Methods in Teaching Grammar

1. Diagramming Sentences

This method involves visually mapping the structures of and relationships between different
aspects of a sentence. Especially helpful for visual learners, this method disappeared from
modern teaching at least 30 years ago. Different forms of diagramming are used to visualize
sentences, from the Reed-Kellogg System to dependency grammar, but all organize the functions
of a sentence in a way that illustrates the grammatical relationships between words. More
recently, diagramming sentences has had a small pop-culture resurgence in prints of famous
opening sentences and websites that allow you to diagram to your heart’s content.

2. Learning
Students are encouraged to explore language through creative writing and reading, picking up
correct grammar usage along the way. If there are specific problems with certain grammatical
rules, these are covered in a more structured lesson. An emphasis is now being placed
upon language acquisition over language learning, as it has been observed that learning grammar
by memorization does not work well and that students are better able to recognize and
understand grammatical rules when lessons are more interactive (i.e., they have to apply these
rules in their own writing). Repeated practice is also important and easily achieved through
creative or personal writing exercises. This article, posted by The Atlantic, suggests that to better
equip future adult writers, teachers in the 21st century should consider dropping outdated
grammar teaching techniques in early education and opt for learning through writing techniques.

3. Inductive Teaching

Involves presenting several examples that illustrate a specific concept and expecting students to
notice how the concept works from these examples. No explanation of the concept is given
beforehand, and the expectation is that students learn to recognize the rules of grammar in a
more natural way during their own reading and writing. Discovering grammar and visualizing
how these rules work in a sentence allow for easier retention of the concept than if the students
were given an explanation that was disconnected from examples of the concept. The main goal
of the inductive teaching method is the retention of grammar concepts, with teachers using
techniques that are known to work cognitively and make an impression on students’ contextual
memory.

4. Deductive Teaching

A teacher gives students an in-depth explanation of a grammatical concept before they

encounter the same grammatical concept in their own writing. After the lesson, students are
expected to practice what they have just been shown in a mechanical way, through worksheets
and exercises. This type of teaching, though common, has many people—including
teachers—rethinking such methods, as more post-secondary level students are revealing sub-par
literacy skills in adulthood.

5. Interactive Teaching

To incorporate interactivity into lessons. Using games to teach grammar not only engages
students but also helps them to remember what they’ve learned. This method allows teachers to
tailor their lessons to the different learning styles of students. For instance, each student can be
given a large flashcard with a word on it, and the students must physically arrange themselves
into a proper sentence. Other games can include word puzzles or fun online quizzes.
Over the years, many methods have been developed for teaching grammar and have been built
upon, abandoned, or combined, all with the same goal in mind—teaching students how to
communicate effectively and understand how to use the English language. Because of the
grammatical complexity of English, each method has its pros and cons. Some lessons are less
likely to be remembered, while others may require more in-depth explanation and practice.

Methods in Teaching Language

1. The Direct Method

In this method the teaching is done entirely in the target language. The learner is not allowed to
use his or her mother tongue. Grammar rules are avoided and there is emphasis on good
pronunciation

2. Grammar-translation

Learning is largely by translation to and from the target language. Grammar rules are to be
memorized and long lists of vocabulary learned by heart. There is little or no emphasis placed on
developing oral ability.

3. Audio-lingual

The theory behind this method is that learning a language means acquiring habits. There is much
practice of dialogues of every situations. New language is first heard and extensively drilled
before being seen in its written form.

4. The structural approach

This method sees language as a complex of grammatical rules which are to be learned one at a
time in a set order. So for example the verb "to be" is introduced and practised before the present
continuous tense which uses "to be" as an auxiliary.

5. Suggestopedia

The theory underlying this method is that a language can be acquired only when the learner is
receptive and has no mental blocks. By various methods it is suggested to the student that the
language is easy - and in this way the mental blocks to learning are removed.

