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Controversy of teaching grammar
Since the 1960’s, controversy has raged among English language arts teachers over the advantages and disadvantages of teaching
grammar. The controversy of teaching grammar continues to this day,
with one side holding a ‘back to basics’ approach and favoring a return
to learning grammar the traditional way and those who favor the idea
that students acquire grammar by reading and writing. Is one side right,
and the other side wrong? Or do both sides each contain a little bit of
the truth?
Some educators began wondering if grammar could be taught another way. The theories and research of linguist Noam Chomsky propelled English language arts instruction in new directions as educators assumed that students were born with an innate feel for the grammar rules of their native tongue. A form of grammar instruction called descriptive or transformational grammar took shape and by the 1980’s and 1990’s, most schools taught a form of descriptive grammar. To accommodate the growing interest in descriptive grammar, textbook publishers focused their books on this new method of learning grammar. It dovetailed nicely with the whole language movement too, also popular in the 1980’s, which theorized that students could learn spelling and pronunciation in context. Both the whole language method and descriptive grammar instruction focused on encouraging students to read and write freely ‘naturally’ to acquire and demonstrate linguistic skills. Students are encouraged to read privately during class or read along with the teacher during group instruction. Free writing periods or portions of class time encourage free expression and creativity. The underlying philosophy is that students have already acquired grammatical skills by acquiring language skills, that is, by learning their native tongue they have also absorbed the appropriate grammatical structure and can express it through free writing. Drills, worksheets and grammar tests are discouraged.
Whether you believe in the traditional, prescriptive approach or favor the descriptive approach, teaching grammar continues to be controversial.
The Origin of the Controversy
Prescriptive, or traditional school grammar, was the norm in classrooms up in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Students who attended school before the 1960’s may recall endless hours of memorizing grammatical terms, completing worksheets, and diagramming sentences. Prescriptive grammar emphasizes learning the proper terms for grammatical elements, such as nouns, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives. Prescriptive grammar also emphasizes learning the many rules of English grammar. Students learn the right and wrong ways to write sentences and are encourages to write and rewrite.Some educators began wondering if grammar could be taught another way. The theories and research of linguist Noam Chomsky propelled English language arts instruction in new directions as educators assumed that students were born with an innate feel for the grammar rules of their native tongue. A form of grammar instruction called descriptive or transformational grammar took shape and by the 1980’s and 1990’s, most schools taught a form of descriptive grammar. To accommodate the growing interest in descriptive grammar, textbook publishers focused their books on this new method of learning grammar. It dovetailed nicely with the whole language movement too, also popular in the 1980’s, which theorized that students could learn spelling and pronunciation in context. Both the whole language method and descriptive grammar instruction focused on encouraging students to read and write freely ‘naturally’ to acquire and demonstrate linguistic skills. Students are encouraged to read privately during class or read along with the teacher during group instruction. Free writing periods or portions of class time encourage free expression and creativity. The underlying philosophy is that students have already acquired grammatical skills by acquiring language skills, that is, by learning their native tongue they have also absorbed the appropriate grammatical structure and can express it through free writing. Drills, worksheets and grammar tests are discouraged.
The Pros and Cons of Teaching Grammar
As whole language reading instruction and concepts such as descriptive grammar became more the norm, researchers noted a correlation between the decline in teaching traditional grammar and a decline in standardized test scores. Many assumed a direct link between the two, and attributed students’ lax approach to grammar and poor writing skills to the newfangled theories now entrenched in the classroom. Strong negative reaction from parents, alarmed at their children’s poor writing skills, as well as calls from government for a ‘back to basics’ approach to education are creating a strong push back towards prescriptive grammar. Teachers, however, insist that some points of descriptive grammar are beneficial. Many concepts from the descriptive grammar approach, such as plenty of reading time and read-aloud time with an instructor, encourage a love of learning and literature that doesn’t happen with prescriptive grammar instruction.Whether you believe in the traditional, prescriptive approach or favor the descriptive approach, teaching grammar continues to be controversial.
Prescriptive Grammar Teaching: Pros
- Grammar is the language used to describe language. Just as we ask biology students to learn anatomy and anatomical terms so that they can describe biological processes, so we must ask students to learn the proper terms to describe language.
- Knowledge of one’s native grammar facilitates learning other languages.
- Traditional grammar instruction creates better writers.
Prescriptive Grammar Teaching: Cons
- Teaching grammar divorced from reading and writing creates a fractured, disjointed approach that does not improve reading and writing.
- Grammar is boring and students rebel against learning it.
- Many techniques used to teach grammar create an artificial sense that students are learning. Practice drills, for example, are often too easy. Diagramming sentences has little relevance to using grammar effectively.
Descriptive Grammar: Pros
- Engages students
- Can be easily incorporated into the teaching day
- Prepares students by using real-world texts and writing practices
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