Hbel3203 Teaching of Grammar

BACHELOR OF TEACHING (PRIMARY EDUCATION) WITH HONOURS

MAJOR IN ENGLISH

SEMESTER SEPTEMBER 2014

HBEL3203

TEACHING OF GRAMMAR

NAME : CRISTINA JOHNNY

MATRICULATION NO. : 781226125338001

IDENTITY CARD NO. : 781226125338

TELEPHONE NO. : 012-8661887

EMAIL : [email protected]

[email protected]

LEARNING CENTRE : OUM TAWAU (TAWAU LEARNING CENTER)

TUTOR : MR. SHARIDZUAN ABDULLAH

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Cristina Johnny 781226125338001

Page

1.0 Table of Content 1

2.0 Introduction 2

3.0 Data Collection Method 3 – 9

4.0 Description and Justification of Methods ofGrammar Instruction 10 – 12

5.0 Analysis of Essays: Use of Present Tense 13 – 15

6.0 Analysis of Essays: Use of Past Tense 16 – 18

7.0 Conclusion 19

8.0 References 20

9.0 Attachments 21 - 26

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2.0 Introduction

The learners of English as a second language (ESL), especially here in Malaysia have one

common problem; they have difficulty in mastering the grammar of English, particularly in their

tenses.

Grammar has been defined by a number of scholars, and yet there has been not one, fully

accepted term to define it. Patrick Hartwell in his writing titled ‘Grammar, Grammars and The

Teaching of Grammar’, has divided grammar into 5 parts based on its definitions and functions.

Among those are; grammar as a set of formal patterns in which the words are arranged in order

to convey larger meanings and grammar as a branch of linguistic science concerned with the

description analysis and formulization of formal language patterns.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Arshad Abd. Samad, Dr. Mariam Md. Nor and

Abdul Halim Ibrahim, in the HBEL3203, Teaching of Grammar Module, English Language is a

living language which had gone through many changes, is still changing and will continue

changing following the evolution of mankind.

ESL students here in Malaysia often encounter a lot of grammatical problems specifically

in the consistency of their tenses. Tenses are the methods in which we are differentiating the

time; whether it is the present, the past of the future. There are a lot of reasons as to why the ESL

students face this common problem. One of the most basic reason is the fact that they are

uncertain of which tenses they should use. This uncertainty comes about due to their insufficient

knowledge of the grammar of English Language. This is where the method and approach of

teaching grammar comes in handy.

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3.0 Data Collection Method

I have been taeching English for the past 14 years or so. Hence, it is fairly easy for me to collect

the data I need for this particular assignment, as I can use my experience to my advantage. I

chose my Year 6 Berlian students due to the fact that I had been teaching English them for two

years. Below is the personal datas of my 6 Berlian students.

No. Name Race Father’s Occupation Mother’s Occupation

1 Adriana Michelle

Kenny Fred

Dusun Fire Officer Teacher

2 Azizah Baharuddin Bugis Bus Driver Clerk

3 Intan Nur Izzaty Karim Bisaya Shop Worker Housewife

4 Jasma Abdul Kadil Bajau Government Worker Housewife

5 Khairi Abdullah

Hamdan

Suluk Bus Driver Housewife

6 Mohammad Fazli Bin

Rusdi

Bajau Police Officer Police Officer

7 Mohammad Shafiq

Minggu

Suluk Self Employed Housewife

8 Mohammad Sudramin

Suding

Bugis Self Employed Housewife

9 Mohd. Ikwan Roslie Bugis Factory Worker Housewife

10 Muhammad Badrun

Akbar Bin Bacho

Bugis Vegetable Seller Housewife

11 Muhammad Idris Bin

Yousaf

Pakistan Shop Keeper Housewife

12 Natalia Abdul Hamid Sungai Lorry Driver Housewife

13 Nellster Agong Lundayeh Government Officer Housewife

14 Nuraqilah Ilyana Abdul

Rahman

Bugis Shop Keeper Housewife

15 Nur Farah Ain Abdul

Wahab


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16 Nurian Syah Sudirman Bugis Self Employed Housewife

