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Grammar at the Point of Need
TexTESOL 2013Colin S. WardLone Star College – North Harris
Imagine you want to teach gerunds in your
writing class…
When in the writing process would you do
it?
What would you do with it?
Key Questions:
What grammar do you tackle in a writing class?
How do you tackle grammar in a writing class?
When do you tackle grammar in a writing class?
Pre 1st Draft
Prefabs
Construct
ion
Grammar
Prefabs at Level Zero
from grammar charts to flow charts
Tourists People They
can
cross eat at see shop stay in visit walk to
a an
famous restaurant history museum hotel interesting bridge
a lot of many
colorful lights interesting stores old neighborhoods parks restaurants
I
am am not
social quiet adventurous busy sad happy
Choose Prefabs based on need
Process: …so that I can….I want to get a degree so that I can earn more money.
Problem-Solution : By + gerund….By offering more public transportation, fewer people in Ho Chi Minh will drive to work.
Cause-Effect: …due to the time it takes to…..
Due to the time it takes to find a good job in the U.S, many immigrants decide to return to their home countries.
A couple examples….
Interlanguage in real time
got it…
…but not quite
Prefabs don’t always work…
I am going to open my own beauty salon so that I want to have a lot of customers.
By providing more education to children will help reduce illiteracy.
Learning a new language, it will open up new doors for my life.
…so they need more practice!
What the research says…
Construction grammar (Hinkel)
Use language “chunks”Allow students to create new “units”vocab and grammar on a continuum
What other research says…
Analyzing is less helpful than sentence generating, combining & manipulating (Weaver)
Teaching formal grammar systematically & through isolated lessons & drill doesn’t work (Weaver)
Reduce overload (Myles)
Control content
Models for grammar
What prefabs would you teach?
Opinion
Narrative
Classification
Definition
Cause-effect
Problem-Solution
2nd-3rd Draft
Grammar Throwdowns
Student-
generated!
Grammar Throwdown
Mini-lesson
What the research says…
Grammar chosen should reflect what students need most (DCF)
Use the students’ own writing (Weaver)
Teachable moments & mini-lessons (Weaver)
Post 2nd Draft
Parallel Structure
Student-
generated!
Parallel Structure
Parallel Structure
What I did not expect…
Post 3rd Draft
Wordiness
Student-
generated!
What the research says…
Little (or no?) research regarding wordiness in ESOL writing
No systematic way of tackling wordiness
Skill often glossed over
What native speakers are told…
despite the fact that despitedue to the fact that because in the event that ifin the vicinity of nearfor all intents and purposes X
…does not necessarily work for ESOL
students.
Another common approach
Reduce the wordy expressions in the essay on a separate sheet of paper. Be sure to keep the meaning of the original even if you make grammar changes:
The bad effects of garbage are not limited to the personal lives of individuals and families. In fact, the effects have spread out immensely to become a social and global phenomenon affecting the whole earth and the whole universe. Garbage has invaded and threatened our lives. Pollution and toxic chemicals and substances, some of which are the result of garbage, are threatening our existence. The ESL Writer’s Handbook, Michigan ELT, 2010
Why are ESOL students wordy?
1) Direct translation
2) Insufficient vocabulary
3) Lack of word form knowledge
4) Lack of grammar knowledge
5) Unaware of redundancy
6) Attempt to fill the page
Wordiness
Wordiness
Correcting Wordiness
in Action
Correcting Wordiness
in Action
Correcting Wordiness
in Action
Correcting Wordiness
in Action
Perhaps my biggest points are..
Timing is everything
Use student-generated grammar.
Be a grammar detective.
Questions or Comments?
Email: [email protected] to PowerPoint/Handout: http://www.lonestar.edu/colin-ward.htm
