The Game: Playing to Win
       
The Grammar Effect

What is it about the word Grammar, that immediately transforms the healthiest of complexions into a sickly pallor—the color draining from the beautiful original that was present just seconds before the word was mentioned?  Strangely, people exhibit different emotions at the mere mention of this word: fear, annoyance, anger and yes, at times, just plain nonchalance—but rarely the heightened interest and excitement (Yes, I did say excitement) that it merits.

So Many Nays

I have heard real arguments that Grammar is ancient; that people should not be hampered by anything that slows the pace of communication; that there are too many exceptions; that there is an element of snobbery somewhere among those who insist on using correct Grammar; that during early childhood and the acquisition of language, children speak without a need for the rules of Grammar. And I can offer a good rebuttal for each of these arguments; but rebuttals would not lessen the hostility or, at times, the apathy that is evident toward this essential part of the communication process. That the importance of Grammar has withered and is about to die seem of no consequence, since nothing is being done to forestall its hastening demise.

 Changing Scenes

Having been active in the teaching of English for many decades, and in different countries,  I have witnessed policy on the teaching of Grammar change from being
 
a) An absolute necessity in classrooms everyday, with many exercises to reinforce its correct use and application—and with great results, to 

b)  One in which Grammar must be incidental— or prescriptive, requiring it to be corrected only when the student uses the incorrect forms or structures in a Writing exercise. And now, a natural progression, to

c) One in which the entire teaching profession has apparently become afflicted with the "No Grammar Virus" which requires that the subject receive scant attention—if any—in the classroom. 

An Unfair Competition

The emphasis is placed, instead, on Math and the Sciences—a plausible emphasis I agree since one cannot deny that Mathematics and the Sciences are crucial to our world. But let not this emphasis in one direction plus the requirements of standardized tests dim the importance of teaching the rules of Grammar. This is a real necessity if the student ever has the need to write or speak correctly and confidently. And who doesn't have that need?

 Consider this a plea for good communication skills. Writing, incidentally, is an important part of the school's curriculum, a curriculum that seemingly does not similarly cater for Grammar. Is something missing here? How will students construct a sentence correctly if they are unaware of the rules of sentence construction? How will teachers teach Grammar effectively if the system that prepares them for their jobs pays scant attention to the rules of Grammar? How will students master the conjugation of verbs of a foreign language if they do not first learn to conjugate the verbs of their own language?

A Definition 

I will inject here a word of caution: Let's not confuse Grammar with Punctuation, as is so often done; neither should we bring Spelling into this discussion, inspite of its importance in effective communication. Punctuation and spelling are two different areas of study, each requiring its individual discussion. So then, what is Grammar?

In a nutshell, Grammar is the branch of language study which deals with the way words relate to one another in a sentence as we write or speak our thoughts. It is based on a set of rules. 
Here is one of the simplest rules: The verb must agree with its subject in number. This means that if the subject of a sentence is singular (pertaining to one) then the verb in that sentence must also be singular. 
                     Subject     verb
Example:The girl swims in the pool. 

Likewise, if the subject is plural (more than one) then the verb must be plural. 
                       Subject     Verb
Example: The girls swim in the pool.


The Dire Consequences

 When we know the rules and apply them, our sentences are well constructed and we are able to communicate at a level of competence. Abandon the rules, and the consequences could easily be a prevalence of sentences like these:

• You was not there when I called this morning.
•  He and me are good friends.
• Jenny brought the rose plants for Pat and I.
• She was suppose to be at the office today.
• There is several reasons to be happy today.
• You're tired now. Go and lay down.

 In each of the sentences above, a rule was broken.  Can you identify the errors, correct them, and determine which rules were broken? If you take the time to do this, you could check in at my next post to see if we agree on something. You may also have noticed that I am not attempting to touch the new language of texting, unqualified as I am.