The Learning Experience: Watch Your Language

This must be the most clickbait title I used. Do I get an award?

What stirred up this conversation was my recent enjoyment of trading card games. I started playing Lorcana last August, and now I'm on the Star Wars Unlimited kick. I'm currently prepping for my very first big tournament happening near Detroit. I'm trying to explain the process of playing the game, the technology, to my girlfriend, and it got me thinking. There is a lot of jargon that I now have to explain to her for her to understand in a very short period. On top of that, while I don't expect her to, she's now trying to process all the jargon I just got done yabbering about. 

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where everyone around you is discussing a topic you're not familiar with, using terms that sound like a foreign language? This is what we refer to as a technical language, a set of terms specific to a particular hobby or industry. It's more than just you; understanding technical language can be a real challenge. While we often associate technical language with technology, it's actually a universal concept prevalent in every field and industry, each with its own unique set of terms.

There is a ton of jargon used in trading card games. If you want to get an idea of how overwhelming terminology can be, check out this link to all of the terms HERE.

I have been teaching software development for a very long time. Working with all the technical terms used has always posed a challenge to students, as the terms are loaded with so much...what? I recently dealt with this with a current cohort of mine, where students were just lost because explaining asynchronous await functions with appending elements to a page makes perfect English sense.

One of the most intidimadting factors of being a beginning software engineer is being able to speak the lingo and understand the technical terms. Too many times, I've interacted with folks speaking highly technical language to beginners, not realizing how intimidating that may be to some. It creates this boy's club mentality in the space where you feel like in order to belong, you have to be on the same level. At the same time, I hate using the term "boy's club", it's honestly the best way to describe the feeling it creates for students. While some students may be able to catch on to the language quicker than others, your goal is to ensure students feel like they are all on the same level without creating cliques. As soon as someone feels as if they aren't in that clique, they feel left out. It's high school all over again...

How do you solve this problem? 

Some argue that technical vocabulary is very important, which I agree with to a certain extent. In order to explain technical jargon, you need to get students used to that environment. This isn't exposure therapy where in order for someone to get over heights, they skydive out of a plane; this is learning and an experience they are paying for. Especially since they are paying for you to serve them, forcing them to jump off that deep end is against the purpose of creating an inclusive learning environment. While some may be able to go through with skydiving, I know for sure to cure my fear of heights, there's no way, in the name of Tony the Tiger, that I would do it, even for a million dollars. 

The goal is to ease folks into that environment. Obviously, every industry is different, so easing terminology into the learner can be paced differently. The goal here is to understand the weight of the technical terminology of the learning environment your students are in. You must expect your students to become a dictionary of industry terms slowly. Memorization is slowly becoming an artifact of the past when it comes to higher education. Forcing someone to memorize to be a "member" of your professional community makes them feel less included, and it gives the feeling of "I must understand this or else I do not belong."

A lot of the technical terms have to come gradually over time, and most of my experience only comes late in the mastery of the learning process. It also helps if the students are doing hands-on learning. If your coursework revolves directly around memorization, you are enforcing the cult mentality and letting students feel left behind when the definition does not stick.

This topic is very personal to me. I'm a hands-on learner by heart. I was able to memorize during K-12. As I've gotten older, my ability to memorize information not relevant to my industry or interests has started to wane over the years as well. Also, coming from the software field and teaching adults, the older we get, the less likely that information is going to stick. More active learning approaches help change that. The tech industry itself is just chock-full of terms, to the point it's impossible to keep up with everything, and it is also on us to ensure students feel comfortable being a part of the community we are creating. Remember, your classroom environment becomes a community for the students, and to help keep it friendly, creating an inclusive environment when it comes to the terminology you use helps.

Now watch your language. Specifically the technical kind.