UNIVERSITY OF

MAIDUGURI
Maiduguri, Nigeria
CENTRE FOR DISTANCE LEARNING
ARTS

GST 111: COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN ENGLISH (2

UNITS)

1
COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN ENGLISH 1
DIVISION OF GENERAL STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF
MAIDUGURI

By

Dr. Baba Kura Alkali Gazali

Department of Languages and Linguistics
University of Maiduguri.

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 STUDY GUIDE
GENERAL INFORMATION
Course Code and Title: GST 111: COMMUNICATION SKILLS IN
ENGLISH
Credit Unit: 2
Year: 2015
Total Hours - 28 hours @ two per Week of Study.

For any queries or Questions contact the Course Lecturer Using

your email through the Centre for Distance Learning Portal.
You are welcome to this study Unit. Each Unit is arranged to
simplify your study. In each topic of the Unit we have
introduction, learning outcome, in-text information, in-text
questions and answers, summary and self assessment exercises.
In-text questions and answers serve as motivation for your reading
and to encourage to pay attention to major points in the text.
Tutors will be available at designated contact Centre for Tutorial.
Meet them to resolve your questions and other guide. The Centre
expects you to plan your work well. Should you wish to read
further you could supplement the study with more information
from the list of references and suggested reading available in each
study Unit.
PRACTICE EXERCISES
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISES (SAES)
This is provided at the end of each topic or Study Session. The
exercises can help you to assess whether or not you have actually
studied and understood the topic/study session. Solutions to the
exercises are provided at the end of the Study Unit for you to
assess yourself.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR EXAMINATION
To prepare for the examination you should read and understand
the Study Materials provided for you on C.D.ROM, prints or
downloads from the Portal.
Other things you need to prepare for examination include
understanding all sample questions at the end of every Study
Session/topic Reading the suggested/recommended reading texts.
ASSESSMENTS
-The continuous assessment for all courses consists of
30%.
-The Examination shall make up 70% of the total Marks.
-Feedback and advice is a component of the continuous
assessment

The Examination shall be conducted at the Centre for Distance

learning (Centre). Students are to come to the Centre on the
Examination date with all the necessary requirements. The
Examination is Computer based or e-testing one.

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Table of Content

1. Cover page
2. Introduction to Course
3. Course objectives
4. Study Sessions:
1. The concept of speech and write
2. The concept of grammar
3. The different parts of speech
4. Different grammatical units in English
5. Sentences types and varieties
6. Question types in English

Study Session 1 Communication Skills in English 1

Introduction

The course GST 111: Communication Skills in English 1 (2

Units) is aimed at developing students’ ability to communicate

effectively in English language the outcome the study will help

the students to communicate in English language to also produce

graduates with language proficiency in line with current English

usage and in response to the demand for a standard,

comprehensive, and student-friendly text on the communication in

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English.

This study book is divided into five study sessions and each study

session discusses elements that combine with one another to

produce and generate grammatical utterances in English language

since academic excellence in the University depends largely on

reading and or studying.

Learning Outcomes for Study Section 1

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

1.1 Explain the concept of Speech and writing

1.2 Define the concept of Grammar

1.3 Define and explain Elements of Grammar

1.3.1 Define and explain parts of speech

1.3.2 Define and Explain Division of parts of speech

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1.3.3 Grammatical units in English

1.3.4 Sentence types and varieties in English

1.3.5 Statement and Questions types in English.

1.1 Speech and Writing

The purpose of speech or writing in any language is to

communicate facts, feelings, attitudes and ideas clearly and

effectively. Attaining these entails observing the limits of

grammar of the language we are using, so that when we speak, our

speech is elegant and when we write, the document stands the test

of time. Below are some things we consider when we use the

English language as our medium of communication.

1.2 The concept Grammar

Grammar is traditionally subdivided into two different but

interrelated areas of study –morphology and syntax. Morphology

is the study of how words are formed out of smaller units (called

Morphemes), and so addresses questions such as ‘What are the

component morphemes of a word like antidisestablishment, and

what is the nature of the morphological operations by which they

are combined together to form the overall word?’. Syntax is the

study of the way in which phrases and sentences are constructed

out of words, and so addresses questions like ‘What is the

structure of a sentence like what’s the president doing? And what

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is the nature of the grammatical operations by which its

component words are combined together to form the overall

sentence structure?’

