Task Types For Teaching Grammar As A Liberating Force

By Author: emaly su
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Four task types which exemplify these different elements are discussed below.

At the outset, I should point out that I do not claim any originality for them, since they all involve classroom activities which have been in use for many years, particularly as exercises to develop writing skills.

Indeed some, I would suggest, have partially fallen into disuse. What I am aiming to do here is to show how fairly standard techniques, which have stood the test of time, can be revitalized and adapted to support a more contemporary approach to teaching grammar.

Task type 1: Grammaticization tasks
In these tasks, the learners use their grammatical resources to develop and expand information presented in the ...
... form of notes in which grammatical features are reduced or even omitted altogether. The example in Figure i shows a grammaticization task using newspaper headlines, based on an idea in Thornbury 2001.

The three elements are clearly present in this type of task: first, the learners have a free choice over which grammatical features to use to expand the headlines, either individually or in consultation with others; second, they start with lexis and add grammar to it, as well as any additional lexis that may be required to develop and elaborate the story; and third, after doing this, they compare their texts with one another and with the original paragraph in the newspaper, and in this way naturally focus on and discuss some of the differences between their use of grammar and that of the original text, as well as differences in content.

They can also be asked to look for any patterns in the way grammar is used in the opening paragraphs in all four stories, for example in the use of the present perfect tense, relative clauses, clauses in apposition, and the use of the passive.

1. Expand each headline so as to summarize the story in one or two sentences to form the first paragraph of the news report. Add any extra details you think are needed in the summary. For example:
Beaches cleared in shark scare MADRID
Several popular beaches in the southeastern area of La Manga were closed after the second shark sighting in Spain within a month. Bathing was banned after tourists spotted the shark, which was up to two metres long.

2. Compare your paragraphs with one another, and then with the original paragraph in the newspaper. Other grammaticization tasks, suitable for higher-level students—academic writing classes, for example—could include the use of bullet points taken from PowerPoint presentations prepared by the students themselves. These would be used to 'cue' the writing of short paragraphs and summaries, thereby giving practice in essay writing skills.

Task type 2: Synthesis tasks
Synthesis tasks (Graver 1986) are variations on grammaticization tasks and take the form of exercises which start with a short text, consisting of a string of short, non-complex sentences which the learners are required to combine in some way so as to reduce the number of sentences and create a more natural piece of text.

The technique is a traditional sentence combination task done at text rather than sentence level, and requires the use of various grammatical devices needed for the construction of complex sentences, such as relative clauses, purpose clauses and subordination, as well as cohesive devices such as linking words. An example is given in Figure 2.

Again it will be seen that the task combines the three elements noted above: the learners have choice over the grammatical devices they think are needed to reconstruct the text in the most effective way, drawing on their own knowledge of the language. They compare their versions with one another and with the teacher's own version and so have the opportunity to expand their own knowledge.

Finally, although the task may not, strictly speaking, move from lexis to grammar, it certainly moves from a text where the grammar has been artificially reduced or simplified to one in which it is more elaborated. The task also develops sensitivity to writing style and what makes a coherent, fluent narrative.