This page offers personal reflections on different discussions in Applied Grammar.
Role of Grammar and Grammar Instruction
“They’re more like guidelines,”
these words from Captain Barbossa on “The Pirates of the Caribbean” are spoken
in reference to the pirate laws. While it’s very understandable that pirate
laws are very different from the rules of grammar, this statement from Barbossa
can be used to describe the rules of grammar in the same way that it describes
the pirate laws. From my education, I
learned that while grammar has specific terms and rules that govern how text
should be written, these rules can be considered more like guidelines because they
can be just as versatile as the context of a piece one is writing.
The role of grammar in writing is to give
our writing structure. From professional writing to creative writing, it helps the
writer to create style in their writing.
Grammar is used to make our professional
writing – such as resumes, cover letters, and essays – more appropriate and
professional looking. By using proper grammar in professional writing the
writer shows the reader that they fully understand and are capable of
corresponding in an appropriate manor for the position that is being applied
for or for the argument that is being made.
Grammar is also used to help creative
writers produce a style that makes their writing stand out. This helps the
writer to make their story more believable to the reader and it helps to
transport the reader into the world that the writer is trying to create. In “The
Pirates of the Caribbean” many of the characters in the story have different
ways of talking. If this story were written down as a novel, the writer would
use grammar rules as guidelines so that they could show these different
dialects to help the reader envision these characters more vividly.
While many students remember the time when
grammar was taught to them through these scary little books and by repetitious
exercises, my memories of grammar instruction are very different. I remember
the book from my elementary years, but we went back and forth between learning
a new rule and using it the following day in our daily writings. In this way we
were not only getting the repetitious instruction but we were practicing these
rules in a practical manor.
When I had started my middle school and high school
years it was a very similar way of learning. Grammar wasn’t taught nearly as
much then because we had done well in elementary but if there were mistakes our
teachers noticed often we would go back to that little grammar book and
practice it one day then use it in writing the next day. The terminology wasn’t
focused on very much but we discussed the rules and when they could be broken.
I feel fortunate to have had such an enjoyable experience with grammar compared
to many other students. I feel that because of the way I had been instructed I
can better understand the concept of grammar being flexible and “more like
guidelines”.
