FOCUS ON LANGUAGE

by
Bernadette M. Viray

Grammar
and
Grammaticality

 The essence of language lies in

grammar

Declining standard of English = actual

decline in the ability of individuals to express
themselves grammatically

Defining Grammar
Notions of grammar and grammaticality
have changed over the years
Cobbett in 1819 prescribed how
grammar has had to do with correctness
and the role of the teacher was to impart
the rules that would result in correct
usage

Richards, Platt and Weber (1985)

defined Grammar as a description of the
structure of language and the way in
which linguistic units such as words and
phrases are combined to produce
sentences in the language

Following
dictionary

entries from a recent

of linguistic terminology:

- an analysis of the structure of a

language, either as encountered in a
corpus of speech or writing (a
performance grammar) or as predictive
of
a
speakers
knowledge
(a
competence grammar)

-an analysis of the structural of the

properties which define human
language (a universal language)
- a level of structural organization
which
can
be
studied
independently of phonology and
semantics

Grammaticality is the conformity of a

sentence or part of a sentence to the
rules defined by a particular grammar
of the language. (Crystal, 1992)

Grammar
n a description of the structure of a
language and the way in which
language units such as words and
phrases are combined to produce
sentences in the language
(Richards, Platt and Weber, 1985)

Grammar: A Problematic Concept

a. Theres about five minutes left.
b. There are about five minutes left.
Which one do you use?
Which one is correct?

Important limitations on the ability of experts to provide reliable judgments on

grammaticality and acceptability (Odlin, 1994):
- few linguists or teachers have irrefutable intuitions about grammaticality even
though many of their judgments are reliable
- competence and performance limitations affect expert judgments of grammaticality
and these affect judgments of acceptability

Three Dimensions of Grammar: Form ,

Meaning and Use
Larsen-Freeman (1995) integrated three
aspects of linguistics that have
traditionally been kept separate: syntax,
semantics, and pragmatics
Halliday (1995) developed a systematicfunctional linguistics model

Grammar is the study of how syntax

(form), semantics (meaning), and
pragmatics (use) work together to
enable individuals to communicate
through language

Vocabulary

Vocabulary

is

interrelated

with

grammar.

1. It is possible to divide the lexical system of most

languages into grammatical words such as
prepositions, articles, adverbs, and so on.
2. The grammaticality of vocabulary manifest
itself in word morphology: the grammatical
particles that we attach to the beginning and ends
of words in order to form new words

The Status of Vocabulary within

the Curriculum
Proponents of audiolingualism argued
that foreign language learning would be
most effective if learners concentrated
their efforts on mastering the basic
sentence patterns of the language. Once
these patterns have been memorized,
new vocabulary could be slotted in.

Proponents
of
comprehension-based
approaches to language acquisition argue
that the early development of an extensive
vocabulary can enable learners to
outperform
their
competence.

Aspects of vocabulary learning:

- in order to communicate, it is necessary to
develop a knowledge of grammar
-vocabulary learning is not impeded by age; the
ability to learn new vocabulary appears to get
easier as one gets older (Rivers,1983)

Pronunciation

The

The

Critical

Period

critical period hypothesis claims that

there is such a biological timetable
(Brown, 1987) quire. The critical period
hypothesis claims that there is such a
biological timetable (Brown, 1987)

Segmental and Suprasegmental

Phonology
Segmental Phonology has to do with the individual
sounds of the language.
-tasks are designed to help learners discriminate
and produce words that differ only in a single
contrasting sounds
Ex: There was something wrong with the
rice
rise

Suprasegmental phonology has to do with

stress, rhythm, and intonation patterns in the
language.
- tasks show learners how different stress,
rhythm, and intonation patterns signal
differences of function in communication
Ex: Where did you say Jim worked?
How did you get the job?

Pronunciation and Listening

teaching isolated forms of sounds and words fails

to address the fact that, in communication, many
aspects of pronunciation are determined by the
positioning of elements within long stretches of
speech (Pennington and Richards, 1986)

Pronunciation
and
listening
complimentary relationship.

are

in

Metaphors for Language

Development

The organic metaphor describes second

language acquisition as more like a growing
garden than building a wall.
Learners do not learn one thing perfectly
one item at a time but learn numerous
things simultaneously (and imperfectly).

The linguistic flowers do not all appear at the

same time, nor do they grow at the same rate.
Some even appear to wilt, for a time before
renewing
their
growth.
The rate and speed are determined by a complex
interplay of factors related to speech processing
constraints (Pienemann and Johnston, 1987),
pedagogical
interventions
(Pica,
1985),
acquisitional processes (Johnston,1987), and the
influence
of
the
discourse
environment
(Levinson,1983; McCarthy,1991; Nunan,1993).

Grammar and context are so closely related

that appropriate grammatical choices can
only be made with reference to the context
and
purpose
of
communication.
Celce-Murcia and Olshtain point out that
there is only a handful of grammatical rules
that are free from discourse contraints

If learners are not taught grammar in context, from

a functional perspective, it will be difficult for them
to see how and why alternative forms exist to
express different communicative meanings.

Through organic methodology, learners

learn both how to form structures correctly
and how to use these structures to
communicate meaning.

Learners

grow

their

own

grammars.

Learners ability to conceptualize and

articulate rule and usage differences varies
widely.

