In this blog
entry I will try to describe what descriptive and prescriptive grammar are, as
well as explain pros and cons about teaching grammar in school according to the
movie “Grammar Revolution”.
There may
be many reasons why grammar teaching has faded in school, but one of the
reasons might be that people believes they don’t need grammar in real life. If a teacher believes that it’s not important for
his or her students to learn grammar, they can choose not to teach it.
There are two
different types of grammar, descriptive and prescriptive. Descriptive grammar
is the type of grammar that writers and speakers use. It’s a systematic
description of a language. Prescriptive grammar is how people think it should
be used and how they focus on whether the language is correct or incorrect.
According
to the movie one of the cons for teaching grammar in school is that teachers can’t
tell the children what’s wrong and what’s right about their grammar. In other
words the teacher isn’t supposed to be authorities anymore. Some people believe
that children should explore their way of using grammar on their own. They
believe that children should have a chance to make new words and express
themselves in any way they want.
Also the movie
explains that a good reason for teaching grammar in school is that we write or
read something every day. Compared to previous years, before we got technology,
we now have more use of grammar and knowing a language correctly. Nowadays we
write e-mails and text messages all the time, and then it is very important to have
a precise language and to be understood correctly by others. Another good
reason for teaching grammar is that it extends our vocabulary, and makes it
easier for us to communicate with other people in other societies.
In my opinion
there is need of grammar in school. I believe that grammar is useful and necessary
for everyone. If people, both adults and children, know their grammar, they’ll
be able to get a better understanding and knowledge of their own language. This
might help them communicate better with other people, in class, real life and with
people from other societies. I also believe correct use of grammar can give
people more self-confidence. This is why I will teach grammar to my pupils when
I become a teacher.
By Mariell Bergh Sæbø
Good post Mariell. I liked the way you explained why you will teach grammar to your future pupils!
SvarSlettHi Mariell.
SvarSlettI also think that if children have a fair knowledge of grammar, they will have better confidence when using the language in different settings. To me, that is so important, because it will give the children joy to use the language.
From my point of view it wasn't easy to clarify the different stands in this debate. As I reader I managed to grasp the essential in this debate, by reading paper. Thanks!
SvarSlettDenne kommentaren har blitt fjernet av forfatteren.
SvarSlettI am not sure if emails and text messages can be representative examples of written forms that require good grammatical skills. In these text forms (unless you write an email with some formality), language is often simplified and colloquial, and we tolerate broken language more than in other written forms (e.g., blog, letters, articles, home assignments). Can you also clarify what you mean by "teaching grammar can extend vocabulary"? It's reassuring to hear that most of you think teaching grammar is necessary and beneficial in many ways, but your arguments here sound rather weak and unclear. If you want to convince your readers that grammar teaching is necessary, you need to make your argument(s) clearer and stronger with more details. For example, how would learners be able to get a better understanding of their own language or English by learning grammar? What exactly does grammar do for use to achieve easier communication or give more self-confidence?
SvarSlett