1.3 Define and explain Elements of Grammar

When we say grammar, two things are to be considered thus:

i. Knowing grammar – Which has to do with our innate

capacity to acquire language. In other words, it refers

to the intuition of a native speaker, the inborn

knowledge of one’s native language

ii. Knowing about grammar – This is a conscious

process in which we learn a number of rules and use

them in a clear and consistent way. Here it is the

mechanical application of these rules that produces the

entire well formed sentences which are possible in a

language.

The term grammar designates a set of rules with the aim to

describe the way a language’s sentences are constructed.

Therefore, generating grammatical structures entails mastering the

grammatical units and how they are combined (or arranged) in

order to convey meaning.

1.4 Define and explain parts of speech

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English words are classified into eight parts of speech according

to their function in a sentence.

i. The Noun: Name of a person, animal, place or things,

e.g. Halima, Lion, Kano, Chair.

ii. The Pronoun: A word used in place of a noun, e.g. I,

she, he.

iii. The adjective: A word that describes or qualifies a

noun, e.g. big, green

iv. The verb: A word that expresses action. In other

words, it is action words e.g. come, take.

v. The adverb: Modifies (describes) a verb, e.g.

yesterday, slowly, quickly.

vi. The preposition: shows the relation between two

things, e.g. under, on, in, over.

vii. The conjunction: Joins one word or one sentence to

another, e.g. as well as, but, yet.

viii. Interjection: refers to a sudden expression of emotion

such as anger, pain, joy surprise, e.g. oh! Ha! Stop!

hurray!

1.5 Define and Explain Division of parts of speech

The parts of speech can be divided into two: The closed – System

items and the open – class items.

i. The closed system items are:

Articles

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 Demonstrative

s Prepositions

Conjunction

s Pronouns

Interjections

These items are said to be closed because they cannot be extended

by creation of additional members. For the sake of illustration,

consider the number of pronouns or the case of the articles in

English (in terms of numbers).

ii. The open class items

are: Noun

Adjectiv

e Adverb

Verb

This is a class within which new items are constantly being

created. For instance, no one could make an inventory of all nouns

in English.

1.6 Grammatical units in English

2.1. Grammatical Units

There are five grammatical units in English (morpheme, word,

phrase, clause and sentence) and these combine to make up all the

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sentence patterns and structures in the language.

i. Morpheme

The morpheme is defined as the smallest meaningful unit in a

language. It is so called because it is the smallest item that can

affect meaning. For instance, un is among the smallest units of

grammar and when you attach it to a word like happy, it changes

the meaning from positive to negative (unhappy). Any unit that so

functions is known as a morpheme. The morpheme themselves are

divided into bound and free morphemes. Free morphemes can

stand on their own to make sense (e.g. boy, she, at, etc) while

bound morphemes cannot stand on their own (e.g. il, un, ly, ness,

ful, etc) . Morphemes can be identified in terms of their meaning

full segment (s) attached to it. For example, a word ‘unfaithful’

consists of three morphemes ‘un’, ‘faith’ and ‘ful’

ii. Word

Technically, all free morphemes are words, by virtue of the fact

that they make meanings on their own. Such words are called

simple words, in addition to which also exist compound words.

Compound words is a result of putting two simple words together

to form a single word – e.g. class + room = classroom, house +

wife = housewife etc. words can also be complex when they are

made up of a simple word and one or more bound morphemes –

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e.g. il (bound morpheme) + logic (simple word) + al (bound

morpheme) + ly (bound morpheme) = illogically. Other examples

of complex words are internationally, educationists, etc.

iii. Phrase

Also called group, a phrase is a group of words in which a

particular word acts as the ‘head’- i.e the most important word

within the phrase. A phrase is named after the part of speech that

serves as the head; thus a phrase is called a noun phrase or an NP,

when a noun acts as the head, a verb phrase or a VP, when a verb

is the head, etc. Below are examples of the different phrases in

English.

At the bar (preposition as head = prepositional

phrase) On the black board (same as above)

With a knife (same as above)

The large box (noun as head = Noun

phrase The presidential candidate (same as

above)

Very slowly (adverb as head = adverbial phrase)

Very slow (adjective as head = adjectival

phrase)

iv. Clause

Is a group of words that together have a particular meaning

especially when they express the meaning well in a few words,

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e.g. a clause is normally made up of a subject and predicate and

may or may not make a complete sense.

