A survey on students’ attitudes to deductive and inductive approaches to teaching english grammar for grade 11th at bac kan gifted high school

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES

TRỊNH THANH HUYỀN

A SURVEY ON STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TO DEDUCTIVE AND
INDUCTIVE APPROACHES TO TEACHING ENGLISH GRAMMAR FOR
GRADE 11 AT BAC KAN GIFTED HIGH SCHOOL
Nghiên cứu điều tra thái độ của học sinh đối với phương pháp diễn dịch và quy
nạp trong giảng dạy ngữ pháp tiếng Anh tại lớp 11 trường trung học phổ thông
chuyên Bắc Kạn

M.A. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Major: English Teaching Methodology
Code: 60140111

HANOI - 2016


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES

TRỊNH THANH HUYỀN

A SURVEY ON STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TO DEDUCTIVE AND
INDUCTIVE APPROACHES TO TEACHING ENGLISH GRAMMAR FOR
GRADE 11 AT BAC KAN GIFTED HIGH SCHOOL
Nghiên cứu điều tra thái độ của học sinh đối với phương pháp diễn dịch và quy

nạp trong giảng dạy ngữ pháp tiếng Anh tại lớp 11 trường trung học phổ thông
chuyên Bắc Kạn

M.A. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Major: English Teaching Methodology
Code: 60140111
Supervisor: Dr. Đỗ Tuấn Minh

HANOI - 2016


CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled A
SURVEY ON STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TO DEDUCTIVE AND INDUCTIVE
APPROACHES TO TEACHING ENGLISH GRAMMAR FOR GRADE 11 AT
BAC KAN GIFTED HIGH SCHOOL submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Master in English Language Teaching. Except where
the reference is indicated, no other person’s work has been used without due
acknowledgement in the text of the thesis.

Hanoi, 2016

Trinh Thanh Huyen

Approved by
SUPERVISOR
(Signature and full name)

Date:

i


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This thesis could not have been completed without the help and support from a
number of people. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them all most
sincerely.
First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Do Tuan
Minh, my supervisor, who has patiently and constantly supported me through the
stages of the study, and whose stimulating ideas, expertise, and suggestions have
inspired me greatly through my growth as an academic researcher.
A special word of thanks goes to teachers and students in class 11A at Bac Kan
Gifted High School and many others, without whose support and encouragement it
would never have been possible for me to have this thesis accomplished.
Last but not least, I am greatly indebted to my family and friends for the sacrifice
they have devoted to the fulfillment of this academic work. Their love will always
be my sunshine in my road to success.

ii


ABSTRACT
The present survey study seeks to investigate students’ attitudes to English grammar
teaching approaches. Specifically, it has explored the attitudes towards deductive
and inductive approaches to English grammar teaching held by thirty eleven – form
students in English – specialized class coded as A at Bac Kan Gifted High School.
The instruments for data collection to serve the aim of the research are survey
questionnaire, semi – structured interview and classroom observation. After a

careful long time of collecting and analyzing valuable data, it is revealed in the
study that students showed favorable attitudes to inductive approach rather than
deductive approach. The reasons for their favor were uncovered that the rule –
driven path or the deductive approach is monotonous, uninteresting and
demotivating for them, while the inductive path is considered more helpful as it
makes students become more active rather than passive as recipient only. When
they were asked to show their opinions on the most appropriate way of teaching to
enhance students’ grammar learning quality, they preferred their teacher to
appropriately combine both approaches for the sake of effective grammar teaching
and learning. The researcher has offered some pedagogical suggestions emerged
from the research findings to the context under investigation with the hope to bring
about some changes and progresses in English grammar teaching for the sake of
effective grammar learning on the part of students.

iii


LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

EFL

English as a Foreign Language

e.g.

for example

etc.

and so on

i.e.

