CAMBRIDGE DELTA

LANGUAGE SYSTEMS ASSIGNMENT

Focus on Teaching & Learning Grammar

Modal auxiliary verbs of advice

at the Elementary level

Candidate’s name: Adamantia Lambropoulou

Candidate’s number:
Centre’s name:
Centre’s number:
Date submitted:
Number of words: 2.223
Contents

Introduction _____________________________________ p. 3

Section One: Analysis

1.1 Form _______________________________________ p. 4

1.2 Meaning & Use _______________________________ p. 4

1.3 Phonological Features __________________________ p. 6

Section Two: Learners Problems

2.1 Challenges of Form ____________________________ p. 7

2.2 Challenges of Meaning & Use ____________________ p. 7

2.3 Challenges of Pronunciation _____________________ p. 8

Section Three

Suggestions regarding Challenges of Form, Meaning & Use and

Pronunciation ____________________________________ p.9

Conclusion _____________________________________ p.11

References _____________________________________ p.12

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INTRODUCTION

According to Swan & Smith (2001) there is a variety of difficulties a learner

could face, as modal auxiliaries are non-existent in some languages or in
other cases - even though there are equivalents - they do not follow the
same syntactic and morphological properties. As a native speaker of
Greek, I have noticed that English modals do not have one-to-one
equivalents in Greek and learners often struggle to identify the different
meanings.
Regarding specifically modals of advice, I have come to the conclusion
that Greek learners tend to overuse must, as it is one of the first modals
they are usually taught and ignore others, such as ought. Moreover, as it
is clearly stated by Leech (1987: 100, 101) the choice to follow the advice
or not provided to the addressee by should, is its most common meaning
and one which I personally believe elementary learners need to gradually
become aware of, in order to start obtaining both variety and flexibility in
the way they express themselves.
For these reasons, I feel this area is worth being explored in more detail,
especially regarding elementary learners and issues which may arise
when they first become familiar with modal auxiliary verbs of advice. After
all, the fact that should is more frequently used in English than does,
suggests that all the modals deserve a place on a beginners’ syllabus
(Thornbury 1997: 216).

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SECTION ONE: ANALYSIS

1.1 Form

Modal auxiliaries are a closed set and as Parrot (2000: 153, 154) mentions
they are divided into categories, such as “pure” and “semi-modals”.
“Pure” modal verbs, such as must and should, have certain
characteristics, regarding their form. They:
- are not inflected in the third person. " He must go. NOT *He musts
go.
- are followed by the “bare infinitive”. " I must go. NOT *I must to go.
- are negated by the addition of n’t or not. " I should, I should not /I
shouldn’t. NOT * I don’t should.
- are inverted with the subject to form a question. " Should I do it?
- have no past form." NOT *I musted go.
On the other hand, “semi-modals” such as ought are very closely related
to “pure” regarding meaning, although they may not share all their formal
characteristics.

1.2 Meaning & Use

According to Quirk (1985: 219) each modal has both intrinsic and extrinsic
uses, meaning they all fall into both categories mentioned below:
- Those which express “permission”, “obligation” and “volition” and
involve some kind of intrinsic human control over events and
- Those which express “possibility”, necessity” and “prediction” and
do not primarily involve human control of events but do typically
involve judgment of what is or is not likely to happen.
Additionally, Huddleston & Pullum (2012: 186) mention the terms deontic
(what is expected of the addressee) and epistemic (an interpretation of
what I expect will happen) to define meaning.
For the purpose of this essay, I will be focusing on an aspect of deontic /
intrinsic modality: advice as expressed by must and should.

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MUST

It is a middle-frequency modal verb. According to Leech (1987: 78) it is

used to express both obligation / prohibition and advice, with the first one
being quite common justifying why it is also perceived as a strong advice
component, where there are dangers if the advice is not followed.
e.g. You must see a doctor about your leg.
You mustn’t forget to water the flowers, or they’ll die. (Aitken 2002:
127)
Furthermore, as Leech mentions (1987: 78) the sense of authority that
accompanies must depends on whether the sentence is a statement or a
question; in the first case, the speaker is the person who expresses
authority over the person(s) mentioned in the clause, while in the second
the listener’s authority instead of that of the speaker is involved.
e.g. You must be back by 10 o’clock. (You are obliged to be back… / I
require you to be back…) (Quirk et al 1985: 225)
Must I answer those questions? (Is that what you require?) (Leech: 1987:
78)
This probably explains the fact that must is rarely used in conversation,
as it has strong directive force when used in face-to-face interaction and
implies that there is an unequal relationship between the speakers. (Biber
et al 2007: 495)

SHOULD

It is a secondary, middle-frequency modal which expresses lack of full

confidence, meaning that the speaker is not sure that the recommendation
will be carried out and the addressee has the choice to follow the advice
or not. This meaning could be called weakened obligation (the obligation
is weakened to desirability), as should is less categorical than must.
(Leech 1987: 100, 101) Thus, the modal should provides a hedged
impression of obligation that is typically regarded as more polite. (Biber et
al 2007: 495). Finally, should is quite common in many registers, such as
conversation, news reportage and academic prose (Biber et al 2007: 489).