I came, I saw, I conquered

The students work hard

When he came back

If you work hard

When a clause makes a complete sense on its own, it known as an

independent clause (as is the case with the first two examples. But

when it cannot express a complete though (as is the case with

examples 3 and 4), then it is known as a dependent clause.

v. The Sentence

The sentence is often defined as the largest grammatical unit in

language. It is made up of a subject and predicate and conveys a

complete thought. A sentence normally begins with a capital letter

and ends with a full stop, a question mark or an exclamation mark.

2.1.1 The Sentence Elements

These are the elements that combine to make up a sentence. They

comprise such structures as word, group, phrase and clause to

make up functional elements like subjects, objects, complements,

verbs and adverbials.

i. Subject: the subject usually identifies the theme or topic

of the clause e.g. the teacher recited the poem.

ii. Verb: The verb expresses a wide range of meaning, such

as action, sensation of state of being, e.g. the thief ran

away with the cash box.

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 iii. Object: it identifies who or what has been directly

affected by the action of the verb e.g. Idris bought a new

shirt

He ate an apple

iv. Complement – It gives further information about another

clause element subject complement or object complement,

e.g.

The girl is now a student at the University of Maiduguri

(subject complement)

They served the coffee white (Object complement)

v. Adverbial – it usually adds information about the

situation, such as process (manner) space and time, e.g. she

walked slowly to her car.

1.7 Sentence types and varieties in English

We shall start by observing pattern of words sentences contain in

order to understand their construction. Sentences can be grouped

into two on the basis of whether they are formed in a regular or

irregular way. Regular sentences are referred to as a major,

irregular sentence as a minor.

1. Major Sentences

These are sentences which can be broken down into specific

pattern of elements known as clauses. They are of two types:

Simple and multiple sentences.

i. Simple sentence: it is a one clause sentence, e.g.

Idris has a biro.

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 ii. Multiple sentence: It is a sentence which can be

immediately analysed into more than one clause. It

is of three types: compound, complex and

compound- complex

iii. Compound sentence

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 In a compound sentence, the clauses are linked by coordinating (or

linking conjunctions) usually by the coordinators such as and, or, but e.g.

a. I saw a girl and she saw a boy

b. The boy went to Kano, but the girl went to Lagos

c. The boy will leave today while the girl will arrive tomorrow

It is to be noted that the unit that are joined have the same status in the

sentence. In other words, each clause could in principle stand as a

sentence on its own.

There are also a few pairs of conjunctions correlatives, such as both…,

and…and (n)either…(n)or

a. Neither the dog nor the goat are on the farm

b. either he or she is tired

iv. Complex Sentence

In complex sentences, the clauses are linked by the subordination –

making use of subordination makers such as because, when, although etc.

a. He answered the door, when Isa rang the bell.

b. He continued to play, though he was hurt.

c. I can’t go, because it is dark out there.

It is also to be noted that the subordinate clauses cannot stand as

sentences on their own. It needs some other clauses before it can be used,

(as exemplified above).

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 v. Compound - Complex

It is a structure in which coordination and subordination are found, e.g.

1. He answered the door, when Isa rang the bell and he

ushered him in.

2. Minor Sentence

These are sentences which are constructed in an irregular way. They use

abnormal patterns which cannot be clearly analysed into a sequence of clause

elements. One should learn them as they are.

i.(a) Hello. How do you do?

(b) Thanks. Cheers! (social

situations)

ii. Eh! Phew! Ugh! (emotional

noises)

iii. Easy come, easy go! (Proverb)

iv. Abbreviated form such as used in post cards

v. Instructions or Commentaries

3. Statements and Questions

Statement: Is a sentence whose purpose is primarily to convey information. Two

criteria usually apply:

i. The clause contains a subject.

ii. The subject precedes the verb.

Such sentences are said to have a declarative structure, e.g. She has

arrived

3.1 Questions – Are sentences which seek information. They fall into three (3)

main types depending on the kind of reply they expect, and how they are

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constructed. Sentences formed in these ways are said to have an interrogative

structure.

