An Introduction to the System
Diffism.com is aimed at learners who are looking to study at their own pace outside of a classroom, but it can also be used as a supplement to your other study materials.
The system as “organic”
Unfortunately for learners, traditional teaching approaches have assumed that language is a machine with tiny parts that need to be broken down and analyzed without regard to the context in which they’re presented. But when you think about the process you went through in learning your native language, and even the cognitive processing of your native language right now, you’ll see that language is based more on lexical chunks of information stored in your memory, as opposed to individual parts broken down that you consciously assemble in your head.
Diffism.com recognizes language as organic – Languages grow, they aren’t built. Japanese textbooks have a tendency to teach language that you don’t actually hear in the real world. Diffism provides content for the learner to analyze and explore — real, useful, organic Japanese — instead of simply memorizing rigid, formal, hypothetical structures.
The approach
The general outline of the process presented here is Observe – Hypothesize – Experiment – Discuss. Learners are provided content to reflect on and internalize, and then optionally discuss in each unit. This is the most natural approach to learning a language, and it’s the process that most successful learners eventually realize.
Input (listening and reading) is much more important than output, which is why it is the primary focus of Diffism.com. While it’s also important to develop output skills (speaking and writing), they take a back seat to input when building a lexical foundation. Trying to speak or write too early may actually slow your learning process down and create bad habits. Learners should instead observe real, correct Japanese and form their own hypotheses about the language, a process that is important to internalizing the language and making it your own.
The content
A real strength of the Diffism.com system is its constantly updated content. After making the one-time purchase, learners will be able to study from a steady stream of planned content, both new and revised. Relevant, diverse, interesting content will constantly be flowing onto the site for learners to jump right in to.
Real language is not typically divorced from context, so why should the content be? Unlike traditional textbooks, Diffism provides language in context instead of meaningless lists of words for learners to memorize.
Learners also have a voice in the production of content. Diffism.com is always open to requests for specific content. Each learner has a different goal for the language acquisition process, so we take that into account.
Guided learning
Ultimately, learners tend to seek out an instructor, especially at the beginning. That’s why you’re here, right? But instead of being fed formal rules in a classroom, Diffism seeks to guide you in your own learning process. You’ll find recommended (free) tools and advice on how to best employ them, suggested study time frames and how to manage your studies, and discussion on how best to perceive the actual process of making a second language your own.
The price
For a one-time payment, you’ll have access to Diffism forever. We opted for this payment structure over monthly recurring payments because we’re seeking to improve on traditional textbooks with our system. You don’t have to pay recurring monthly bills for textbooks, so why should you in digital form?
For just $40, which is cheaper than even just one book from competitors like Genki series, learners will have access to constantly updated content, and you’ll even get to request your own targeted content, which a traditional textbook can’t accommodate.
So go through the content provided for free on this site before you make a decision, and if you think this system is the right one for you, don’t hesitate to sign up!
Read more about the site, the process, and the man behind the curtain.