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1.3 Phonological Features

According to Aitken (2002: 120) and Parrot (2000: 163), modals have a
variety of interrelated meanings which are much influenced by stress and
intonation. They are usually pronounced in two ways:
- Strong form: when they are not followed by a main verb or a particular
effect needs to be created.
- Weak form: in most contexts it is common to weaken the modal and
stress other parts of the sentence. The vowel is often reduced to /ə/ or it
is omitted. The final consonant is often left out, especially if the verb which
follows begins with another consonant.

should /ʃʊd/ (Yes, I should) /ʃə/ (I sh’go)

/ʃəd/ (I sh’d eat)

Parrot (2000: 163)

MUST

- Mustn’t is pronounced /mʌsnt/.

- Must can have either a spoken weak form /məs/ or it can be stressed
/mʌst/ for emphasis on its meaning.
e.g. You must /məs/ give me your honest opinion.
You really must / mʌst/ be quiet. (It is very necessary.)
(Eastwood 2002: 114)

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SECTION TWO: LEARNERS’ PROBLEMS

This section will be an attempt to briefly mention the various issues

elementary learners could face regarding form, meaning and use of modal
auxiliaries of advice, as well as pronunciation challenges that may occur.

2.1 Challenges of Form

- Using the full infinitive: this is a very common issue for learners,
especially due to L1 interference. In languages such as Italian,
Russian and Greek modals or equivalents tend to behave like other
verbs, which are often followed by full infinitive.
e.g. *You must to do it. (Parrot 2000: 164)
- Forming questions and negatives: learners at this level have
recently become familiar with do, does or did to form questions and
negatives and they often tend to overuse them, not realizing that
modals are themselves auxiliaries.
e.g. *She doesn’t must finish it. (Parrot 2000: 165)
- The fact that modal verbs have no past or future form (Thornbury
2006: 135) can cause confusion to the learners, who - at this level -
have recently been introduced to tenses such as the Past Simple
and might attempt to use forms of modals that do not exist.
e.g. * You musted do that.
- Reduced forms: elementary learners who may have become
familiar with expressions such as I’d like to… are likely to confuse
the contracted form I’d of would with should.
e.g. I’d like to go home. " I would like to go home.
NOT *I should like to go home.

2.2 Challenges of Meaning & Use

- Overusing must in contexts where it is not appropriate: elementary

learners could face difficulty in distinguishing appropriacy; they may
choose to use You must lose weight instead of You should lose
weight, risking sounding rude or presumptuous. As mentioned in the

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 introduction, this could relate to the fact that they are usually
presented with must, prior to other modals of advice.
- Avoiding modals altogether: as Parrot suggests (2000: 164)
learners tend to feel insecure and seek for alternative ways to
express themselves, even when they understand the meaning of the
modal verbs and can use them appropriately and accurately in
controlled exercises.

2.3 Challenges of Pronunciation

- Lack of comprehension: as in most contexts modals are pronounced

in a weakened form, untrained elementary learners fail to hear or
identify them (Parrot 2000).
- Wrong stress and intonation: most elementary learners tend to
associate modal auxiliaries expressing strong advice or obligation
with their strong forms in all cases, regardless of the context. For
example, always pronounce must as /mʌst/.
- Difficulty in mastering pronunciation: my experience with Greek
elementary learners has shown that they need time and consistent
practice to realise the correct pronunciation of modals such as
should and mustn’t, which they often mistakenly pronounce /ʃʊld/
and /mʌstent/.

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SECTION THREE: SUGGESTIONS REGARDING CHALLENGES
IN FORM, MEANING & USE AND PRONUNCIATION.