that is

I1

Interview 1

I2

Interview 2

I3

Interview 3

S1

Student 1

S2

Student 2

S3

Student 3

11A

Eleven – form English – specialized class

iv


LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1

Questionnaire Structure and Question Purposes

Table 2

Semi – structured Interview Structure and Question Purposes

Figure 1

Current Grammar Teaching Aids

Figure 2

Importance of Grammar

Figure 3

Importance of Attitude in Grammar Study

Figure 4

Attitudes to Deductive Approach

Figure 5

Antonyms and Synonyms Teaching

Figure 6

Attitudes to Inductive Approach

Figure 7

The Simple Present Tense Teaching

Figure 8

Comparative Adjectives Teaching

Figure 9

Attitudes to the Combination of both Approaches

v


TABLE OF CONTENTS

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY ........................................................................... i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................ii
ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................. iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................... iv
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ........................................................................... v
TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................... vi
PART A: INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 1
I. Rationale for the Research ................................................................................... 1
II. Aim and Objectives of the Research ................................................................... 3
III. Research Questions ............................................................................................ 3
IV. Scope of the Research ....................................................................................... 4
V. Methods of the Study .......................................................................................... 4
VI. Significance of the Research ............................................................................. 5
VII. Structural Organization of the Thesis .............................................................. 5
PART B: DEVELOPMENT ....................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................. 6
1.1. Overview of English Grammar ..................................................................... 6
1.1.1. The Concept of Grammar ................................................................... 6
1.1.2. The Role of Grammar in Teaching English as a Foreign Language .. 7
1.2. Approaches to Grammar Instruction ............................................................. 9
1.2.1. Experiential Teaching Approach ........................................................ 9
1.2.2. Analytic Teaching Approach ........................................................... 10
1.2.3. Implicit and Explicit Approach ........................................................ 11
1.2.4. Intralingual and Crosslingual Dimension ......................................... 13
1.2.5. Deductive and Inductive Approach .................................................. 14

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1.3. Advantages and Disadvantages of Inductive and Deductive Approaches to
English Grammar Teaching................................................................................ 15
1.3.1. Advantages and Disadvantages of Inductive Approach ................... 16
1.3.2. Advantages and Disadvantages of Deductive Approach ................. 16

1.4. Students’ Attitudes towards English Grammar Instruction ........................ 17
1.4.1. Defining Students’ Attitudes ............................................................ 17
1.4.2. Components of Attitude ................................................................... 19
1.4.3. Some Studies on Students’ Attitudes to Grammar Instruction ........ 20
1.5. Summary ..................................................................................................... 21
CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................ 22
2.1. Restatement of Research Questions ............................................................ 22
2.2. Research Setting .......................................................................................... 22
2.3. Participants .................................................................................................. 23
2.4. The Appropriateness of the Research Approach ......................................... 23
2.5. Research Instruments .................................................................................. 25
2.5.1. Survey questionnaire ............................................................................ 25
2.5.2. Semi – structured interview ................................................................. 27
2.5.3. Observation .......................................................................................... 28
2.6. Data Collection Procedure........................................................................... 29
2.7. Methods of Data Analysis ........................................................................... 31
2.8. Summary ..................................................................................................... 33
CHAPTER III: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ................................................. 34
3.1. Findings ....................................................................................................... 34
3.1.1. Quantitative Data Findings .................................................................. 34
3.1.1.1. Overview of the Current Grammar Teaching Aids at Bac Kan
Gifted High School ..................................................................................... 34
3.1.1.2. Attitudes to Grammar Teaching Approaches ................................ 35
3.1.1.2.1. Importance of Grammar ......................................................... 35
3.1.1.2.2. Importance of Attitude in Grammar Study ............................. 36

