Teaching Grammar in Context

1. Teaching Grammar in Context Presented by: Hassan Sulaiman AbdelazizAdnani

2. “In the past, a traditional classroom, with its emphasis on grammatical competence and explicit knowledge of language rules, did not provide occasions for learners to communicate…” -Adair-Hauck & Donato, 2002

3. “Unfortunately, many students who spent years learning only the formal properties of the language (sound system, verb conjugations, rules of syntax, vocabulary lists) could not, in the end, exchange information, express ideas or feelings, construct and control problem solving, or develop and nurture a social relationship in a second language.” -Adair-Hauck & Donato, 2002

4. Importance of Communicative Competence It is through communication that we are able to improve our world, to prosper, and to enjoy it. -Cooper (1993) Communicative competence stresses the need to know how, when, and why to say what to whom. -Standards of FL Learning, 1996

5. Learning/teaching grammar in context…. •     “Grammar is a piano I play by ear. All I know about grammar is its power.” • Joan Didion “Second and Foreign language learners want to learn language as it is really used – in both formal and informal settings, and in speech and writing – by native speakers of English.” - Coelho

6. Why is it important to know grammar? •       “I never made a mistake in grammar but one in my life and as soon as I done it I seen it.” • Carl Sandburg • 1) to assess and remediate the errors and error patterns of second-language learners. • 2) the points of grammar can be used as the basis for teaching sentence structure and vocabulary.

7. What is grammar? •       “It is well to remember that grammar is common speech formulated” • Somerset Maugham • Grammar refers to the language patterns that indicate relationships among words in sentences.

8. Grammar includes…. • Grammar is not a time of waste” • Nancy Cartwright • Morphology – the study of word structure • Syntax – the study of word combinations or sentence structure

9. What do the two major ways to teachgrammar known as Inductive and Deductive techniques mean?Induction: ……………………………………………………………………....………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Deduction:.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. Task 1

10. Deductive vs. Inductive Deductive: • Students learn grammar rule Use Rule Inductive: • Use grammar rule Learn Rule

11. Deductive Approach:                      General rule Specific examples Practice ( Top-down Approach )

12. Inductive Approach:                        Specific examples Practice General rule ( Bottom- up Approach )

13. When grammar is taught deductively, the teacher… • Explains the rule to the learners. • Provides NO CONTEXT or COMMUNICATIVE PURPOSE for the grammar. • Focuses on form first and then meaning. • Drills students to learn the rule mechanically. • Assumes all responsibility for student learning.

14. When grammar is taught inductively, the teacher… • Allows the learner to formulate and discover the rule (“to induct”). • Provides a CONTEXT and PURPOSE for use. • Focuses on meaning first and form second. • Helps learners discover the rule through meaningful communication. • Empowers the students to problem solve and learn how to learn a language. Source: Donato, 2002

15. George w. bush Speaking: • “Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning?” January 11, 2000 From a speech delivered in Florence, South Carolina, and reported in the Los Angeles Times on January 14, 2000.

16. George w. bush Speaking: • “ You teach a child to read, and he or her will be able to pass a literacy test” February 21, 2001 From a speech delivered in Townsend, Tennessee. Reported by The New Republic (March 5, 2001 issue).

17. George w. bush Speaking: • “The education issue ought to be discussed about” December 15, 2000 Speaking to press during a meeting with Louisiana senator John Breaux in Austin, Texas.

18. Main Problems Facing Teachers: • Explaining Grammar rules. • Organizing meaningful grammar practice. • Integrating new grammar with the existing grammar knowledge. • Dealing with grammar errors • Integrating grammar knowledge with teaching communicative skills

19. Grammatical errors: • Transposition. E.g. I'll go to the chicken to fry the kitchen. • Omission. E.g. He a teacher at school. • Redundancy. E.g. Did he went to school last year? • Overgeneralization. E.g. Mom goed to work. • Ellipsis. Went where? • Tag. E.g. Nice fellow. That one. • Anaphoric start. E.g. This guy, he is cool.

20. Stages of teaching grammar logically: • Noticing. (How?) • Deductive / inductive. • Awareness raising.

21. Logic of teaching grammar: • the art of arranging a sequence of teaching actions to take the learners from the state of grammatical ignorance to the state of grammatical knowledge.

22. Grammar Drills

23. 1. Teaching Interrogative Sentences through Writing interviews and dialogues: • Forming questions. • Replying with appropriate answers; grammatically correct sentences.

24. 2. Substitution Drill

26. 3. Teaching tenses (Past Progressive Tense): What were you doing when….?

27. 4. Headless sentences (Passive Voice): • 1. ………… is played by two players. • 2. ………… are written by poets. • 3. ………… were built in Egypt. • 4. ………… was being cooked.

28. What way do we use to teach grammar in Over To You?Why?How? Task 2

29. The book adopts an inductive rather than deductive approach to presenting grammatical items. It is a rule discovery path: the learners study examples and from these examples derive an understanding of the rule until applying it becomes automatic. What?

30. Students are actively involved in the learning process rather than being simply passive recipients; they are likely to be moreattentive and motivated.Rules that students discover for themselves are more likely to fit their existing natural structures . the rules more meaningful and memorable. Why?

31. Students are encouraged to listen or read several times to complete different tasks. These tasks encourage them to discover grammar rules themselves and to move from controlled practice to freer, more personalized use of the target language. How?

32. How can we teach grammar? • Research indicates teaching grammar in isolation does not transfer into real communication • Grammar is best taught/practiced in communicative contexts • Supportive feedback is more helpful than overt correction • Students may need many opportunities to hear, read, practice a new structure before they internalize or produce it– months, years

33. Specific strategies to use • Use materials and plan activities that feature repeated language patterns • Use the content of lessons to introduce grammar concepts • Provide learners with the tools they need to talk about language

34. Conclusion & Recommendations: • When Teaching Grammar there always should be: • Motivational context. • Learner interaction with others. • Learner activity. • A well-structured knowledge base.

35. Gradual introduction with careful steps and plenty of modelling. • Personalise the lesson/grammar point. • Create a meaningful context for language use.

36. The End Thank you