Dear all,
 
Whatever our backgrounds are, we do want all of our students to have a foot in both camps, no? Certainly, they must be able to tease apart the differences between traditional school grammar and what is termed modern grammar (a.k.a. linguistics). And we want our students to be able to evaluate and appreciate how they might use the resources of each approach to support their professional writing. I don't think a professional writer can wave away grammar handbooks, however flawed these may be.
 
It's been a tremendous (and ongoing) struggle for me as an instructor of grammar at a mid-sized college with almost no linguistics-based coursework and certainly no degree program to figure out which grammar textbooks to use and at what level to pitch course content. I've been very grateful for books--like Ed Schuster's Breaking the Rules and Amy Benjamin and Tom Oliva's Engaging Grammar--that draw upon the best insights from both grammar camps and then offer classroom-tested methods that have been effective for improving students' writing.
 
After reading Sarah's and Dan's posts, I wonder if there are others who might welcome a conversation--either on this listserv or on a separate one--about the day-to-day practical complexities attendant upon the daily teaching of grammar (e.g., how much explicit linguistics-based knowledge helps or hinders undergraduate, non-linguistics majors in achieving their goal of error-free and, ideally, felicitous writing).
 
I share Dan's wish that the tone of this listserv remain civil and encouraging of participation from individuals of all grammar backgrounds and levels of experience. I have benefitted tremendously from the knowledge and kindness of this community as well as of its individual members. I would hate to think that a fairly new tendency for a negative tone in messages would discourage anyone from participating.
 
Sincerely,
Natalie Gerber
SUNY Fredonia/ 

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