The word grammar has been used so far to refer to an spect of how a language, in this case English, is conventionally used. I.e. to the structure or system of a particular language. But it is a slippery word, and is also used to refer to the way that system is described by linguistics, as in “Chomskyan grammar, systemic functional grammar, and to the internal mental representation of the language that an individual has built up, as in the learner’s grammars’.
Theoretical linguists concern themselves with finding and describing the patterns in the use of a language. The say they fix and then describe the language depends on their theoretical views about language use and their objectives. Chomskyan linguists aim to describe language as it is internalized in the mind / brain, rather than as it is produced by speakers.
Cognitive psychology suggests that our brains or minds work always with a limited amount of intentional capacity (or mental attention) that is available to concentrate on getting a task achieved. When that task is communicating an idea of message through the foreign language, then it seems that finding the right words takes up attention early on, but that, once those words or chunks are well known, using them takes up less capacity, a and attention is freed for grammar.
Applying these empirical findings to even younger learners suggests that rote learned chunks of language will make up a substantial part of early learning, and that learnt chunks also provide a valuable resource for developing that help learners notice words inside chunks and how other words can be used in the same places may help with the development of grammar.
Communicative approaches no grammar needed
A form of CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) that is based entirely on listening to comprehensible input is Total Physical Response (TPR), and variation on TPR is found in many young learner course books. In this method as developed by Asher (1972), students listen to command in the foreign languages and respond only through movement and action e.g. getting up and sitting down, turning round, putting things on shelves.
Developing the grammar of a foreign language is a long and complicated process; luckily young learners have a long time ahead of them with the language. There is no need to rush into technical rules and labels that will confuse. For their ultimate success, it seems likely to be far better to give children a sound basis in using the language while encourage curiously and talk about patterns and contrasts in and between language, a nd introducing grammatical metalanguage slowly and meaningfully.
By Armin