1(a). Yes – No question – allows an affirmative or negative reply - often ‘yes’ or

‘no’

The subject follows a verb.

i. Have you eaten?

ii. Are you ready?

(b). Wh – questions – allow a reply from a wide range of possibilities. They

begin with question words, such as what, why, where, how.

i. What is going on here?

ii. Why are they making noise?

iii. How can you say that?

iv. Whom do they make the principal?

(c). Alternative question – This requires a reply which relates to the options

given in the sentences. They always contain the connecting words or.

i. Will you eat rice or semovita?

3.1.1. Questioning tone of voice – in an oral discourse, a questioning tone or

voice can turn a statement into a yes or no – question.

i. You have seen the chief?

ii. The students are inside?

3.1.2 Tag Question

Tag question expects reply yes or no. Sometimes the interrogative structue is left

to the end of the sentence, in form of a tag question.

i. She is not in, is she?

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3.1.3 Exclamatory Question

They express the speaker’s strong feelings and ask the hearer to agree.

i. Isn’t she lovely!

3.1.4 Rhetorical Questions

They resemble questions in there structure, but they are used as if they were

emphatic statements. The speaker does not expect an answer.

i. Who cares!

ii. How should I know!

iii. What differences does it make!

3.2 Directives

These are sentences which instruct someone to do something. There are about

seven forms of directives thus:

i. Commanding - shut up!

ii. Inviting - come with me.

iii. Warning - Watch where you are going.

iv. Pleading - Help me!

v. Advising - take it easy

vi. Requesting - give me that book, please.

vii. Expressing good wishes – have a nice weekend.

3.3 Exclamation and Echoes

Exclamation: These are sentences whose main role is to express the extent to

which the speakers are impressed or aroused by something. They often take the

form of single words or short phrases (minor sentence). Their first element

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begins with what or how and is followed by a subject and verb, in that order.

i. What a lovely day it is!

ii. How nice she looks

3.4 Echo utterances:

These are only used in dialogue. Their main function is to confirm, question, or

clarify what the pervious speaker has just

said.

Statements -

Directive -

Exclamation -

NOTE:

Echoes sometimes sound impolite unless accompanied by an apologetic

softening phase such as:

I beg your pardon – what did you say?

4. Connectivity of Language Elements in a Sentence

In order to state general rules about the construction of sentences, it is necessary

to refer to smaller units than the sentence itself. Traditionally, there is a primary

distinction between subject and predicate. The subject determines concord. It is

also the part of a sentence that changes its position as we go from statement to

question, e.g.

He was a businessman Was he a

businessman? Is he going far?

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We shall now see how these elements cohere to produce grammaticality.

Conclusion

The above session explains the concept of parts of speech and grammar in

English. The session discusses all the various parts of speech, sentence

connectivity, grammatical units and question formation in English.

Summary of study session 1

In study session 1, you have learnt that:

1) The purpose of speech or writing in English language is to communicate facts,

feelings and ideas clearly and effectively

2) Grammar is subdivided into two different but interrelated areas of study –

morphology and syntax.

3) Grammar entails two things: .

a. Knowing grammar

b. knowing about grammar

4) English words are classified into eight parts of speech according to their

function in a sentence

5) Parts of speech are further divided into two major class systems:

a. Open system

b. Closed sytem

6) English language has five grammatical units with morpheme as the smallest

meaningful unit, word, phrase, clause and sentence as its highest grammatical

unit.

7) Sentence elements that combine to make up a sentence with subject, verb,

object, complement and adjunct positions.

8) Sentence can be grouped into two on the basis of major and minor sentences.

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9) The major sentences can be further broken into:

a) Simple –one clause subject and verb

b) Multiple –which contains more than one clause

c) Compound sentence which contains clauses that are linked

by coordinating conjunctions i.e. and, or, but etc.

d) Complex –which contains clauses linked by the

subordinating i.e. because, when, although, etc.

Self – Assessment Questions (SAQS) for study session 1

It is assumed that since you have completed this study session 1, you should be

able to answer the following questions.

