Sangalang, Julie Ann D.

BSED2-ENGLISH
Activity 1
Teaching and Assessment of Grammar
Question:
Research on the four kinds of grammar:
a. Functional Grammar
b. Descriptive Grammar
c. Prescriptive Grammar
d. Pedagogic Grammar
Answer:
a. Functional Grammar
 It is a grammar that puts together the patterns of the language and
the things you can do with them is called a functional grammar; that
is, it is based on the relation between the structure of a language and
the various functions that the language performs. Functional
grammar is all about language use. It’s about communicative
grammar that learners can use in the typical situations that they find
themselves in as they go about their daily lives. Moreover, it’s an
approach in which grammar is not seen as a set of rules, but rather as
a communicative resource.

As Halliday himself says, ‘A functional grammar is essentially a

“natural” grammar, in the sense that everything in it can be
explained, ultimately, by reference to how language is used.’
(Halliday, 1994, p. xiii). Functional grammar is concerned with how
the various items of language in a text work together as part of a
larger system. Also Functional grammar (FG) and functional discourse
grammar (FDG) are grammar models and theories motivated by
functional theories of grammar. These theories explain how linguistic
 utterances are shaped, based on the goals and knowledge of natural
language users.
b. Descriptive Grammar
 A descriptive grammar is a set of rules about language based on how
it is actually used. In a descriptive grammar there is no right or wrong
language. It can be compared with a prescriptive grammar, which is a
set of rules based on how people think language should be used.
Example:
A descriptive grammar might include ‘He goes...', meaning ‘He said'.

Descriptive grammar, on the other hand, focuses on describing the

language as it is used, not saying how it should be used. For example,
think about a prescriptive rule like Don’t split infinitives. A descriptive
grammarian would see a sentence like “To boldly go where no man
has gone before” and would try to describe how the mental grammar
can cause that ordering of words, rather than saying that the surface
form is faulty due to prescriptive rules (which would require the
sentence “To go boldly where no man has gone before”). Linguistics
takes this approach to language.

A descriptive grammar looks at the way a language is actually used by

its speakers and then attempts to analyze it and formulate rules
about the structure. Descriptive grammar does not deal with what is
good or bad language use; forms and structures that might not be
used by speakers of Standard English would be regarded as valid and
included. It is a grammar based on the way a language actually is and
not how some think it should be.

c. Prescriptive Grammar
 Prescriptive grammar describes when people focus on talking about
how a language should or ought to be used. One way to remember
this association is to think of going to a doctor’s office. When a
doctor gives you a prescription for medication, it often includes
directions about how you should take your medication as well as
 what you should not do when taking your medication. In a similar
way, a prescriptive grammar tells you how you should speak, and
what type of language to avoid. This is commonly found in English
classes as well as other language classes, where the aim is to teach
people how to use language in a very particular (typically described
as ‘proper’ or ‘correct’) way.

A prescriptive grammar is a set of rules about language based on how

people think language should be used. In a prescriptive grammar
there is right and wrong language. It can be compared with a
descriptive grammar, which is a set of rules based on how language is
actually used.

Example:
A prescriptive grammar would reject ‘He goes…’, meaning ‘He said’,
as incorrect language.

Prescriptive grammar lays out rules about the structure of a

language. Unlike a descriptive grammar it deals with what the
grammarian believes to be right and wrong, good or bad language
use; not following the rules will generate incorrect language. Both
types of grammar have their supporters and their detractors, which
in all probability suggests that both have their strengths and
weaknesses. Writers were concerned to make rules about how
people ought to speak and write, in conformity with some standard
they held dear. They were not concerned with ascertaining first how
people actually did speak and write.

d. Pedagogic Grammar
 A pedagogic grammar is a description of how to use the grammar of
a language to communicate, for people wanting to learn the target
language. It can be compared with a reference grammar, which just
describes the grammar of the language. Pedagogic grammars contain
assumptions about how learners learn, follow certain linguistic
theories in their descriptions, and are written for a specific target
audience.
Example:
How English Works and Grammar in Use are pedagogic grammar
books, as they help learners use the grammar of English for
communication.

Pedagogical grammars typically require rules that are definite,

coherent, non-technical, cumulative and heuristic. As the rules
themselves accumulate, an axiomatic system is formed between the
two languages that should then enable a native speaker of the first to
learn the second. It is also a modern approach in linguistics intended
to aid in teaching an additional language.