Jolana wanted credits for her Japanese language courses

Jolana is a 16-year-old upper secondary school student from the Helsinki region. She completed two continuation courses in Japanese at Helsingin aikuisopisto and wanted credits recorded for them. We asked Jolana what interested her about studying Japanese and the opportunity to earn credits.

Why did you choose a Japanese language course?
“I chose Japanese because it is an interesting language and the characters are different from all the other languages I know. Studying a different kind of language is a good challenge for the brain.”

Why did you want credits recorded for the courses?
“I wanted credits for the two Japanese courses I completed because I could have them recognised at my upper secondary school. I received a total of three credits for the two courses. For comparison, completing one upper secondary school course usually gives you two credits.”

What did you think of studying on the courses at Helsingin aikuisopisto?
“The pace was good, there was enough content and the courses were challenging enough. The group size was right, so the teacher had time to give feedback to everyone. The teacher was also able to comment on everyone’s kanji characters, which encouraged us to practise them more.”

How do you plan to use your Japanese studies?
“Knowing the language will certainly be useful in the future. Japanese is not taught at my upper secondary school, so it was great that I could take evening courses at Helsingin aikuisopisto.”