6. Total Physical Response (TPR)

TPR works by having the learner respond to simple commands such as "Stand up", "Close your
book", "Go to the window and open it." The method stresses the importance of aural
comprehension.

7. Communicative language teaching (CLT)

The focus of this method is to enable the learner to communicate effectively and appropriately in
the various situations she would be likely to find herself in. The content of CLT courses are
functions such as inviting, suggesting, complaining or notions such as the expression of time,
quantity, location.

8. The Silent Way

This is so called because the aim of the teacher is to say as little as possible in order that the
learner can be in control of what he wants to say. No use is made of the mother tongue.
Community Language Learning
In this method attempts are made to build strong personal links between the teacher and student
so that there are no blocks to learning. There is much talk in the mother tongue which is
translated by the teacher for repetition by the student.

9. Immersion

ESL students are immersed in the English language for the whole of the school day and expected
to learn math, science, humanities etc. through the medium of the target language, English.
Immigrant students who attend local schools find themselves in an immersion situation; for
example refugee children from Bosnia attending German schools, or Puerto Ricans in American
schools.
10. Task-based language learning

Learners use the language they already have to complete the task and there is little correction of
errors.
(This is the predominant method in middle school ESL teaching at Frankfurt International
School. The tasks are subsumed in a major topic that is studied for a number of weeks. In the
topic of ecology, for example, students are engaged in a number of tasks culminating in a poster
presentation to the rest of the class. The tasks include reading, searching the internet, listening to
taped material, selecting important vocabulary to teach other students etc.)

11. The Natural Approach

This approach, propounded by Professor S. Krashen, stresses the similarities between learning
the first and second languages. There is no correction of mistakes. Learning takes place by the
students being exposed to language that is comprehensible or made comprehensible to them.

12. The Lexical Syllabus

This approach is based on a computer analysis of language which identifies the most common
(and hence most useful) words in the language and their various uses. The syllabus teaches these
words in broadly the order of their frequency, and great emphasis is placed on the use of
authentic materials.

Theories of Language

Plato’s Theory of Language

Plato – One of the Biggest Names in Western Philosophy

While he is best known for philosophy, Plato did a good bit of thinking about language. This
shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering the fact that the use of language was how he got his
point across about philosophy.

Plato believed that knowledge was something that humans simply had; it was innate. His idea is
called Plato’s Problem, in which he asked how humans were able to accomplish so much with so
little time given to them. Language was an innate human element, and that is why most humans
are able to start talking well before they are ten years old.
When you consider that language is part of your thinking process, it will be a lot less
intimidating to simply learn another way to think the thoughts you already have.

Descartes and Cartesian Linguistics

Descartes subscribed to Plato’s idea that language is simply something people do naturally.
Descartes’ belief was based on the fact that he believed humans to be largely rational creatures,
and language was required to interact.

The Cartesian movement that started based on his beliefs reflected on the fact that language
was used creatively. Yet there are still many similarities even between the least similar languages.
This is heartening because it means that you just need to find the similarities between English
and your target language to start understanding how the language works.

Locke and Tabula Rasa

You have probably heard of the blank slate concept put forth by Locke. It shows that he did
not subscribe to the idea that anything was innately known. Everyone began with a blank slate
that they had to fill, and that includes language. Everything is learned from our senses. This can
be comforting if for no other reason than because you probably feel that is where you are right
now with your target language.

These three philosophers largely discussed language in passing, not postulating many
specifics. The next four theories are much more language specific.

Skinner and the Theory of Behaviorism

Skinner agreed with Locke and he spent a lot of time developing the Theory of Behaviorism
from it. His theory says that all behavior is in response to the stimuli around us. He applied this
to language learning through operant conditioning, which used reinforcement and punishment to
teach.

One of the most common examples of this is parents who refuse to acknowledge a child’s
request until the child says “please.” The reward is getting what was requested, and the idea of
saying “please” is reinforced through that reward.
Theory of Behaviorism says we need feedback to be successful, even in learning a language.