17 Nurkhairun Nadia

Romi


18 Nurul Faraheida

Ghazali

Melayu Self Employed Housewife

19 Nurwalif Qhazmel

Alham Maulana

Melayu Police Officer Housewife

20 Nurzulayqah Abdul

Halim

Dusun Self Employed Housewife

21 Rabiatul Aqilah Ambo

Mase

Bugis Government Pensioner Housewife

22 Nurfarahein Ahmad Bajau Self Employed Housewife

23 Su-Lhia Amirullah Bugis Self-Employed Housewife

24 Ummi Kalsum Bakshad Pakistan Shop Keeper Housewife

25 Yunus Lahamid Bugis Self-Employed Housewife

26 Nurul Atiqah Silley Bajau Self-Employed Housewife

27 Nurul Aini Jikry Bajau Self-Employed Housewife

28 Adzley Abirin Dusun Deceased Self-Employed

29 Hasanul Hafiz Tahang Bugis Bus Driver Housewife

30 Nur Aisyah Baharuddin Bajau Head Village Housewife

I recorded their marks for their compositions every week. Composition is evaluated in the

Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) in Paper 2, Section C. It is awarded 15 marks. So I

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followed the same rule for the composition I gave them. The table below is the marking scheme

for the said question in the UPSR.

BAND DESCRIPTION MARKS

Excellent Excellent and confident use of the language.

Ideas conveyed clearly through a variety of sentence structures.

Confident use of the new words to express ideas.

Ideas are well planned, relevant and linked so as to sustain the interest of the reader.

Overall accurate spelling and punctuations.

13 - 15

Credit Proficient use of the language throughout.

Attempts made to construct a variety of sentence structure but occasional errors occur.

Most ideas are well-organized, relevant and conveyed clearly.

Punctuation and spelling errors may occur occasionally but overall meaning is still clear.

9 - 12

Achievement Correct use of the language. Simple sentences with minor errors but

meaning is still clear. Satisfactory presentation of ideas. Vocabulary is adequate to convey

meaning. A few punctuation and spelling errors

may be found in the script.

5 – 8

Low Achievement Poor use of the language. Multiple errors found in sentences. Ideas are incomprehensible even after a

few reading. Limited and incorrect use of language. Many spelling and punctuation errors. Direct lifting.

1 - 4

- No answer given 0

Table 3.0(ii) UPSR Marking Scheme for Paper 2 Section C

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In the Section C, the students are required to compose a story to describe the three

pictures given. For each of the picture they will be given some words as their guidance to

compose their story.

For this section, I had taught my students to write their introduction in the present tense

form and then the body in the past tense form and for the closure, they can either write the moral

value of the story or the feelings of the characters in the story.

I kept a track record of all my students, especially my Year 6 pupils for two years, since I

had been their English teacher for two years. They had been having problems in writings more

than they have problems in all the other areas of the language, like listening, speaking and

reading. The problems in their writings are caused by their inability to use correct grammar,

especially in their tenses. Below are my students’ marks in the second semester examination

when they were in Year 5, 2013. I took them as their take-off marks for this year.

No. Name Take-Off Marks

(Section C-

Paper II English

UPSR)

/15 Marks

1 Adriana Michelle Kenny Fred 6

2 Azizah Baharuddin 6

3 Intan Nur Izzaty Karim 5

4 Jasma Abdul Kadil 6

5 Khairi Abdullah Hamdan 7

6 Mohammad Fazli Bin Rusdi 4

7 Mohammad Shafiq Minggu 5

8 Mohammad Sudramin Suding 5

9 Mohd. Ikwan Roslie 6

10 Muhammad Badrun Akbar Bin Bacho 6

11 Muhammad Idris Bin Yousaf 6

12 Natalia Abdul Hamid 7

13 Nellster Agong 3

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14 Nuraqilah Ilyana Abdul Rahman 7

15 Nur Farah Ain Abdul Wahab 3

16 Nurian Syah Sudirman 8

17 Nurkhairun Nadia Romi 7

18 Nurul Faraheida Ghazali 3

19 Nurwalif Qhazmel Alham Maulana 6

20 Nurzulayqah Abdul Halim 3

21 Rabiatul Aqilah Ambo Mase 6

22 Nurfarahein Ahmad 6

23 Su-Lhia Amirullah 6

24 Ummi Kalsum Bakshad 6

25 Yunus Lahamid 5

26 Nurul Atiqah Silley 3

27 Nurul Aini Jikry 3

28 Adzley Abirin 3

29 Hasanul Hafiz Tahang 3

30 Nur Aisyah Baharuddin 3

In a week, I had 3 lessons with my students. Two of those lessons consisted of 2 periods

(60 minutes) and one consisted of 3 periods (90 minutes). I preferred to teach composition in the

one lesson which I had 3 periods with them because it gave me enough time to give them

guidance and they had enough time to finish their composition. I had also given them one

composition as their homework every week.

