Using Language to Learn Language
This article describes classes that taught in this way, the advantages gained, and some of the problems encountered, and a polemic for the upgrading of language teaching so that learning a language becomes an intelltual discipline worthy of inclusion in the college curriculum.
Abstract
Students can discover the rules of German grammar (or any grammar) by asking the right questions about a text. They can write grammars and compile vocabulary lists which will probably be better suited to their needs than a book they might buy. Such a project engages their interest; they learn something about analytical thinking as well as the structure of language. This article describes classes that taught in this way, the advantages gained, and some of the problems encountered. It is also a polemic for the upgrading of language teaching so that learning a language becomes an intelltual discipline worthy of inclusion in the college curriculum.