vii


3.1.1.2.3. Attitudes to Deductive Approach ........................................... 37

3.1.1.2.4. Attitudes to Inductive Approach............................................. 38
3.1.1.2.5. Attitudes to the Combination of both Inductive and Deductive
Approaches ............................................................................................. 40
3.1.2. Qualitative Data Findings .................................................................... 41
3.1.2.1. Attitudes to Deductive Approach .................................................. 41
3.1.2.2. Attitudes to Inductive Approach ................................................... 42
3.1.2.3. Attitudes to the Combination of both Inductive and Deductive
Approaches ................................................................................................. 43
3.2. Discussion of the Findings .......................................................................... 44
PART C: CONCLUSION ......................................................................................... 46
I. Summary of Key Findings ................................................................................. 46
II. Pedagogical Implications .................................................................................. 46
III. Limitations of the Study .................................................................................. 47
IV. Suggestions for Further Studies....................................................................... 47
REFERENCES .......................................................................................................... 48
APPENDIX A ............................................................................................................. I
APPENDIX B ......................................................................................................... VII

viii


PART A: INTRODUCTION
This part including the rationale for the research, the aim and objectives, the scope
and methods of the study, the research questions, the significance and structural
organization of the thesis will hopefully provide readers with an overview of the
whole paper.
I. Rationale for the Research
The role of foreign language grammar has always been a controversial subject of
research for decades. Krashen (1982) considers grammar useful for “language
appreciation”, i.e. appropriate language use, but it should not be the main subject of

instruction. In other words, learners acquiring a foreign language through a process
of communication and grammar is just a tool to polish their production when they
have already acquired grammar knowledge. In this case, we can assume that
grammar is necessary, but not an essential background in language learning, and
thus, it should not be the object of instruction in language teaching. With another
point of view, Batstone (1994) affirms the importance of grammar to understand
language because it provides a framework for learners to structure their foreign
language learning. In addition, Dr. Pradeep (2013) admits the importance of
grammar by confirming that when learning a foreign dialect, learners should learn
its grammar since it is extremely important that it cannot be ignored.
From the researcher’s point of view, the role of grammar is a never-ending question
and it is not so important as the matter of how grammar should be taught in foreign
language teaching. In recent times, grammar instruction has been regarded as
essential and indispensable in the context of language teaching. Sharing a similar
idea with the writer, Purpura (2004) points out that grammar plays a central role in
language teaching as it influences the success of foreign language learning. In this
view, grammar plays an extremely important and unavoidable role in developing
the language outcomes of learners. Recently, a number of merited research have

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been conducted to discover the approaches concerning grammar teaching. There are
two approaches that come into question, i.e. deductive and inductive instructions.
Seeing that there is no approach outweighing another; in other words, both
deductive and inductive approaches possess the same merit, so teachers should take
advantages of and be flexible in applying the aforementioned approaches in order to
produce effective grammar teaching.
In this paper, the writer puts the main focus on English as a foreign language taught
in Vietnam. Being considered as a developing country with many potentials,

Vietnam is a rich land in the context of globalization. That tendency has brought
about a change in Vietnamese people’s attitudes about foreign language learning,
especially English. With its position as a global language, English is regarded as a
vital language that can bring people great opportunities to make their lives better,
i.e. good jobs, good living standards, good studying conditions, etc. Therefore,
English teaching has become a burning concern for many Vietnamese educators.
In the writer’s viewpoint, although English grammar is extremely essential in the
view of most Vietnamese teachers in general and high school teachers in particular,
most of them do not possess suitable methods to teach grammar. Thus, many
students know English without being able to use it properly, even in expressing
their own intentions. Additionally, there is a fact that students’ attitudes to teachers’
grammar teaching approach can influence their learning outcomes. However, there
has been little investigation of the attitudes of high school students concerning
English grammar instruction, and there is no research conducted to discover the
issue in Bac Kan province. Because of the aforementioned reasons, the researcher
has decided to conduct a research titled “A survey on students’ attitudes to
deductive and inductive approaches to teaching English grammar for grade 11 at
Bac Kan Gifted High School”. This research will make contributions to develop a
sharp understanding of students’ attitudes to deductive and inductive approaches to