Chomsky and Universal Grammar

 Noam Chomsky was developing his own ideas while Skinner was working on his Theory of
Behaviorism. Chomsky developed the theory of Universal Grammar. It was pretty much the
antithesis of Skinner’s theory. Chomsky believed in at least some innate ability in humans for
language. His proof was the fact that there are some universal elements in all languages.While it
definitely goes farther to explain learning a first language than Skinner’s theory, it really doesn’t
apply to learning a second language. It simply reinforces that there are similar elements, but does
nothing to help identify how to learn everything that is completely dissimilar.

Schumann and the Acculturation Model

John Schumann looked specifically at how immigrants learn a new language once they
relocate. His theory is called the Acculturation Model and addresses language in much more
detail than the other theories. Instead of thinking of language learning in terms of learning for
pleasure, he examined it when it was a necessity. Immigrants learned a new language with much
more pressure from social and psychological areas. It usually meant either success or failure. If
an immigrant’s language was roughly equal socially to the language of their new home, they
were more likely to learn the language. The same was true if the cultures were similar. This
points out that there are many psychological and social reasons for learning a language – ideas
that were not examined by any of the earlier philosophers.

Krashen and the Monitor Model

Stephen Krashen compiled several theories about language, theories which today are the
most often used to describe learning a second language. The following are the primary ideas to
take away from his theories. Acquiring a language is largely subconscious because it stems from
natural and informal conversations. Learning a language is very much conscious effort and relies
heavily on correction, which is more formal. Grammar is largely learned in a predictable series
and order. Acquiring a language occurs when it is provided through comprehensible input, such
as talking or reading. A monitor can be anyone or anything that corrects your language errors
and to pressure you to improve. The primary take away from the theory is that acquiring and
learning a language are different, but they can have similar elements. Error correction is essential
for both acquisition and learning. While none of these theories may do much to help you actually
learn a language, it can make you feel better to know that even the knowledge of learning a
language is up for debate. You may feel one or two of them more closely works for the way you
think, and that can help you better understand how to use that theory to your advantage.

Theories of Teaching Grammar

1. Generalized Phrase Structure Grammar (GPSG) refers to a grammar formalism which

originated in the first half of the 80s. It was developed by G. Gazdar, G. K. Pullum et. al. as an
alternative to transformational grammar which dominated research in syntax at that time. GPSG
belongs to the class of unification-based grammars.
2. Head-driven phrase structure grammar (HPSG) is a highly lexicalized, constraint-based
grammar[1] developed by Carl Pollard and Ivan Sag. It is a type of phrase structure grammar, as
opposed to a dependency grammar, and it is the immediate successor to generalized phrase
structure grammar. HPSG draws from other fields such as computer science (data type
theory and knowledge representation) and uses Ferdinand de Saussure's notion of the sign. It
uses a uniform formalism and is organized in a modular way which makes it attractive for natural
language processing.
An HPSG grammar includes principles and grammar rules and lexicon entries which are
normally not considered to belong to a grammar. The formalism is based on lexicalism. This
means that the lexicon is more than just a list of entries; it is in itself richly structured. Individual
entries are marked with types. Types form a hierarchy. Early versions of the grammar were very
lexicalized with few grammatical rules (schema). More recent research has tended to add more
and richer rules, becoming more like construction grammar.
The basic type HPSG deals with is the sign. Words and phrases are two different subtypes of
sign. A word has two features: [PHON] (the sound, the phonetic form)
and [SYNSEM] (the syntactic and semantic information), both of which are split into subfeatures.
Signs and rules are formalized as typed feature structures.

3. Lexical Functional Grammar (LFG) is a theory of language structure that deals with the.
syntax, morphology, and semantics of natural languages. It is distinguished from other theories
by having several parallel representations for sentences, each with its own.

