Theoretical and Pedagogical Views on the Role of Grammar Instruction

Abstract

Does instruction make a difference? Since the 1960s scholars and practitioners have been debating whether instruction makes a difference in the acquisition of language properties such as morphology and syntax. Contemporary theories (VanPatten and Williams 2015) seem to suggest that there are two main positions on the role of instruction in second-language acquisition (see also VanPatten and Benati 2015):1.Instruction does not make a difference; and2.Instruction might be beneficial.