May
6
What Children Would Say
Some people think that all thought is based in language, and just if you can’t put something into words, you can’t think it. But what about those times when you feel something, but don’t have the words for it? I know I’ve been in meetings before where I’m at a loss for words to explain what I’m thinking, and a particular engineer gives voice to it. And, as good as my relationship has been with my parents, I recall incidents of frustration as a kid, when I am unable to express my thoughts or emotions in Chinese, our language in the home. Experiences like this suggest to me that concepts precede words.
Monolinguistic Americans (or Japanese) often misunderstand lack of linguistic proficiency as a lack of intelligence, but adults, too, mistake children’s lower level of linguistic development for intelligence, which is not necessarily true.
What might kids tell us if they spoke with the eloquence of adults?
