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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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 Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 9:24 pm Post subject: Grammar question. |
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Is this sentence grammatically correct?
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching."
Thanks. |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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No.
"2. To pass back and forth from one state, action, or place to another"
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
If you really want to keep the same word, say something like, "Why don't you use an alternative method?" |
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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 9:46 pm Post subject: |
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| koreatimes wrote: |
No.
"2. To pass back and forth from one state, action, or place to another"
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
If you really want to keep the same word, say something like, "Why don't you use an alternative method?" |
Thank you for your time. |
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diver
Joined: 16 Jun 2003
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 9:58 pm Post subject: Re: Grammar question. |
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| Some of the Mothers Said wrote: |
Is this sentence grammatically correct?
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching."
Thanks. |
"Why don't you alternate your teaching methods." |
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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:21 pm Post subject: Re: Grammar question. |
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| diver wrote: |
| Some of the Mothers Said wrote: |
Is this sentence grammatically correct?
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching."
Thanks. |
"Why don't you alternate your teaching methods." |
Thank you. The sentence was used as part of an exam question.
I just wanted to check if it is correct or not. |
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DejaVu
Joined: 27 Jan 2011
Location: Your dreams
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:22 pm Post subject: |
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| koreatimes wrote: |
No.
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
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But that doesn't make it incorrect.
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching? Use a new method next week and return to your original the following week. Follow this trend permantly." |
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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:35 pm Post subject: |
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| DejaVu wrote: |
| koreatimes wrote: |
No.
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
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But that doesn't make it incorrect.
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching? Use a new method next week and return to your original the following week. Follow this trend permantly." |
Sigh! This sentence is a "Hot Issue" at school. Mommy is complaining, students are crying, K-teachers are debating and arguing now. Exams!
I'm Switzerland because I didn't write it, but it won't be long before I have to take a position. Anyhow, I was thinking along your lines as well, but DejaVu also seems correct. |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:38 pm Post subject: |
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| DejaVu wrote: |
| koreatimes wrote: |
No.
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
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But that doesn't make it incorrect.
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching? Use a new method next week and return to your original the following week. Follow this trend permantly." |
I would never teach that because it is impractical. If someone has enough reasoning to think of that, then they don't need someone to teach them how to use words. They already know how.
Also, to cite testing books, they often say "Answer B is wrong because it is not clear, vague terminology." So, for a test it wouldn't suffice either. |
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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:47 pm Post subject: |
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| koreatimes wrote: |
| DejaVu wrote: |
| koreatimes wrote: |
No.
As a verb it means to go back and forth.
To change or switch would indicate just one direction.
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But that doesn't make it incorrect.
"Why don't you alternate your method of teaching? Use a new method next week and return to your original the following week. Follow this trend permantly." |
I would never teach that because it is impractical. If someone has enough reasoning to think of that, then they don't need someone to teach them how to use words. They already know how.
Also, to cite testing books, they often say "Answer B is wrong because it is not clear, vague terminology." So, for a test it wouldn't suffice either. |
I agree with you. However, the question in the exam asked if the sentence was grammatically correct or not. A stand alone question without any context.
Your reply is similar to that given by the teacher who wrote the question, however, others disagree. Do you still think the sentence is grammatically incorrect? |
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nathanrutledge
Joined: 01 May 2008
Location: Marakesh
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 10:54 pm Post subject: |
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| I think we need more context to make an accurate call. As a sentence, syntactically it is correct. As far as making sense, it is fine. As far as koreatimes' interpretation, it's a stretch, but it's correct. It's like using the word evacuate for describing people - everyone uses it, but it technically means to empty something out. So, while alternate is not the best word to use with a singular object, the question that needs to be answered is "why do the teachers/students think it is right or wrong?" |
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Some of the Mothers Said
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 11:05 pm Post subject: |
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| nathanrutledge wrote: |
| I think we need more context to make an accurate call. As a sentence, syntactically it is correct. As far as making sense, it is fine. As far as koreatimes' interpretation, it's a stretch, but it's correct. It's like using the word evacuate for describing people - everyone uses it, but it technically means to empty something out. So, while alternate is not the best word to use with a singular object, the question that needs to be answered is "why do the teachers/students think it is right or wrong?" |
Thanks for your answer.
Unfortunately, there's no context for the question on the exam. The students were presented with five completely different sentences. They were asked to choose the "Grammatically" incorrect sentence. The Korean teacher insists the sentence is grammatically wrong. Others, like yourself think it's a little odd, but grammatically fine. I'm not sure.
(A little context. I work in a so called "Elite" High school. They are VERY passionate about their grades.) |
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koreatimes
Joined: 07 Jun 2011
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 11:11 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| As far as koreatimes' interpretation, it's a stretch, |
I am curious, how is it a stretch? Do you frequently hear people use it the way it was in the original post?
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| The Korean teacher insists the sentence is grammatically wrong. Others, like yourself think it's a little odd, but grammatically fine. I'm not sure. |
Yes, both are reasonable reactions. If something is odd, it is not used often. The Korean teacher is going to promote things that are used more often. If you have to make a rule, make a rule about things you know.
At test time, is this going to come up? If so, it would be very easy because the alternatives (no pun intended) would not be in the answers, and you could just choose "alternate" as the answer.
If the choices "alternative method" and "alternate your method" were available to select from, "alternative method" is clearly the more correct one. |
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crisdean
Joined: 04 Feb 2010
Location: Seoul Special City
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 11:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Some of the Mothers Said wrote: |
| The students were presented with five completely different sentences. |
Out of curiousity, what are the other 4 sentences? |
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bekinseki
Joined: 31 Aug 2011
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2011 11:51 pm Post subject: |
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| It's also in the form of a question, so shouldn't there just be a question mark at the end of it? |
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nathanrutledge
Joined: 01 May 2008
Location: Marakesh
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| Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 12:09 am Post subject: |
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| koreatimes wrote: |
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| As far as koreatimes' interpretation, it's a stretch, |
I am curious, how is it a stretch? Do you frequently hear people use it the way it was in the original post?
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What do you see as the problem with this sentence? The use of the verb alternate or the use of a singular object (method of teaching)? Using alternate with an object, the only error in this sentence is that "method" is not plural. If that is the reason the sentence is incorrect, then I'd say the teacher who wrote it is an idiot. Saying that sentence is fine as Dejavu pointed out. It is very practical - we do stuff like that all the time in English, and if the teacher is trying to use this as an example of something that is not grammatical, it's a very poor choice. |
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