Bridging Grammar and Communication: Focusing on the Preposition Of |
Junya Hirano, Tomoko Matsumoto |
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Abstract |
Focusing on the preposition of, this paper proposes a new method of grammar instruction to strengthen students’ understanding of grammar rules, as well as their communication abilities. It is important for scholars and teachers to find a way to improve grammar teaching methods because they have not changed for several decades, while methodologies for improving students’ communication skills have been discussed widely. Even ESL teachers who predominantly employ communication-centered teaching techniques rely on mechanistic methods to teach grammar, requiring students to memorize grammatical rules. The new grammar instruction method consists of two processes: understanding the essence of a particular rule and applying the understanding to a film dialog to see how grammatical rules are employed correctly in communicative settings. Understanding the essence of grammatical rules enables students to improve their communication skills and abilities;
it also does not require them to memorize grammatical rules. Furthermore, film dialogs enable learners to understand the importance of context and setting in the process of communication. To demonstrate how this new method works, the paper explains the essential meaning of of as a part of a larger whole, and shows how the essential meaning is employed in film dialog. |
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