Review on the Changing Role of Grammar Teaching in Second Language Instruction

Abstract

The numerous trends in the ield of second language instruction have always resulted in different approaches to the role grammar teaching plays in this process. They have varied from the ones which positioned grammar at the heart of second language learning and even equated it to the language itself to the ones which totally disregarded its role thus ignoring it completely. This study aims to review the tendencies regarding the changing role of grammar teaching overtime by giving brief descriptions of most popular approaches. It will also focus on the importance that late approaches and recent research in the ield give to the teaching of grammar and the role it plays in developing communicative competence.