TGCIP Session 1

ENGLISH PROFICIENCY PROGRAM FOR TEACHERS
AND SCHOOL LEADERS

(Teaching Grammar Communicatively in the Philippines)
1
WHAT DOES TEACHING GRAMMAR
COMMUNICATIVELY
INVOLVE?
TERMINAL OBJECTIVE
demonstrate understanding of the

Communicative Grammar Teaching
ENABLING OBJECTIVES
• Explore the difference between Language

Acquisition & Language Learning;
• Examine the basics of several methods and an
approach,
• Discuss how these inform the characteristics of a
communicative language lesson, &
• Reflect on what we’ve discovered by exploring a
CLT grammar activity
What is the difference between
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION and
LANGUAGE LEARNING?
Let us watch this video!…
Which one is Acquisition?
1 2
• subconscious process • they usually have a

• unaware of grammatical basic knowledge of
rules grammar
• direct instruction in
• happens naturally the rules
Which one is Acquisition?
1 2
• they repeat • presupposes
what is said learners have a
and get a feel conscious
for right and knowledge of the
wrong new language
• child needs a and can talk
source of about that
natural knowledge
communication (metacognition)
What do you use when teaching?
Acquisition Learning
• subconscious process • they usually have a
• unaware of grammatical basic knowledge of
rules grammar
• direct instruction in the
• happens naturally rules
• they repeat what • presupposes
is said and get a learners have a
feel for right and conscious
wrong knowledge of the
• child needs a new language and
source of natural can talk about that
communication knowledge
(metacognition)
Comparison between Language Acquisition
and Language Learning:

Language Language
Picking up a Studying a
Meaning
language language
Practical Theoretical
Focus
Knowledge Knowledge
Unconscious, Conscious,
Method
implicit explicit
Comparison between Language Acquisition and
Language Learning:

Language Language
Situations Informal situations Formal situations
Does not use Uses grammatical

Grammar
grammatical rules rules
Depends on Depends on
Dependency
attitude aptitude
Simple to
Order of Stable order of
complex order of
learning learning
learning
WHY does it matter
then, if we know the
difference?
Sharing your
“Sharing
Grammar
your
Teaching
“ Grammar
Stories”
Teaching
Stories”
What is the most
important thing in
teaching grammar?
TEACHING GRAMMAR
COMMUNICATIVELY
TEACHING GRAMMAR
COMMUNICATIVELY
• the communicative
approaches are based
on the idea that this has led to a shift
language is best from form-focused
learned through instruction to
communication, not via meaning-focused
the mechanical
instruction
presentation of
grammatical forms
NARRATIVE STORY
ACTIVITY
Tell the story in the Present Tense (everyday)
Everyday, I go to the park. I open the gate. I

walk in. I close the gate. I climb the tree. I
smell the flowers. I look at the rivers. I sit on
the bench. I read a book. I stand up. I open
the gate. I go home.
Students write the verb and object of the

sentence in the chart on the board. Student(s)
come up and tell the story.
Tell the story in the Past Tense (yesterday)
Yesterday, I went to the park. I opened the gate. I

walked in. I closed the gate. I climbed the tree. I
smelled the flowers. I looked at the river. I sat on
the bench. I read a book. I stood up. I opened
the gate. I closed the gate. I went home.
Students write the verb and object of the

sentence in the chart on the board. Student(s)
come up and tell the story.
Tell the story in the Future Tense (tomorrow)
Tomorrow, I will go to the park. I will open the

gate. I will walk in. I will close the gate. I will climb
the tree. I will smell the flowers. I will look at the
river. I will sit on the bench. I will read a book. I
will stand up. I will open the gate. I will close the
gate. I will go home.
Students write the verb phrase and object of the sentence

in the chart on the board. Student(s) come up and tell the
story.
A CHART EXPANDING
THE GRAMAR ACTIVITY FOCUSED
Present Simple Future what/where

past
go goes went will go
GAMES
1. GRID GAMES (This activity can be used to

practice subject-verb agreement. Students
will also practice speaking, listening, reading,
and writing during the game.)
Verb: __________
Tense: __________
You
We
He (plural)
Familiar
They it
person’s name
You
I She
(Singular)
GAMES
2. SENTENCE RELAY (This game can be

used to practice a specific verb tense or to
review several tenses at the same time.
Students also practice syntax and writing
during this activity.
GAMES
3. Silly Sentence Game

“Read this nine-page science article, write
a detailed essay on the topic it explores,
and turn it in by Wednesday.”
Yikes! No safety net, no parachute—they’re

just left to their own devices.
SCAFFOLDING
Scaffolding refers to
breaking up new
concepts so that they
can be learned more
easily
SCAFFOLDING
Show and Tell

SCAFFOLDING
Use of graphic organizers

Let’s try
revisiting our
beliefs!
The more time students spend soaking
up English in the mainstream
classroom, the faster they will learn the
language.
True or False what is your belief?

Students do not simply “soak up” language.
Learners must understand the communication
that is conveyed by their classmates and teachers.
• Comprehensible input is a hypothesis proposed by
Stephen Krashen (1981) that is widely recognized
by today's researchers and practitioners. He
suggests that English language learners
acquire language by hearing and
understanding messages that are slightly
above their current English language level.
The emotional state of the learner
interferes with the acquisition of a new
language.

The emotional state of the learner interferes
with the acquisition of a new language.
Affective Filter means the learner's emotional
state or affective filter can interfere with
acquiring a new language because it involves
public practice and speaking in front of others.
These skills require that the learner take a risk.
This risk can produce embarrassment and
anxiety that can block the learner's ability to
process new information (Krashen, 1981;
Krashen & Terrell, 1983).
Children who have the ability to
memorize grammar rules and complete
pages of grammar drills will learn to
speak and write English more quickly.

