Tutorial 3 : Issues in the Primary ESL Classroom and provide points of view on the issues related with

evidences.

WHY WE SHOULD TEACH GRAMMAR IN CONTEXT

Learning grammar in context will allow learners to see how rules can be used in sentences.
Language is context-sensitive. This means that, in the absence of context, it is very difficult to recover
the intended meaning of a single word or phrase (Thornbury, 1999). Teaching grammar in context will
give learners an opportunity to understand how language works and this will improve their
communication skills. In my opinion, I agree that grammar should be taught in context because
according to Harmer (1991), Students need to get an idea of how the new language is used by speakers
and the best way of doing this is to present language in context. Context gives a more precise
understanding of how to use the grammar, and provides accuracy in the studied language both in oral
and written skills. Presenting grammar in isolated sentences will not allow learners to see how
grammatical structures function in sentences but in my opinion, teaching grammar in isolation is also
needed in our education system. Learners are given isolated sentences, which they are expected to
internalize through exercises, involving repetition, manipulation, and grammatical transformation.
These exercises are designed to provide learners with formal and declarative mastery.

Teaching grammar in context provides a meaningful framework that connects to reality in the
targeted language (Anderson, 2005). In my opinion, context-based teaching will help learners how
grammar structures function in context that will give them an opportunity to develop their
comprehension of the grammar rules. There are a few ways to teach grammar in context such as using
dialogues. The use of dialogues in grammar teaching is useful because the use of dialogues generally
matches learners‘ expectations of how language is used in the real world. Besides, Nunan (1998) also
has stated an advantage of teaching grammar in context. Through context-based, learners can learn
how to form structures correctly, and also how to use them to communicate meaning. If learners are
not given opportunities to explore grammar in context, it will be difficult for them to see how and why
alternative forms exist to express different communicative meanings.

As a conclusion, Grammar instruction is a difficult issue in language teaching. Teaching grammar

through context will help learners perceive the structures of the language effectively. If learners are
given grammatical structures in context, they will be able master the language better. Teaching
grammar in context will help learners to acquire new grammar structures and forms. Learners will use
grammatical conventions more effectively in communication if they learn them in context.
2. Approaches in teaching grammar

There are few approaches that have been used in our education system. For example, grammar-
translation method, which are precisely as its name suggests, focus on learning the rules of grammar
and their application in translation passages from one language into the other. Vocabulary in the target
language is learned through direct translation from the native language. In other words, the platform of
the interaction is the mother tongue, which is used to explain conceptual problems and to discuss the
use of a particular grammatical structure. In Malaysian Primary ESL classroom, Bahasa Malaysia is used
in 80% of the teaching, very little teaching is done in the target language. Instead, readings in the target
language are translated directly and then discussed in the native language, often precipitating in-depth
comparisons of the two languages themselves. Grammar is taught with extensive explanations in the
native language, and only later applied in the production of sentences through translation from one
language to the other.