ELT Journal Advance Access published online on May 22, 2008
ELT Journal, doi:10.1093/elt/ccn020
© The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press; all rights reserved.
An analysis of spoken grammar: the case for production
Simon Mumford has taught for 20 years in Izmir, Turkey, and in the UK. He currently teaches academic reading and writing, and works in the Academic Writing Centre at the Izmir University of Economics. His professional interests include classroom activity design and he edits the Practical Teaching Ideas column in IATEFL Voices. He organizes a voluntary workshop programme for the British Council in Izmir. He holds the Aston University MSc. TESOL
Email: simon.mumford{at}ieu.edu.tr
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Abstract |
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Corpus-based grammars, notably Cambridge Grammar of English, give explicit information on the forms and use of native-speaker grammar, including spoken grammar. Native-speaker norms as a necessary goal in language teaching are contested by supporters of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF); however, this article argues for the inclusion of selected forms for teaching for production based on an analysis of the usefulness of individual forms. The forms are analysed in two sections, relating to fluency and appropriacy, since, while every student can benefit from improved fluency, native-speaker appropriacy may not be a need for all. The conclusion is that such an analysis strengthens the arguments for teaching many of these forms for production, while acknowledging the case for fluency features is stronger than more context-dependent appropriacy forms. It briefly looks at some possibilities for teaching the forms.