To tell language difficulty from concept difficulty, remove the language problem first and see what is left. If you can solve the question once every word is clear, the wall was language. If you still cannot, the wall is the idea.
This is a diagnosis you can do in ten minutes, and it tells you what to fix next.
Why do the two feel the same?
Both look like “I do not understand this question”. A missing word stops you in the same place as a missing method, so the feeling is identical.
The cure is different. Language gaps are fixed with a word list and translation into your strongest language. Concept gaps need a method explained and practised, so fixing the wrong one wastes time.
The three-step test
- Underline every word you cannot explain in the question, including small ones like “initially” or “constant”.
- Replace each with a plain meaning, in BM, Chinese or simple English. Then rewrite the question in your own words.
- Try to solve the rewritten question. If you can, the block was language. If you cannot, note the first step you cannot do. That step is the concept gap.
Worked example
Here is a Maths question:
A tank initially contains 500 litres of water. Water is drained at a constant rate of 20 litres per minute. After how many minutes will 140 litres remain?
Underline: initially, drained, constant rate, remain.
Plain meanings: initially = at the start. Drained = taken out. Constant rate = the same amount every minute. Remain = left.
Rewrite: The tank starts with 500 litres. Every minute 20 litres go out. When is there 140 litres left?
Try it: Water removed = 500 − 140 = 360 litres. Time = 360 ÷ 20 = 18 minutes.
Check: 20 × 18 = 360, and 500 − 360 = 140. The answer is correct.
If you could solve the rewritten version, your difficulty was the four words, not division or subtraction. Add them to a word list. If you could not, the stuck step is the concept, for example “how do I find the amount removed?”, and that is what to work on.
The mistake to watch for
Mistaken conclusion: “I must be bad at maths.”
The student could not read drained and constant rate, so she skipped the question, then decided she was weak at rate problems. That is a conclusion drawn from a vocabulary gap.
The correction is to run the test before deciding anything about ability. One word list is a far smaller problem than a whole topic.
Check yourself
1. After you explain every word in a physics question, you still cannot choose a formula. Language or concept?
Show answer
Concept. The words are clear, so the block is knowing which method to use and why.
2. You solve a question easily once you learn that “exceed” means “is more than”. Language or concept?
Show answer
Language. One word was hiding the question. Add “exceed” to your word list with an example.
3. What should you fix first when it may be both?
Show answer
The language, because it hides the concept. Once the wording is clear, you can see whether any concept gap remains.
Where this leads next
If the gap is a term you understand but cannot write in English, use the bridge method for subject terms. If you want to tell a teacher what kind of help you need, prepare a question about explanation language. The English, BM and Chinese concept bridge can help with terms.
If the test keeps pointing to concepts, one-to-one Mathematics tuition can begin from the exact step where your method stops.