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Abstract:Acquiring the grammar system is vital in the foreign language learning, and there has always been the debate on how learners can best acquire the English grammar. In this paper, two methods for teaching grammar will be presented——traditional practice and consciousness-raising. Both the two methods have their advantages and disadvantages. But in practice, it is a better idea to combine different methods to make grammar teaching more effective. In addition, the consideration of different individual learners is also very important.
Key words:Grammar teaching traditional practice consciousness-raising
1 Introduction
It is well-known that grammar is vital in the foreign language acquisition, no one seriously interested in the development of foreign language has ever suggested that learners do not need to master the grammatical system of the English language. Acquiring the grammar system is of central importance. The debate has been over on how learners can best acquire the target grammar, whether and to what extent they should undertake exercises with a deliberate focus on form, or whether they should pick up the grammar in the process of meaningful interaction.
In this paper I am going to present the two methods for teaching grammar——traditional practice and consciousness-raising; and then compare their strengths and weaknesses. In the conclusion, the effective grammar teaching in different situations will be discussed.
2 Traditional method
People who adopt traditional method take the view that teaching grammar entails the formal explanation of grammar rules. In a language classroom learners received systematic instructions in grammar and language. Language teaching is based on structural syllabus. Language pedagogy has emphasized form-focused instruction and practice.
There are several advantages of explicit presentation of grammatical knowledge.
(1)Learners taught explicitly can develop a solid knowledge of the rules. And they can also be successful in using them in judging the grammar of sentences. Explicit presentation of rules supported by examples is the most effective way of presenting difficult new material (Ellis 1994).
(2)Ur (1988) also argues in favor of explicit teaching in the belief that mastering the individual elements of a language, be they lexical, phonological or grammatical, is a valuable means towards eventual ability to communicate in the language.
(3)Another advantage of traditional method is that a form-focused approach to language instruction can provide a way of integration fluency and accuracy of the language.
Traditional method of grammar teaching receives a lot of criticism. The major one is that linguistic forms are studied in isolation from their communicative function. The learners may become fluent in the structures they have been taught, but may not be able to use them appropriately in genuine communication outside the classroom (Nunan1991). The activities are much more focus on classroom not the real world, they cannot fulfill the variety of communicative functions to which the language is used. Textbooks and materials and activities are artificial and dull.
Key words:Grammar teaching traditional practice consciousness-raising
1 Introduction
It is well-known that grammar is vital in the foreign language acquisition, no one seriously interested in the development of foreign language has ever suggested that learners do not need to master the grammatical system of the English language. Acquiring the grammar system is of central importance. The debate has been over on how learners can best acquire the target grammar, whether and to what extent they should undertake exercises with a deliberate focus on form, or whether they should pick up the grammar in the process of meaningful interaction.
In this paper I am going to present the two methods for teaching grammar——traditional practice and consciousness-raising; and then compare their strengths and weaknesses. In the conclusion, the effective grammar teaching in different situations will be discussed.
2 Traditional method
People who adopt traditional method take the view that teaching grammar entails the formal explanation of grammar rules. In a language classroom learners received systematic instructions in grammar and language. Language teaching is based on structural syllabus. Language pedagogy has emphasized form-focused instruction and practice.
There are several advantages of explicit presentation of grammatical knowledge.
(1)Learners taught explicitly can develop a solid knowledge of the rules. And they can also be successful in using them in judging the grammar of sentences. Explicit presentation of rules supported by examples is the most effective way of presenting difficult new material (Ellis 1994).
(2)Ur (1988) also argues in favor of explicit teaching in the belief that mastering the individual elements of a language, be they lexical, phonological or grammatical, is a valuable means towards eventual ability to communicate in the language.
(3)Another advantage of traditional method is that a form-focused approach to language instruction can provide a way of integration fluency and accuracy of the language.
Traditional method of grammar teaching receives a lot of criticism. The major one is that linguistic forms are studied in isolation from their communicative function. The learners may become fluent in the structures they have been taught, but may not be able to use them appropriately in genuine communication outside the classroom (Nunan1991). The activities are much more focus on classroom not the real world, they cannot fulfill the variety of communicative functions to which the language is used. Textbooks and materials and activities are artificial and dull.