Goal and Global Context
My goal was to learn Japanese to an intermediate level, thereby increasing my skill set and gaining an understanding of a culture vastly different to mine. Over the course of the personal project I was to learn intermediate Japanese side-by-side with a qualified Japanese teacher (and by myself) who taught me subjects such as; expressions, how to be respectful, and what is polite and impolite in the world of Japan. As a result of my efforts, I created a beginner-to-intermediate Japanese textbook that showcases my new abilities as well as helps students aged 14-19 in the learning-process (by including features such as customisation and personalization).
Whilst learning Japanese I had discovered that the textbooks I was using were targeted towards adults, and so covered material that was not beneficial. This decreased my level of motivation to study as well as the efficiency rate at which I was learning, which hindered progress. This created stress, which added on to pressure brought on by other school assignments. My goal was to create a textbook targeted towards high school students that focused on efficiency, organization and easy-to-understand topics to minimize stress and create a relaxed Japanese learning experience for students my age. The content covered would be useful and simplified for efficiency, pre-organized lessons and units as well as a customizable tracker are available for a stress-free education for students. This was a very challenging goal as it required much time and effort to create innovative lessons and organized units. However, as it increasingly became difficult I found myself having fun at the challenge and feeling achievement when I understood something new. I started enjoying learning and studying towards something special. In a sense, this project gave me a new sense of purpose, and a goal to strive towards.
(These are 3 design ideas that led to creating the final cover design (3rd image))
Whilst learning Japanese I had discovered that the textbooks I was using were targeted towards adults, and so covered material that was not beneficial. This decreased my level of motivation to study as well as the efficiency rate at which I was learning, which hindered progress. This created stress, which added on to pressure brought on by other school assignments. My goal was to create a textbook targeted towards high school students that focused on efficiency, organization and easy-to-understand topics to minimize stress and create a relaxed Japanese learning experience for students my age. The content covered would be useful and simplified for efficiency, pre-organized lessons and units as well as a customizable tracker are available for a stress-free education for students. This was a very challenging goal as it required much time and effort to create innovative lessons and organized units. However, as it increasingly became difficult I found myself having fun at the challenge and feeling achievement when I understood something new. I started enjoying learning and studying towards something special. In a sense, this project gave me a new sense of purpose, and a goal to strive towards.
(These are 3 design ideas that led to creating the final cover design (3rd image))