Universidad de Guadalajara

Maestría en Enseñanza del Inglés como Lengua Extranjera

Module II: Linguistic Description For Foreign Language
Teaching

Reflection 3.6 Systemic

Functional Grammar

Tutor’s Name: Dra. María Luisa Arias Moreno

Name: Humberto Marino Ramírez

E-mail: humber_marino@hotmail.com

March 31st, 2014

 Reflection 3.6
Reflection 3.6
Halliday maintains that, “an automatic parser [a structuralist] can handle a great deal of the
grammar, but there are always indeterminacies, alternative interpretations, places where one
has to balance one factor against another.” In your context is it feasible to teach grammar
following Halliday’s systemic theory?

What does systemic theory say? How to teach grammar following halliday’s systemic theory ?

Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG) gives special attention to the fact that when a
language is used, choices are made from sets of available options according to a specific
context for example: a party, an informal conversation in a school by 2 students, a walk in
a park, an appointment of a student with the principal of a school, asking somebody out,
an invitation to a formal party. There are many different situations in social life and there is
a set of specific vocabulary and things appropriate to say in each one. Halliday’s systemic
theory gives special attention to this aspect of language. Contrary to traditional grammar
that taught rules and language structures, SFG focuses more on developing student’s
potential to communicate in the target language thus its emphasis on the communicative
approach. Also Halliday introduces 3 modes of meaning from the semantic system:
ideational (experiential and logical), interpersonal and textual.

But how can a teacher put Halliday’s SFG theory into practice? Phil Chappell a linguist at
Macquaire University says there is a valuable tool that helps teachers to make a bridge
between the sociocultural context and the corresponding language to this context. This
tool is called Register and it identifies: the field (what is going on in the activity), the tenor
(who is taking part in the activity) and the mode (the part that language plays in the
activity).

For example: the field might be a group of friends talking about Mexico’s soccer League
and therefore the vocabulary is related to things, people and actions around this sport. The
tenor is close friends who see each other regularly and thus have a lot of things in
common. The mode is face to face spoken language and speakers who give immediate
feedback. In this context I would put my students to say a dialogue like: ”Hey did you see
the Classical Soccer match between America and Chivas?” –Yeah I did, it was awesome,
America was losing 3-0 and then in the second half they tied the game! –I agree with you I
had a great time watching it.
In my school I believe it is possible to use Halliday’s SFG, in fact the book I use with 1st
secondary has this approach: it sets the Register. It may say: you are going to invite a
friend to the movies: decide which movie you are going to see and where you are going to
meet. And after this the students get to do the dialogue in small groups, which is
something they like.

Halliday and Matthiesen (1997) say that when speakers interact with other people they
enter into a range of interpersonal relationships such as persuading, requesting, ordering,
suggesting, asserting and insisting. SFG allows speakers to express these functions
calling them “Moods”; this is the paradigmatic organization of Systemic Functional
Grammar contrary to traditional grammar and its syntagmatic organization through
syntagms also known as constituents.

I think this is an excellent way to put into practice SFG and teach functions to my students:
I could teach them persuasion phrases like “why don’t we go to the movies?”, “If you come
I’ll let you play my Ipod”. I could also have them use requesting mood and ordering mood
to act out a conversation where they at a restaurant and the customers ask for a meal
while another student is the waiter and takes their order. I think this is a good activity
because students love role playing.

In this text I have talked about some of the characteristics of Halliday’s Systemic
Functional Grammar: it focuses on specific language according to different contexts also
known as registers that set up an environment where students can interact and practice
specific dialogues e.g. a foot-ball match. The paradigmatic organization of SFG can be
seen in moods that speakers use while speaking: persuading, complimenting and
requesting. These moods can be practiced within the classroom and get my students use
SFG so that they are more motivated to learn the language.
Bibliografía
Chappel, P. (2013). An Introduction to Systemic Functional Grammar.

Halliday, M. (2004). An Introduction to Functional Grammar. Great Britain: Hodder Arnold.

M.A.K., H., & Matthiesen, C. (1997). Systemic Functional Grammar: A first step into the theory.

Muto-Humphrey, K. (s.f.). Discourse Analysis through Interpersonal Meaning.