Our regular contributor Edgar Baker CBE, former Staff HMI in Business Studies, looks at a trio of books covering the maintenance of standards throughout the British educational…
A grasp of the main rules of syntax can help us understand the underlying structure of our language. We use English through hearing and reading it; but if we understand the…
Abstract
A grasp of the main rules of syntax can help us understand the underlying structure of our language. We use English through hearing and reading it; but if we understand the grammar we can become more confident in our usage. In this article therefore I will attempt to explain in simple terms the basic rules of clause analysis. Let us begin by defining a few terms so that we are clear what we mean.
The normal word order in English is Subject‐Verb‐Object‐Adverbial phrases:
The Editor has invited me to contribute over the coming months a few articles on the subject of correct English. We begin this month with notes on spelling, for this is an aspect…
Abstract
The Editor has invited me to contribute over the coming months a few articles on the subject of correct English. We begin this month with notes on spelling, for this is an aspect of the language that gives a lot of people a lot of trouble. Someone once remarked that the structure of English is so simple that foreigners learn it too quickly; so the English decided to make their spelling difficult to prevent this unfair advantage.
It is useful to understand the underlying structure of sentences in English. Words are the building blocks of all languages, and as young children we begin by expressing ourselves…
Abstract
It is useful to understand the underlying structure of sentences in English. Words are the building blocks of all languages, and as young children we begin by expressing ourselves in single words; but as we grow up we learn to combine words into groups. There are two sorts of groups called Phrases and Clauses.
We learn to use our mother tongue through unconscious practice and imitation. We do not need rules to guide us; we do as others do. Thus few native‐born citizens of the UK could…
Abstract
We learn to use our mother tongue through unconscious practice and imitation. We do not need rules to guide us; we do as others do. Thus few native‐born citizens of the UK could explain, say, the difference between the Simple Present and the Present Continuous Tense, both of which they use correctly. For those whose native language is not English, however, it is a different story; they need some guidance.
A study of punctuation is worthwhile, because it guides the reader and reveals whether the writer is thinking clearly. Poor punctuation is a mark of muddled thinking. There are a…
Abstract
A study of punctuation is worthwhile, because it guides the reader and reveals whether the writer is thinking clearly. Poor punctuation is a mark of muddled thinking. There are a certain number of points to keep in mind:
The verb is the most important word in a sentence, and most mistakes made by overseas students arise out of the misuse of verbs and their tenses. It is not easy to determine…
Abstract
The verb is the most important word in a sentence, and most mistakes made by overseas students arise out of the misuse of verbs and their tenses. It is not easy to determine whether these mistakes are due to ignorance or to carelessness; probably a mixture of both. It is difficult to do anything to correct carelessness, but easier to dispel ignorance. The verb is the word that tells us what is taking place in a sentence. If, for example, we write My brother…a letter, we see that there is some sort of link between the two words. It is the verb that will explain that link: My brother has, reads, loses, admires, writes a letter. The verb tells us what is going on: it is the key word.
The use of both the indefinite article (a or an) and the definite article (the) often gives rise to difficulties among students from overseas, whereas those whose mother tongue is…
Abstract
The use of both the indefinite article (a or an) and the definite article (the) often gives rise to difficulties among students from overseas, whereas those whose mother tongue is English pick up the correct usage from unconscious daily practice.
There are quite a few books published on study methods. Years ago I published a slim volume on the subject (A Guide to Study — BACIE, London) and it is still in print. If you…
Abstract
There are quite a few books published on study methods. Years ago I published a slim volume on the subject (A Guide to Study — BACIE, London) and it is still in print. If you examine these books you will probably conclude — correctly — that what they have to say is no more than applied common sense. However common sense is not always easy to follow; for although we all start out with good intentions, we often fail to keep to them. So perhaps the first thing to emphasise is that successful study demands constant and steady practice, for which there is no substitute. This is another way of saying that before you embark on a course of study, you must be quite clear about your aims. After that you must plan carefully, and persevere once you have started. This is easy to say, but difficult to observe. I have seen many students pay their fees and then drop out, often almost before they have got started.