When to Teach Grammar?: Perceptions of Teaching English as a Foreign Language Students

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Marina López Casoli
Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9360-6815

Abstract

This investigation studies the perceptions of Argentine college students regarding when they think best to receive grammar instruction in the English as a foreign language (EFL) class, whether before, during, or after the communicative practice. For this study, a group of first-year students in the English Teacher Training Program at a public university in Argentina, completed a questionnaire on their opinion as to when to learn grammar. This investigation is based on Spada and Lightbown’s (2008) distinction between isolated form-focused instruction (FFI) and integrated FFI. While both types of instruction occur in a communicative classroom context, isolated FFI takes place separated from the communicative practice whereas integrated IFF happens during the communicative practice. This study seeks to find out students’ perceptions and to analyze if these are compatible with the current theoretical views that indicate that integrated IFF is more effective than isolated IFF. Results show that students prefer integrated FFI more than isolated FFI, which is in line with the theoretical views that highlight the relevance of integrating grammar instruction into the communicative practice.
Item information
Published: Dec 22, 2021
Issue: No. 61 (2021): UCMaule
Section: Estudios
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29035/ucmaule.61.53
Keywords: grammar, English as a foreign language, isolated instruction, integrated instruction, perceptions

Article Details

How to Cite
López Casoli, M. (2021). When to Teach Grammar?: Perceptions of Teaching English as a Foreign Language Students. UCMaule, 61, 53-74. https://doi.org/10.29035/ucmaule.61.53
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