Put glamour back into grammar

Although many students and some English teachers avoid grammar like the plague those who belong to the older generation were madly in love with it. They picked up grammar from Wren and Martin's "High School Grammar and Composition" or W. H. Samaranayake's "Practical English." Today there is a plethora of books on grammar but most of the students flock to "Spoken English" classes where they try to learn a foreign language without mastering the basic rules.

William Shakespeare did not have a university education but he attended a grammar school. With that knowledge he wrote nearly 40 plays and a number of sonnets that have stood the test of time. Before Sinhala was enthroned as the official language in the latter part of the 1950s, students attended schools where the medium was English. They were taught the basic rules of grammar and the ability to speak the language came to them naturally.

To learn any language the student has to master four basic skills, viz. reading, writing, speech and listening. These are like the four wheels of a car. By trying to teach only one skill to the student, we are asking him to drive a car having only one wheel!

There is an unprecedented demand for English. But the student does not know what he wants. After learning English for more than a decade in school, only a very few students can write a grammatically correct sentence. After leaving school he attends 'Spoken English' classes only to be disillusioned. Some tutors brazenly advertise that they can teach English 'absolutely without writing.' Cassettes, compact discs and spoken English lessons are freely available in the country but they serve no purpose.

If you are 'crazy' to read books written in standard English and speak fluently, it means that the English language lives inside you. This is a wonderful gift. On the other hand, you will be more fascinated when you realise that you are inside the language! For such a miracle to happen, you have to sacrifice your time and energy to master the niceties of the language. However, you cannot do this without learning grammar.

Memorising grammatical rules was fashionable in the distant past. However, now it is rather passe. Much water has flowed under the bridge since then. Today the teacher does not expect the student to memorise grammatical rules. Although books on grammar are full of rules, an intelligent student should treat them as a box of tools that will assist him to use the language correctly.

When you begin to live inside the language, you need grammar at every instance. This way of learning grammar will not be a boring task to anyone. When you are familiar with grammar, it will help you to speak fluently, write powerfully and read critically.

There is a close affinity between 'grammar' and 'glamour.' The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) says that the word 'glamour' evolved from 'grammar' through an ancient association between learning and enchantment. In classical Greek and Latin, 'grammar' covered the whole of arts and letters. In the Middle Ages, 'grammar' was generally used to mean 'learning.' The narrowing of 'grammar' to mean 'the rules of language' is a later development.

Apart from learning grammar, the student should be encouraged to read a dictionary. Lord Macaulay once said he would take the OED if he were to spend a long holiday in an island. It shows the importance of a standard dictionary. Instead of 'looking it up in the dictionary' when you are not sure of the spelling or the meaning of a word, you should cultivate the habit of reading the dictionary whenever you are free.

Correct spelling is part of grammar. A book or newspaper without typographical errors facilitates reading. While most students do not pay much attention to spelling some tutors distribute handbills promising to teach 'grammer' and provide 'tution' for any examination. Such self-styled tutors may not have used a dictionary in their teaching career.

Learning grammar does not mean only remembering the meaning and spelling of words. Ronald Carter and Michael McCarthy, two leading modern grammarians, say: "Grammar is concerned with how sentences and utterances are formed." Standard British English is a variety of English defined by its grammar, lexis and phonology. There are, of course, other standard varieties of English such as Standard American English, Standard Indian English or Standard Sri Lankan English.

These varieties of standard English may differ from Standard British English in terms of pronunciation or spelling. However, issues of acceptability are decided with reference to standard in grammar and usage. Our general perspective that grammar is all about rules governing speech and writing may not be correct because some of them are unchangeable. For instance, we say, "He works" but not "He work." There are other grammatical rules which are probabilistic. The use of relative pronouns (who, that, which) is a case in point.

Learners of English need not speak like native speakers. However, some familiarity with the way native speakers use the language is necessary. This is because spoken grammar is equally important as the written grammar.