2


English grammar teaching by their teachers, and to point out a more appropriate
path in order to enhance English grammar learning quality in this context.
II. Aim and Tasks of the Research
The overall aim of the study is to shed light on the attitudes to deductive and
inductive approaches to English grammar teaching held by students in class 11A at
Bac Kan Gifted High School. With that aim achieved, the researcher will suggest
appropriate approach that meets students’ needs with the hope to enhance English

grammar learning quality.
To achieve the above aim, the following objectives are set for exploration:
-

Investigating key features of deductive and inductive approaches for deeper
understanding

-

Designing students survey questionnaires and questions for semi – structured
interviews

-

Observing teachers teaching the two different approaches

-

Asking students to do the survey questionnaires

-

Inviting some students to take part in semi – structured interviews

-

Collecting and analyzing the data collected

III. Research Questions
The research is conducted to answer two following questions:

1. What are the attitudes of students in class 11A at Bac Kan Gifted High School to
deductive and inductive approaches to English grammar teaching?
2. Which approach suits students in class 11A at Bac Kan Gifted High School most
and enhances their English grammar learning quality?

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IV. Scope of the Research
Concerning academic scope, the researcher will focus on students’ attitudes. In
other words, the only thing that will be done by the researcher is students’ attitudes
to deductive and inductive English grammar teaching.
With regard to social scope, the researcher employs a portion of the population to
represent the entire population. Specifically, the sample will consist of thirty
students within class 11A at Bac Kan Gifted High School.
V. Methods of the Study
The study is carried out with quantitative and qualitative methods as follows:
First, the survey questionnaire for students is employed to find out their attitudes
towards deductive and inductive approaches to English grammar teaching, affecting
factors on such attitudes and their expectations during grammar lessons
Second, class observation is implemented to study teacher’s teaching approaches
and students’ performance in grammar lessons
After that, personal interviews with three students are conducted in order to:
+ Survey their perception on the magnitude of grammar in learning English
+ Study their attitudes towards inductive and deductive approaches to grammar
teaching
+ Find out the most appropriate way of teaching grammar for students to enhance
their learning outcomes
Then, the data are collected, sorted and analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively to
obtain realistic results.

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To end with, pedagogical implications for enhancing students’ positive attitudes in
learning grammar and the most appropriate grammar teaching approach will be
proposed based on the results found from all data collection instruments.
VI. Significance of the Research
The findings of the present paper will help get deeper insights into students’
attitudes towards the aforementioned approaches, which in turn stimulate the
adjustment on the part of teachers to accord with students’ needs and wants. The
suggestion of an appropriate approach made by the writer of this paper will
significantly contribute to English grammar teaching and learning outcomes. In
short, valuable information from the practical classroom will help shorten the gap
between theory and practice at least in this context.
VII. Structural Organization of the Thesis
The present graduation thesis is designed with three parts, starting with Introduction
and ending with Conclusion. With the purpose of providing readers with
background for the present research, part A (Introduction) presents the rationale, the
aim and objectives, the scope, the research questions, significance and the structural
organization of the thesis. Part B (Development) includes three chapters.
Specifically, chapter I, named Literature Review, gives a critical review of the
previous studies relating to the research problem under investigation and presents
the theoretical background employed as tools for conducting the whole research.
The Methodology chapter (chapter II) describes the methods and materials used in
doing the research, including data collection instruments and data analysis
techniques. The third chapter (Findings and Discussion) is the part describing what
can be learned during the research and interpreting the results. The last part of the
thesis is part C (Conclusion) which offers some pedagogical implications for better
teaching and learning outcomes, restates the aim and suggests some paths for

further studies related to the field under investigation.

