Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

1. Identify and explain the process of developing grammar competency which involves the determination of purpose, selection and adjustment of strategies, comprehension checks, and integration of prior knowledge with new knowledge to address the purpose. 
2. Use the selected grammatical structures, determination of purpose, selection and adjustment of strategies, and comprehension checks appropriately in a variety of oral and written contexts at an upper-intermediate level.

Class time includes a combination of lecture, discussion and grammar practice. Other activities, such as skits and group projects reinforce the grammar topics. Homework includes preparation for all the above as well as journal writing, practice exercises and study for quizzes and tests.

The following assessment strategies may be used to determine a student’s competency in grammar:

1. Grade a minimum of five journal entries which include the grammar topics covered in the class.

2. Assess grammar exercises provided in books, workbooks and/or online tools.

3. Evaluate the use of appropriate grammatical structures in speaking using online voice recording applications, such as Blackboard Wimba. 

4. Evaluate the grammar used in oral activities such as skits or role plays.  

A.         Grammar Review and Instruction:

1. Recognize and use the selected grammar topics in both written and spoken academic contexts.

Based on a diagnostic test, instructors should select at least five of the following grammar topics to be covered during the term:

1. Verb tenses, focusing on perfect and perfect progressive verb tenses
2. Subject-verb agreement
3. Sentence patterns
4. Sentence types (simple, compound, complex)
5. Major sentence errors (fragments, comma splices, run ons)
6. Gerunds and infinitives
7. Passive voice
8. Articles
9. Prepositions and phrasal verbs

B.         Critical Thinking Skills:

1. Demonstrate an awareness of audience and purpose for various registers and

     settings.

2. Distinguish between relevant and irrelevant information, eg., choosing between gerund and infinitive form.

3. Determine appropriate uses for various structures, eg., choosing an active or passive

4. Learn to look at language in context in order to determine function and purpose.