Attention English Language Teachers and Learners - There is No Such Thing As Grammar

 While spoken English is abstract, grammar is linear. Latin grammar is too concrete to accurately describe English writing, let alone speaking, with its countless 1 + 1 = 2 rules. An example of an overused grammar rule that is just untrue is "Adjectives describe nouns."

Merry, Happy, Joyous, Cheerful, Glad... are all adjectives that describe nouns since they are all synonyms, which means they all imply the same thing. However, only one of these refers to the nouns birthday or Christmas. Despite having impeccable grammar, North American English does not have the words "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Birthday."

Latin is constructed differently than English.

English has a propensity for employing the same term in numerous contexts, which only serves to exacerbate the problem. "Match" can refer to a verbal instruction in a classroom exercise, a noun that describes something that ignites a candle, or an adjective used to describe another noun, as in "match point" or "The couple is a good match." In English, a word's meaning is determined by its surroundings or context.

Grammar's Effect on ESL: Ivan's Story

Ivan is a Russian engineer. He is incredibly intelligent and well-educated. In terms of "English" grammar, Ivan has essentially been taught everything. He actually knows more grammar than the majority of English professors, but he is reticent to speak, even when he is aware of the solution. Ivan was the best prospect for promotion at his job, but his spoken English kept getting in the way. His employer, in a last ditch effort to get the most out of this otherwise excellent employee, funded his tuition for a college speaking course.

The course covered the contrasts between spoken and written English as well as the actual mechanics of speaking English. Ivan gained knowledge of the grammatical restrictions and abstract nature of language. Ivan started speaking after realising that there was more to words than just their literal meaning.

Ivan studied the speaking ideas he had never heard of before and made notes for several weeks. Ivan waited until all the other students had departed before asking me in a low voice, "Teacher, what defines 'way'?" on the fourth week.

"Ivan, I'm not sure," I mentally juggled all the variations of way, weigh, and whey that I could come up with. Do you recall the sentence?

My coworker says it, "Way cool," without using a sentence, he responded.

"Oh, so "way" means "extremely" and "cool" means "great" in this context. Excellent listening!"

Ivan experienced a moment of clarity at that time. He explored several approaches to extract meaning from talks because he was no longer struggling to understand every word he heard. He improved his capacity to articulate himself and gained more self-assurance. He actually has a rather dry sense of humour, it turns out. He was promoted to Project Manager, I discovered through LinkedIn some time after the training ended.

A Collocations Lesson

Grammar is not what makes English. It is composed of many tiny word combinations called collocations that are put together randomly to form visuals or mental pictures.

Few other words collocate with Merry. Merry Christmas, happy holidays, happy widow, merry-go-round, the more the merrier, and possibly a few more. The key is that there are only so many sets of words that naturally incorporate merry. Neither a joyful wall nor a joyful floor exist. No joyful widower exists. The hallmark of humour and wit in this language is a play on these predefined word groups. Before students can completely express themselves, they must master how the language functions, and collocations are an important part of how English functions.

Students' work becomes stilted and unnatural when they rely too heavily on grammar.

last evening

My spouse and I had dinner at home last night. My husband did the dishwashing while I prepared the chicken. We drank coffee and watched TV after dinner.

I would be thrilled if my kid turned in a paragraph that was that well-written. However, because grammar is not what makes the English language unique, no natural speaker would employ those words. Conjunctions work.

last evening

My spouse and I had dinner at home last night. My husband did the dishes while I prepared the chicken. We had coffee in front of the TV after dinner.

English has several idioms

A stitch in time denotes prevention, touch and go denotes haste, blue moon denotes seldom, and so on. Such is English's abstract nature. No one is ever born knowing this logical jump occurs. Everyone must acquire it.

Native Speakers: How Do They Learn?

An interesting experiment was carried out with her Grade One kids by a perceptive primary school teacher in the USA. Using a collection of proverbs, such as: "Strike while the iron is hot, A penny saved is a penny earned, and no news is good news were among the expressions the teacher gave her pupils before letting them complete them. The responses from the kids were charmingly literal. Attack when the insect is still nearby. It's impossible to have no news.  https://www.aels.edu/ An English-speaking child does not acquire abstract language proficiency until some time after the age of six, as evidenced by the phrase "a penny saved is not much."

With the use of juvenile jokes and riddles in primary school, native speakers start to expand their linguistic flexibility. What is printed in black and white throughout? The solution to a new world of intellectual flexibility can be found in time-honored riddles. We got Sleeping Beauty. Hi ho, hi ho, it's time to leave for work; thanks to The Wizard of Oz Kansas is no longer the setting for this; Gone with the Wind gave us Sincerely, my dear. The foundation of the English language is made up of these compact fixed word groups, which are fundamental to North American civilization. Native speakers use colloquialisms to communicate with one another and are intuitively aware that the phrase "way cool" has nothing to do with direction or weather.

For newcomers to become fluent in English, a comparable procedure must be endured. Students can learn to listen for word clusters that create pictures by hearing children's stories aloud to them. This language and this society are held together by the concepts of once upon a time, falling in love, and happily ever after. The "other level" needs to be taught to the students. Students can locate it on their own if they are aware that it is there. Our work is then complete.

Summary

Avoid relying too heavily on Latin grammar. What kids acquire from writing, they lose from speaking because they are so afraid of using the wrong language that they never speak. English grammar is a made-up system of rules designed to make very simple written language easier to use. Students must comprehend the contrasts between spoken and written English as well as the ability of short, set word groups to paint pictures.

When in class, they strive for perfection "Happy morning. What's up?" and "Yo. Whasup?" may be heard in the hallway. In fact, Kansas is no longer where we are. The best technique I can think of to stop pupils from speaking English is to teach grammar.

It can be seen there in black and white.

The ultimate reference book for spoken English in the academic and business speaking worlds is called English is Stupid.