Learners must overcoming "fear" of English

Learners must overcoming "fear" of English

Simon Marcus Gower, Executive Principal, High/Scope Indonesia School, Jakarta

It is a common, but in many ways irrational, fear that so many
learners of English in Indonesia have that learning English is
difficult because there is "just so much grammar that you have to
learn". It could be said that Indonesian learners are not alone
in holding this fear, as all over the world it seems learners
dislike grammar.

But this is an unfortunate condition. This fear harbors the
misconception that grammar is a nasty and difficult thing but the
opposite should really be the case. Grammar should be seen as a
good and helpful guideline to developing the learner's language
ability.

So great has this misconceived fear of grammar been that
people have entertained the notion that it either should not be
directly thought of or, at least, it should be sugared rather
like distasteful medicine so that the learner hardly thinks of it
as grammar. The word "grammar", then, has become something of a
buzzword for fear and hence we think of the "structure" of the
language or consider the "forms" or "patterns" in the language
rather than have to use, (and create fear from), the word
"grammar".

Like it or not, however, when learning any language whether
first or foreign some reference to the grammar of the language
is, believe it or not, going to prove useful. In many ways it is
up to teachers to lead learners to a better appreciation and use
of grammar.

Wholesale shifts in teaching methods are not likely to prove
successful. For example -- many teachers of English in Indonesia
now would lay claim to teaching in the "communicative method"
whilst a generation ago the teaching method was more formal and
grammatical in nature. The sudden shift from one teaching method
to another has proved difficult for many and it is likely that
the most appropriate method lies somewhere in a combination of
the two.

It is a consistent, and entirely inaccurate, statement made by
learners of English that there is too much grammar to learn in
English whereas, they say, there is "none in Bahasa Indonesian".
Of course, there actually is grammar in all languages and it is
sad that learners would perceive that there is "too much grammar
in English". This is surely a perception, and symptom of an
unreasonable fear, that teachers of English should attempt to
address.

So how do teachers of English improve the image of grammar?
Variation and use of alternative methods is likely to be
beneficial. For example -- presentation of new grammatical points
is a familiar part of looking at the language. Such presentation
should be meaningful so that the learners can see what linguistic
and semantic value and significance the point of grammar has to
them.

Relevance, then, is important in showing why the language
works as it does. Likewise mixing presentation with explanation
creates variety and should reiterate relevance. Explanations of
grammatical points should be clear and simple. Showing that the
explanation is just a more workable simplification should allow
the learners to grasp the point and appreciate its relevance to
their learning.

The use of practice activities will, naturally, help to show
the very much living (live) relevance and need for appreciation
of the grammar. In such activities a recently studied form could
be focused on in a controlled manner so that the learners begin
to apply what they have studied, not merely allow it to be lost
in a quagmire of theory.

Presentation of grammar can be intermingled with discovery
techniques that encourage the learners to work out for themselves
the significance of the form being looked at. In this way various
contexts in which a grammatical form appear can be utilized to
provide the opportunity to learn and discover through examples.

Such examples could be either "authentic/ original" sources or
"textbook generated" examples. The use of authentic material
rather than textbook examples can be useful in highlighting the
everyday, normal use of the language.

In the same way -- providing a rich exposure to the language
will help illustrate and advance the learning. Reading and
listening to material that even goes beyond the structures that
learners have learnt can be useful.

The complexity of tasks could be modified to make texts easier
for comprehension purposes but subconsciously learners may start
to appreciate the unfamiliar points of the language. Even where
the complexity seems too great this may serve a useful purpose in
making the learner more receptive as and when the structure is
focused on again more directly.

Balancing the variety of conditions that the new grammar is
introduced (whether through presentation, explanation, analysis,
discovery, controlled practice et al) will be an important
vehicle for improving the learners' grammatical knowledge. This
all amounts to multiple exposures that should allow the learner
to internalize and retain knowledge with a high degree of
spontaneity.

Remembering the learners as human beings will also help in
smoothing the path to grammatical knowledge. Allowing them to
explore their full grammatical range can give them a sense of
fulfillment as they autonomously apply aspects that they have
learnt.

Utilizing their existing knowledge of grammar will also create
a sense of involvement that shows them that they already know
some of what is required and the rest can readily fall into
place.

It is also very important that a learner feels a sense of
security in that they are able to make an attempt -- the best
that they can. Grammatical errors are an essential part of
learning -- we all make them and so learners should be encouraged
to have a go.

Yes, errors may be repeated but, with plenty of opportunity to
use and explore the language and good focus on accuracy at
appropriate points in the learning process errors will diminish
and improvements will emerge over time.

Ultimately it is vitally important that all learners learn to
overcome their fear, in particular, when looking at English, an
unreasonable fear of grammar. As Franklin D. Roosevelt, (a truly
great American President), said in a quite different context
"there is nothing to fear but fear itself".

This maxim is true for learning. Fear will encumber learning
by limiting willingness to "have a go", make an attempt and
explore in the language. Making attempts and exploration should
be key parts of learning and should not be constrained by
unnecessary fears.

Learners often report that they find grammar either "too
difficult" or else "too boring". Both are unfortunate
attributions to be made for grammar. Those who are charged with
the responsibility of guiding learners of English should work to
alter these regrettable reports.

Some of the ideas discussed above may help but it is clear
that much more "public relations" work is required to soften the
image of grammar. It really is not all bad and really is not
quite so daunting as many make out. Like it or not, grammar is
important and ultimately it does help considerably in making
one's language communicatively competent.

The opinions expressed above are personal.