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PART B: DEVELOPMENT
This part is designed for the development of the whole thesis. Specifically, it
includes three chapters named I (Literature Review), II (Methodology), III
(Findings and Discussion). Each chapter serves different purposes which
importantly contribute to the success of the present thesis.
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter is written to provide an overview of sources related to the present topic
of the thesis and to reveal the gap in the literature. Moreover, it establishes a
framework for the thesis by providing a standard for comparison to other studies
and it places the researcher’s work within the existing body of literature.
1.1. Overview of English Grammar
1.1.1. The Concept of Grammar
For many years, grammar has been placed in a central position in the context of
language teaching and the concept of grammar has been variously defined from the
traditional views to recent perspectives.
Generally, concerning the traditional understanding of grammar, according to
Samuel Kirkham (1829), is “the science of language”. Samuel points out two
aspects of grammar called universal grammar and particular grammar. While the
former refers to common principles, structures, rules being in all languages, the
latter emphasizes some modifications applied to suit particular features and
practices of people using particular languages. Concerning English grammar, he
defines it as “the art of speaking and writing the English language with propriety”.
In this view, traditional English grammar is seen as the art with the goal of
producing pleasing English by way of using proper rules.
In the 20th century, the understanding of grammar is more specific and complex.

Bade (2008) believes that grammar is about the structure of a language and that a
6


set of rules is used to change word forms and connect them together to make new
units. Rivers (1968) seems to have the same points as Bade, and he adds more
details that grammar rules are expressed with a difficult terminology and have many
exceptions. Ur (1988) defines grammar “as the way a language manipulates and
combines words (or bits of words) in order to form longer units of meaning” (p.4).
Recently, grammar has been more communicatively viewed; to put it another way,
it is considered as a means to communicate and to “mediate words and context’
(Duso, 2007). In the pedagogical field, sharing the same viewpoint, Batstone (1994)
agrees that the knowledge of grammar (structures, rules) does not guarantee
learners’ successful communication and that grammar as process including many
ways to develop in communication may allow learners to communicate. According
to Giunchi (1990), the important aim of grammar is to enrich learners’ ability to use
the foreign language. In this view, we can understand that grammar should be
closely related with context. Only when grammar is learned in accordance with
context can language learners thoroughly understand and master that language.
Therefore, grammar is seen as a tool to correct language use and polish learners’
language products.
As can be understood, different grammar definitions possess different scope and
strength. For the research purpose and the researcher’s intention, grammar defined
by Ur (1988, p.4), which is “the way a language manipulates and combines words
(or bits of words) in order to form longer units of meaning”, will be taken as basis.
1.1.2. The Role of Grammar in Teaching English as a Foreign Language
The role of grammar in foreign language teaching in general and in English
language teaching in particular has been the continual subject for long-standing
debates during many years. These debates have led to different theories about
language acquisition because of some appropriate arguments in these extremes. Put

another way, there is no completely false or true argument, thus such issue centered
in never-ending debates will result in various theories about language learning.
7


From Krashen (1982)’s standpoint, he views that grammar is not essential in foreign
language teaching. Specifically, grammar is seen as a tool to polish learner’s
language production and it is useful only when the learner has acquired the
knowledge of the rules or structures in the production. In other words, grammar
allows high level learners to achieve what he calls “language appreciation”.
Therefore, grammar should not be taught as a subject itself (theoretical study of
grammar), but as the input provided leading to language acquisition.
On the other hand, the idea that grammar ought to be put in the foreground in
foreign language teaching is affirmed by Batstone (1994). He proves his point by
stating that grammar helps learners to make a framework or structure their learning
during the process of acquisition and that it helps them to organize the information
and shorten the distance between learners and the target language.
Sharing the same viewpoint with Batstone (1994) about the importance of grammar,
Ellis (1997) admits the vital role of grammar teaching for it enhances the
development of accuracy and accelerates learners’ progress in the process of
language acquisition for a long period of time.
Other advocate of the importance of grammar is Purpura (2004), who asserts that
the success of foreign language learners is strongly affected by grammar teaching as
grammar plays a central role in foreign language teaching. In addition, Duso (2007)
believes that the metalinguistic analysis is essential in the process of language
acquisition and that grammar teaching should be paid much attention to in that
process to acquire a foreign language as it helps to analyze metalinguistic
knowledge.
From a practitioner’s perspective, Azar (2007) points out the relationship between
linguistic competence and linguistic performance. That is to say, grammar teaching