• Children acquire a second language through a
subconscious process during which they are
unaware of grammatical rules. This process is
similar to how they acquire their first language.
They get a feel for what is and what isn't
correct
Krashen (1988) The learner needs a source of
natural communication and they can get on-the-
job practice by communicating with their
classmates.
Children learn a second language
faster and more easily than
teenagers and adults do.

• The Optimum Age
This statement is more complex than it

seems. In reviews of controlled research
(Collier, 1988; Samway & McKeon, 1999)
where young children were compared with
teenagers and young adults, the teenagers and
young adults learned a second language more
readily.
• The Optimum Age
Children under the age of 8 may outperform

adults in the areas of social language and
pronunciation because they usually have more
occasions to interact socially.
We teach what we believe
•Student’s need to know the form

•Drilling is the best from of practice
•Student’s need explanations of how grammar works
•It’s good to memorize structures
•Translation leads to accuracy
•Students’ learn from their mistakes
Two Methods & One Approach
1 2 3
Grammar rules Central feature Not explained
Meaningful Not important Limited Central
communication feature
Use of Central feature Forbidden
translation
Teacher-student Teacher-centered Teacher-centered Teacher facilitates

roles student to student
interaction
Attitude to Accuracy Accurac
errors emphasiz y
ed emphasi
zed
Language skills Skills taught

Method or Approach? and why it matters?
Grammar Audio-lingual Communicative Language
Translation Method Teaching
Grammar rules Central feature Not explained Explained when necessary
Meaningful Not important Limited Central feature

communication
Use of Central feature Forbidden Used when necesssary

translati
on
Teacher- Teacher-centered Teacher-centered Teacher facilitates student to

student roles student interaction
Attitude Accuracy Accuracy Errors are part of the

to emphasized emphasized process
errors
Language skills Reading & writing Listening Skills taught according to

Terminology: Method or Approach?
• A method is a specific set of procedures

based on a theory. It dictates which
strategies are important and which kind of
activities to choose.
Terminology: Method or Approach?
An approach is about beliefs and theories of

acquisition and learning. It is broad in scope.
It may encompass more than one method.
Is COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE
TEACHING in teaching Grammar a
Method or an Approach?
COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING
APPROACH
The communicative approach focuses on the use of

language in everyday situations, or the functional
aspects of language, and less on the formal
structures. It gives priority to meanings and rules of
use rather than to grammar and rules of structure.
• Learners learn a language through using it to

communicate.
• Authentic and meaningful communication should
be the goal of classroom activities.
• Fluency is an important dimension of

communication.
• Learning is a process of creative construction
and involves trial and error.
Benefits of using CLT
• Focusing on communicative competence:

CLT increases the communicative
competence.
• Increasing motivation:
It provides the students with authentic and

meaningful interaction.
Benefits of using CLT
• Gives equal importance to both the spoken

language (i.e. fluency) and the accuracy of the
production as well.
Characteristics of a communicative
grammar language activity:
ACTIVITIES:
* Students need to communicate in order to be

successful.
• Is meaningful/relevant to the students.
• Has comprehensible input.
• May incorporate scaffolding to lower the risk of
the language (affective filter)
• Grammar is introduced in an integrated way,
grammar is a resource.
Summary
• We have explored the basis and the basics of

Communicative Language Teaching as an
Approach.
• We noticed the path between research to

theory (and our beliefs)to implementation to
teaching and learning.
level, etc.).
Summary
• We listed characteristics that make a good

TGC lesson. We noticed those
characteristics in an example activity.
• We thought about how you might modify the
activity for your context (students, environment,
materials, language level, etc.).
General Reflection Questions
1. How do your beliefs about language acquisition and

learning impact your teaching choices?
2. Do you teach like you have been taught?
3. How might what you learned today help you to think
about the next sessions?
4. What can you do to prepare for them?
Thank you!

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ENGLISH PROFICIENCY PROGRAM FOR TEACHERS

AND SCHOOL LEADERS

demonstrate understanding of the

• Explore the difference between Language

LANGUAGE ACQUISITION and

• subconscious process • they usually have a

Situations Informal situations Formal situations

Does not use Uses grammatical

Everyday, I go to the park. I open the gate. I

Students write the verb and object of the

Yesterday, I went to the park. I opened the gate. I

Students write the verb and object of the

Tomorrow, I will go to the park. I will open the

Students write the verb phrase and object of the sentence

Present Simple Future what/where

1. GRID GAMES (This activity can be used to

2. SENTENCE RELAY (This game can be

3. Silly Sentence Game

Yikes! No safety net, no parachute—they’re

Show and Tell

Use of graphic organizers

True or False what is your belief?

True or False what is your belief?

True or False what is your belief?

True or False what is your belief?

This statement is more complex than it

Children under the age of 8 may outperform

•Student’s need to know the form

Teacher-student Teacher-centered Teacher-centered Teacher facilitates

Language skills Skills taught

Translation Method Teaching

Grammar rules Central feature Not explained Explained when necessary

Meaningful Not important Limited Central feature

Use of Central feature Forbidden Used when necesssary

Teacher- Teacher-centered Teacher-centered Teacher facilitates student to

Attitude Accuracy Accuracy Errors are part of the

Language skills Reading & writing Listening Skills taught according to

• A method is a specific set of procedures

An approach is about beliefs and theories of

The communicative approach focuses on the use of

• Learners learn a language through using it to

• Fluency is an important dimension of

• Focusing on communicative competence:

It provides the students with authentic and

• Gives equal importance to both the spoken

* Students need to communicate in order to be

• We have explored the basis and the basics of

• We noticed the path between research to

• We listed characteristics that make a good

1. How do your beliefs about language acquisition and

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