Rethink grammar teaching in China

Introduction

When we refer to second language teaching，grammar teaching cannot be ignored. Grammar is roughly defined as the study of rules governing the use of language. According to Nunan （1991），without grammar，it is impossible to communicate beyond a very rudimentary level. Still，linguists point out that acquiring the grammatical system of the target language is of central importance，because an inadequate knowledge of grammar would severely constrain linguistic creativity and limit the capacity for communication （Nunan，1991：152）.In this view，how to teach grammar effectively to make learners can best acquire the target grammar is an important issue in second language teaching. This essay I will focus on the grammar teaching in tertiary education，which target group is non-English major students.

The issues of grammar teaching and their rationale

The main purpose of tertiary English teaching to non-English major students is making them to get high mark in text. They attach importance to the skills of passing the College English Testing （CET），instead of taking communication skills seriously. At class，teachers usually explain the grammar using mother tongue. The target language is little used. Often，the chances of rehearsing grammar are translating disconnected sentences between English and Chinese. The class setting is teacher-centered，and students have little or no interaction with teacher. Under this grammar teaching method，students memorize the grammar rules mechanically. They may comprehend the classic texts，but they do not know how to order a cup of coffee in English，which demonstrates that they are lack of communicative competence .The typical feature of grammar translation method is focusing on explanation of grammar rules. Even though it has some disadvantages，it is also prevalent in Chinese content，especially among the tertiary grammar teaching. The reasons are as followed：

1. The present testing system leads to the ignorant of communicative competence. In China，the education is directed by the testing .What the testing focuses is the education concerns. In terms of Burnanby and Sun （1988：222），the teaching approach was greatly influenced by the traditional Chinese scholarly practice with focus on grammar，literature and in depth analysis of literary texts. College English which has no speaking test has been accepted broadly. Large number of students learn English result from they want to pass the exams，and attain high salary jobs. Thus，they pay close attention on reading comprehension，which accounts for 40% of the text. Speaking has been regarded as unworthy being mentioned.

2. Grammar translation method has its own advantages which make it still exit in contemporary English grammar teaching .Firstly ，It requires few specialized skills on the part of teachers（Brown，1994：53）.This is main reason of retaining grammar translation method. Teachers only need to have a textbook and the English class can run .This teaching method mitigates the shortage of high quality teachers in China to a great extent. Furthermore，the teaching results can be easily measured through texts. According to Brown （1994：53），tests of grammar rules and of translations are easy to construct and can be objectively scored. Thirdly，Grammar translation method requires students spend a lot of time to analysis the structure of language，which is helpful understanding in reading and particular in writing.

3. It is hard to spread the Communicative Language Teaching （CLT） in Chinese notions. Teachers are regarded as an authority and learners cannot adapt to be given more responsibility and involvement in the learning process. Meanwhile，accuracy is valued more highly than fluency. As Thornbury （1999） mentioned，CLT also takes a relatively relaxed attitude towards accuracy，in the belief that meaning takes precedence over form.

Procedures of teaching grammar

Based on the rationales above，the following table shows the procedures of teaching grammar.

ProceduresTeacher’s activityStudent’s activityApplying principles

ModelingGives Ss oral examples about grammar points which come from textsListen to the examples，do not take notesInductive approach. Students have attention to grammar points when they come up

ImitatingAsks questions about examples，analyses，generalizes grammar rulesRepeat the examples orallyDeductive approach

Focus on form

Practice involves accuracy

UtilizingDesigns context，asks Ss drill grammars in a communicative situationparticipate task-based activitiesFocus on function

Practice involves fluency

TestingGets feedback from Ss，adjusts the following teaching activitiesRehearse grammars again，and show the mastery in grammar

pointsRelate to form and function

Balance accuracy and fluency

One aspect needs to be pointed out that College English Tests in China fail to realize the principles motioned in the table. Besides because Ss who are exposed to tertiary education have already finished the grammar rules study，the teacher can adjust the proportions of explanations between meaning and function according to their mastery in a specific grammar point.

Conclusion

Although grammar teaching in ELT is a hot debt issue，in general terms we can see that，at the beginner level，we would expect to do quite a lot of structure （function） teaching and practice. The teaching aim is to get students to practice and use the language as much as possible. As the students to learn more，the students would be involved in more communicative activities and would have less grammar teaching.

【References】

［1］Nunan，D. Language teaching methodology：a textbook for teachers. Norwich：Prentice Hall，1991.

［2］Ur，P. Grammar practice activities ：a practical guide for teachers. Great Britain：Cambridge University Press，1988.

［3］Thornbury，S. How to teach grammar. Edinburgh Gate： Pearburgh Education limited，1999.

［4］Ur，Penny. A course in language teaching：practice and theory. Great Britain：Cambridge University Press，1991.