helps learners understand language patterns or structures and then they can use
those patterns in speaking, reading, listening and writing. In other words, when
learners achieve a good knowledge of grammar, they can be able to express their
8


intention in a more polished way or to read between the lines. In this case, we can
infer that a good knowledge of grammar is like a gold key to unlock the door of
foreign language success. Agreeing with Azar’s views as well as basing on the
research results conducted in Japan, Takahashi (2005) states that:
… without a sound knowledge of the grammatical basis of a second or a
foreign language, the learner is in possession of nothing more than a
selection of everyday phrases which are adequate for basic greetings and
making orders at a restaurant, but which will be deficient when the learner is
required to perform any kind of sophisticated linguistic task. (p. 231)
He then concludes that: “… it is of vital importance for EFL students to learn its
grammar of the target language, and that there is a positive correlation between
grammar learning and language competence.” (p. 232)
In the researcher’s mind, grammar is an indispensable factor contributing to foreign
language development. Although there are long-standing debates in the issue, the
researcher affirms that grammar ought to be put in the foreground in foreign
language teaching as well as English language teaching. Put another way, grammar
teaching is essential in the language learning process as grammatical competence is
one of communicative competence.
1.2. Approaches to Grammar Instruction
1.2.1. Experiential Teaching Approach
In essence, experiential teaching approach focuses on meaning and gives learners
exposure to authentic language use. According to Stern (1990, 1992), experiential
teaching strategies include authentic themes and topics as content, aim to engage
students in “purposeful activity”, and emphasize the conveyance of meaning,

fluency over accuracy, and language use as “real talk”. Experiential teaching
includes phases or stages of reflection designed which foster learners’ relation
between past and future experience compared with current experience. Through
9


initiative – taking and active involvement, students themselves contribute to their
own language learning and take responsibility of their learning in order to enhance
their autonomy. According to Woolfe (1992), experiential approach consists of four
components:
1. The student is aware of the processes which are taking place, and which
are enabling learning to occur.
2. The student is involved in a reflective experience which enables him/ her
to relate current learning to past, present and future, even if these
relationships are felt rather than thought.
3. The experience and content are personally significant: what is being
learned and how it is being learned have a special importance for the person.
4. There is an involvement of the whole self: body, thoughts, feelings and
actions, not just of the mind; in other words, the student is engaged as a
whole person. (p.1)
Being considered as a type of task – oriented approach, experiential teaching is
extremely effective in promoting the incidental learning which is characterized by
variability and uncertainty. The researcher believes that experiential approach to
grammar instruction helps learners gain grammar knowledge in an exciting way,
promotes understanding the nature of language accordingly.
1.2.2. Analytic Teaching Approach
By investing time and efforts to research on analytic approach, the researcher
strongly proves that this approach is useful and essential in developing knowledge
and skills, especially for students who possess procedural learning styles.
Generally, analytical approach refers to the use of appropriate process to make a

problem easier to be solved by breaking the problem down into smaller pieces. By
analyzing those smaller pieces, a solution is then made to deal with such problem.

