Revisiting the teaching of specific language structures in the nominal group and the verbal group in English in a second language learning environment

Abstract

In this article, I focus the discussion on the functional role specific language structures play in the internal structure of the nominal group and the verbal group respectively. Thus, I adopt the position that teaching specific language structures in the nominal group and the verbal group results in the acquisition of knowledge of how ideas can be accessed in the reading of texts, specific reference to academic prose. Thus, the acquired knowledge then serves as a resource for effective language learning by learners who hardly speak the target language, English. This article, therefore, assumes, firstly, that teaching specific language structures in the nominal group and the verbal group has the potential of addressing the learner’s cognitive deficit arising from syntactic impediments. Secondly, the article assumes that syntactic impediments deriving from the learner’s lack of sentence structure necessitates the adoption of an overt instructional intervention strategy that is informed by the immediate linguistic needs of the reader.

Keywords: Concepts: Coherence, Cohesion, Discourse Analysis, Grammatical Constituent, Modification and Subordination