[Objective]The purpose of this research project is to investigate the effectiveness of certain self-study drill materials for basic Japanese grammar.[Outline of the project and the project's current state]I have been working on a project developing self-study drill materials for basic Japanese grammar since August 2010 with the goal of publishing a workbook to accompany A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar (DBJG) by Prof. Seiichi Makino and Prof. Michio Tsutsui (The Japan Times, 1986). The DBJG grammar book is used by instructors and learners worldwide as a bible of Japanese grammar. With Ms. Mayumi Oka, Director of the Japanese Language Program of the University of Michigan, as an advisor, I am now devoting myself to research on the effectiveness of the self-study drill materials currently under development. The materials consist of summaries and oral/listening/reading exercise for selected grammar items that many learners have trouble with. Such self-learning materials are in great demand by learners and instructors. Most exercises are designed so that learners can work on them using a computer.During the winter semester of 2012, I will test some of the materials in Japanese classes. Learners will be asked to work on selected sets of exercises, participate in pre-and post-oral interviews, and complete questionnaires. The interviews will be conducted so that I can examine how effective and helpful the exercises are. Also, the interviews need to be transcribed in order to compare each subject's pre- and post- performances and analyze how effective the exercises are in helping the learners to understand and control the target grammar. More specifically, I need to know how much the learners will have improved in their use of the target grammar, and whether or not the learners still repeat the same grammatical errors after the exercises. This in-depth analysis of the students' performances will help greatly in improving the current materials. I plan to present my findings at the 2012 American Association of Teachers of Japanese (AATJ) Annual Spring Conference in Toronto on March 15 and at the 19th Princeton Japanese Pedagogy Forum (PJPF) at Princeton University on May 19-20, 2012. The former conference is one of the most prestigious conferences in the field and the latter is also highly-recognized in the U.S. I expect to obtain fruitful feedback from both audiences, which will help me further refine the materials for learners, especially those who are learning Japanese at the University of Michigan. [Merits]This research is important and valuable for a number of reasons. First, the findings from the experiment help me in improving the self-study grammar materials under development. The publication of a workbook, the outcome of the project, will be beneficial for my career development. Second, the knowledge I gain from this research will be very beneficial to me as a teacher in terms of materials preparation for my classes and in my approach to teaching in the classroom.Additionally, the research experience itself will help me gain a broader and deeper understanding of Japanese grammar and a clearer perspective in teaching it. I am highly motivated by this project and am determined to achieve my objective. Receiving an LPD Grant will be critical in achieving my goal.