3 Ingredients for Improving English Grammar Use

Students write a lot of homeworks and courseworks, and spend a good deal of time correcting them afterwards.  Okay, so not everyone is in the habit of doing the latter of which could be detrimental, particularly, if students are supposed to correct fundamentals like the English grammar.
Yes, the grammar is every student’s bane; this happens to be true for both English and non-English speakers/writers.  Even the most proficient is never left unscathed of the grammar’s sharp attack.  Now, students must know, providing critique and taking time to revise, edit, or correct their piece is of paramount significance, no ifs or buts.
The habit of self-appraising one’s work could do more than realising what misuse of English grammar has been committed; rather, it addresses the improvement of which commences after the realisation of grammar misuse.  At this point, students are also faced by several options: will they keep on prodding with their independent working, or consult the professional advice of tutors?
Yes, external folks’ intervention – this may sound alarmingly costly, but students who got in their higher education and still remain to commit a bevy of English grammar errors are good candidates for such help.  Such students need help more than ever, and to ignore that fact may cause some irreversible damage in their current set of competencies.
Moreover, students are expected to write and submit a lot of courseworks; in fact, if they’d been a little keen, they might find the appraisal benchmark that poor grammar merits deductions.  Putting grammar in context of writing is not restrictive to creating miracles for writing skills alone; it also has the potential of honing students’ thinking-language (infused with applicable grammar rules), and eventually, their speaking.
Evidently, in this battle for students’ sustainable grammar improvement, receptivity with feedback, intervention, and persistence are everything.  

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Taking an English Grammar Review

Reminiscent of students’ constant coursework debacle is the priority torn between grammar and content.  Students want to get their coursework right; that is why they appropriate it with the correct content, but often, at the expense of their English grammar.

Students do not necessarily choose the grammar as their casualty; in fact, in every student’s ideal is the perfection of grammar.  And still it remains to top the list of errors frequently committed in course-working.  But it’s not too late; as long as the chance to do courseworks subsists, students can opt to improve.  Perhaps, they can start by doing some of these measures:

i. Students must allocate at least one day (in one week) for English grammar review.  Okay, students might not necessarily want one whole day, maybe 3-4 hours for the most.  It is up to students to choose the duration.  If they can afford to lengthen it, the better.

ii. Students’ next move is to target their review on their own weak points.  At this rate, they might need someone’s output or critique to fully assess their grammar weak points (as their own output may not be enough).

iii. Students must opt on actually practicing to effectively transition the improvement of their English grammar use.  Hence, in every review, they may write some essays, or even directly subject their given courseworks to such practice.

iv. Students must look for a critique buddy.  The responsibility of this buddy is to give your grammar practice pieces a check to spot the actual improvement, or need for further practice.

v. Students should put their grammar review in actual implementation.  That means correct grammar use at school.

It may be a long way towards that grammar perfection; yet, the important part is that students are actually working on their grammar development.

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Ensuring Correct English Grammar in Academic Papers

One of the most important aspects in writing English academic papers is the grammar. While spelling deals with the right arrangement of letters to form a certain word, English grammar is concerned with the proper organisations of words with regards to accepted standards of correctness. When writing essays, term papers, reviews, theses or dissertations, a student has to use correct grammar. An academic composition with a bad grammar is often subject to misunderstanding, miscomprehension and misinterpretation.

One of the surest ways to ensure that correct English grammar is observed in an academic composition is to proofread the piece. Proofreading refers to the act of spotting, marking and correcting writing errors. The errors include mistakes in formatting, spelling and punctuation, and most of all, grammar. A student could make sure that his compositions follow correct grammar by making it a habit to proofread them before submitting them to his professors.

There are two ways that an academic composition could be proofread. First, a composition could be proofread by the student-writer himself. After finishing a certain piece, the student could proceed to proofread it. There is, however, a flaw in this proofreading set-up. A student could become too familiar with his own work, making him more inclined to miss errors in English grammar, spelling and punctuation. This flaw opens door to the proofreading option. A student could commission another person, preferably someone with high level of skills and knowledge, to proofread his academic papers. Since that party is not privy with composition, he could easily spot, mark and correct errors in the academic piece.

If a student is overly concerned with using correct grammar in his work, then he should employ ways to prevent and avoid them. One of these ways is proofreading, one of the open secrets to high quality compostions.

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The English Grammar Police’s Notorious 5

Grammar was long taught since students picked their way to school pavements. However, its dynamism in use and the inherent progression students experience per passing it did not make it any better for students to avoid committing several violations to the conventions of even the most basic of English grammar.

