GRAMMAR FOR SPEAKING
G6
Fluency is very important in speaking, but if your conversation is full of grammatical errors, your
ideas will not get across so easily.
Studying grammar rules will certainly help you speak more accurately. This advice sheet will shed
light on how to learn grammar for speaking systematically. It will also inform you of what other
things are important to develop accuracy in speaking English.
The aim of this leaflet
The aim of this leaflet is to help you plan you improve accuracy in speaking. It introduces you to
systematic ways of self-access grammar learning, and suggests learning tips and materials in the
Language Commons that will improve your English grammar for speaking.
Planning your learning
The following is a recommended way to pursue your grammar learning for speaking systematically
through self-access learning. You can get help from the Speaking Advisers at any stage you have
problems with.
STEP 1 Identify the areas of deficiency in your speaking:
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Ask the Speaking Advisers (sometimes through recordings) to analyze your speaking output to
clarify the actual problems: e.g. vocabulary, sentence structure, tenses, lack of practice, etc.
Establish with advisers what you need to focus on, fluency or accuracy.
If you decide to focus on accuracy, taking a diagnostic test could be the quickest way to
discover study needs for grammar. You can do a diagnostic test in one of the following books
located on the Grammar Practice shelf in the Language Commons to find out your weaknesses:
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How English Works, P3 - 11: Diagnostic tests for different levels are provided.
English Grammar in Use (New Edition), p301 - 309: The Study Guide enables you to find
out your weaknesses in separate grammatical categories and helps you to decide which units
you need to study in the book.
Test and Practise Your English, Book 1 (p1 - 45) & Book 2 (p1 - 34): Diagnostic tests are
provided in context, and you can choose the ones which interest you. A wrong answer in
one of the tests has a cross-reference in the Test Key that says which Practice Exercise
should be done in order to avoid future errors.
Homework (First/More/Advanced English): Choose the areas you think you are weak in and
try the Practices which can also be used as diagnostic tests. You are encouraged to find the
rules out by yourself through the numerous examples given in the book.
STEP 2
Prioritize the aspects of grammar you need to improve.
You may find it easier to make and evaluate progress if you focus on one or two areas at a time
rather than trying to improve everything at the same time.
 In self-access learning, you have the freedom to select and prioritize what aspects of
grammar you feel you need to learn. Discuss with your Speaking Advisers when devising
your self-access learning plan.
STEP 3 Set your learning goals and make a concrete self-access learning plan.
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Devise a short or long term plan by considering questions like What? How? When? How
long? Plan Achieved?. You can change your plan whenever necessary.
Plan and stick to programs of work where long term learning is concerned, e.g. dealing with
ingrained mistakes, etc.
STEP 4 Choose a grammar book that meets with your needs and learning styles.
Try out different materials to see which one suits you when you devise your self-access learning
plan. Refer to the grammar advice sheet CHOOSING MATERIALS FOR GRAMMAR
LEARNING (G3) to get advice for choosing materials suitable for your needs and learning styles.
 Negotiate the type of materials you can use with our Advisers arranged according to
functions or discrete grammar points.
 You need exercises which encourage you to check how the rules you have learned apply to
actual English sentences in context.
STEP 5 Arrange a regular time to practice, and constantly review the progress and
problems.
Good language skills always need active and persistent practice. Learners are advised to arrange
regular time to study. Some suggestions are:
 Join discussion groups organized by the Language Center for active practice to experiment
and reinforce the learned rules.
 In order to evaluate your progress, whenever you work on a particular grammar point, try
self-testing with the exercises and the answer key in the material before and after you study
the grammar aspect.
 When you find it difficult to evaluate your own progress, seek help from your English
course instructor or our Advisers to comment on your grammar in speaking.
Learning tips
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Even though you know certain expressions for particular functions (e.g. greeting, buying things,
asking for directions, etc), you may lack the ability to generate your own way of saying things,
the ability to communicate in any situation. A grammatical framework is needed for this.
To develop fluent and correct English for speaking, apart form just working on grammar books,
you need to listen and read actively, practice conversation, and be aware of your mistakes.
There are areas that Chinese learners of English find especially difficult when they are using
English and those areas are specified in the Advice Sheet G4 (Grammar for Writing).
It is difficult to assess how much difficulty you might find in coping with any particular
worksheet. For example, a student who could be classed as a beginner in terms of his or her
spoken skills might actually have a good knowledge of English grammar which is at present
untapped, or a student who is orally proficient might not have any awareness of grammatical
rules. So the levels indicated in the books should be seen only as a very rough guide, and you
should seek help from the advisers when you are not sure of how to choose books.
It is very important for you to understand how the English grammatical system works, but
practice in using the rule is also crucial to make it part of the language you use naturally. After
you know enough of a grammar point and its uses, you should stop doing grammar exercises
and make a confident try with it in ordinary speech. Don’t be afraid to experiment. As soon as
you have got the basic idea, you should try it out in real conversation and get free of the
grammar book.
You can feel in charge of the grammar you are learning by looking analytically at bits of
language in any context, and by continuing to check back how the learned rules are used in any
situation where you are experiencing English in any spoken or written forms (e.g. conversations,
newspapers, magazines, television, etc.).
And now…
If you would like any help or advice, or just a chat about your progress, please get in touch - we are
here to support your independent learning! To contact us:
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make an appointment to see an adviser. For details of advisers and their availability, please go
to http://lclnx3.ust.hk/support/iwrite/adviser-timetables/.
e-mail your questions to lccommons (lccommons@ust.hk).
ask at the reception counter of the Language Commons — if the receptionist cannot help you
directly, s/he will pass your query on to one of the advisers.
What else can you do?
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browse the many physical and online materials for Grammar.
join a Grammar activity, workshop or course.
Last updated: February 2012