When I became their English teacher in the early year of 2013, I noticed that my students

could only get up until the achievement level marks and some were even getting marks in the

low achievement level. Their worst problem at time was their limited vocabulary knowledge.

Since then, I managed to strengthen their vocabulary knowledge but I noticed that they

still could not get to the excellent level for their composition due to their incorrect use of tenses.

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Wrongly used tenses will distort the flow of their story, distort the relevancy of their story

and thus hinder them from getting the excellent level marks, which was a pity as they then had

wider vocabulary and they had great ideas for their composition.

I recorded my students’ marks monthly according to the topic of composition I gave

them. The table below is my students’ marks for the month of August prior to UPSR.

6 Berlian Composition Marks for August

No. Name Composition Topic

A Trip to

the Beach

National Day

Celebration

A Birthday

Party

A Trip to

Tawau

1 Adriana Michelle Kenny

Fred

9 9 10 12

2 Azizah Baharuddin 8 9 11 11

3 Intan Nur Izzaty Karim 9 9 10 12

4 Jasma Abdul Kadil 8 8 9 10

5 Khairi Abdullah Hamdan 9 10 10 12

6 Mohammad Fazli Bin Rusdi 8 9 10 11

7 Mohammad Shafiq Minggu 8 8 9 10

8 Mohammad Sudramin

Suding

8 9 10 10

9 Mohd. Ikwan Roslie 9 9 10 11

10 Muhammad Badrun Akbar

Bin Bacho

8 9 11 12

11 Muhammad Idris Bin

Yousaf

9 10 11 12

12 Natalia Abdul Hamid 10 9 10 12

13 Nellster Agong 8 8 9 9

14 Nuraqilah Ilyana Abdul

Rahman

9 10 12 12

15 Nur Farah Ain Abdul 8 8 9 9

8


Wahab

16 Nurian Syah Sudirman 10 10 12 13

17 Nurkhairun Nadia Romi 9 10 10 11

18 Nurul Faraheida Ghazali 8 8 9 9

19 Nurwalif Qhazmel Alham

Maulana

8 9 10 11

20 Nurzulayqah Abdul Halim 8 9 10 10

21 Rabiatul Aqilah Ambo

Mase

8 9 10 12

22 Nurfarahein Ahmad 8 9 10 11

23 Su-Lhia Amirullah 8 8 9 8

24 Ummi Kalsum Bakshad 9 10 11 12

25 Yunus Lahamid 8 9 9 10

26 Nurul Atiqah Silley 6 7 6 7

27 Nurul Aini Jikry 7 8 7 7

28 Adzley Abirin 7 7 8 8

29 Hasanul Hafiz Tahang 7 7 8 8

30 Nur Aisyah Baharuddin 7 6 7 9

As I had taught them on how to use correct tenses in their compositions since last year,

by August this year, most of my students could then get marks in the credit level marks.

4.0 Description and Justification of Methods of Grammar Instruction

There are two types of methods of grammar instruction which are usually opted by teachers to

teach ESL learners. They are known as the explicit method and implicit method. The table below

which was extracted from John Burgess and Sian Etherington (University of Salford UK), in

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their paper reports titled, ‘ Focus on Grammatical Form: Explicit or Implicit?’published on

http://www.finchpark.com/courses/grad-dissert/articles/grammar/grammar-exclicit-or-

implicit.pdf , shows the difference of each method.

Explicit Method Implicit Method

Conscious learning

Explicit knowledge

Cognitive learning through explanation

Conceptualization and observation

Monitoring output through conscious

rules

Subconscious learning

Belief that language is too complex to

be fully described and understood in a

conscious way

Behaviourist learning

Exposure to language in use

Explicit method of teaching grammar means that the teacher must make sure that the

students know that they are learning grammar. For example if the teacher wants the students to

learn about tenses then the teacher will write the topic on the whiteboard for all the students to

see.

The lesson on that day will also focus on that particular grammar item. The teacher will

have to explain the different types of tenses; present tense, past tense and future tense. The

teacher must also give exercise which will focus on the use of the correct tenses.

Drilling and repitition exercises are the sort of exercises which are used in teaching

grammar using explicit instructions as they will strengthen the students’ knowledge of grammar.

The students must have full consciousness that they are learning about grammar and not about

anything else. Explicit grammar instruction means that the students need to follow the rules

formally and marks given according to how well they answer in accordance with the formal rules

of grammar.

