Welcome to SPACE, our adult continuing education program which offers interactive monthly courses for personal enrichment! Learn more here.

Sam Roche

Signum Tutorials ProgramSPACE Preceptor

Asian languages enthusiast

Sam Roche is a lover of East-Asian languages and cultures. [see full bio...]

All Modules

Conversational Japanese for Daily Life

Discussion-based Low intensity
Japanese is a complex language with a strong emphasis on formality. In any given situation, there are multiple ways to communicate the same idea. This course will introduce some of those common situations in daily life and offer some practical, useful, and modern ways to communicate within them.

HSK Mandarin for Beginners Series

Discussion-based Medium intensity
This series is for people looking to begin their journey with Mandarin--the language spoken throughout much of China and its surrounding territories. We will follow the HSK (Chinese Proficiency Test-Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi 汉语水平考试 ) Standard Course Curriculum for HSK Level 1. Throughout the course we...

Japanese Through Lyrics

Discussion-based Low intensity
The goal of this course is to study Japanese by analyzing song lyrics. While there will be an initial list of songs, students will be invited to either choose or vote on songs they would like to analyze (depending on number of students), and then we will spend each class studying the vocabulary and ...

Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT): N5 Test Prep

Mixed Lecture/Discussion High intensity
This module is offered for those Japanese language students who wish to take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, level N5. We will not be learning new language skills in this module. Instead we will be reviewing and repetitively practicing the precise set of skills tested on the JLPT N5 test, ...

Japanese: From Zero Series of 32

Discussion-based Medium intensity
This course is for those who have an interest in Japanese culture and wish to begin studying Japanese. We will begin by learning Hiragana and Katakana and cover some basic grammatical structures. We will also cover some conversational Japanese and explore how it is used in anime, manga, and music. ...

Korean Culture for K-Drama Lovers

Mixed Lecture/Discussion Low intensity
This module seeks to provide students with a deeper look into aspects of Korean culture which can provide a lens through which to view and appreciate them on a deeper level. Through a series of 8 classes, we will cover topics of Food, Social Structure, History, North-South relations, some aspects of...

Korean for Beginners Series of 3

Discussion-based Medium intensity
What do Korean dramas, K-pop, webtoons, and Korean films all have in common? ... The Korean language! This module is for those who are ready to begin their journey in Korean. In this first step, we will learn to read the Korean alphabet (Hangeul), cover basic vocabulary, and begin exploring grammar...

Tales of Korea: Core Traditional Tales

Mixed Lecture/Discussion Medium intensity
This module seeks to introduce students to some of the core stories at the heart of Korean society. The module will include an exploration of the foundation myth of Dan Gun, the Tale of Shim Cheong, two other P'ansori tales, an exploration of Hong Gil Dong (Korea's "Robin Hood"), and a few shorter f...

Warrior Biographies: Influential Figures in Japanese Martial Arts

Lecture-based Low intensity
This module is an exploration of Japanese culture and history through the lens of its martial traditions. Each class will focus on one influential martial artist and examine the philosophy and culture of the arts they practiced. From Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings to Aikido's spiritual...