ENHANCING ISOLATED GRAMMAR TEACHING THROUGH TRANSLATION: SENTENCE LEVEL AND BEYOND

Elisabet Titik Murtisari

Abstract


Associated with grammar-translation method, translation is still often seen as a mere replacement of linguistic forms, which is a far cry from its nature as an act of communication. On the other hand, while being criticized for not assisting learners enough to use grammar in a communication context, isolated grammar teaching has its own merits and is still widely practiced. By implementing translation for meaning-making, this action research seeks to examine how translation may be integrated into the traditional grammar teaching to assist tertiary EFL students to learn L2 forms in communicative contexts. With translation employed at the sentence and discourse levels after the practice session, it was revealed through the participants reflections that translation exercises may further consolidate students knowledge of how to use specific forms in various contexts, especially as it relates to lexico-grammatical aspects, help deal with L1 interferences, and are an effective way to raise students awareness of the essential role of grammar in meaning-making.

Keywords


translation; explicit instruction; grammar teaching

Full Text:

PDF

References


Bolton, D. & Goodey, N. (2013). English grammar in steps. Madrid: Richmond.

Carreres, A. (2006). Strange bedfellows: Translation and language teaching.Paper presented at 6TH Symposium on Translation, Terminology andInterpretation in Cuba and Canada, La Habana, Cuba. Retrieved on August29, 2015, from http://www.cttic.org/ACTI/2006/papers/Carreres.pdf

Celce-Murcia, M. (2014). An overview of language teaching methods and approaches. In M. Celce-Murcia, D. M. Brinton, & M. A. Snow (Eds.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language (4th ed., pp. 2-14). Boston, MA: Heinle Cengage Learning.

Cohen, A., Brooks-Carson, A. & Jacobs-Cassuto, M. (2000). Direct vs. Translated Writing: What Students Do and the Strategies They Use. Center for Interdisciplinary Studies of Writing (CISW) & Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA), University of Minnesota, US.

Colina, S. & Lafford, B. (2018). Translation in Spanish language teaching: the integration of a fifth skill in the second language curriculum. Journal of Spanish Language Teaching, 1-14. doi: 10.1080/23247797.2017.1407127

Cook, G. (2010). Translation in language teaching: An argument for reassessment. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Dagilien?, I. (2012). Translation as a learning method in English language teaching. Kalb? Studijos/Studies about Languages, (21), 124-29.

De Keyser, R. (1998). Beyond focus on form: Cognitive perspectives on learning and practicing second language grammar. In C. Doughty & J. Williams (Eds.), Focus on form in classroom language acquisition (pp.42-63). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Duff, A. (1989). Translation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Ellis, R. (2015). The importance of focus on form in communicative language teaching. Eurasian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 1(2), 1-12.

Ellis, R. (2016). Focus on form: A critical review. Language Teaching Research, 20(3), 405-428.

Fernndez-Guerra, A. (2014).The usefulness of translation in foreign language learning: students attitudes. International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies, 2(1),153-70.

Hu, J. (2003). Thinking languages in L2 writing: Research findings and pedagogical implications. TESL Canada Journal, 21(1), 39-63.

Kim, E.Y. (2011). Using translation exercises in the communicative writing classroom. ELT Journal, 65(2), 154-60.

Larsen-Freeman, D. (2015). Research into practice: Grammar learning and teaching. Language Teaching, 48(2), 263-280. doi: 10.1017/S0261444814000408

Leonardi, V. (2009). The role of pedagogical translation in language teaching: the fifth skill. [Abstract]. Retrieved on March 14, 2020, from https://iris.unife.it/handle/11392/533474#.Xm3oO6MzaUs

Liao, P. (2006). EFL learners beliefs about and strategy use of translation in English learning. RELC Journal, 37(2), 191-215. doi: 10.1177/0033688206067428.

Long, M. (2016). In defense of tasks and TBLT: Non-issues and real issues. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 36, 5-33. doi: 10.1017/S0267190515000057

Machida, S. (2008). A step forwards to using translation to teach a foreign/second language. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 5(1), 140-155.

Machida, S. (2011). Translation in teaching a foreign (second) language: A methodological perspective. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 2(4), 740-746. doi: 10.4304/jltr.2.4.740-746.

Murtisari, E. (2016). Translation as a skill in language learning/teaching: EFL learners perception. Kalb? Studijos/ Studies about Languages,29, 102-113.

Murtisari, E.T., Salvadora, L., & Hastuti, G. (2020). Isolated and integrated grammar teaching in a tertiary EFL context: Indonesian teachers beliefs. SAGA: Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, 1(1), 17-30.

Murtisari, E.T., Hastuti, G., & Arsari, R.W. (2019). EFL students perception of grammar teaching: Isolated or integrated in skill courses? Asian EFL Journal, 26(6), 207-226.

Poole, A. (2005). Focus on form instruction: Foundations, applications, and criticisms. Reading Matrix, 5(1), 47-56

Salem, I. (2007). The lexico-grammatical continuum viewed through student error. ELT Journal, 61 (3), pp. 211-219, doi:10.1093/elt/ccm028

Salem, I. (2012). L1-L2 sentence translation in classroom grammar tests. English Language Teaching Journal (ELTJ), (66)2, 147-155. doi: 10.1093/elt/ccr044

Scheffler, P. (2013). Learners perceptions of grammar translation as consciousness raising. Language Awareness, 22(3), 255-259.

Sheen, R. (2005). Focus on forms as a means of improving accurate oral production. In A. Housen& M. Pierrard (Eds.), Investigations in instructed second language acquisition (pp.271-310). Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

Thornbury, S. (2002). Why Teach Grammar? Oxfordshire: Longman.

Thornbury, S. (2010, October 15). G is for grammar translation. Retrieved on December 1, 2019, from https://scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2010/10/15/g-is-for-grammar-translation/

Umeda, M., Snape, N., Yusa, N., & Wiltshier, J. (2017). The long-term effect of instruction on learners' knowledge of English articles. Language Teaching Research, 00(0), 1-21. doi: 10.1177/1362168817739648

Van Dyk, J. (2009). Language learning through sight translation. In A.Witte, T. Harden, & A.R.O. Harden (Eds.), Translation in language learning and teaching (pp. 203-2014). Peter Lang: Oxford, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Frankfurt am Main, New York, Wien.

Zhou, G. & Niu, X. (2015). Approaches to language teaching and learning. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 6(4), 798-802. doi:10.17507/jltr.0604.11




DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v23i1.2416

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Copyright (c) 2020 Elisabet Titik Murtisari



Indexed and abstracted in:

    

 

LLT Journal Sinta 2 Certificate (S2 = Level 2)

We would like to inform you that LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching has been nationally accredited Sinta 2 by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia based on the decree  No. Surat Keputusan 158/E/KPT/2021. Validity for 5 years: Vol 23 No 1, 2020 till Vol 27 No 2, 2024

  

 

This work is licensed under CC BY-SA.

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

 

Free counters!


 LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, DOI: https://doi.org/10.24071/llt, e-ISSN 2579-9533 and p-ISSN 1410-7201, is published twice a year, namely in April and October by the English Language Education Study Programme of Teacher Training and Education Faculty of Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta, Indonesia.