Parent FAQ #1: What should I do if my child can't memorize vocabulary?

Most parents hope their children will memorize more vocabulary words, but in reality, the focus of language learning is "how to use words."

Memorizing Vocabulary

Memorizing vocabulary is certainly important. However, our learning environment and habitual study methods often lead us to merely memorize words by rote, making it difficult to integrate them into daily life and consequently leading to what is known as "Chinglish."

The traditional model of learning English often involved using vocabulary books, matching one English word to one Chinese definition. There is nothing inherently wrong with this method, but it provides no real opportunities for use. Because of this "one English word to one Chinese definition" approach, Taiwanese students frequently produce "Chinglish."

For example: I want go out to play. (我想出去玩。)

Yet, students cannot be blamed for this. After all, without an immersion environment, developing a mindset in a foreign language is exceptionally difficult.

This will be discussed further in future columns.

Returning to the topic of memorizing vocabulary: we often say that we want students to understand English through context rather than needing to comprehend every single word. However, this concept does not suit every child.

Tolerance of Ambiguity

First, teachers or parents must understand a student's tolerance of ambiguity during learning.

Tolerance of ambiguity refers to "the psychological capacity of a learner to cope with uncertain or novel linguistic phenomena encountered during the learning process."

Psychologist Budner (1962) first introduced this concept, which was later extended into the field of second language acquisition.

For instance, many teachers advise against immediately looking up unfamiliar words when reading a sentence, suggesting instead that students try to infer the meaning from the context. While this strategy is unquestionably valid in language learning, it is not a learning strategy that should be applied in every single lesson or reading session.

1. Students with low tolerance of ambiguity need clear explanations, extensive supplementary vocabulary, and may even need to take detailed notes.

2. Students with higher tolerance of ambiguity can temporarily skip unfamiliar words and focus on understanding the overarching concept of the text and the author's intended meaning.

This explains why some students prefer vocabulary-focused lessons or sentence-by-sentence grammatical analysis (Intensive Reading), while others enjoy reading courses that favor a broader, less detailed approach (Extensive Reading).

Only by first understanding one's own learning style, understanding the child's learning style, and teachers being clear about their own instructional approaches can learning become twice as effective with half the effort.