Indeed, I would agree with Janet Emig that the grammar issue is a prime example of magical thinking: the assumption that students will learn only what we teach and only because we teach.2 But the grammar issue, as we will see, is a complicated one. And, perhaps surprisingly, it remains controversial, with the regular appearance of papers defending the teaching of formal grammar or attacking it.3 Thus Janice Neuleib,
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Patrick Hartwell (1985) studied this question.