Entry 2 - Grammar

My initial thoughts regarding grammar include grammar drills and assignments in school which I think would be described as prescriptive grammar.  My parents were from Scotland and my mother insisted that we use the Queen's language which would be considered standard English.  My mother said that when she and her friends played on the playground or spoke at home, they spoke Gaelic, but in school they always spoke the Quenn's English.  Gaelic would be considered a slang dialect today.  When we moved to Tennessee I very quickly picked up Tennessee slang and shortened my words like nothing and something to nuthin and somethin.  I loved to use the word ain't, but I knew better than to dare use it at home or in school.  When we were taught grammar rules, I never paid attention and I always made A's in English.  I thought that grammar was just natural.  The lack of knowledge of certain parts of speech became a little bit of a problem when I faced questions on standardized tests and later in life when I taught elementary school English.  As an ESL teacher, I am having to look carefuly at some of the rules and vocabulary terms that are associated with grammar in order to teach grammar effectively.

I do believe that standard English is important for students to learn and use, particularly in a professional setting.  When I have taught in the classroom, I have always tried to be respectful of dialects or non-standard English used in the home.  I have given students examples of errors I make that I developed because of bad speaking habits.  I explain that I can teach the correct way to use the words, but I still sometimes misuse them when I speak.

Teaching ESL students has given me a different perspective on grammar.  I do think it is important to teach grammar so that students can communicate effectively with others, but I think it is a very long process and I don't get hung up on students who use incorrect grammar.  I am more interested in getting the basic information and concepts from students.  For example, I feel like verb tense is basically  fine tuning the students' English acquisition. Since I teach students in K-3, I mainly address grammar in a more descriptive manner.  When a student responds to a question but does not use the correct pronoun or verb tense, I will say yes, that is correct.  Then I will repeat the answer using correct grammar.  I do spend more time on grammar with my  third grade student since this is addressed more in the classroom and grammar will be adressed more on standardized tests.  I do use some prescriptive grammar since this is a more direct approach and it is easier to address the different skills using prescriptive grammar.  I prefer descriptive grammar over prescriptive, but I like to use a combination of them with my students.