English Grammar and Language Experience

My perception of English grammar and language experience

         

What is grammar all about?  To me, it is about word classes / forms and their functions.  Grammar is the summary of word classes and their functions.  So it is about general rules and  exceptional cases to know and remember.  Based on the theory of grammar universal researched by some linguists,  all languages share some common features though every language is unique in quite a number of ways.  It has its own unique system of grammar / arrangement of words / language structures as well as the sound system.       

         

In English, words can be categorised into 9 word classes /forms, namely

1.     Nouns

2.    Pronouns

3.    Verbs

4.    Adjectives

5.    Adverbs

6.    Conjunctions

7.    Prepositions

8.    Interjections

9.    Determiners

The knowledge of grammar is a must in order to speak and write correctly and properly.   It concerns with the arrangements of words as well as choice of words in different word classes properly and correctly to express your ideas, feelings, opinions or thoughts in both spoken and written communication.  For example, the word “well” used in different word classes: 

1. Fatimah  has to fetch water from *the well  every day for the household cleaning activities.
2. Tears *well up easily in her eyes whenever she thinks of her pet cat that got drowned in it a year ago. 
3.  John was sick yesterday but he is well today.
4.  Peter speaks Japanese well.

To  know  how to use the word “well”, for example, in different word classes properly, the best way is through language experience.  It  is that you are exposed to how it is used in different word forms in contexts and know their meanings.  

Reading widely enables learners to acquire the language naturally as well as the culture of the language.  

Listening to radio programmes, watching English movies or movies with English subtitles and hearing the speech sounds of the words and the meaning associated with them are excellent ways to input the language besides texts reading in English.  

Language experience through listening and reading enables learners to get familiar with the usage and structures as well as to acquire a wide range of vocabulary in contexts  and the culture.  Of course, there must be enough repetition and rehearsal in the language through different listening and reading activities to acquire it.   

Having the knowledge of grammar equips learners with the tools to edit his/erown writing.  Learners can analyse sentence structures to check and edit.  In the above sentences based on the structure, we know that the word ‘well’:

1.   A noun as it is preceded by the definite article ‘the’.
2.   A verb as it is placed right after the subject ‘Tears’ that indicate an action
3.   A predicative adjective as it is placed after verb-to-be ‘is’
4.  An adverb of manner as it modifies the verb ‘speaks’

Grammar is about general rules that govern a language.  It is systematic in nature and the regularity is high.  However, grammatical rules are just hard facts, rigid and stiff.  Language can only come alive when you know how to use it creatively, expressively and lively in a natural way in the output in speaking and writing.

To use a language spontaneously or at will requires a constant language exposure or experience in listening and reading in the input and the output in language use in speaking and writing.  

English is learnt as a second language in Malaysia.  Hence deliberate effort is needed to learn English grammar.  At the same time, a conducive environment should be created to acquire it in a natural way through language exposure / experience in different contexts.

So if you know all these rules thorough well  and can use the language spontaneously / at will in speaking and writing, you can declare that you have mastered the language.  That means you are in command of a language as you have reached the benchmark for accuracy and fluency.  Do you think so?