Pedagogical Grammar and ESL Teaching, Essay Example

In the United States alone there are over five million students that are taught English as a Second Language (ESL) in schools (Goldberg, 2008).  The academic framework in which the students are a part of today is dependent on the linguistic capacities and academic delivery of their teacher. In the educational system, there is an inherent need for teachers to be equipped with the right knowledge in teaching English and grammar to ESL learners at the K through 12 levels. Pedagogical grammar is essentially a middle ground that is used between the areas of descriptive grammar and prescriptive grammar. The use of pedagogical grammar in order to teach the grammatical content in the classroom is essential in increasing fluency and accuracy of speech. This is a two-fold requirement of ESL leaners, not only to obtain an English proficiency, but also master the complex requirements to graduate high school simultaneously. The progress of ESL learners has been limited by the abilities of the teacher to provide motivation for instruction to be a primary factor in the development of ESL teaching. Teachers in the public educational systems have limited techniques and resources in teaching ESL to students, and requires not only a grasp on grammar, but also the ability to explain the grammatical concepts to non-native speakers. The purpose of this paper is to provide the reader with information that pertains to trying different ways in which teachers can teach students grammar and other concepts that are essential in ESL teaching.

The importance of teachers in ESL teaching is substantial, they hold the keys to unlocking the minds of students, and have the abilities to let the information be formidable for non-native speakers to grasp. In studying the problem, it boils down helping students with pronunciation, correcting grammatical errors, and refusing to rush through lessons until the information has a clear understanding. Looking at the problem, ESL teachers need to find a permanent or workable solution where they are trained in the methods of different learning styles, and practices which gives ESL students the time to absorb lesson plans, and have the capabilities to advance the students’ academic proficiency. ESL students can learn better through a comprehensive relationship between group language teaching, incorporating different experiences, and learning at an earlier grade level. Applying language teaching methods and learning theories that are guided by research, will help in supporting recommendations for effective ESL teaching to students at any level.

Learning Theory in Teaching ESL

Children’s early development consists of active and motivated thinkers. One of the best supported learning theories is Piaget’s individual constructivism theory, which supports that children are curious by nature about the environment around them, and choose to seek out more information to make sense of it (Goldberg 2008). When non-native speakers come to the United States, the students are motivated and active in their cognitive behavior to understand the English language, either by consistently trying to listen, read, write, or speak the language that is constant around them. Piaget expounds on this theory in suggesting that in order for students to gather an understanding of the language they must interact with their physical and social environment. In environments children will construct rather than absorb knowledge, as students will pull from their own experiences through the environments they interact in to understand how the world works. However, in typical classrooms, this notion isn’t followed through because ESL students are usually relegated to the backs of the classrooms and miss out on the social and academic opportunities to engage in the classroom environment. Students have the capabilities to learn in several main ways that includes visually, auditory, and kinesthetically. These different learning methods are the keys to forming teaching strategies that should be aimed at providing teaching methods that ESL students can learn and gauge the proficiency of the English language. Teachers must remember that when teaching ESL, the four basic skills are essential to implement in every lesson plans; listening, reading, writing, and speaking.

Students do not learn passively, and individual constructivist learning occurs when they are in an active process of acquiring knowledge and meaningful construction. The teacher’s capacity to be competent in pedagogical grammar is imperative in the application of using creativity and resourcefulness as factors in reaching ESL students. Utilizing the constructionist view in teaching pedagogical grammar and other methods can be achieved by incorporating the factors of social, school related concepts, and cultural influences that is critical in their comprehension. The problems of teaching grammar is mirrored in a Larsen-Freeman (2012) article that states: teachers think “ that grammar consists of arbitrary rules of a language, to which speakers must adhere or risk the penalty of being misunderstood or of being stigmatized as speaking an inferior or inadequate form of the target language” (p.112). Bosquit (2009), as well as Golberg (2008), and Tyler and Evans (2002) agreed that prepositions, as well as other pedagogical grammar is a difficult task in relaying the function and the content of words.   Grammar has always been a problem for native English students, however there is an unlimited amount of benefits and opportunities that are presented to the native speaker when gaining a proficiency of the English language. Larsen-Freeman suggests that grammar would be better learned and taught through a different set of rules than the normal methods of ESL teaching. She points out the ESL students will be judged for the way they say something and the way they express the words also (Larsen-Freeman, 2012, pg. 115). Thus it is particularly important for students to learn when and why they should use particular grammatical forms in understanding grammar, so that they won’t be confused and will understand the consequences of making each choice.

When teaching grammar to ESL students they should learn the correct tenses for prepositional phrases.  According to Bosquit (2009), it is hard to teach ESL students prepositions, without using one or more prepositions in the definition. This complicates the strategy in teaching students, and each party is eventually caught in whirlwind of vague meanings. (Bosquit 5) Not all concepts that are incorporated in pedagogical grammar have to be taught, but students should be familiar with the particular forms that are critical to their particular dialects, so they are able to express the meaning in the way that they choose. In Larsen-Freeman’s (2012) view, “a better way to conceive of grammar for pedagogical purposes, then might be as a grammar of choice” (p. 109). One of the biggest concepts in teaching grammar and English to ESL students is incorporating their life experiences and things that are meaningful to them.

