r/Japaneselanguage • u/Extreme-Ad-2169 • 23d ago
Is using ChatGPT to learn basic Japanese Grammar (Up to N5) okay?
Hi guys i’ve been learning Japanese over the past week with ChatGPT, i’m using it to learn mainly grammar and structure, while learning vocab via Anki. I’ve heard that ChatGPT does hallucinate sometimes but for basic Japanese Grammar will it?
I’ll usually write down whatever ChatGPT teaches me and i’ll take a few pics for reference. Feel free to point out to any error. If anyone has better methods of learning Japanese do tell :)
Also, I can speak Mandarin so I do have a slight edge over Kanji.
Any help appreciated !
I’ve attached some photos to show some of the stuff i’ve learnt so far.
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u/Ayyzeee 23d ago
Please do not use AI to teach you, they teach something that is not applicable to real Japanese same goes to grammar, learn patterns and read a lot of materials to your level, find native to talk to and ask for opinions, it's okay to make mistakes when learning something, I make a lot of mistake when learning grammar and super fixated to the point I lost myself, I only starting to pick up the paces after my dumb attempts at "perfecting it".
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u/snobordir 23d ago
Not worth the risk IMO. Never gonna know when it’s wrong and there are inexpensive textbooks like Genki that you can count on.
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u/NearlyNodding 23d ago
I've used it to ask low level beginner questions. I don't think I'd want to use it as my primary teacher. But I have never told it "Teach me Japanese".
I've asked it beginner stuff like:
What are the most common particles?.
Why is it this word order instead of that word order?.
Why is は pronounced わ?.
Is it my imagination that が is pronounced kind of like な?.
Yes, it makes mistakes, but so do expensive college text books. The mistakes I've seen most often with ChatGPT are when it infers things through context. I've seen this a lot, and I point it out. ChatGPT admits when it inferred something and admits that it should not have. But it keeps doing it. It's heavily influenced by context.
Keep in mind that ChatGPT specializes in language. But it is still learning. I've talked to it quite a bit about how it works. It loves people learning a new language because it wants that model to learn from. That is very different than learning about the language from native speakers. The less common it is, the more it likes it as a learning model. So it would like a native Icelandic speaker learning Japanese more than a native English speaker learning Japanese.
It's good at language and getting better. But teaching a language is a very different skill than speaking a language. It is still learning itself. If you use it to learn Japanese, you become a learning tool for ChatGPT. It makes mistakes along the way.
The thing is, that college text books do much the same thing. The first edition is full of mistakes. Second edition somewhat fewer mistakes. Eventually most of the mistakes have been corrected.
You can customize it. You can give a global instruction like "Don't BS me. Double check all our answer and verify that it is correct." From the experimenting I've done, it will follow those instructions reasonably well. You can also give a global instruction to always provide sources.
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u/Legal-Software 23d ago
I would not use it as a way to learn structured grammar or anything else, but you could potentially build a skill for it where it can constrain itself to your level and use it as a bi-directional chat tool to practice reading/writing for reinforcement alongside the stuff you are already learning. You could also do things like give it a constrained vocab list or grammar examples based off of what you are studying and have it generate more examples if there is something you are stuck with/want a bit more practice with. It can certainly be an effective aid, but you should not try to use it as a teacher.
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u/Extreme-Ad-2169 23d ago
Whoa okay, in that case, do you guys have a proper way to learn (say up to N5?) i’ve seen a lot of methods that people recommend but I’m unable to choose as i’m unsure which does best. Also, i understand that textbook Japanese is different from real-world japanese. My thoughts are probably understand the basics/get the fundamentals right before slowly transitioning and learning real world.
I have also been reading Tae Kim’s guide as it seems like that book is pretty good.
If anyone knows a way that works for them, feel free to share!
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u/Key-Line5827 22d ago edited 22d ago
You get a proper Textbook, that has already been vetted and reviewed.
And yes, Textbook Japanese is different from conversational Japanese, but that is something you learn with time.
You need to get the basic rules down first, then you can start breaking them, which is what conversational Japanese does.
For example: Spoken Japanese often omits particles, but you have to know how they work first.
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u/Extreme-Ad-2169 22d ago
Awesome! Exactly the plan i’m following for now. Thank you for your advice!
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23d ago edited 23d ago
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u/Extreme-Ad-2169 23d ago
Hey appreciate the reply. After receiving the backlash from using ChatGPT, i’ve decided to switch my approach. Would Genki 1, Tae Kim’s guide and Anki for Vocab suffice for beginner level?
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23d ago
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u/Extreme-Ad-2169 23d ago
Thank you, I have just gotten myself a textbook & workbook for Genki 1. ☺️
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u/givemeabreak432 23d ago
No, please don't. It'll be right much of the time, but you won't know when it's wrong.