Grammar in ELT and ELT Materials

Graham Burton

Description

First critical examination of grammar in ELT: what it is, why it is as it is, where it came from and why it endures

This book investigates the content of the grammar syllabus typically employed in mainstream English Language Teaching. Using a mixed-methods approach, the author examines how the syllabuses used in coursebooks are actually constructed, how they evolved and how valid their contents are as a basis for teaching. The research reported consists of a broad exploration of primary sources in order to outline the evolution of ELT pedagogical grammar; ten interviews with key ELT authors and publishing professionals, which allows for the investigation of the decision-making processes underlying the choice of grammar content in ELT teaching materials; and finally, the presentation of case studies which examine three areas of grammar, analysing the evolution of their treatment in ELT materials (both historical and contemporary) and comparing their current treatment to data on real learner use. This book contributes to the literature on syllabus design and pedagogical grammar and builds on existing research into materials design. It will be of interest to researchers and professionals working in the fields of applied linguistics, pedagogical grammar, curriculum design and materials design.

Interviewees

Chapter 1. Introduction

Chapter 2. ELT Grammar in its Broader Context

Chapter 3. ELT Grammar Canon and Consensus: An Evolutionary Perspective

Chapter 4. Interviews with Authors and Editors: The Canon Today

Chapter 5. Interviews with Authors and Editors: The Canon in the Past and Present

Chapter 6. Conditionals, Relative Clauses and Future Forms: Contemporary Canon in the Spotlight

Chapter 7. Conditionals, Relative Clauses and Future Forms: Evolution of the Canon

Chapter 8. Conclusion

References

Index

Sujets

• Disciplines
• Language Arts
• Teaching
• Lettres et linguistique
• Linguistics
• Language Acquisition: A Journal of Developmental Linguistics
• Michael Swan
• Jack Richards
• Study
• English as a foreign or second language
• Professional
• Psycholinguistics
• Postgraduate education
• Language acquisition
• Research
• Postgraduate
• ELT
• EGP

Informations

• Publié par: Channel View Publications
• Date de parution: 06 juin 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781800415294
• Langue: English

Extrait

SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
Series Editors : Professor David Singleton , University of Pannonia, Hungary and Fellow Emeritus, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland and Professor Simone E. Pfenninger , University of Zurich, Switzerland
This series brings together titles dealing with a variety of aspects of language acquisition and processing in situations where a language or languages other than the native language is involved. Second language is thus interpreted in its broadest possible sense. The volumes included in the series all offer in their different ways, on the one hand, exposition and discussion of empirical findings and, on the other, some degree of theoretical reflection. In this latter connection, no particular theoretical stance is privileged in the series; nor is any relevant perspective – sociolinguistic, psycholinguistic, neurolinguistic, etc. – deemed out of place. The intended readership of the series includes final-year undergraduates working on second language acquisition projects, postgraduate students involved in second language acquisition research and researchers, teachers and policymakers in general whose interests include a second language acquisition component.
All books in this series are externally peer reviewed.
Full details of all the books in this series and of all our other publications can be found on http://www.multilingual-matters.com , or by writing to Multilingual Matters, St Nicholas House, 31-34 High Street, Bristol, BS1 2AW, UK.

