Presenting Grammar

I consider teaching by rules and teaching by examples are both effective and interesting strategies nevertheless -according to my teaching experience- the ways teachers choose to present and develop grammar in their lessons depend on learners. Some learners prefer the rules and expect grammar explanations at the beginning of the lessons just before they have to put them into practice, these students express their needs to have the grammar points clear and explicit in order to be able to communication, some think they may be more comfortable when the teacher presents grammar deductively. I agree with Thornbury when this author suggests Teaching by rules must be framed by good grammar rules otherwise the learners will be confused, anxious and lost, I would say using bad rules could be dangerous, I have noticed learners’ errors are caused by inappropriate rules which are sometimes difficult to correct.

On the other hand teaching by examples provides opportunities to practice in different contexts. I think this strategy offers more ways to perform contextualized tasks with clear purposes. Since the form is not the center the teacher and learners focus their attention on meaningful communication, I feel comfortable and satisfied when students show their understanding through exploration and then discovering the grammar point.