Why is it that despite of relentless writing and speaking exercises and practices students continue to suffer from grammar maladies? Enlisted below are probable answers:

1. Other priorities. In doing courseworks, students aim to hunt for the correct answer and nail it in paper. However, executing the former takes more time; hence, students put less emphasis in their English grammar. This is the common case for almost all types of time-pressured activity.
2. Unstable foundation. This is one of the most prevalent culprits of grammar-based errors. Some students are able to pass their English grammar lessons without actually integrating them in their systemic writing and speaking. The case is that either a student keeps on forgetting the rules, or is ignorant in terms of actual grammar use.
3. Lack of double-checking habits. Students still resolve to stash away right after finishing a coursework, regardless of the simplicity of this measure. They tend to forget that reviewing their work saves more points and optimises the edge of getting the accurate answer.
4. Fail to exhibit keenness to composition’s details. Without the vaguest idea of how the work is to be read or written, students inevitably neglect to spot the details that require a grammar police.
5. Constant flash-writing. When students consistently do their courseworks under a rapid clocked pace, students will consequently lose their grammar bearings. They will write at top speed and forget grammar rules.

Students exhibiting any of these probabilities miss one thing about grammar – its significance in communicating.

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Four Ways to Improve English Grammar

One of the many tasks and activities that a student has to accomplish in college is to write academic papers. These academic papers include but are not limited to essays, reviews, term papers, theses and dissertations. Quality academic papers mean high grades for a student. Thus, a student should always strive to write only quality academic papers that are void of grammar mistakes. Mastering English grammar may sound easy, but even native speakers also experience some difficulties in mastering their own language. To start off, one should first think of ways on how to improve their grammar.

1. You need to get a general overview of English grammar from a reliable and credible resource like textbooks, grammar books as well online writing laboratories. Indentify and take note of your grammar weaknesses and develop a plan to get rid of them. Make a plan to improve you grammar through time.
2. Finding someone who has mastered the English language to serve as your tutor could work to your advantage. Some students fail to identify their grammar weaknesses, and other people are in the better position to spot them. They could give advices and pointers that could help one improve his grammar and eventually master it.
3. The best way to improve your English grammar is to practice them. You could practice them while talking to another person. You could also practice them by taking written grammar exercise that could found on grammar books and online writing laboratories. There exist hundreds of web sites that offer free grammar quizzes.
4. Reading aloud is also a good way to improve your grammar. By reading an English essay or any composition aloud, you will find it easier to practically remember the grammar rules. Reading aloud will also boost your capacity to retain read information.

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Why is English grammar important?

Students are always reminded by their professors and teachers that English grammar should be strictly observed and followed when writing their academic papers. Students are often warned about not using the correct grammar in writing their compositions. But what is grammar? Why is grammar important?

According to Oxford Dictionaries Online, grammar is the “whole system and structure of a language or of languages in general, usually taken as consisting of syntax and morphology.” In more understandable terms, grammar could be defined as a systematic study of a language. Thus, English grammar deals with the adherence to the set of rules governing the syntax and structure of the English language. These rules allow an individual or a group to learn the language systematically.

Grammar is particularly important because it sets the rules that allow people to speak and write with clarity and discernment. From the moment a person is born, he is exposed to the language of the people around him. Eventually he has to learn to speak and write, which is just usage. However, to properly speak and write is a different thing – this is grammar. Proper use of grammar allows a person to understand and be understood in the most precise manner. Grammar dictates how language can be used in the most understandable and effective manner.

Knowing how to use English grammar is different from just using the language. Usage has no boundaries, making it subject to confusion. Grammar, meanwhile, sets the limits while connecting the dots between the different aspects of the language. It tries to eliminate confusion while making communication clearer and more effective.

English is not the only language that its own grammar. Even other languages like Japanese, German and French have their own grammar. Grammar allows these languages to flourish throughout the years they exist.

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Difficulties in Learning English: English Grammar

          Learning the English language can present people with difficulties, whether they are non-native English speakers wishing to learn English as a second language or even native speakers who wish to learn the formal type of English (as opposed to slang) which are used in academia and in transacting with government institutions. One of the problems that confound learners concerns English grammar. This is because the grammatical structure of English is unlike other languages, even those that are closely related to it or where it has borrowed large groups of vocabulary. Adding to this difficulty is the presence of a number of irregularities that exist in English.

          It is important to understand features of the language such as English grammar, vocabulary, and spelling especially for non-native speakers so they can grasp the nuances of the language better. For native speakers, it may help them understand why learning English can be difficult. Below are some of the problems of learning English in relation to English grammar:

• Plural Nouns. Most nouns in English simply add “s” to its singular to create its plural counterpart. However, there are also words which do not conform to this rule. Examples are words ending in “f” or “fe” such as wife (plural is wives), words ending in “y” such as spy (plural is spies), words that have a change in their interior vowel sounds such as man (plural is men), and Old English word plurals such as child (plural is children) and ox (plural is oxen).

• English has many verb tenses which its speakers have to master in order to effectively communicate different shades of meaning. Complicating this difficulty is the fact that English also uses auxiliary words in place of verbal inflection in creating its varied tenses.

• Irregular Verbs. There are many irregular verbs in English which may be altered radically in conjugation or may not change at all.

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