How to get back on track with grammar

FINALLY, we have an Education Minister who is thinking along the same lines as most supporters of English language in this country. Make English a subject that has to be passed and you will see that every student and parent will sit up and pay more attention to this subject.
Teachers of English would also be more responsible when they know that a child’s future is in their hands.

On the issue of grammar not being taught in schools, I would like to differ here with our minister. Grammar can be taught via Communicative English but the unfortunate thing is, the teachers entrusted to teach Communicative English have completely ignored the teaching of English Grammar because they are themselves weak in it.

To make matter worse, they do not use grammatically correct sentence structures when they teach and therefore, the children pick up sentences with grammatical mistakes and use them as if it is the normal way to express themselves.

How often I hear working people who have a good command of English when it comes to subject matter making simple grammatical errors like: “He don’t want to go!” or “You has to go.” This is shocking!

If our minister wants grammar to be taught separately, I think it would be a backward step in the teaching of the language. Most modern approach to the teaching of English has grammar incorporated into the various elements of reading, listening, speaking and writing.

To help teachers and students get back on track, maybe the textbooks could incorporate a section devoted to basic grammar for each lesson, thereby covering all aspects of grammar within the first six years of primary English lessons.

Most textbooks do have this but the stress should be on primary schools rather than secondary schools. At secondary schools, more difficult aspects of grammar should be taught, with all the exceptions that are so commonly found in English. Please do not go back to the days when I had to learn things like adverbial clauses, conditionals, subordinate clauses, etc.

Such aspects are for those who want to specialise in teaching English and for undergr aduates who want to master English completely to be competent teachers of the English, not for students taking English as a second language.

I am sure officials in the Ministry of Education can identify the basic areas that all primary school children should know in English grammar and ensure that all primary teachers are familiar with them and that all primary English textbooks highlight them throughout the primary years!

VICTOR CHEW, Ipoh.