ERIC Number: EJ902443
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Nov
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0950-0782
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Grammar and the English National Curriculum
Paterson, Laura Louise
Language and Education, v24 n6 p473-484 Nov 2010
In 1998 the regulatory body for the National Curriculum, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, acknowledged that there was "widespread uncertainty" over the grammar requirements of the English Curriculum. In this paper I argue that the QCA still has not addressed this uncertainty. I analyse the 1999 and 2011 Primary English Curricula, alongside the 2008 Secondary English Curriculum and show that the QCA grammar guidelines lack specificity, with no clear definitions for key terms such as "standard English" or "morphology", further compounding the perceived uncertainty. I argue that this directly contradicts the QCA's acknowledgement that younger teachers may not have been taught a standardised framework for grammar in their own schooling, making the absence of technical definitions and clear guidelines highly significant. Although the QCA may be aware of uncertainties surrounding grammar teaching, their guidelines in the English National Curriculum do not provide a clear account of what pupils must learn about grammar. (Contains 2 figures and 6 notes.)
Descriptors: National Curriculum, Standard Spoken Usage, English Curriculum, Grammar, Definitions, Guidelines, English, Foreign Countries, Elementary School Curriculum, Secondary School Curriculum, Teaching Methods, Educational History, Metalinguistics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
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Author Affiliations: N/A