Some academians think that teaching grammar using explicit intsructions alone is not the

best way for ESL learners to learn the language. It is often boring because it puts rules and

formal learning above everything else. The learners who are learning the language as a second

language will find it hard to maintain focus because of the rigidity of the lesson. The focus on the

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http://www.finchpark.com/courses/grad-dissert/articles/grammar/grammar-exclicit-or-implicit.pdf



other language skills like listening and speaking during the teaching of grammar is also not given

attention to.

The implicit method of teaching grammar on the other hand focuses on the teaching of

grammar together with the teaching of other language skills. This means that ESL learners will

be learning grammar unconsciously.

Implicit grammar teaching advocates, believed that learning grammar is better when the

learners are using the language to communicate rather than in writings. The learners will learn all

the other language skills which all have grammar in them. Hence, the learners are also learning

grammar as well. This way, the learners will be able to acquire the language and learn the rules

of the language too.

Implicit teaching of grammar however often does not work with children who are

learning English as their second or foreign language. The problem with teaching grammar

through implicit instruction is the learners could not grasp it. How can they learn the science of

the English language when they could barely speak English in the class during English lesson, let

alone speak English outside of the class?

According to Larry Lynch in his article titled ‘Grammar Teaching: Implicit or Explicit?’,

published in the ESL Base –Teach English Website, the use of either implicit method or explicit

method should depend on the teaching and learning conditions of an individual class.

Whether it is explicit or implicit method, the teaching of grammar depends on the teacher

and the learners themselves. The teacher will choose which method is better suited to cater to the

needs of his or her students.

As for me, I prefer the method of teaching grammar explicitly in the beginning of the

lesson and then throw in some approaches which use the teaching of grammar implicitly. I prefer

to start with explicit method and end it with implicit method. I do not know how it works for

other people but for me, it had worked wonders as my student’s ability to learn grammar got

better as well as their other language skills, like listening and speaking.

I will make sure, that whenever I am teaching grammar, I let my students know about it.

My students even have their separate grammar books. The activity in the beginning of the lesson

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will be focused on the science of the language which I want them to understand. For example,

when teaching article, I will explain to them, that there are three articles in English; a, an, the. I

will also give them explanation of the usage of each article. They will be given some drilling

exercise on the use of the article in writing. Then, I will throw in a role play exercise, of maybe,

a fruitseller and his costumer, having a conversation. The dialogue below is an example of how

the students use the article in their communication.

Fruit seller : May I help you, sir?

Costumer : Yes, I want to buy some fruits. How much is an apple?

Fruitseller : RM1 each, sir.

Costumer : What about the durian? How do you sell them?

Fruitseller : Oh, I sell them individually, sir. A durian only costs RM5.

Costumer : Well then, I would like to buy 5 apples and a durian please.

Fruitseller : All right, sir. Here you are. That will be RM10 altogether sir. Thank you,

sir.

Costumer : You are welcome.

The script for their role play will be provided and the underlined words will be left blank,

which the students will fill in with the correct articles which they have learn at the beginning of

the lesson. This is how I teach grammar to my students. I use explicit method in the beginning

and then use implicit method somewhere in the middle until the end.

5.0 Analysis of Essays: Use of Present Tense

The topic of the composition or essay that is given to us for this assignment is ‘How I spent My

last School Holiday’. It presented quiet a challenge for my students.

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In fact, as we know thus far, it is compulsary for the students to use another character

(apart from themselves) in their story. My students had been used to introducing other people

that they find it difficult to introduce themselves, when in fact; it is just the same, only the use of

pronouns will be different.

That is why, I supposed, that most of my students didn’t write the introductions for their

essays in the present tense form. Instead, they went into the body of the story straight away.

Instead of writing, “I am Cristina. I am 12 years old. I am schooling in SK Kunak 1 but I

am originally from Ranau.” , they wrote, “Last school holiday, we went to…..” or “I spent my

last school holiday with my family at….”

Nevertheless, some of my students had mistakenly used present tense form of verb and

modals in their story which is supposed to be written in the past tense form. I chose 5 students to

have their essays evaluated. Below is the analysis of the use of present tense in their essays.

No. Name Present Tense Use (in the

Essay)

Present Tense Use Analysis

1 Adriana Michelle Kenny

Fred

1)After that, we sleep.

2)We check out and went

home.

3)Next time, I want to go

there again.

sleep is a verb in the

present tense. She should

have used slept.

check is a verb in the

present tense form. She

should have used checked.

The usage of the verb want

is correct. This indicates a

future planning.

2 Nurul Atiqah Silley 1)The book cannot be

bought at other shops.