Language as Discourse

Arrange the sentences in an orderly sequence:

___She entered the chapel and raised her eyes toward
the figure of St. Jude.
___With her head bowed, the tired woman reached the
chapel where she used to go as a young girl whenever
she felt lost, anxious, or discouraged.
___Then darkness enveloped her and she knew no more.
___As she prayed fervently, she felt an urgent longing to
cry.
___Instead, the tight suffocating lump in her throat
swelled larger and larger till she could no longer breathe.
___But no tears came.

Text-forming devices:
Anaphoric

or backward pointing devices

-words and phrases which serve to
connect each sentence with one or more
of the sentences that come before it

Nonlinguistic

knowledge
- knowledge of the subject matter or
content of the text in question

Creating Cohesion

Types of Cohesion (Halliday, 1985)

1.

Reference subsequent items can only be

interpreted with reference to the initial phrase of
sentence one
a. Personal Reference are realized by pronouns
and determiners and they serve to identify
individuals and objects that are named at some
point in the text
Ex: I just met your brother. Hes a nice guy.

b. Demonstrative Reference is realized

by determiners and adverbs
Ex: You failed the test. This is
bad news.

c. Comparative Reference is realized

through adjectives and adverbs and
serves to compare items within a
text in terms of identity or similarity
Ex: I asked for this bag, but I got the
other bag.

There are two ways in which reference items

can function within a text:
a. Anaphoric- references that point backwards
b. Cataphoric references that point forward
Ex: Within five or ten minutes, no more
than that, three of the others had called her
on the telephone to ask her if she had
heard that something had happened out
there.

2. Substitution
a. Nominal Substitution
Ex: Ill get you some more bread
rolls. These ones are stale.

b. Verbal Substitution
Ex: A: I think you work too hard.
B: So do you!

c. Clausal Substitution
Ex: A: Are we going to land soon?
B: I think so.

Ellipsis occurs when some essential

structural element is omitted from a
sentence or clause and can only be
recovered by referring to an element in the
preceding text

a. Nominal Ellipsis
Ex: My kids play an awful lot of sport.
Both (0) are incredibly energetic.

b. Verbal Ellipsis
Ex: A: Have you been working?
B: Yes, I have (0).

c. Clausal Ellipsis
Ex: A: Whyd you only set three places?
Pauls staying for dinner, isnt he?
B: Is he? He didnt tell me (0).

3. Conjunction is a cohesive device because

it signals relationships that can only be
fully understood through reference to other
parts of the text.

Types of Conjunction:
a. Adversative-the information in the second
sentence mitigates or qualifies the
information in the first
Ex: I quite like being chatted up when
sitting in a bar having a drink. On the other
hand, I hate it if ... You know... If the guy
starts to make a nuisance of himself.

b. Additive presents additional information

Ex: From a marketing point of view, the
popular tabloid encourages the reader to
read the whole page instead of choosing
stories. And isnt that what any publisher
wants?

c. Temporal relationship exists when the

events in a text are related in terms of the
timing
of
their
occurrence
Ex: Brick tea is a blend that has been
compressed into a cake. It is taken mainly
by the minority groups in China. First, it is
ground to a dust. Then it is usually cooked
in milk.

d. Causal the relationship is one of cause

and
consequence
Ex: Chinese tea is becoming increasingly
popular in restaurants, and even in coffee
shops. This is because of the growing
belief that it has several health giving
properties.

4. Lexical Cohesion occurs when two words

in a text are semantically related in terms of
meaning

Kinds of lexical cohesion:

a. Reiteration- words or phrases that refers
back to the previously mentioned entity.
-Repetition
-Synonym
-Superordinate
-General Word

b. Collocation - familiar grouping of words

that usually go together and convey
meanings by association

Rhetorical Patterns in Text

Hoey (1983) argues that the ordering of
information in discourse can be accounted
for in rhetorical relationships:
a. Cause and consequence
b. Problem-solution
c. Instrument-achievement

I opened fire.
I was on sentry duty.
I eat off the attack.
I saw the enemy approaching.
I was on sentry duty.

cause --- I saw the enemy approaching.

---consequence--- I opened fire.
Instrument---I opened fire.---achievement
---I beat off the attack.

Subordination
While I was on sentry duty, I opened fire
because I sae the enemy approaching. I
thereby beat off the attack.
Conjunction
I opened fire because I saw the enemy
approaching when I was on sentry duty. By
this means I beat off the attack.

Schema Theory
-suggests that the knowledge we carry
around our heads is organized into
interrelated patterns

Widdowson (1984) provides a

reinterpretation of schema theory from the
perspective of discourse comprehension
Dimensions or levels to any given discourse:
1. systemic level includes the reader or
listeners linguistic knowledge
2. schematic level relates to background
content knowledge

Background Knowledge
- help us interpret discourse on a
functional level. ( what the speaker/writer
is trying to achieve through language)
Ex: A: I have two tickets to the theater
tonight.
B: My examination is tomorrow.
A: Pity.

Pedagogical Implications

Ways of activating organic learning

1. teaching language as a set of choices
Grammar will be determined by the
meanings learners wish to make;
Which form should I use? will be
It depends on the message you wish to
convey.

2. Encouraging learners to become active

explorers of language
Learners are given access to data and are
provided with structured opportunities to
work out rules, principles, and applications
for themselves

3. Encouraging learners to explore relationships

between form, meaning, and use
Tasks exploiting this principle show that form,
meaning, and use are interlinked and that
grammatical choices will be determined by
considerations of context and purpose
- assists learners in developing grammatical
competence in the creation of coherent
discourse

Thank you!