my last day of english

the placement exam wasn't terribly difficult, but it took over three hours to complete. there were six parts: grammar & usage, vocabulary & kanji, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, essay, and the interview. looking back, i think i could've done much better. i didn't guess on many questions. the exam is scored like the sat, and we were advised not to guess if we didn't know the answer. i'm afraid, however, that i took it too literally. i left questions unanswered even when i was able to eliminate wrong choices. i gradually became more comfortable with the format after the first portion, which thoroughly disheartened me at first sight. i wasn't able to answer any of the opening questions. the exam is the same for students of all levels, so i mistakenly assumed that the questions would be presented in order of ascending difficulty. much to my delight, i found that they eventually got easier. the exam didn't capture my abilities very well, so i'm sure i tested into second. results will be posted as soon as grading is completed.

*update*
i was placed into second ~ yay!^^ this will probably mean four As toward my major.  it won't be easy, but i will certainly not be struggling to keep my head above water. i'm slightly disappointed, but i believe it's for the best. i trust the teachers to have placed us accordingly. the grammar will be already familiar for the most part, so this summer will be more about consolidation of concepts...i just hope it won't be like intermediate chinese. this year wasn't necessarily a breeze, but i don't feel like i was challenged enough. i guess time will tell.

i'll sign the language pledge tomorrow morning at 10:45am. afterwards, i'll only be permitted to speak, read, hear, and write japanese. of course, i'm in the middle of vermont, so it's a bit unrealistic. i'll do my best to adhere, but i'd like to keep blogging throughout the summer. perhaps i'll start writing in japanese.

excite.co.jp/world/english has a translator, but like most online tools, it fails to produce a perfect translation. (if lucky, one can get the gist.)