【範亞飛老師導讀】根據Nunan對語法定義：The study of how syntax (form), semantics (meaning), andpragmatics (use) work together to enable individuals to communicate throughlanguage . 語法的學習包含：句法；語義；用法三個層面。個人建議：1）語法不能當知識去學習和記憶，而是要理解、領悟並通過使用熟練掌握。學習語法不能『得形忘意』而要『得意忘形』。2）語法三派：講what的薄冰等，講why的張滿勝等，強調練習的國外原版。語法的根是思維方式或者叫邏輯。英文是形合，中文是意合。但國內學生由於grammar-translation語言教學法的長期毒害，導致過於重視解構英文的形（form），而最終在輸出使用方面（意）（use+meaning）很差。行為主義可能能解釋詞彙與語法的學習，教授語法和詞彙的老師們可以參考；UG能解釋人如何掌握複雜語法；建構主義解釋人如何恰當的運用語言。各有各的道理。老師們當結合班級和學生實際情況靈活變換教學法。
Form, Meaning, and Use
In the language classroom, teachers should strive to balanceform, meaning, and use. Students should understand not only the mechanics ofthe language, but also the hows, whys, and wheres a particular structure, word,or phrase gets used.
For example, in a lesson on the past perfect tense, studentsneed to learn the sentence structure. The teacher first drills past participleson a variety of verbs (eat / eaten, swim / swum, buy / bought). He then plugsthe past participles into the grammar structure, with students then furtherpracticing the material via example sentences and more drills.
However, the class also needs to learn that the past perfectplaces actions or events in order for the listener or reader. The grammarserves as a marker of when events happened. This is especially needed when thespeaker forgets some information and has to backtrack in the story. This isalso important when information needs further clarification.
Let's look at the following in more detail, which will alsoclarify the concepts of form, meaning, and use.
Form: This refers to the mechanicsof the language, either in terms of grammar or vocabulary. With regards togrammar, students must understand the sentence structure of a specific grammarrule. In the above example on the past perfect tense, this would be:
subject |had |past participle |object/complement
So whenever students want to use the past perfect tense, theyhave to follow this specific structure.
With regards to vocabulary, students must understand thepronunciation of a word. If in a written text, then students must know how tospell a word. Prefixes, suffixes, and roots are also important, especially atthe intermediate and advanced levels. Students should be able to breakdown thecomponents of a word to guess at the meaning. Take the following prefixes:
biannual - "bi" means twice, so the new meaning is "twice a year"
distrust - "dis" means not, so the new meaning is "not totrust"
submarine - "sub" means under, so the new meaning is "underwater"
With an understanding of prefixes and suffices, students don'talways have to scurry for a dictionary every time they encounter an unknownword. However, students should also learn to readily recognize that the wordmay be a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb. This is becomes possible by devotinga portion of the lesson to form.
Meaning: This is the mentalimage/comprehension that is generated by the grammar or vocabulary. Studentsconnect the grammar structure with the meaning. For example, the past tensesignals events in the past, the past perfect signals earlier actions/events ina narrative. Once the teacher has presented the structure, he should talk aboutthe meaning too.
When vocabulary is the focus of the lesson, students connect theform of the word with its meaning. This occurs both at the micro- andmacro-levels. At the micro-level, the word stands alone. Students understandthe image triggered by a specific word. However, at the macro-level, a word mayhave a different meaning because of the sentence in which it appears. There isoften nuance or some other concept generated. In addition, when someone uses aword, there may be other associated word choices selected or triggered.
Use: Last comes how the grammar orvocabulary gets used. For example, the past perfect tense isn't used in everysentence but rather in conjunction with the past tense. One sentence appears inthe past perfect to order events, and then subsequent sentences appear in thesimple past. Take the following short narrative:
Tom had studied English for ten years. As a result, he got agreat job in England last year.
However, use also takes into consideration phrases or certainstructures that might appear more conversational, others more formal, and yeteven more than a few used only in very specific industries or situations.
Vocabulary follows the same concept, as some words are moreoften used in writing. Others are more often used in speaking. And many wordshave specific uses and appear in written communication like academic essays orbusiness correspondence. Students must understand these points for effectivevocabulary use, especially at the higher-levels when they acquire words withless concrete meanings. In addition, students must also realize what words ortypes of words are commonly associated with the vocabulary.
Of course, if the teacher tried to cover form, meaning, and usein every lesson, ensuring that students know all the ins and outs of a grammarstructure or word, then not much would get done. What's more, the class wouldlikely be quite boring. Consider the following ideas for effectively coveringform, meaning, and use in the classroom:
1: Keep the explanations brief. Asimple comment that the past tense refers to events in the past serves as anadequate explanation. The same holds true of a few comments on the pastperfect, or any other structure. A visual diagram and several examples alsofurther highlight the target language.
2: Limit the explanation to the task/lesson at hand.There may be several exceptions to the rule. There may be times when thelanguage isn't used for some situation or with some medium. Yet this is allextraneous information. The teacher wants to provide just enough explanationfor the students to practice the language correctly and purposefully.
3: Consider devoting several lessons to a specific grammar orlanguage point. This allows the teacher toaddress and practice the rules and exceptions, yet not overwhelm the class withtoo much information. The teacher can also practice different skills/mediums,yet return to the same language point.
4: Address grammar and vocabulary again and again.The teacher should provide several opportunities to acquire the target languageduring a course of study. Just because students have studied the targetmaterial once doesn't mean they can use it well. By revisiting the targetstructures, then students who grasped the form have a second chance to graspthe meaning and use of the target structure. Students who grasped the meaninghave a second chance for the form and use.