:
1)You don't have to memorize ALL of the pronunciations for EVERY character. Sometimes you'll notice that even though a Kanji has many pronunciation, only
one pronunciation is used in the example words. This basically clues you into the
fact that the other pronunciations are not used very often.
2)Sometimes you'll see the character for "takai" or "chu" next to a pronunciation, these are usually rare pronunications. Skip over them.
3)If the main pronunciation has the same pronunciation as the radical, just skip over the onyomi. This forces you to rely on the radical for guessing the onyomi when you see the word.
4)Go through ALL the example words and do ALL the exercises. What's great about the exercises is that they often test you on words from previous lessons. This repetition will help you to remember a lot of words.
Overall a good experience.
Will definitely take more exams in the future.
Kanken Exam - amthomas - 2007-01-11
Hey, sorry if I'm just a moron, but I can't quite figure out which book you're referring to. Which series of textbook did you use? Can you find a link on Amazon or something? Were the textbooks expensive? I haven't ever taken the Kanken, but I'm mid-way between JLPT 3 and 2, and I'd like to try taking the 5th level Kanken in May (the next time that I can register to take it in Japan, because I missed the deadline for the January test).
Any parts of the exam that were horrendously difficult? I'm basically lazy and using the exam as a motivator / guide to what I should be studying, but I'd still like to get some tips about the exam and how to go about studying for it.
Any help that you or anyone can give would be faboo!
-ang
Kanken Exam - synewave - 2007-01-11
Have a look at this thread for more discussion on the tests. Info on books is here.
Currently working my way through the lower grades just now.
Kanken Exam - JimmySeal - 2007-01-11
amazon.co.jp sells the books: http://www.amazon.co.jp/7%E7%B4%9A-%E6%BC%A2%E5%AD%97%E5%AD%A6%E7%BF%92%E3%82%B9%E3%83%86%E3%83%83%E3%83%97-%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E6%BC%A2%E5%AD%97%E6%95%99%E8%82%B2%E6%8C%AF%E8%88%88%E4%BC%9A/dp/4931237207/sr=8-7/qid=1168501616/ref=sr_1_7/250-6197036-0589801?ie=UTF8&s=books
Unless your kanji skills (readings and compounds included) blow away your reading and listening skills, you're gonna want to shoot for level 7, 8, or maybe even 9. This test is not to be underestimated.