Write an essay on the topic: In your opinion, what is the best approach to teaching grammar for pupils in Malaysian primary classroom schools? Include at least one reference, correctly cited in the APA style.
To teach grammar, there are various approaches that can be used. Some of the approaches are overt, covert, grammar in context and grammar in isolation. In our Malaysian primary classroom, there are different types of learners that demands different type of learning style. So, as a teacher, we should find out which approach is suitable to teach grammar for the pupils. In my opinion, the best approach to teaching grammar for pupils in Malaysian primary classroom is the covert approach. I agree that this approach is the best because of several reasons. The first reason is because this method is very much alike to the acquisition of the L1. In the L1, like Malay, we learned to talk by using all the structures that we listened before we aware of the rules. Most of us did not talk broken L1, for sure. Same goes to covert approach. In covert approach, inductive learning is applied. Inductive approach is defined as new grammatical structures or rules are presented to the students in a real language context (Goner, Philips, Walters 135). Thus, by using covert approach, the teacher asks the pupils to learn using the language first before they started to make sense of the rule. Gradually, the L1 will become internal motivation in order to learn grammar. Besides that, in covert approach, the teacher gets the pupils involved in using structure without drawing their attention to the grammatical rules. Thus, the pupils will not having a difficult time to digest anything they learn because they just need to get familiar with the structure and understand them. For example, to teach the structure “Do you have...?” the teacher gets the pupils to ask their friends and write the names of several pupils who have each of the stationeries