2)We sleep…

The use of the modal

cannot is incorrect as it is

in the present tense form.

She should have used could

not.

sleep is verb in the present

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3)Next day, we wake up…

4) After all of my family

bath…

5) I am very sad…

6) next year, we will go to…

tense form. She should

have used slept.

wake up is a verb in the


should have used woke up.

bath is a present tense form

verb. She should have used

bathed.

am is a verb to be in the


should have used was.

The modal will is used

correctly to indicate future

plan.

3 Nur Alia’a Bahriah Buhari 1)I shall never forget..

2) The thing that I like…

The modal shall is used

correctly.

like is a verb in the present


have used liked.

4 Su-Lhia Amirullah 1)We stay in…

2)I can see…

3)I feel so happy.

stay is a present tense form

verb. She should have used

stayed.

can is a modal in the


should have used could.

feel is a verb in the present


have used felt.

5 Mimie Syafikah Gadapi 1)I miss them so much. miss is a verb in the present


have used missed.

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2)We knock…. knock is a verb in the


should have used knocked.

6.0 Analysis of Essays: Use of Past Tense

To determine the types of tenses used in a composition or essay, the main verbs and modal

auxilliary verbs need to be correctly used.

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My students in the essay titled ‘How I Spent My Last Holiday’ wrote fairly good

compositions. Most of their past tense form usage was correct. The analysis of the usage of past

tense in their essays is as follows.

No. Name Past Tense Use (in the

Essay)

Past Tense Use

Analysis

Verbs Verb-

To-Be

1 Adriana Michelle

Kenny Fred

1)spent

2)went

3)took

4)stayed

5)bought

6)reached

7)ate

8)drank

1)was This student could

use the verb in the

past tense form

correctly, be it

regular or irregular

verb.

She also knew how to

use the verb-to be

form os a singular

thing in the past tense

form.

2 Nurul Atiqah Silley 1)stayed

2)arrived

3)told

4)went

5)studied

6)brought

1)was

2)were

This student could

use the verb in the

past tense form fairly

well but she did make

a few mistakes in her

sentence structure

hence distorting the

meaning. For

instance, she used the

verb-to-be ‘were’

together with the

verb ‘studied’, which

distort the meaning

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of her sentence.

3 Nur Alia’a Bahriah

Buhari

1)spent

2)arrived

3)welcomed

4)excited

5)went

6)did

1)were This student used

correct the correct

verb form in the past

tense form; regular

and irregular verb.

She also knew the

correct verb-to-be

form to use for things

which are plural.

4 Su-Lhia Amirullah 1)went

2)brought

This student only

wrote a simple essay.

She managed to

minised her errors in

doing so.

5 Mimie Syafikah

Gadapi

1)spent

2)excited

3)went

4)wanted

5)bought

6)reached

7)cleaned

8)packed

9)woke-up

10)helped

11)surprised

12)called

1)were

2)was

This student could

use the correct form

of verb; irregular and

regularm in the past

tense form. Apart

from e few errors her

essay is very good.

Nonetheless, she

made a structural

error in one sentence

which distorted it.

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7.0 Conclusion

The teaching of grammar; whether it is using explicit or implicit method, depends on the teacher

and the learner of ESL. Every teacher knows his or her students best and thus whether he or she

is going to use implicit or explicit grammar instruction- will be decided on the fact that it suited

his or her students the best.

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In my case, however, I prefer to use both implicit and explicit method in the teaching of

grammar to my students. I want my students to know and to be conscious that they are learning

grammar without being rigid to the point of boring my students with only learning the grammar

on its’ own. I want my students to be able to use grammar in their communication too.

The use of present tense and past tense, for primary school children depend mainly on

their correct use of the verbs and modal auxiliary verbs in their composition.

3180 words excluding graphic organisers.

8.0 References

Arshad Abd Samad. Mariam Md Nor. Halim Ibrahim. (October/2011). HBEL3203 Teaching of

Grammar.Open University Malaysia. Meteor Doc SDN BHD. Selangor Darul Ehsan.

John Burgess. Sian Etherington. (2002). Focus on grammatical form; explicit or implicit?

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University of Salford UK. http://www.finchpark.com/courses/grad-dissert/articles/grammar/grammar-exclicit-or-implicit.pdf

Larry Lynch. (21st November 2014). Grammar Teaching; Implicit or Explicit?

http://www.eslbase.com/articles/grammar-implicit-explicit

9.0 Attachment

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http://www.eslbase.com/articles/grammar-implicit-explicit




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Hbel3203 Teaching of Grammar