What is grammar?
Grammar is the study of sentence structure, a uniquely human part of our culture and identity.
On this six-week course from UCL, you’ll take an in-depth look at English grammar, learning how to construct sentences, create meaning, and communicate effectively both personally and professionally.
Examine the structure of sentences
Beginning with an introduction to key terminology, you’ll discover how words, phrases, and clauses are combined to create sentences.
You’ll learn about grammatical forms, such as nouns, noun phrases, verbs and verb phrases, as well as about grammatical functions, including Subject, Predicate, Complement, and Adjunct, before moving on to semantic roles.
With this knowledge, you’ll be able to confidently analyse sentences at several levels.
Take a closer look at tense, aspect, and mood
After gaining a comprehensive overview of the forms and functions of grammar, you’ll then examine how different grammatical notions, such as tense, aspect, and mood are implemented in English.
Learn about the principles of effective communication in speech and writing
In the final week of this course, you’ll examine how to highlight certain parts of your message and clarify your meaning using information structuring.
Having studied structural and semantic concepts at different levels, by the end of the course you will have gained a deep understanding of English grammar and the principles of effective communication.
This course is designed for anyone who wants to learn about English grammar in an engaging way, whether for pleasure or in a professional context.
IMPORTANT: Please note that this course is NOT designed to help you improve your English writing or speaking skills.
ALSO IMPORTANT: If you teach grammar in a UK school that follows the specifications of the National Curriculum (NC), this course is NOT SUITABLE for you, because it does not align with the National Curriculum. If you do follow this course as a teacher, you will be teaching a different model of grammar which will lead to confusion for you and your pupils, and will result in lower scores in the tests. We have a solution for this, though! Please check out the FutureLearn courses English Grammar for Teachers and Teaching English Grammar in Context, also from UCL, which are specifically designed for UK teachers, and are fully aligned with the NC.
The course uses a textbook with the same title: English Grammar: All You Need to Know which is available only on Amazon. Purchase is optional. The course also links to the UCL Englicious website (free sign-up).
