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TESOL426TeachingGrammar
Spring2016

Instructor
Name: Brother Wolfersberger

E-mail: maw44@byuh.edu

Texts/Materials
1) Thereisnotextbookforthiscourse.
2) AccesstoCanvas.
Major Questions
In order to be an effective ESL/EFL grammar teacher, you need to be able to answer the following two questions:
1. What knowledge do I need in order to be an effective grammar teacher?
a. During this class, we will work to obtain some of this knowledge.
2. How best can I apply that knowledge when teaching?
a. During this class, we will practice applying our knowledge to teaching situations.
The goal of the course is to empower you so that you can answer these two questions.
Note that the main goal of the course is NOT to complete the assignments or pass the tests or write the papers. Those tasks
are only helpful if they bring us closer to answering the major questions.

Am I Learning?
So, how will we measure your progress toward answering the major questions for the class? Well, in order to learn, you
have to do something. So, the next question is what will we do in order to answer the major questions for the class? And
the answer to that question is found in the learning activities described below.

Learning Activities
1) Reading and Other Class Work (30%)
I believe in reading to learn. And I believe the best place for this to happen is outside of class. And I believe that
reading needs to be done before the class in which we discuss the reading. I believe our time in class is best spent
discussing, evaluating, manipulating, clarifying, extending, and applying the ideas in the readings. Therefore, do not
assume that I will give you all of the information you need to know in a class lecture. Besides, I am not a rock star. I
am not able to sustain an engaging lecture for a whole class period. If I tried to do that, I would put you to sleep, and
that is not helpful for learning.
Besides reading, we will complete other activities such as writing lesson plans, completing grammar exercises, and
preparing lessons. You will need to do much of this outside of class time.

2) Teaching Journal (40%)

One of the major projects for this course is tutoring second language students. This experience will help you
understand what knowledge you need and how to apply that knowledge to teaching (our course objectives). Our main
opportunity to teach will be with EIL students who are taking EIL 343 Advanced Grammar. We will also have
opportunities to teach the EIL English Exchange classes in the evening.
For this assignment, you will write journal entries about each teaching experience. There are two main purposes for
writing journal entries about your experiences. First, I believe that we learn by reflecting on our experiences, and
writing down our reflections forces us to clarify our thoughts. In other words, writing about your experiences will help
you to better understand how you answered the two major class questions within a real teaching situation. Second,
your journal is the means by which both you and I will be able to evaluate what you have learned.

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Guidelines: The length requirement for this paper is as long as it takes to explain what you did and what you learned. I
am interested in the depth of your thinking on what you learned throughout this experience. Some people are good at
writing this very succinctly; other people need to write quite a lot before they can clearly describe what they have
learned. The paper is due on Tuesday, June 7th.

3) Grammar Tests (30%)

The grammar tests will measure our understanding of English grammar and our ability to explain grammar forms,
meanings, and uses to students. These tests are another way to measure how much we have learned about teaching
grammar.
TESOL Outcomes will be achieved or addressed in the TESOL 424 class as indicated in the chart below. Weight indicates how much this course
focuses on each objective: 1 = slightly; 2 = moderately; 3 = significantly.
Outcome
1
2
3a

Weight
3
3
3

3b
3c

1
2

How the outcome will be achieved or addressed

Students will explain the form, meaning, and use of the grammar structures covered in the class.
Students will use the knowledge they gain and the methods we study to teach grammar to second language learners.
The major assignment and tests for the course require written work. This work will be partially evaluated for
language use.
The teaching component requires students to evaluate and use TESOL resources for their teaching.
Writing personal reflections and sharing experiences related to our teaching experiences with peers will help
students better understand their strengths and weaknesses as an ESL teacher.