TEACHING GRAMMAR ON ESP CLASSES

Abstract

The article deals with teaching grammar on English for specific purpose classes at those higher educational institutions that do not have languages as their majors. The author points out that textbooks in English for specific purposes do not contain any grammar materials or cover just main points paying little attention to grammar practice. Some of them has grammar references where students can learn some basic information about grammar structures but there are no practical activities. The article emphasis that nowadays communicative approach is prevailing so teaching grammar should be based on it as well. The formation of students’ grammar skills is a burning problem, as it requires an integrated approach. The author underlines that the communicative goal of learning grammar allows forming the basic requirement for grammatical material to be mastered: it must be sufficient for the use of language as a means of communication and real for learning within the program. Grammar skills are components of different types of speech activity, and therefore they differ depending on the type of speech communication. Studying grammar helps to systematize students’ knowledge. However, grammatical rules must be understood, so a communicative principle forms a habit and gradually it becomes automatic. The author proposes a rough plan how to work with grammar topics based on texts on ESP classes which consists of the chain of logically and methodically connected activities aimed at efficient and lasting acquisition of knowledge. The author concludes that such grammatical drillings will be of great help in ESP classes because it does not only help to introduce a grammar topic and to revise vocabulary but to motivate students making their conclusions, develop critical thinking, make them using grammatical and lexical materials together that allows getting fluency and accuracy.