HS Grammar Workshop

Course description

In this seminar, we want to develop small grammar modules (e.g. definite articles, individual prepositions or modal verbs, conjunctions, future time reference) for a pedagogical grammar like the Chemnitz InternetGrammar, cf. http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/InternetGrammar. We will explore key problem areas of English grammar with special emphasis on a contrastive German - English perspective using many real-language examples from the data-bases available in Chemnitz. In the first part, we will use one grammar topic to demonstrate in detail § how naïve concepts of a grammar area are sketched, § how this is verified and expanded by consulting standard English grammar handbooks, § how student-adapted descriptions are produced, § how real-language examples can be found to illustrate "rules" and "exceptions", § how critical issues are discussed in a learner-friendly style, § how relevant exercises are produced and tested, § how expected and unexpected learner feed-back is dealt with, and § how further readings, related issues and other materials are integrated. In the second part, students are expected to present seminar papers in which they draft a grammar chapter for advanced learners of English with all relevant rules, examples, exercises, etc. This course will be accompanied by a webpage:

http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/phil/english/chairs/linguist/independent/kursmaterialien/gws/.

Please register by April 1st at realcentre@phil.tu-chemnitz.de, if you are interested in a particular grammar area you can also "reserve" it. Students can also use methods developed in the Seminar: "Data Analysis and Presentation for Linguistics" by Martin Weißer.

Teaching objectives

In this seminar students learn

§ to collaborate in a small grammar and media project

§ to compare grammar descriptions in standard reference works and in a database of authentic language

§ to write part of a descriptive and pedagogical grammar for a specific target group (1^st year university students of English) and a modern multimedia system

§ to test their grammar sections and discuss technical, didactic and academic improvements critically from an abstract academic and from a practical user perspective.

Student papers

Cohesion

Epistemic vs. Deontic

Multi-word verbs

Phrasal verbs

Semantic meaning of prepositions

Types of Modality

Approach / tasks

Students may collaborate in selected areas but have to submit separate papers.

TASK:

1) Compare grammar areas in traditional school grammar and the standard reference books like

A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language

Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English

The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language

2) Select areas of special interest for learners of English and describe them in a language and form suitable for 1^st year students. Use material from authentic examples in the database:

http://ell.phil.tu-chemnitz.de/search/

3) Write www pages for both approaches, inductive (example to rule) and deductive (rule to example) taking the tense/aspect section in the InternetGrammar as a model.

4) Add sufficient exercises so that learners can practice what you have told then (and you can test whether you have explained it all well enough).

5) Add interesting diagrams, links to other grammar sections or interesting usages (e.g. BBC learning English) and typical features of hypertexts like FAQ (What is the past tense of must and why? What is the negation of must and why?), etc.

6) Think of the most error-prone areas and related learning/teaching hints.

Think of related areas in Grammar and in the InternetGrammar and include the respective hyperlinks.

7) “Student papers” to be handed in consist of

§ 10-20 grammar pages incorporated in the CING

§ a brief meta essay on how these pages were selected, principles, problems, solutions

§ both parts have to be “tested” in an oral presentation during the 2^nd Grmmar weekend and then handed in electronicall in a final version 4 weeks after the term.