SAQ 1.1 (test learning outcomes 1.1)

 What do you understand by the term part of speech

SAQ 1.2 (test learning outcomes 1.2)

 Define the concept Grammar

SAQ 1.3 (test learning outcomes 1.3.1, 1.3.2, 1.3.3, 1.3.4and 1.3.5)

 Define and Explain parts of speech

 Define and explain Division of parts of speech

 Grammatical units in English

 Sentence types and varieties in English

 Statement and question types in English

 Identify the number of morphemes in the following words

- Unfaithfull

- Teachers
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 - Students

- Transportation

- Singers

- ate

 Self – Assessment Answers (SAQs) for study session 1

1. Human speech, just like the human body, is made up of different

parts: determiners, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs,

prepositions, conjunctions and interjection.

2. Grammar is the set of structural rules governing the composition of

clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term

refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes

morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by

phonetics, semantics, and pragmatics.

3. A sentence is a unit of language that expresses a complete thought. It

is a combination of words with a subject and a predicate. It starts with

a capital letter and ends with a full stop. The followings are different

types of sentences in sentences in English language –Simple sentence,

compound sentence, complex sentence and compound-complex

sentence. In terms of meaning and function, the following types of

sentences is also recognized in English –Declarative sentences,

Interrogative sentences, imperative sentences and exclamatory

sentences.

Identify the number of morphemes in the following words

- Unfaithfull = un+faith+full = 3 morphemes

- Teachers = teach+er+s = 3 morphemes

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 - Students = student+s = 2 morphemes

- Transportation = transport+ ation = 2 morphemes

- Singers= sing+er+s= 3 morphemes

- Eat+ ed = 2 morphemes

Study Session 2 concord and other special rules of English usage

Introduction

Learning outcomes for study section 2

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

2.1 explain the term concord

2.2 explain how verb agrees in number with its subject

2.3 explain how a singular pronoun is used to refer to a singular antecedent.

2.4 explain how demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, those) agree in

number with the nouns they modify

2.1 Concord

Concord refers to agreement. To produce or construct grammatical sentences, the

various constituents of the sentence must be in perfect accord or agreement.

Therefore, certain rules dictate the agreement. Concord (or agreement) is a way

of showing that two grammatical units have a certain feature in common.

Therefore, we will now look at the grammatical relationship between subject and

verb, pronoun and its antecedent or a demonstrative adjective and the word it

modifies.

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2.2 Verbs Agree in Number with their subjects

1. Make every verb agree in number with its subject

a) When the subject is in the singular, the verb must be in the

singular. When the subject is in the plural, the verb must be in the plural, e.g.

i. My student has a meal in the afternoon.

ii. My students have a meal in the afternoon.

iii. John believes in God

iv. They need our care

b) In situations where words or phrases intervene between the subject

and the verb, there is the need to find the subject and make the verb agree

with it. Singular subjects followed by such expressions as with, together with,

accompanied by, and as well as take singular verbs.

i. The girl with her mother, dances well

ii. The chair, together with the table, has been stolen.

iii. The teacher, accompanied by the students, is visiting the king.

v. My father, as well as my mother, likes good food.

vi. The Vice Chancellor together with the registrar is to travel

tomorrow

c). Use a plural verb with two or more subject joined by and

i. The boy and the girl are sitting together.

ii. The teacher and the students are visiting the king.

iii. My father and my mother like good food

iv. The man and his wife fight a lot

d). Remember that singular pronouns take singular verbs.

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 i. He likes the cap.

ii. She is running to the zoo.

iii. I am waiting for you.

e). Use the singular verbs with two or more singular subjects joined by or (or

nor). If the subject differs in number or person, make the verb agree with the

subject nearer to it.

i. The boy or the girl will arrive tomorrow.

ii. Neither the boy nor the girl likes mangoes.

iii. Neither the boy nor the girls like mangoes.

iv. Neither John nor his younger brother is here

Proximity Concord

When one of the nouns or noun phrases connected by a correlative conjunction is

plural and the other is singular, the verb agrees with the subject that is nearer to

it: e.g.

i. Either Musa nor his friends are in the class

ii. Either his friends nor Musa is in the class

iii. Either you or your children are wrong

iv. Either the children or their father is correct

Note: The subjects differ in number so the verb must agree with

the subject (girls) nearer to it).

f). When the verb precedes the subject of the sentence, be

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particularly careful to find the subject and make the verb

agree with it.

i. Does the boy play football?

ii. Don’t they come early?

g). Use a singular verb with collective noun to indicate that

the individual members of the group are acting collectively.

