Time to stop avoiding grammar rules

Monday, September 24, 2012

Category: Media

The Guardian online, Catherine Walter, 18/09/2012

Dr Catherine Walter, a lecturer in applied linguistics in the Department of Education, writes: ‘The straightforward, pre-planned teaching of grammar in English language teaching has been under attack for years. Various alternatives have been proposed … However, evidence trumps argument, and the evidence is now in. Rigorously conducted meta-analyses of a wide range of studies have shown that, within a generally communicative approach, explicit teaching of grammar rules leads to better learning and to unconscious knowledge, and this knowledge lasts over time.’

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2012/sep/18/teach-grammar-rules