Grammar Explorer: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 22:17, 9 August 2024

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===The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages===

{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}

Complementary to this programme and to support the objectives, the [[Council of Europe]] has produced a EuropeanEurope-wide [[curriculum]] entitled The [[Common European Framework of Reference for Languages]]. This document provides a detailed model for describing and scaling language use and the different kinds of knowledge and skills required.

==Evolution of the online grammar==

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===Print-based grammar and the Internet===

There are countless internetInternet sites that call themselves "grammars" of a certain language. Many of these online grammars are text-based reproductions of traditional descriptive print grammars which expect the student to sit in front of a computer screen and read as they would read a grammar book. These grammars view grammar as an independent system of rules that is not directly linked to or relevant to language usage, andnor to the language user and learner. Further evidence of this view and approach is found in the fact that these grammars do not include practice material that asks learners/users to test their understanding and command of language usage.

None of these online grammars are structured to take advantage of the many benefits of multimedia and of the internet while successfully avoiding the inherent pitfalls of that medium. Furthermore, none of them are structured with the Basic User (as defined in the Common European Framework of Reference) in mind.

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===Innovation in online language learning===

'''Grammar Explorer''' aims to seriously use a constructivist approach for developing web-based language learning material. It will, therefore, fill the gap created, on the one hand, throughby the influence of the neurosciences on language teaching methodology, and on the other hand, through the persistent adherence of all previously and currently published grammars to outdated concepts. There is no model for such a grammar.

==The structure of the grammar==

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Grammar Explorer is arranged in a modular way. The modules are arranged in alphabetical order rather than according to the structure of the grammar. In this respect Grammar Explorer is more like a dictionary. This is a clear indication that Grammar Explorer has adopted what the [[neurosciences]] have argued for some time, that our memory tends to store semantically, especially at the level of the Basic User.

Furthermore, the neurosciences clearly support [[Michael Lewis (applied linguistic)|Michael Lewis]]'s [[didactic]] approach to language acquisition/learning that has been in circulation for about two decades now: Language must be seen as 'grammaticalized lexis'. A learner must have sufficient semantic data at hand in order to be able to construct meaning. At firstInitially, this is exclusively semantic meaning, which is then transferred into higher level thinking once sufficient semantic data is available to enable the learner to infer the underlying structures. Learners move progressively from semantic meaning intoto more abstract syntactic and morphological meaning.

==References==