Job Discussion Forums

[santi84]

Can anyone recommend a good online/distance course in teaching grammar? I've been away from teaching for a while and would really like to brush up on teaching grammar. My university had a great class but I need something that I can do at home right now (daycare prices are a little outrageous here!).

I'm looking for something similar to what my university offered (they did not have an online option)
http://www.ufv.ca/calendar/CourseOutlines/PDFs/TESL/TESL311-20070203.pdf

Thanks for the recommendations.

[Chancellor]

[fluffyhamster]

Hi Santi. I don't know of any stand-alone pedagogical grammar courses (and it will be hard to isolate any relevant internet search results from the mass of course links offering grammar as simply a component of general teacher training on e.g. Certs and MAs), but perhaps try something like the OU (Open University, in the UK), as it has a few grammar courses (e.g. E303) that are functionally-based (i.e. that look at texts, discourse etc) and might therefore be of use if you intend to continue teaching ESL writing skills.

Or you could as Chancellor suggests just try getting a few books. Some more suggestions:

Leech et al's English Grammar for Today. (A nice clear course in the formalities of traditional-yet-modern grammar. Was a set English department text for first-year undergrads at my uni; I didn't take the course but still read most of the book. Take a look at its list of contents here: http://www.palgrave.com/products/title.aspx?is=140391642X ).

Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman's The Grammar Book. (Reasonably comprehensive, and a good way to get acquainted with relevant research concerning the discoursal aspects [i.e. the discourse level especially] of grammar. I wouldn't have wanted this as my primary induction into the formalities of grammar, however, and some of the classroom activity suggestions it contains are - ironically, given what I've just said is good about the book generally - a bit too decontextualized and drill-like and could certainly be bettered in terms of their communicative value/authenticity).

Lock's Functional English Grammar. (Relatively demanding but thorough grammar "introduction" for SL teachers, from a mainly systemic-functional perspective).

Bygate et al's Grammar and the Language Teacher. (Classic collection of interesting yet relatively undemanding papers, some written by pretty big names: Swan, Leech, Chalker).

Stuff by Scott Thornbury, perhaps?

[peterwilliam001]

Nice information here for everyone.

[Mrs McClusky]

Michael Swan still does it for me. He has his knockers (at his age who hasn't) but he was and probably still is red hot.

This forum and the cookbook has some of the best grammar teaching ideas ever assembled.

[fluffyhamster]

I'm surprised Mrs McC that young Thornbury's muscular striated pecs haven't done more for you than Swan's manb**bs, but each to their own, eh!

But seriously, Swan's PEU, whilst a nice, well-produced, reasonably simple and clear, relatively quick n easy A-Z access and well-indexed reference book, isn't really the sort of thing one can really read through for any great length (the 'Language terminology'/glossary section at the front [of the Second edition at least] wouldn't take too long to go through however [as part of a crash course in grammar]), and Swan himself recommends in his introduction that one buy a grammar proper if one wants to more straightforwardly see how everything "fits together".
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?p=849686#849686