Based on my teaching experience with elementary learners, I have found

the following techniques to be of great help regarding difficulties
connected to modal auxiliaries of advice, as they can lead to reduction of
mistakes made:
In order to deal with issues regarding form and pronunciation the
teacher could:
- Elicit the form, asking appropriate questions, such as “what comes
after should? (verb)”, “which words form shouldn’t?” (should + not)
or “are these the same: You’d eat - You should eat?” (no); this
could help the learners become aware of the form.
- Write the form on the board (should + verb) for future reference; this
could help the learners become more self-confident.
- Check understanding using appropriate CCQs, such as “do we say
You should to eat?” (no), “do we say You should don’t?” (no) or
“do we say You musted do that?” (no); this could help the teacher
spot any misconceptions and re-address them.
- Provide a variety of controlled-practice activities, such as error-
correction or gap-filling activities and provide appropriate feedback;
this will allow the learners to practice and develop awareness of the
TL.
- Use on-the-spot correction; this will allow no ground for
misconceptions and mispronounced items especially when modals
are newly-taught, which is often the case in elementary level.
- Model the TL; this will help the learners become aware not only of
the form, but also the pronunciation and will allow them to
understand the differences between the strong and weak forms.
- Elicit pronunciation and ask appropriate CCQs to check
understanding, such as “do we say /ʃʊld/?” (no); this will help the
learners become aware of the pronunciation of the TL.
- Provide several examples to highlight the differences between
strong and weak forms, such as “You should eat” (/ʃəd/) or “Don’t
you think you should?” (/ʃʊd/); this will allow the learners to become
more aware and avoid pronouncing the TL the same way at all
times.
- Invite the learners to drill the TL in order to hear its sound in their
own voices and compare it with the teacher’s; this will help them

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 associate each modal verb with its pronunciation and eventually
lead them to mastering it.
In order to deal with issues regarding meaning and use the teacher could:
- Choose various appropriate contexts through which the TL will be
presented and preserve them throughout the lesson; this will help
the learners associate each modal verb with its meaning(s) and
refer to them if need be during the lesson. For example, must could
be introduced through a context in which on employer is giving
advice to his employees - thus supporting the idea of the authority
of the speaker - while should could be introduced through a different
context which will indicate the choice of the addressee; a friend
receiving advice from friends or a mother advising her grown-up
child. This approach could reinforce the learners and prevent them
from overusing the same modals such as must.
- Create appropriate role plays in which the learners will have to
perform accordingly and use appropriate language to reinforce their
acting; if, for example, a learner plays the role of the employer, the
language they use will need to be adjusted and express authority.
In this way the learners will start focusing more on the use of modals
and realize their meanings.
Finally, participating in freer activities of both written and spoken discourse
could help the learners replicate real-life situations of giving advice; they
could write short letters in reply to Agony Aunt columns, help a newcomer
who has recently joined their course or advise a friend on how to improve
their lifestyle and acquire healthier eating habits. Hopefully, in this way
they will gradually start realizing the importance of modals and feel more
secure when using them.

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CONCLUSION

After exploring a variety of sources, I have come to the conclusion that the
area of modal auxiliaries is one of the most challenging in the English
language, not only for learners and teachers, but for linguists, as well. On
the other hand, it is fascinating how their appropriate use allows the
speaker to imply different meanings by actually using the same modal in
different contexts.
However, judging from the fact that vagueness around modal auxiliaries
is common ground for almost anyone practising ELT, it seems rather
unnatural and unrealistic to expect from the learners to become fully
aware of their different aspects. Consequently, it is essential for a teacher
to provide - especially elementary - learners with appropriate
comprehensible input, guidance and support.

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References

- Aitken R. (2002), Teaching Tenses, ELB Publishing

- Biber D., Johansson S., Leech G., Conrad S. & Finegan E. (2007),
Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English, Pearson
Education Ltd

- Celce-Murcia M. & Larsen-Freeman D. (1999), The Grammar Book,

Heinle & Heinle Publishers

- Eastwood J. (2002), Oxford Guide to English Grammar, Oxford

University Press

- Huddleston R. & Pullum G. K. (2012), The Cambridge Grammar of

the English Language, Cambridge University Press

- Leech G. (1987), Meaning and the English Verb, London: Longman

Group Ltd

- Lewis M. (1986), The English Verb, Language Teaching

Publications

- Palmer F. R. (1979), Modality and the English Modals, Longman

- Parrot M. (2000), Grammar for English Language Teachers,

Cambridge University Press

- Quirk R., Greenbaum S., Leech G. & Svartvik J. (1985), A

Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language, Longman
Group Ltd

- Swan M. & Smith B. (2001), Learner English, Cambridge University

Press

- Thornbury S. (1997), About Language, Cambridge University Press

- Thornbury S. (1999), How to teach Grammar, Longman

- Thornbury S. (2006), An A-Z of ELT, Oxford: MacMillan Publishers

- Ur P. (1988), Grammar Practice Activities, Cambridge University

Press

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