10


In the pedagogical context, analytical approach or analytic teaching approach is
related to consciousness process in language learning. Seeing that every language
possesses various features, Schmidt (1990) emphasizes a first priority which is a
consciousness or awareness of language features before learning a language. In
other words, to learn any feature in a second or foreign language, it is necessary first
for learners to notice or to be aware of it (both incidentally and intentionally).
Schmidt (1990, 1994) claims that learning a language is largely a conscious process
and noticing is important in learning process. Therefore, analytic teaching has a
function of making language features clearer for learners to notice and understand
(Sharwood Smith, 1981). Similarly, Stern (1990, 1992) highly recommends this
approach in foreign language teaching. Stern posits that analytic teaching strategies
emphasize accuracy and language aspects or features including phonology,
grammar, functions, discourse, and sociolinguistics and that those strategies require
much study and practice of language items on the part of learners to rehearse
language skills.
As far as the researcher is concerned, combined with many other theories in second
or foreign language acquisition, Noticing Hypothesis (as hypothesized by Schmidt)
can be used in all aspects of language for better understanding such as lexicon,
phonology, grammatical form and pragmatics. Additionally, the researcher believes
that input is important in learning any language, but the question of how to make
that input be intake (knowledge that is deeply grasped by learners) is a burning
concern. Fortunately, Noticing Hypothesis has given the answer for the matter. That
is to say, when learners consciously notice what they learn, input becomes intake
and that will enhance learners’ learning quality.

1.2.3. Implicit and Explicit Approach
As far as the researcher is concerned, implicit – explicit approach is related to focus
on forms approach in which the aim is to teach specific grammar structures and
make students acquire grammar knowledge. Put another way, focus on forms is

11


teacher-centered for structures are presented by the teacher and the way in which
they are presented depends on the choice of an explicit or implicit approach.
Although explicit and implicit approach require different ways to present grammar
structures, it is hard to draw the line between them, as Hulstijn (2005) affirms that
the definition of explicit and implicit causes more controversy on implicit and
explicit learning. Ellis (1997) posits that explicit teaching or instruction emphasizes
the study of grammar rules and aims at teaching the rules for learners to foster
consciousness of grammar knowledge. In other words, explicit instruction raises
learners’ conscious awareness of what they know. However, there exists one weak
point for grammar structures are taught explicitly in a de-contextualized manner. In
contrast, implicit teaching refers to meaningful contexts in which grammar rules are
presented in order for learners to use and acquire grammar structures naturally.
From the researcher’s perspective, there is no good or bad approach to grammar
teaching, and what matters most is the question of how to employ the approach
flexibly for the sake of learners’ mastery. The researcher agrees with many
researchers who affirm that there is a complex relationship between implicit and
explicit grammar instruction. Although many scholars and researchers object to the
use of explicit approach in grammar teaching, Scheffler and

Cinciata (2011)

recommend that teachers of foreign or second language “should invest some

classroom time in explicit grammar instruction” as “at least some grammatical
phenomena can be successfully taught as simple rules” (p.22). In essence, both
explicit and implicit instructions exist in one unity, and the use of explicitness can
be a premise to the successful use of implicitness or vice versa. Specifically, simple
rules make learners improve their comprehension as they have conscious awareness
of what they learn, and Schmidt (1990) posits that such awareness is necessary for
implicit language development. Therefore, teachers should bear in mind that a
certain degree of grammar instruction is necessary to develop learners’ language

12


proficiency and that they should be flexible in applying both explicit and implicit
instructions to seek the best teaching results.
1.2.4. Intralingual and Crosslingual Dimension
Generally, the intralingual – crosslingual dimension concerns the use or non – use
of first language in second or foreign language learning. Crosslingual approach
refers to the use of first language in classroom instruction. As far as the researcher
is concerned, the fact that human’s first language can affect their second or foreign
language learning and that all languages have shared features could make it possible
for first language to be the reference in second or foreign language learning. In
other words, first language and the features in common of all languages can provide
positive transference in language learning. Therefore, it should be noted that
teachers should use first language sometimes, especially when particular foreign
language problems occur for it develops accuracy and clarity in the learning and
teaching context and that crosslingual approach can effectively help promote
foreign language learning and teaching.
On the other hand, intralingual approach concerns the non – use of first language in
classroom instruction. Put another way, first language is limited or prohibited in
second or foreign language learning, and students are forced to use the target

