UNIT 9 Teaching grammar

Aims of the unit 1. What is the role of grammar in language learning? 2. What are the major types of grammar presentation methods? 3. What are the major types of grammar practice activities?

The role of grammar in language learning The value of grammar in foreign language teaching has been a focus of debate for decades and the focus of the debate has been on (1)the role of grammar in language teaching (2)the methods in which grammar should be presented and practiced. Nevertheless, it is useful for us to look at some controversial issues about teaching grammar before we discuss methods for teaching grammar

Grammar presentation The deductive method The inductive method The guided discovery method

The deductive method relies on reasoning, analyzing and example in the textbook. Then the teacher explains the underlying rules regarding the forms and position of certain structural words. The inductive method, the teacher provides learners with authentic language data and induces the learners to realize grammar rules without any form of explicit explanation. The guided discovery method is similar to the inductive method in that the students are induced to discover rules by themselves but different in that the process of the discovery is carefully guided and assisted by the teacher and the rules are then elicited and taught explicitly.

The following procedures for teaching grammar Listening to comprehend Listening to notice Understanding the grammar point Checking Trying it out

Grammar practice As grammatical competence can not be attained solely through exposure to the target language or meaningful input, there is a need for meaningful practice and communicative use of the structure taught so that students can be helped to achieve both accuracy and fluency in language use.

Pre-learning Volume and repetition Success-orientation Heterogeneity Teacher assistance Interest

Mechanical practice meaning/communicative practice Mechanical practice involves activities that are aimed at form accuracy. By doing mechanical practice, the students pay repeated attention to a key element in a structure. Substitution drills, the students substitute a part in a structure so that they get to know how that part functions in a sentence

Using prompts for practice Using picture prompts Using mimes or gestures as prompts Using information sheet as prompts Using key phrases or key words as prompts Using chained phrases for story telling

Conclusion It is important to note that grammar presentation is concerned with how to make the students understand or discover grammar rules. It is practice that helps students develop grammatical capability. It is the teachers involvement and his or her ability to personalize teaching and make activities engaging that often promotes successful learning.