i decided to go ahead and post this since i haven't seen it on here yet... khatz is on some youtube videos explaining the AJATT method:

1)

2)

3)

It's cool to actually see Khatzu talk about his method. Unfortunately the dude filming him can't stop saying "*****," which not only gets annoying but limits the potential audience for the videos.

I never read the site so much but watching him talk about it really makes it sound believable. Thanks for the post.

I'll give it a go~

His setup is badass.

This video shows exactly why AJATT is bad. There is this annoyingly distracting Dragon Ball Z playing and Khatzumoto is so used to having constant noise in the background that he doesn't even realize it's there and it's ruining the video. ;P

Man, that guy just can't help being inspirational. If only the other one had talked a little less...

Codexus Wrote:This video shows exactly why AJATT is bad. There is this annoyingly distracting Dragon Ball Z playing and Khatzumoto is so used to having constant noise in the background that he doesn't even realize it's there and it's ruining the video. ;P

You can see it the other way around: it ruins the video for you, but it doesn't distract Khatz. It means you can get to a point in which doing those things is helpful WITHOUT being annoying. I think that's a point in favor of AJATT.

nac_est Wrote:It means you can get to a point in which doing those things is helpful WITHOUT being annoying.

Actually even if what I said was, off course, a joke, this is really a point where I disagree with AJATT. I think we learn mostly when we're actively listening. The brain can be quite good at ignoring superfluous data. Which is why I think that Japanese "most of the time" is good, but "all the time" is counterproductive. The breaks help you start listening with more attention again. But maybe that's not the same for everybody.

So where exactly is Khatz from? I always assumed he was American (since he studied in Utah), but he sounds more like he's from the UK.

Thanks for posting this. I actually like the interview much more than his website; Khatz appears to be much more modest in person, and there are definitely flashes of brilliance in what he is saying...

His setup is is worth a try.

Well, from an outsider, he sounds like an american.

I just saw the three 動画 and hey, it was cool to see him talking about it, but I'd like to hear him speaking some japanese!

mentat_kgs Wrote:Well, from an outsider, he sounds like an american.

I just saw the three 動画 and hey, it was cool to see him talking about it, but I'd like to hear him speaking some japanese!

No, his accent is not American - maybe I can guess where he is from, but I won't...
The interviewer is probably American (he could be Canadian...)

Sounds like an Afrikan/British accent to me.

Codexus Wrote:

nac_est Wrote:It means you can get to a point in which doing those things is helpful WITHOUT being annoying.

Actually even if what I said was, off course, a joke, this is really a point where I disagree with AJATT. I think we learn mostly when we're actively listening. The brain can be quite good at ignoring superfluous data. Which is why I think that Japanese "most of the time" is good, but "all the time" is counterproductive. The breaks help you start listening with more attention again. But maybe that's not the same for everybody.

What he had there was not really noise... for him. If you notice, he has a lot of monitors, which probably means he does a lot of multitasking. For other people that might be a bit more difficult.

I personally, prefer to do two things at a time. Any more or less and I, myself, feel like I'm just wasting time.

If Khatz himself can't keep his "all the time" motto, then how could we believe in him? While annoying, the anime in the background was inspirational in a way. It was also hilarious when the other guy asked him to turn it down, and he clicked it down barely 1 or 2 notches.

kazelee Wrote:Sounds like an Afrikan/British accent to me.

Yeah, I think he mentioned at one point that he went to boarding school or something.

Interesting video. The interviewer would not have been my first (or fiftieth) choice.

I agree that the loud immersion video in the background is a good thing. For those that browse the internet alot (like me) in English (like me ... grumble), if that TV or music is not loud, you will completely tune it out. Granted, for an interview, maybe it's best to turn it down.

To be honest, did not learn too much. Granted, I actually went through the bother of reading his site.

Heisig - So it's pronounced "HIGH SIG" and not "HAY SIG"?

We'll never know. I allways pronounced High Sig because it looks like it is german.

Somebody will have to visit Nanzen and ask him.

