Abstract:
Explicit grammar instruction in the second language (L2) classroom is an increasingly
important area that requires more research. Second language acquisition (SLA)
researchers investigate the role of explicit grammar instruction and its impact on
achievement. However, the findings are inconclusive. The present study, therefore,
sets out to investigate the impact of teaching the target language grammar explicitly
on the development of the target language competency in the hope of identifying the
relevance of such explicit instruction.
The study employs positivist research paradigm. After conducting a pre-test, sixty
learners learning English as a second language are selected and randomly assigned
into two groups namely experimental and control groups. A grammar course is
administered for four months to each group alike except that the experimental group
learners are given basic instructions on form and function of grammatical item using
their L1. The control group learners are taught the same grammatical items explicitly
without using their L1. At the end of the course, a post-test is held to determine the
improvements. Statistical analysis of improvement marks suggests that those
experimental group learners who received instructions using their first language
significantly improve and demonstrate the ability to use grammar in isolation, yet
such instruction has not helped either group to improve their ability to use grammar in
contextually appropriate ways. This does not necessarily mean that explicit grammar
instruction is of no use, but this finding encourages us to more carefully plan the
explicit grammar instruction lessons.