i. The army is marching to war.

ii. The Super Eagles is playing today.

iii. The family is doing fine.

iv. The government is working hard to feed the nation h). When the

subject is the title of a novel, a play, or the like,

use a singular verb even though the form of the subject is

plural.

i. Things Fall Apart is a good novel.

ii. Foundation of General Linguistics is a difficult book to read

iii .People of the City is a novel about city life.

i). Use a singular verb with nouns that are plural in form but singular in meaning,

such as economics, news, physics, statistics, etc.

i. Economics is an interesting subject.

ii. The news is about brilliant students and their carrier opportunities.

iii. Physics is a useful subject.

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2.3 Singular Pronoun is used to refer to a singular Antecedent

(a) In formal writing, use a singular pronoun to refer to antecedents such as

person, man, woman, one, any

anyone, anybody, someone, each, every, everyone, everybody, either,

neither, etc.

i. Any person who breaks the law will be punished.

ii. That person is here again!

iii. The man is working very hard

iv. The woman is cooking again.

v. One is tired if one walks many miles.

vi. Is any still available?

vii. Anyone / anybody who is good in physics should be good in

mathematics.

viii. Someone is hiding here.

(b) With a collective as an antecedent, use a singular pronoun

if you are considering the group as a unit, a plural pronoun if you are considering

the individual members of the group separately.

i. The herd is headed towards the river (the group as

a unit)

ii. The herd are headed towards different directions (the group as

individuals)

iii. The crowd was surging dangerously down the slop

iv. The crowd were muttering noisily as they await the

politician.

(c) If two or more antecedents are joint by and, use a plural to refer to them.

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 If two or more singular antecedents are joint by or, or nor use a singular

pronoun to refer to them.

If one of the two antecedents joined by or, or nor is singular and one

plural, make the pronoun agree with the nearer.

i. The boy and the girl are quiet.

ii. Neither the boy nor the girl is quiet.

iii. This/ That book is interesting

iv. These/Those books are interesting

2.4 Demonstrative adjectives agree with nouns

i. This is an interesting story

ii. These books are no longer needed

iii. That is him

iv. These children are quiet today

2.5 One of …… refers to only one out of many. It should, therefore, take a

singular verb: e.g.

i. One of the newly purchased computers is faulty

ii. One of the ministers has been sacked

2.6 A subject that contains the phrase the number of …… takes a singular

verb: e.g.

i. The number of private Universities has increased.

ii. The number of bachelors is more than the number of

spinsters.

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 2.7 A subject that contains the phrase a number of…. takes a plural verb: e.g.

i. A number of students are repeating the year in my

class

ii. A number of private schools in my town are

exploitative

Summary of study session 2

In study session 2, you have learnt that:

1. Agreement is a way of showing agreement between subject and verb in

English

2. A singular subject agrees with singular verb and a plural verb agrees with

plural verb

3. Pronouns also agree with their antecedents. A singular pronoun such as

any, anyone, someone, everybody takes a singular verb

4. Demonstrative adjectives agree with nouns. Demonstrative such as this,

that take singular nouns while demonstrative adjectives such as these and

those take plural nouns in English

Self- Assessment Questions (SAQS) for the study session 2

It is assumed that since you have completed this study session 2, you should be

able to answer the following questions.

SAQ 2.1 (test learning outcomes 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 2.4)

 What do you understand by the term concord

 How verbs agree in number with their subjects

 How singular pronouns agree with singular antecedents

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  How demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these and those) agree in

number with the nouns they modify

 Correct the following sentences error in concord or agreement

i. Measles are still common disease in my community

ii. A number of students is lazy

iii. Neither Mary nor her friends is here

iv. The man as well as his wife have been tested positive

v. Self – Assessment Answers (SAQs) for study session

1. In English grammar, concord is another term for grammatical

agreement between two words in a sentence. Concord is relatively

limited in modern English: Subject-verb concord in terms of number

is conventionally marked by inflections (or word ending)

2. A singular subject agrees with a singular verb while plural subjects

agree with plural verbs.

