How to teach grammar.
The Word Grammarmeans different things to different people. To the ordinary citizen, itconnotesto correctness or incorrectnessof the language that he or she speaks.Toa school student, it means an analytical and terminological study of sentences. Knowledge of grammar helps the student in the correction of mistakes and improvement of written work.Aperson can’t learn a foreign language accurately only through a process of unconscious assimilation. Grammar is a sure ground of reference when linguistic habits fail us. So grammar is indispensable for the student. In this paper my aim is to bring the attention of the language teacher as well as the learner about the real utility of grammar in teaching English language. When we come to learn a new language like English language, we need to studyits grammar;the importance of grammarcannot be ignored or neglected, and before we do that we need to understand what grammar is. Language in India
Grammar is the study of words and the ways words work together; an invisible force that guides us as we put words together into sentences. Any person who communicates using a particular
language, consciously or unconsciously becomes aware of the grammar of that
language.But in this context I would like cite a wonderful example as described “A
writer has given a beautiful analogy to illustrate the use of knowledge of Grammar. Imagine
two car drivers. The first driver knows only driving and nothing about the working of the
engine. He feels helpless whenever there is some trouble with the machinery. The second
driver knows driving and also understands the working of the machinery. The person who
knows grammar is like this second driver.
How to teach pronunciation.
Pronunciation involves far more than individual sounds. Word stress, sentence stress, intonation, and word linking all influence the sound of spoken English, not to mention the way we often slur words and phrases together in casual speech. 'What are you going to do?' becomes 'Whaddaya gonna do?' English pronunciation involves too many complexities for learners to strive for a complete elimination of accent, but improving pronunciation will boost self esteem, facilitate communication, and possibly lead to a better job or a least more respect in the workplace. Effective communication is of greatest importance, so choose first to work on problems that significantly hinder communication and let the rest go. Remember that your students also need to learn strategies for dealing with misunderstandings, since native pronunciation is for most an unrealistic goal. A step up involves combining the teaching of pronunciation with that of spelling, another important skill, but the real starting point is on the level of the phoneme.
What is a phoneme, and why are they important?
A phoneme is defined as ‘the smallest unit of sound in a language system’. This could be illustrated by the sounds of /p/, /b/, /d/, and /t/ in the English words pad, pat, bad, and bat. For a student to consistently produce these sounds, they must train themselves to hear them. So the path to proper English pronunciation starts with listening and identifying, NOT speaking! Once they can accurately differentiate between phonemes, and pick out matching ones from tapes and videos, they can progress to forming the sounds themselves. Think of this type of learning as a accelerated version of an infant’s language learning experience! Babies start by imitating distinct sounds, then moving up to sound combinations, and finally distinct words. Different languages use the tongue, mouth and cheeks differently, so diagrams of how to hold these facial muscles to properly produce the desired sound are extremely helpful. Videos can also be instructive, as the students can mimic the speakers on the screen and improve their vocabulary and English pronunciation.
The step from pronouncing phonemes to full length words is a short one, and from there it is much larger leap to being able to communicate in a natural conversation. A whole new set of obstacles appears, but there are easy ways to overcome each one.