He grew up in England, I thought. Anyway, it's definitely an English accent, except for a couple of more American slips, and some African notes. He has long 'a' sounds and more schwa action, some of the most notable differences.

I'm thinking Khatz is from Kenya originally, with obviously a few stops along the way? I remember reading something about that on AJATT at some point.

I watched the 1st video and liked it. I didn't care for the "interviewer", but I think that is because I wasn't really interested in the interviewer's words, only Khatz's.

I think the audio playing in the background was quite notable and is one of the things that I struggle with in creating a total immersion atmosphere - the not wanting to have noise around me all of the time, or rather listening to a old rock CD instead of something in Japanese. I am working on it, but I definitely know it's something I need to improve

rochel Wrote:I think the audio playing in the background was quite notable and is one of the things that I struggle with in creating a total immersion atmosphere - the not wanting to have noise around me all of the time, or rather listening to a old rock CD instead of something in Japanese. I am working on it, but I definitely know it's something I need to improve

I used to have that problem. It's just something you get used to. I managed to get into the habit by just making it really easy on myself. I rared all my music and deleted the folder to resist the temptation and save space without getting rid of it entirely. After that I got tons of Japanese stuff that I liked and dumped it all into winamp and my iPod. That way it's really easy to just click the play button. The trick is to prep a lot so it's really easy to do beforehand so it's easier to do it when you don't feel like it.

Wow that was really intersting! Although I think a lot of what he said is on his site, but it was still cool to hear it straight from him.

I gotta say tho, I think even he was getting tired of whoever that guy interviewing him was. He made my ears bleed. But still check it out...

kazelee Wrote:Sounds like an Afrikan/British accent to me.

Codexus Wrote:

nac_est Wrote:It means you can get to a point in which doing those things is helpful WITHOUT being annoying.

Actually even if what I said was, off course, a joke, this is really a point where I disagree with AJATT. I think we learn mostly when we're actively listening. The brain can be quite good at ignoring superfluous data. Which is why I think that Japanese "most of the time" is good, but "all the time" is counterproductive. The breaks help you start listening with more attention again. But maybe that's not the same for everybody.

What he had there was not really noise... for him. If you notice, he has a lot of monitors, which probably means he does a lot of multitasking. For other people that might be a bit more difficult.

I personally, prefer to do two things at a time. Any more or less and I, myself, feel like I'm just wasting time.

I don't really think it means anything either way. For years I've needed white noise in the background to focus, my mind thinks too much and wanders unless I have something going in the background. Music usually isn't enough, usually I have to leave some kind of tv show on. It's probably the same type of thing.

I played it backwards and I could make out something about Cool-aid ...

I've been trying to keep things on in the background but it really does distract me. I can concentrate better without noise. Same with sleeping.. can't sleep if there's any noise.

A thing about the videos I don't really get. He says using textbooks you can't become fluent. If so then how come in the JLPT results pages there are people in every country passing JLPT1 every year? I'm sure they are more than likely using textbooks and most probably haven't ever heard of AJATT either.

I attempted just surrounding myself in Japanese and only reading Japanese even if it was above my level. I just didn't like it. I prefer structure and the feel of progression. Also, learning new grammar without seeing an explanation of the rules it follows just slows you down.. You can read it once and understand it rather than just trying to figure it out from context.

For example:
昨日図書館へ行ったら、先生に会いました。
昨日図書館へ行って、先生に会いました。

The first one has an underlying feeling that you didn't expect to see the teacher. The other doesn't. I wouldn't be able to guess that without doing a load of たら sentences in this context, which is a waste of time if you can just read the explanation when you first use it.

CaLeDee Wrote:A thing about the videos I don't really get. He says using textbooks you can't become fluent. If so then how come in the JLPT results pages there are people in every country passing JLPT1 every year? I'm sure they are more than likely using textbooks and most probably haven't ever heard of AJATT either.

He refers to fluency in Japanese, not JLPT mastery. He even wrote a long, rant-esque article about how JLPT is useless.

Still, I'd say there's definitely a use for textbooks, especially when you're just starting out. However, I don't think you'll ever become fluent using only textbooks.