 The correct answer for exercise (i-iv) above

i. Measles is still common disease in my community

ii. A number of students are lazy

iii. Neither Mary nor her friends are here

iv. The man as well as his wife has been tested positive

Study Session 3 Paragraph Development/ Sentence Connection

Introduction

We express ourselves in utterances, some of which may be sentences, but many

of which may extend over several sentences. Their appearance in sequence is

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what generates into dialogue, commentaries, stated topics, and letters or in form

of a book. Any set of sentences which cohere in this way is called a text. A text

can be orally generated or in the written form. Many factors interact in pointing

to links between sentences in a running text.

Learning outcomes for study section 3

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

Learning outcomes for study section 3

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

Learning outcomes for study section 3

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

 Define Paragraph

 Methods of paragraph development

 Types of connective features

 Punctuation and layout

 The main punctuation conventions

 Grammatical connectivity

 Essay writing

 Types of essay writing

 Letter writing

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 3.1 Paragraph Development, Sentence Connection, Essay and Letter

writing

We express ourselves in utterances, some of which may be sentences, but many

of which may extend over several sentences. Their appearance in sequence is

what generates into dialogue, commentaries, stated topics, letters or in form of a

book. Any set of sentences which cohere in this way is called a text. A text can

be orally generated or in the written form. Many factors interact in pointing to

links between sentences in a running text.

According to Eko (1987) the success of an essay or any piece of writing

depends on the effective organization of its parts: words, sentences and

paragraphs. The three major qualities of efficient organization are:

(i) Unity

(ii) Coherance and;

(iii) M Development.

3.1.1 Unity

Singleness of purpose or unity is one essential quality of a good

paragraph and good writing. A paragraph is a unit of thought around one

main idea. All examples, details and illustrations must be clearly related

to that one idea. The sentence in a paragraph which expresses the

controlling idea (usually the first sentence) is called topic sentence.

3.1.2 Coherance

Smooth progression of thought from sentence to sentence, from

paragraph to paragraph and from one idea to the other, is an essential

element of good writing. You can achieve coherence in three basic ways:

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 - By arranging your material logically;

- By using appropriate transitional words and phrases to link sentences,

paragraphs and ideas;

- By maintaining a consistency of tone and point of view throughout

your material.

3.1.3 Logical arrangement

Use a narrative or chronological order when you wish to narrate a

sequence of events or describes a process. Use descriptive order when

describing someone or something. Organize your material in spatial

relationships: front-back, up-down, near-far, right-left or any logical

movement. Use expository order or group your ideas in order of climax

when explaining something.

3.2

1. Punctuation and layout

a. Punctuation separates units of grammar, e.g. words are

separated by a space, sentences by a combination of marks and

space, paragraphs by a

new start on a line.

b. It indicates specific grammatical or other functions, e.g.

i. The girl’s school

ii. He’ll be here next week.

(i) The main punctuation conventions

a. A sequence of unseparated letters,

identifies a word.

b The hyphen (-) joins part of a word.

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 c The space separates words.

d. The comma (,) separates words, phrase and some

clauses.

e. The colon (:)makes a major definite separation

between a clause and what follow

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3.3 Grammatical Connectivity:

Several aspects of grammar can be used to join sentences together e.g.

(i) space and time adverbial (position, direction, distance, and

frequency).

1. I stay in the hostel (position)

2. The noise comes from behind. (direction)

3. My village is two kilometers away from here. (distance)

4. We often trek the distance to the village on market days

(frequency)

3.4 Essay Writing (The complete essay)

An essay is defined as a piece of prose usually on the short side which is

devoted to a particular subject. We shall see general guidelines on how

to write an essay, after which we consider particular kinds of writing.

1. Choice of topic

There must always be a topic which will pave way for a

meaningful discussion.

2. Selection of materials

We always write with a particular person (or persons) children or adults;

and aim in mind: this affects both the materials we select for inclusion

and our way of presenting them. These factors combine to affect how far

you have succeeded in reaching your imaginary reader (s).

3. Arrangement of materials

The points to be expounded upon should be grouped in such a

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 way to provide room for the paragraphs to be flowing naturally.

Strong points should form part of the introduction and there

should be connectivity of ideas to achieve coherence.

4. Style

This has to do with the language lexical items and the sentence

construction. However, it is better to use simple and clear

language. The vocabulary should be appropriate.

