The Junior High Entrance Exam Boom Isn’t Building Vocabulary—Why Japanese Children Describe Everything as “Egui”
Continuing from the first part, let’s take a look at the reality of children’s deteriorating vocabulary. An increasing number of children these days express everything with words such as “yabai” (“crazy,” “awful,” or “insane”), “egui” (“extreme” or “brutal”), and “kishoi” (“gross”). Children who can use only crude, simplistic language try to express even important matters that should properly be thought through using nuanced language with these extreme words.
However, saying “yabai” when you have a disagreement with a friend does not solve anything. Saying “egui” when praising someone does not actually communicate what you mean. As a result, these children become unable to get along well with the people around them.
The book “Children Who Cannot Communicate Through Words” (Nihon Jitsugyo Publishing), which squarely portrays the struggles these children face and shows them a path toward developing stronger language skills, has become a hit and gone through multiple reprints.
Up to around the age of six is a crucial period for laying the foundation of a child’s <language skills>. During this time, what happens at home is particularly important. The book provides detailed advice on how parents can help.
For example, do parents put their children’s inner feelings into words during conversations? Do they use question-based language to encourage their children to express themselves? Do they provide opportunities for their children to encounter words that are not commonly used in everyday life, such as by reading picture books aloud or visiting museums? It is important to consciously incorporate these kinds of practices as ways of developing <language skills> and make them part of everyday life.
The books available in the home are also said to have a significant impact. It is well established through research that reading helps develop children’s vocabulary, and statistics show that children who enjoy reading tend to come from homes with larger book collections.
Games are not necessarily evil
A veteran elementary school teacher featured in the book says:
“With the recent boom in early education and middle school entrance exams, I feel that the number of education-conscious parents has increased tremendously. They often tell their children, ‘Read books,’ ‘Use proper language,’ and ‘Think properly.’
“But when I look at the children, what the ones who truly have rich vocabularies, think deeply about things, and can express themselves properly have in common is that they are not children who do these things simply because their parents told them to. They are children who do them because they have watched their parents. Rather than being told by their parents to do something, the children who naturally do it after observing their parents are the strongest.”
It is certainly true that parents have a significant influence when it comes to reading, using polite and precise language, and thinking deeply. Children naturally adopt these behaviors because they imitate their parents and look up to them. From a parent’s perspective, showing children through their own actions is more important than constantly telling them to do it.
What parents can do also applies to everyday activities that are essentially forms of play. Let’s take games as an example from the book.
Many parents are concerned about the amount of time their children spend playing games. In reality, games do not contain many elements that help develop language skills. Therefore, compared with children who read picture books or play outside with their friends, spending long hours playing games can be said to have a negative impact on the development of their <language skills>.
That does not mean, however, that games are inherently bad.
If a child sits alone in front of a game console, it is difficult for them to develop their language skills. But research has shown that if the game is displayed on a television screen and played together with family members or friends, it can become a catalyst for more conversations between parents and children or among friends, ultimately benefiting the child.
The same applies to the use of tablets and smartphones.
Game consoles and digital devices are not inherently bad. When it comes to developing a child’s <language skills>, there are good ways and bad ways to use them. That is precisely why it is important for the adults who interact with children to learn and practice proper ways of using these devices.
For specific methods of developing <language skills>, I encourage you to refer to “Children Who Cannot Communicate Through Words.” But why are children’s language skills so important now?
Developing <language skills> can have positive effects not only on school life and interpersonal relationships, but also on academic performance. However, I would like you to imagine what lies a little further ahead. The young children of today will become adults and take active roles at the forefront of society roughly 10 to 20 years from now.
What skills will be needed in the world of 2040
Imagine, for a moment, what the world might look like in 2040.
The wave of digitalization will probably be far greater than it is today, while values and ways of thinking will have become much more diverse. Globalization will also have progressed, and people will likely be expected to coexist with others who have completely different roots and cultures.
What kind of abilities will people need to live in such an era?
They will need the ability to independently assess and sift through vast amounts of information, respect the values of others, engage in dialogue with people from different backgrounds, and work together to solve problems. It is the comprehensive power of language—<language skills>—that makes all of this possible.
Young children build the foundations of these abilities through interactions with others at home and in nursery school. From elementary school onward, they further develop them through extensive learning and a wide range of experiences.
No matter how high their academic scores are or how prestigious a company they manage to join, without these abilities, it will be difficult for them to navigate the turbulent world around them and carve out a path for themselves in life. With your children’s future in mind, why not take a moment to seriously think about the importance of <language skills>?
Reporting and Text： Kota Ishii (Nonfiction Writer) PHOTO： Afro