Online Activity 2 (Focus on forms & focus on form)

Activity 2 

1. Define these two terms: “Focus on forms" & “Focus on form”

2. What are the differences between the two approaches?

3.Which one do you or will you adhere to?

1. Definition and difference between these two terms
“Focus on forms” is the deliberate teaching of grammar in order to produce understanding of the grammar, in the hope that understanding alone will allow the language learner to use the form correctly. “Focus on form”, on the other hand, refers to bringing grammar to the attention of language learners as a part of communicative language practice. It is generally conceded that focusing on grammar for grammar’s sake does little to contribute to correctness during communication, while making ESL learners aware of structures as a part of communicative language practice can contribute to the development of greater accuracy during communication (Trent, 2011).

2. Which one do you or will you adhere to?
Based on the former definition, the research de-emphasizes the use of focus on forms. Indeed, too much attention to explicit grammar rules may reduce learners’ learning motivation or interest. However, in my opinion, direct ESL grammar instruction may help raise learners’ consciousness of a form which they have not noticed when they have read or heard it. This way, learners would learn to recognize the features of the grammar in their fastest pace. I always persist, once we keep explicit rules in mind for a long time, we would produce the particular forms automatically when we are communicating. Therefore, since there are pros and corns within the terms, which I prefer to adhere to should be based on the learners’ difference, such as age, proficiency, learning strategies, or learning motivation or the difficulty of the form patterns. For example, for elementary children or basic ESL learners, it would be a better way to instruct them with lots of examples and practices. For advanced learners, it would be quite good to lecture them with the understanding of grammar rules to accelerate their learning. For me, used to teach a group of junior high students, I tend to tell them the grammar patterns first and ask them to practice with lots of examples.