Teaching and learning the comparative in German: The role of semantic notions
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Merle Weicker
Abstract
Adjectives and comparative constructions are a central part of the curriculum for elementary classrooms. While current approaches to adjective teaching cover a large inventory of adjectives, they could better exploit the potential of semantic similarities and differences within this word class. To enhance current teaching practices, the present paper provides guidance on how key notions from semantic theory and findings from acquisition research can be transferred to educational contexts. Theoretically and empirically informed learning activities for grades 2, 3, and 4, which introduce antonymous adjectives and comparative constructions, are suggested. The proposed structured approach is designed to achieve the objective of enabling children to comprehend the semantic distinctions between different types of adjectives and the implications for their use in comparative constructions. Detecting and explaining patterns concerning adjective meaning and use can foster children’s understanding of grammar as a model of language, and it can provide insights into the structure and function of language.
Abstract
Adjectives and comparative constructions are a central part of the curriculum for elementary classrooms. While current approaches to adjective teaching cover a large inventory of adjectives, they could better exploit the potential of semantic similarities and differences within this word class. To enhance current teaching practices, the present paper provides guidance on how key notions from semantic theory and findings from acquisition research can be transferred to educational contexts. Theoretically and empirically informed learning activities for grades 2, 3, and 4, which introduce antonymous adjectives and comparative constructions, are suggested. The proposed structured approach is designed to achieve the objective of enabling children to comprehend the semantic distinctions between different types of adjectives and the implications for their use in comparative constructions. Detecting and explaining patterns concerning adjective meaning and use can foster children’s understanding of grammar as a model of language, and it can provide insights into the structure and function of language.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction 1
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Section 1: Theorizing linguistic concepts
- (Reflexively) marked and unmarked anticausatives in grammars of German: A model for foreign/second language learners 11
- A Programme for L1 Norwegian grammar teaching on generative grounds 33
- Discourse grammar, discourse coherence, and discourse relations: Evidence from editing-based tasks for teaching English 63
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Section 2: Connecting linguistic research and language pedagogy
- “Translating” insights of theoretical linguistics into educational settings – with a special focus on resources for Hungarian as L1 89
- On the use of (second) language acquisition research for grammar education – a language-acquisition-sensitive approach 121
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Section 3: The role of empirical data
- What can a corpus do for foreign language teaching? An activity proposal for Chinese learners of Portuguese 145
- Learning the perfective/imperfective aspectual alternation in L2 Italian through a Cognitive Grammar-inspired pedagogy: A quasi-experimental study 167
- Setting the base for an “acquisitionally informed pedagogy”: The case of the French verbal system 193
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Section 4: Implementing linguistic categories into the foreign language learning classroom
- Visualizing English and Swabian tense semantics in the classroom 217
- Taking cognizance of variation and CLI effects in foreign language learning: The case of the English present perfect 251
- Teaching and learning the comparative in German: The role of semantic notions 273
- Conclusion 293
- Index 299
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Contents V
- Introduction 1
-
Section 1: Theorizing linguistic concepts
- (Reflexively) marked and unmarked anticausatives in grammars of German: A model for foreign/second language learners 11
- A Programme for L1 Norwegian grammar teaching on generative grounds 33
- Discourse grammar, discourse coherence, and discourse relations: Evidence from editing-based tasks for teaching English 63
-
Section 2: Connecting linguistic research and language pedagogy
- “Translating” insights of theoretical linguistics into educational settings – with a special focus on resources for Hungarian as L1 89
- On the use of (second) language acquisition research for grammar education – a language-acquisition-sensitive approach 121
-
Section 3: The role of empirical data
- What can a corpus do for foreign language teaching? An activity proposal for Chinese learners of Portuguese 145
- Learning the perfective/imperfective aspectual alternation in L2 Italian through a Cognitive Grammar-inspired pedagogy: A quasi-experimental study 167
- Setting the base for an “acquisitionally informed pedagogy”: The case of the French verbal system 193
-
Section 4: Implementing linguistic categories into the foreign language learning classroom
- Visualizing English and Swabian tense semantics in the classroom 217
- Taking cognizance of variation and CLI effects in foreign language learning: The case of the English present perfect 251
- Teaching and learning the comparative in German: The role of semantic notions 273
- Conclusion 293
- Index 299
