THE COMPONENTS OF LANGUAGE
When teaching and learning language there are a range of unnoticed understandings that are applied everyday. There are a number of different rules and components of language, so it can often be difficult to understand everything. This section is aims to help you gain an understanding of the different components of language. We have listed and defined some important language terminology below to facilitate your understanding.
Syntax can be described as the set of rules that we use to describe or explain the relation and use of words in a sentence. As sentences are more than just randomly selected words, our syntactic awareness is present without being aware that’s what we are doing. Syntax is supported by the concepts of Morphology and Lexicology (Emmit et al. 2012).
Morphology is the study of the smallest meaningful units in speech and writing, these being the components to make up words, while Lexicology is the study of words. (Emmit et al. 2012) These concepts work in conjunction with each other to provide us with the ability to teach word recognition, spelling and grammar.
Phonology is the study of how sounds (known as phonemes- the smallest sets of sounds), are organised and are used in speech. Students learn to connect letters and sounds through teaching phonology. It also assists students in learning to read and spell, particularly for words they have not seen before (Emmit et al. 2012).
Discourse analysis- As you are probably already aware, there are many different text types prevalent in today’s society. Whether they are visual, audio or written based texts, it is important students learn how to interpret texts. Discourse Analysis is a general term for a number of approaches to analysing the characteristics and purpose of text. As teachers, it is important we educate students to be able to identify the purpose of texts they are exposed to within society. Derewianka (1991) notes that the most common genres we look at in the primary classroom are procedural, information reports, recounts, instructional texts, explanatory texts and narratives (as cited in Emmit et al. 2012). Teachers encourage students to investigate and compare many different forms of text. Students learn to analyse the language and structure used in certain texts as well as identify the purpose and audience the author has directed their writing towards. Students then use the knowledge they have gained about the codes and conventions of genre to develop their own texts. For example, students may turn a news paper report into a narrative.
Syntax can be described as the set of rules that we use to describe or explain the relation and use of words in a sentence. As sentences are more than just randomly selected words, our syntactic awareness is present without being aware that’s what we are doing. Syntax is supported by the concepts of Morphology and Lexicology (Emmit et al. 2012).
Morphology is the study of the smallest meaningful units in speech and writing, these being the components to make up words, while Lexicology is the study of words. (Emmit et al. 2012) These concepts work in conjunction with each other to provide us with the ability to teach word recognition, spelling and grammar.
Phonology is the study of how sounds (known as phonemes- the smallest sets of sounds), are organised and are used in speech. Students learn to connect letters and sounds through teaching phonology. It also assists students in learning to read and spell, particularly for words they have not seen before (Emmit et al. 2012).
Discourse analysis- As you are probably already aware, there are many different text types prevalent in today’s society. Whether they are visual, audio or written based texts, it is important students learn how to interpret texts. Discourse Analysis is a general term for a number of approaches to analysing the characteristics and purpose of text. As teachers, it is important we educate students to be able to identify the purpose of texts they are exposed to within society. Derewianka (1991) notes that the most common genres we look at in the primary classroom are procedural, information reports, recounts, instructional texts, explanatory texts and narratives (as cited in Emmit et al. 2012). Teachers encourage students to investigate and compare many different forms of text. Students learn to analyse the language and structure used in certain texts as well as identify the purpose and audience the author has directed their writing towards. Students then use the knowledge they have gained about the codes and conventions of genre to develop their own texts. For example, students may turn a news paper report into a narrative.
How does this relate to the curriculum?
From level three onwards, the Ausvels curriculum (2014) provides the guidelines for student achievement, with the focus placed on three strands of learning, these being Reading & Viewing, Speaking & Listening and Writing. The overall focus is for students to accurately read and comprehend a range of multimodal texts, with the ability to respond in the appropriate context while making correct grammatical choices and being able to actively listen and participate to discussions in relation to language choices and literature.
From level three onwards, the Ausvels curriculum (2014) provides the guidelines for student achievement, with the focus placed on three strands of learning, these being Reading & Viewing, Speaking & Listening and Writing. The overall focus is for students to accurately read and comprehend a range of multimodal texts, with the ability to respond in the appropriate context while making correct grammatical choices and being able to actively listen and participate to discussions in relation to language choices and literature.
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