Investigating Controversies in Teaching Grammar: A Case for the Iranian High School Students

Abstract

. What has remained controversial is 'how to teach grammar to help L2 learners acquire it. The present study was designed on a qualitative-quantitative survey basis using a semi-structured interview and questionnaire on the effectiveness of different approaches in teaching grammar which was administered to 128 students and 5 EFL instructors in four high schools in Isfahan province, the city of Falavarjan. The results of the study revealed that the students and instructors preferred 'focus on form (FonF)' instructional method. The results also demonstrated that some of the participants favored a teacher fronted classroom with an emphasis on explicit grammar instruction. The results of the study is in line with the related literature in grammar teaching approaches that 'focus on form' (FonF) acts as a middle-way between the two extremes of (FonFs) and 'focus on meaning (FonM)'. Moreover, the role of L1 in the grammar instruction cannot be stigmatized as unworthy of consideration without providing enough empirical evidence. The overall results suggest that the treatment of grammar with a 'one -size -fits-all' methodology instead of utilizing a balanced perspective based on the needs and context of the learners is not expected to yield sufficient result in any language teaching contexts.

Teachers’ Beliefs versus Learners’ Beliefs in Grammar Teaching: Harmonizing Teaching and Learning for Adult Learners’ Improved Proficiency in English

“…In other words, the primary focus of the grammar lesson should be on function, and the students should be taught only those grammar items that are part of the text and that too should be explained as they appear in the context. This result is consistent with the finding by Boroujeni (2012) where teachers fovoured noticing technique and believed that this approach is completely student-centered and they can somehow control the grammatical form to be taught. However, the students report otherwise.…”

Exploring Inductive Grammar Teaching: English Teacher Perspectives

“…Robust debate over the last few decades as to the place of explicit grammar instruction in teaching a second language, either in an ESL (English as a Second Language) or EFL (English as a Foreign Language) setting, seems to have settled on the position that "there is now convincing indirect and direct evidence to support the teaching of grammar" (Ellis, 2006, p. 87). Nevertheless the questions of what grammatical structures to teach, and especially how to teach them remain controversial (Boroujeni, 2012;Ellis, 2006;Mart, 2013).…”

Comic Strips and Grammar Development among Iranian Teenage EFL Learners

“…From second language (L2) learners' perspective, the significance of grammar has been acknowledged and grammar is important. In fact, many L2 students believe that knowledge of grammar is necessary for their ability to learn a new language (Abbasian- Boroujeni, 2012). These students, when responding to a needs analysis, usually state, "I want to study grammar.…”

“…And, those who have acquired English imperfectly in this country through interactions with native speakers also acknowledge the significance of grammar, as they may have faced misunderstandings because of their grammatical deficiencies. Despite such empirical support (Abbasian- Boroujeni, 2012;Crivos & Luchini, 2012) for learning and teaching grammar over the previous decades, the question of how to enhance grammar instruction has been contentious. Indeed, there seems to be a dire need of devising newer ways to teach grammar more effectively.…”