DOI https://doi.org/10.21832/BURTON5270
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
Names: Burton, Graham, author.
Title: Grammar in ELT and ELT Materials: Evaluating its History and Current Practice /Graham Burton.
Description: Bristol, UK; Jackson, TN: Multilingual Matters, 2023. | Series: Second Language Acquisition: 164 | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Summary: ‘This book investigates the content of the grammar syllabus traditionally employed in English Language Teaching materials. Using a mixed-methods approach, the author examines how the existing syllabuses used in coursebooks are actually constructed and how valid their contents are as a basis for teaching’ – Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2023007190 (print) | LCCN 2023007191 (ebook) | ISBN 9781800415270 (hardback) | ISBN 9781800415287 (pdf) | ISBN 9781800415294 (epub)
Subjects: LCSH: English language – Grammar – Study and teaching.
Classification: LCC PE1065 .B796 2023 (print) | LCC PE1065 (ebook) | DDC 425.071 – dc23/eng/20230418
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023007190
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2023007191
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue entry for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN-13: 978-1-80041-527-0 (hbk)
Multilingual Matters
UK: St Nicholas House, 31-34 High Street, Bristol, BS1 2AW, UK.
USA: Ingram, Jackson, TN, USA.
Website: www.multilingual-matters.com
Twitter: Multi_Ling_Mat
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/multilingualmatters
Blog: www.channelviewpublications.wordpress.com
Copyright © 2023 Graham Burton.
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher.
The policy of Multilingual Matters/Channel View Publications is to use papers that are natural, renewable and recyclable products, made from wood grown in sustainable forests. In the manufacturing process of our books, and to further support our policy, preference is given to printers that have FSC and PEFC Chain of Custody certification. The FSC and/or PEFC logos will appear on those books where full certification has been granted to the printer concerned.
Typeset by Riverside Publishing Solutions.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Interviewees
1 Introduction
1.1 Grammar and Language Teaching
1.2 Pedagogical Grammar in ELT
1.3 Rationale for the Book
1.4 What This Book is and What it is Not
1.5 Overall Focus of the Book and Chapter Overview
2 ELT Grammar in its Broader Context
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Grammar and Pedagogical Grammar
2.3 Pedagogical Grammar: Content and Design
2.4 Pedagogical Grammar: Sequencing
2.5 Competency Levels
2.6 The Nature of the ELT Publishing Industry
2.7 Summary
3 ELT Grammar Canon and Consensus: An Evolutionary Perspective
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Is There an ELT Grammar Canon?
3.3 English Grammars up until the Early 20th Century
3.4 English Grammars into the 20th and 21st Centuries
3.5 Four Key 20th-Century Pedagogical Grammars
3.6 ELT Pedagogical Grammar Today
3.7 Overview
4 Interviews with Authors and Editors: The Canon Today
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Methodology: Interviews
4.3 Organising Theme: Norms
4.4 Organising Theme: Publishers
4.5 Organising Theme: Institutions
4.6 Organising Theme: Considering the Market and Users
4.7 Organising Theme: Innovation
4.8 Summary
5 Interviews with Authors and Editors: The Canon in the Past and Present
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Organising Theme: Origins
5.3 Organising Theme: Change
5.4 Summary
6 Conditionals, Relative Clauses and Future Forms: Contemporary Canon in the Spotlight
6.1 Introduction and Overview of Methodology
6.2 Methodology: Exploring Grammar in Contemporary Coursebooks
6.3 Case Study A: Conditionals
6.4 Case Study B: Relative Clauses
6.5 Case Study C: Future Forms
6.6 Summary
7 Conditionals, Relative Clauses and Future Forms: Evolution of the Canon
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Methodology: Exploring Grammar in ‘Historical’ Publications
7.3 Case Study A: Conditionals
7.4 Case Study B: Relative Clauses
7.5 Case Study C: Future Forms
7.6 Summary
8 Conclusion
8.1 How, When and Where did the Consensus on the ELT Grammar ‘Canon’ Develop?
8.2 What is the Nature of the Canon Today, and the Consensus that Perpetuates and Sustains It?
8.3 Does the Canon Reflect Empirical Evidence on how Grammatical Competence Develops in English Language Learners?
8.4 Discussion
References
Acknowledgements
I owe a great deal of debt for the genesis of this book to a number of people. In particular, I would like to thank Anne O’Keeffe, Mike McCarthy, Richard Smith and Deirdre Ryan. I would also like to thank the interviewees in this study for the time they kindly gave me and whose opinions and experiences contribute so much to this title; many have been kind enough to ‘continue the discussion’ even after the conversations that make up the bulk of the interview data in this study. All had slightly differing perspectives and opinions but I hope that they nonetheless all feel represented in the analysis and overall thrust of this work.
Thank you to the staff at Multilingual Matters and to the series editors David Singleton and Simone E. Pfenninger.
Finally, my thanks also to Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press for providing copies of coursebooks for some of the analysis in this study.
Note: Every reasonable effort has been made to locate, contact and acknowledge copyright owners. Any errors will be rectified in future editions.
Interviewees
The following abbreviations are used in Chapters 4 and 5 to refer to the interviewees.
• ACA: Anonymous coursebook author
• AG: Adam Gadsby
• APP: Anonymous publishing professional
• BU: Bart Ullstein
• DH: Diane Hall
• IF: Ingrid Freebairn
• JR: Jack Richards
• LS: Liz Soars
• MS: Michael Swan
• PV: Peter Viney
See pages 53–54 for biographical information on each interviewee.
1 Introduction
1.1 Grammar and Language Teaching
The focus of this book is grammar and, more precisely, the grammar that is used around in English Language Teaching (ELT), particularly for teaching ‘General English’ in mainstream educational contexts such as state schools and private language schools. Just as the teaching of grammar as part of mother-tongue school education has a rather turbulent history (see Crystal, 2017, for an overview of the situation in the UK), so has the role of grammar in foreign language teaching, with frequent disagreements within academia and within the teaching profession on how and how much grammar should be taught.
The explicit study of grammar was central to the ‘grammar-translation method’ used in schools from around the turn of the 18th century, which involved the systematic teaching of grammar points, typically (de)contextualised in individual sentences (Howatt & Widdowson, 2004). A century later, the Reform Movement, which involved efforts to reform secondary school language teaching in Europe, with an increased emphasis on spoken ability and a move away from grammar and literature, brought about a paradigm shift. Its proponents argued that teaching should be based on three principles: the prioritisation of spoken language, the use of texts, not sentences, as input and the use of an oral methodology, i.e. speaking the target language in class (Howatt & Widdowson, 2004). None of these necessarily required the abandonment of the teaching of grammar altogether, but it was now no longer a, or the , central learning aim. The role of grammar was brought further into question in the 1970s, with the development of ideas of ‘communicative competence’ (Hymes, 1972), and the ‘communicative approach’ to language teaching. During this period, some argued for the complete abandonment of grammar teaching yet, just two decades later, such a proposal was already confidently being described as ‘a manifest absurdity’ in the preface to the edited collection Grammar and the Language Teacher (Candlin, 1994: vii).
1.2 Pedagogical Grammar in ELT
Grammar used in the teaching of a foreign language is ‘pedagogical grammar’. This term appears to be relatively young, appearing in the ELT Journal , for example, for the first time only in 1972 (‘Readers’ Letters’, 1972). The exact definition of pedagogical grammar has been described