HOW SHOULD WE TEACH GRAMMAR?

OR SHOULD WE TEACH GRAMMAR AT ALL?

BY SILVIA ROVEGNO

Midsummer Dream 5Instituto Dickens

Montevideo, 12th February 2014

Agenda!

Preliminary questions

3 principles for dealing with Grammar in the EFL

Classroom

The principles in practice

Q and A

Before we start….

What is grammar?

Product ProcessSet of rules that tell us how to compose clauses, phrases and words.

How language is used in communication

Knowledge

Use

What is grammar teaching?

Any instructional activity or technique that draws learners´attention to specific gramatical form in a way that helps them understand, process or produce that

particular form

Rod Ellis

So…..where do you stand on the matter?

Task 1 – Preliminary questions

Should we teach grammar?

What grammar should we teach?

Meaning Form

Expressing general preferences

I like + ingI love + ing

I prefer + ing

Learning difficulty

Understanding

Use

When should we teach grammar?

Should grammar instruction be intensive or extensive?

RECYCLING

Should we use metalanguage or jargon?

Should we teach grammar separately from other language systems?

3 key principles

From given to new

Awareness

Real conditions: from practice to use

From given to new

Concepts and ideas: world knowledge Language

Awareness

Meaning-form relationship

noticing

understanding

production

Three key moments

Addressing grammar prior to the task

Addressing grammar during the task

Addressing grammar after completing the task

From practice to use

Grammar is a tool

to convey meaning

Meaningful, personalised, relavant tasks!!

The 3 principles in practice

 A new monument celebrating books has been launched in Buenos Aires. The Tower of Babel was created by artist Marta Minujin, who is well-known for creating works made from plastic. The tower includes books in more than 50 languages.

What is a word cloud?

Ice-breaker/diagnostic activity

Corrective feedback through guided discovery

Key concepts

Grammar…is about conveying

meaning is language in use

goes beyond the sentence

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