4. Functional grammar focuses on the way language is put together so that meaning is
communicated for particular purposes, and looks at a language as a system of meaning, while
traditional grammar is concerned with the ways words are organized within sentences and looks
at a language as a set of rules.

5. Role and reference grammar (RRG) is a model of grammar developed by William A.

Foley and Robert Van Valin, Jr. in the 1980s, which incorporates many of the points of view of
current functional grammar theories.

In RRG, the description of a sentence in a particular language is formulated in terms of (a) its
logical (semantic) structure and communicative functions, and (b) the grammatical procedures
that are available in the language for the expression of these meanings.
Among the main features of RRG are the use of lexical decomposition, based upon the predicate
semantics of David Dowty (1979), an analysis of clause structure, and the use of a set
of thematic roles organized into a hierarchy in which the highest-ranking roles are 'Actor' (for the
most active participant) and 'Undergoer'.
RRG's practical approach to language is demonstrated in the multilingual Natural Language
Understanding (NLU) system of cognitive scientist John Ball. In 2012, Ball integrated his Patom
Theory with Role and Reference Grammar, producing a language independent NLU breaking
down language by meaning.

6. Systemic functional grammar (SFG) or systemic functional linguistics (SFL) is a model of

grammar developed by Michael Halliday in the 1960s. It is part of a broad
social semiotic approach to language called systemic linguistics. The term “systemic” refers to the
view of language as “a network of systems, or interrelated sets of options for making
meaning”; The term “functional” indicates that the approach is concerned with the contextualized,
practical uses to which language is put, as opposed to formal grammar, which focuses on
compositional semantics, syntax and word classes such as nouns and verbs.

Systemic functional grammar is concerned primarily with the choices the grammar makes
available to speakers and writers. These choices relate speakers’ and writers’ intentions to the
concrete forms of a language. Traditionally the “choices” are viewed in terms of either the content
or the structure of the language used. In SFG, language is analysed in three different ways (strata):
semantics, phonology, and lexicogrammar. SFG presents a view of language in terms of both
structure (grammar) and words (lexis). The term “lexicogrammar” describes this combined
approach.

7. Relational Grammar - a grammar based on a theory in which grammatical relations (such

as subject or object) are primitives in terms of which syntactic operations are defined.
Relational Grammar (RG) was introduced in the 70’s as a theory of grammatical relations and
relation change, for example, passivization, dative shift, and raising. Furthermore, the idea
behind RG was that transformations as originally designed in generative grammar were unable to
capture the common kernel of, e. g., passivization across languages. The research conducted
within RG has uncovered a wealth of phenomena for which it could produce a satisfactory
analysis.

8. Cognitive Grammar - a theory of language that seeks to characterize knowledge of grammar

in terms of symbolic conceptual and semantic categories and general cognitive processes. It is an
approach to language developed by Ronald Langacker, which hypothesizes that grammar,
semantics, and lexicon exist on a continuum instead of as separate processes altogether. This
approach to language was one of the first projects of cognitive linguistics. In this system,
grammar is not a formal system operating independently of meaning. Rather, grammar is itself
meaningful and inextricable from semantics.

9. Categorial Grammar - is a term used for a family of formalisms in natural

language syntax motivated by the principle of compositionality and organized according to the
view that syntactic constituents should generally combine as functions or according to a
function-argument relationship. Most versions of categorial grammar analyze sentence structure
in terms of constituencies (as opposed to dependencies) and are therefore phrase structure
grammars (as opposed to dependency grammars).

10. Autolexical Syntax - Although the name implies a syntactic theory, Autolexical Syntax
(ALS) is actually a view of the relationship among the various components of a grammar only
one of which is syntax. The name is justified, however, insofar as a great deal of what is included
in syntax in more mainstream grammatical theories is seen in ALS as the province of other
components, particularly the morphology and the semantics. In ALS distinct grammatical levels
are described by autonomous grammars, called modules, each of which generates a set of
well-formed representations at a single level.