Kagoshima Entrance English common mistakes
Kagoshima Entrance English · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
On listening tasks, candidates keep writing the answer to the previous question while the next dialogue is already playing, so they miss the key word for the current item.
They try to write full sentences or check spelling while audio continues, and they have not practised reading the two answer options before the sound starts.
What to do instead
Train with a fixed cycle: read the question and options during the pause, listen for the one word that decides the answer, write only a short mark or symbol, and complete the wording after the section ends. Do ten short dialogues a day with this cycle and time yourself.
Candidates answer a listening question from a single word they caught (for example hearing 'library' and choosing the library option) without checking whether the speaker accepted or rejected that idea.
Beginning listeners match isolated sounds to options instead of following the discourse markers that signal correction, refusal, or change of plan, such as 'actually', 'but', 'never mind'.
What to do instead
Study a short list of turn-signal expressions and drill dialogues where the first suggestion is rejected. After each item, state aloud who finally decided what and why. This forces attention to the whole exchange rather than one word.
In short-passage reading, candidates answer from general knowledge or from the topic of the passage rather than from the sentence that actually supports the choice.
They read the passage once quickly, feel they understood the gist, and then choose the option that sounds most reasonable instead of returning to the text.
What to do instead
For every answer, underline the exact sentence in the passage that justifies it and note the line. If no sentence supports an option, reject it even if it is true in real life. Practise five passages this way before moving to timed practice.
Candidates treat grammar items as translation tasks, choosing the option that matches the Japanese meaning word for word, which produces errors with articles, prepositions, tense, and subject-verb agreement.
School instruction often emphasises meaning-based translation, so learners never build automatic patterns for English form, and they have not memorised which structures require which form.
What to do instead
Keep a personal error log of every grammar item missed, sorted by category (tense, articles, prepositions, agreement). For each category, write five original sentences and have them checked. Review the log weekly rather than redoing whole tests.
Candidates learn vocabulary as Japanese-English pairs only, so they cannot choose between near-synonyms or use a word in the correct collocation in the usage section.
Word lists with single translations do not show how a word behaves in a sentence, and many English words have overlapping Japanese equivalents.
What to do instead
Record new words with a full example sentence and one common partner word (for example 'make a decision', 'heavy rain'). When reviewing, cover the Japanese and recall the sentence, not the translation. Add a short collocation quiz to each week's study.
In guided writing, candidates translate a prepared Japanese sentence into English, producing unnatural word order and missing subjects, and they run out of time before checking the required points.
They plan in Japanese and write directly in English, and they do not separate planning, drafting, and checking into distinct stages.
What to do instead
Use a three-step routine under timed conditions: list the required content points, write a simple skeleton in English (subject plus verb for each point), then expand with connectors. Leave two minutes to check verb endings, plurals, and the specified word count.
On free composition, candidates write a long introduction and repeat the same idea, so the main point appears late and the response is thin on content or over the limit.
They have memorised opening phrases and believe length equals quality, and they have not practised structuring an opinion with reasons and examples.
What to do instead
Practise a fixed plan: state the position in the first sentence, give two reasons each with one concrete example, and close with a single sentence. Write to a set word count with a timer and check that every paragraph adds new content.
On longer passages, candidates read every sentence at the same speed and cannot locate the information needed for a detail question before time runs out.
They have no strategy for distinguishing main claims from supporting examples, and they do not use paragraph structure or headings to navigate.
What to do instead
Practise skimming each paragraph for its topic sentence first, then scanning for the specific name, number, or term in the question. Time yourself at roughly one minute per question and mark where in the text each answer came from.
On information-transfer tasks such as charts, notices, and tables, candidates copy figures or phrases without converting them into the required form, so units, dates, or categories are wrong.
They treat the task as copying rather than transforming, and they skip checking whether the question asks for a total, a difference, or a category label.
What to do instead
Before writing, circle what the question asks for (total, change, comparison) and note the unit. After writing, re-read the source and confirm the number and unit match. Do short transfer drills with tables and schedules twice a week.
On integrated situational tasks, candidates produce grammatically correct sentences that do not fit the situation, for example writing to a teacher with casual phrasing or omitting the purpose of the message.
They focus only on grammar and word count and do not analyse who the reader is, what the relationship is, and what action is requested.
What to do instead
Before writing, answer three questions on paper: who reads this, what must they know, and what should they do next. Choose register accordingly (polite requests, standard greetings) and check that the purpose appears in the first two sentences. Review with a checklist rather than a grammar-only check.