language to achieve language proficiency and communicative competence through
various techniques applied by teachers. Techniques used under the intralingual
approach must help create a second or foreign language environment. However,
teachers should bear in mind the difference in learners level for intralingual strategy
is not suitable for low level learners or beginners.
From the researcher’s perspective, language teachers’ qualifications include not
only language knowledge and skills but also pedagogical skills which require
teachers to use the suitable strategies or approach in their teaching. The writer of
this paper asserts that there is no good or bad approach, but suitable or not suitable
approach in teaching students. Only when teachers understand their learners and
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apply suitable approach to push them forward in their study can real acquisition on
the part of students occur. In short, foreign language teachers should use both
intralingual and crosslingual strategies, but sometimes intralingual strategy should
be dominant and crosslingual strategy should be supplemental and vice versa.
1.2.5. Deductive and Inductive Approach
Deductive – Inductive Dimension refers to different ways of presenting grammar
rules. Put another way, grammar rules can be presented deductively or inductively.
Concerning deductive approach to grammar teaching, it is also known as “top
down” approach which draws learners’ attention to linguistic form and structure.
Specifically, teachers explain grammar rules as well as examples to students and
provide them with metalinguistic information, students then practice the rules by
doing exercises and tasks in order to gain achievement. Thornbury (1999) posits
that “A deductive approach (rule-driven) starts with the presentation of a rule and is
followed by examples in which the rule is applied”. According to Terrell (1991),
deductive approach can affect the language acquisition in three ways:
1. as an “advanced organizer” to aid in comprehending and segmenting the
input;

2. as a meaning-form focuser that aids the learner in establishing a meaningform relationship for morphologically complex forms; and
3. as a means for monitoring, which in turn, will be available for acquisition
in the output. (p. 58)
On the other hand, “An inductive approach (rule-discovery) starts with some
examples from which a rule is inferred” (Thornbury, 1999). As far as the researcher
is concerned, an inductive approach refers to a “bottom up” approach which
requires students to induce grammar rules through exercises and tasks. To be more
specific, the inductive teaching of grammar implies that data about the uses of
linguistic features are shown to students within a corpus, in which they have to find
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regularities and then generalize the results, in order to induce grammar rules (Ellis,
1997; Krashen, 1982). Inductive approach seems to receive more supports from
scholars as it encourages learners compared with an exclusive reliance on the
presentation – practice – production approach of many traditional grammar books
(Carter, Hughes and McCarthy, 2000).
To sum up, deductive approach is a movement from generalization to specification,
and inductive instruction goes from specification to generalization. It should be
noted that great responsibility is left to teachers who have to decide which grammar
structures to be taught in accordance with learners’ level and which approach:
deductive or inductive approach to apply for the sake of learners’ success in the
acquisition of a foreign language in general and English language in particular.
1.3. Advantages and Disadvantages of Inductive and Deductive Approaches to
English Grammar Teaching
As previously mentioned, there are two ways employed by teacher in which a
learner can understand a grammar rule: the rule – driven or deductive approach and
the rule – discovery or inductive approach. As the name suggests, the rule – driven
path requires teachers to teach the grammar rules directly, and students are free
from working out the rules; the rule – discovery path requires teacher to guide

students to figure out the grammar rules. Seeing that each approach has its own
features; many teachers, researchers and scholars have different views on whether
the inductive or deductive approach is most effective. As far as the researcher is
concerned, Hammerly (1975) posits that some rules or structures “are most
amenable to a deductive approach while others ... can be learned very well by an
inductive approach” (p. 17). Brown (2007) states that “both inductively and
deductively oriented teaching methods can be effective, depending on the goals and
contexts of a particular language teaching situation” (p. 105). In short, it is believed
that both approaches possess both advantages and disadvantages and that there is no

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