Looking at case studies that implemented new strategies to teach ESL students, Decapau and Marshall (2009) have done empirical research. They have implemented a new instructional model for ESL students, which have limited or interrupted formal education. The purpose of the their study was to survey how their instructional model would do with Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm (MALP), which combines the four elements of student learning by introducing them to learning methods. The MALP model is designed to address the growing concerns of ESL students whose education might be limited or interrupted in a formal education setting compared to their American counterparts. The MALP method is applied within a class of students of mixed age and background who differ significantly, but have completed their primary education in different countries. The cultural factors to each student are essential in their successful assimilation to make students comfortable in their educational settings. Students will be able to read their own narratives in front of the class, interact with their peers, and more importantly students will have an easier time correcting their grammar usage when they comfortable with the material they are reading (Decapau, Marshall, 2009, pg. 5). Students will feel an interconnectedness and the lessons will be more relevant to them, therefore they will be able to practice at home. MALP requires the teachers to have a focus on constructing curriculum that includes incorporating the student’s world with the classroom, which helps draw from their funds of knowledge. MALP also reinforces the theory of allowing students to learn in groups and to practice individually, in order to be held accountable of their own learning process by using oral and written methods. By combining the methods of introducing new tasks, this method will help in providing a supportive environment, that makes students transition easier in ESL teaching.

Other research conducted by Pelletier and Brent (2002) focused teaching ESL students that were mostly in primary education, however their approach in teaching grammar and the English language was that family involvement was essential in infusing cultural and social experiences into the student’s learning experiences. The study was based in Canadian preschool, with ESL students and English speakers that were younger than 5 years old. The research was conducted over a two year longitudinal study that involved implementing 14 parenting and readiness pilot centers for primary education. One of the primary problems of the subjects was a lack of school readiness in young children which are indicator of academic failure. (Pelletier & Brent, 2002, pg. 2) The points of parent involvement were essential in the success of students assimilating and helped the cognitive components that provided support for the students. When teachers implement the learning methods, teachers need to be aware of the fact that immigration is a stressful transition for the families. Teachers must incorporate these factors when implementing teaching methods that focus on grammar usage and language proficiency. The teacher is the key facilitator that is involved in the learning process, which helps provide strategies that are engaging for both the student and the parents. (Pelletier & Brent, 2002, pg. 4)

Language learning is considered one of the most complex and complicated feats that human beings have to accomplish. According to Tyler and Evans (2002), there are a number of reasons that creates a tremendous challenge to teachers as well as the students. In classes that focus on grammar, ESL learning “has been further complicated by the fact that important elements of systematically that exist in language have not been appropriately captured by the pedagogical grammars which underlie modern foreign language teaching textbooks, and materials” (Tyler & Evans, 2002, p.260). When teaching ESL students, traditional accounts have represented the fundamental assumptions about the human language, and the schematic representation associated with the central sense of the preposition. This is scene in the case study of DeCapua & Marshall (2009).  Other studies include Bosquit’s (2009) in which she studied several ELLs classrooms, in which she describes prepositions, are “extremely hard for ELLs to learn the nuances of all the English prepositions, how to understand them, and how to use them” (Bosquit 5) Within the classroom the different approach to teaching prepositions and other pedagogical grammars is beneficial to the second language learner. The model that is researched in the paper follows a systematic approach that is cut down by the arbitrations of the ESL teaching. Teaching pedagogical grammar to ESL learners draws heavily on the notions from their own experiences from their own observations of the world around them. When teachers’ understand these concepts, it provides a presentation of the extended senses that arise from observation of the external, and spatial-physical world.

Drawing from these conclusions, it is easy to see that teaching ESL students involves complex and challenging elements, in which the teacher must be prepared and educate themselves on the grammar concepts that will be relevant to the student. Teaching in the classroom can partake several aspects of ESL teaching to non-native speakers. As pointed out earlier, by applying a method which infuses constructivism, the teacher furthers incorporating students’ outside experiences to help draw relevance to the lesson plans. In order for teachers to be able to be the facilitators to the students, they must have the necessary background in both educating students and educating students that do not have a grasp on the English language. It is up to the teacher to follow a method that motivates, encourages, and instructs the students with their own background and experiences in hopes to better reach them. In teaching pedagogical grammar to students, it is important that they must know the correct usage and the correct meaning so they will be able to advance through school without the discouragement of being corrected and not understanding why. Teaching prepositions and other common language concepts, can run the risk of becoming confusing to the student. By teachers being able to draw from real world experiences in breaking down the concepts, they can be easily applied, and learned by the students. ESL teachers should train and educate themselves in methods that would be beneficial to both the students and the family.

References

Bosquit, Patricia. (2009). The Second Language Acquisition of English Prepositions. Digital Commons. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1106&context=honors

DeCapua, A., & Marshall, H. W. (2009). Students with limited or interrupted formal education in U.S. Classrooms. Urban Review. Doi: 10.1007/s11256-009-0128-z.

Goldberg, C. (2008). Teaching English language learners: What the research does and does not say. American Educator,32(2), 8-23, 42-44.

Larsen-Freeman, Diane. (2012). The Grammar of Choice. School for International Training. Retrieved from http://teach-grammar.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/The-Grammar-of-Choice+.pdf

Pelletier, Janette, Brent, Juliane M. (2002). Parent participation in children’ school readiness: The effects of parental self-efficacy, cultural diversity and teacher strategies. International Journal of Early Childhood. Retrieved from https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/32197/1/pelletierbrent.revised.rtf

Tyler, Andrea, Evans, Vyyan. (2002). Applying Cognitive Linguistics to Pedagogical Grammar:  The Case of Over. Vyvevans. Retrieved from http://www.vyvevans.net/pedgrmr.over.pdf