3.5 Types of Essay

3.6 Argumentative

This is to argue in support of or against some ideas with the aim

of persuading the reader or listener to agree to your point of

view.

ii. Descriptive

This entails giving description of an object or person or animal, a

place or a scene. In any of the instances you are expected to:

(a). Visualize clearly what you are going to describe

(b). Relevant details must be included, since the essence is to

give information.

iii. Expository Essay

This could involve explanation of how something is produced,

e.g. Local artisan various articles, scientific kind of processes or,

how an activity is usually conducted.

Giving instructions

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 (a) Always start straight away by stating the first thing that has

to be done, and end with the last one.

(b) Always decide carefully what your particular readers need to

be told and what they can be reasonable expected to know

already.

(c) Group your instructions into paragraphs; each paragraph

dealing with the main stage in the procedure and number

these paragraphs consecutively.

iv. Narrative Essay

(a) Chronological order. Placing each episode in the order in which

it occurred.

(b) Giving purely factual and objective accounts of events

(c) Correct use of verb tense (narrative tense)

(d) When you describe two or more events in the same sentence be

sure they are closely related.

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3.6 Letter Writing

Letters are of three kinds.

(a) Personal or private letters – written to blood relations, friends

and acquaintances. They also include note of invitation.

(b) Business Letters - Written to trading firms, shopkeepers and

newspapers.

(c) Official Letters – Written to officials. Applications for posts fall

within this category, just as letters written to editors of newspapers.

Each kind of letter has its own style and form of salutation. Here

are some basic points to remember when writing a letter.

a. Your address.

The full address of the sender should be placed at the top right

hand corner of the page. Do not write your name above the

address. Date is placed below the address. It is written with figures

first, then the name of the month and the figure of the year at the

end, e.g. 25th April, 2005.

b. The direction (This is done in formal letter) name or official

title (i.e., The Manager, name – Where there is no indication of the

official position of the person /writer)

The firm in general – not a particular official “The Albarka

Airline”

In a formal letter, the name and address of the person to whom the

letter is addressed is written on the left hand side before the

salutation, with each line starting at the margin. When writing to an

official of an institution, business firm or public organization you

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 should use his official title not his name. However, if you are

replying to a formal letter in which there is no indication of the

official position of the writer, you will have to use his/her name

e.g. Mrs Hadiza Afolabi, “The Personnel Manager”, “The

Director” etc.

(c ) Salutation.

The salutation is written on the left hand side of the

margin. It comes on the next line down after the date or

the direction (if there is one). In all kinds of letters the salutation

begins with “Dear …”

(a) In a friendly or informal letter, the recipient is addressed

as you might normally do in a conversation, e.g. “Dear Hauwa” or

you can use a title.

(b) In a formal letter, use “Dear Sir,” or “Dear Madam” and

“Dear Sirs” when writing to a firm in general.

(d) Body of the letter / Main Section of the letter.

A letter must always be completely appropriate for the particular

person (or persons) to whom it is addressed. In friendly and

informal letters, we usually chat about a variety of issues.

3.6.1 Formal letters

Formal letters should be straight to the point. If it is a letter of application,

you must state the post you are applying for (and where you saw it

advertised). State your age, your qualification and your working

experience. Mention your present occupation and any position of

39
 responsibility you held (or still holding). Give the names and addresses

of referees (only if asked).

If you are replying to a previous letter, acknowledge the receipt of that

letter (with date). If the letter has a reference number, be sure to quote it,

e.g. your letter Ref. UM/FAG I/Vol. II of 20th May, 2001” or with

reference to your letter dated 20th July, 2001, Ref. UM/FAG. I/Vol. II

(e) The Close and Signature

This is written at the bottom towards the right hand side of the

paper. In a personal letter, you can use any form of affectionate or

intimate wordings.

(a) In an informal letter, “Yours sincerely”

(b) In a formal letter, use “Yours faithfully”

6.2 Signature

This comes below the farewell in the following order:

a. In a personal (or friendly) letter, use your first name only. In an informal

letter use your first and

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your surname, and in a formal letter, write your initial(s) and surname, (below the

signature)

b. When signing a letter, only actual name is signed. No degrees or

titles should be added. However, in the case of a woman, she may

put the word “Mrs” in bracket after her name if she is entitled to this

form of address. If she is unmarried, she does not need to put

anything but signature.

c. If you are writing in an official capacity, you should state your

position beneath your signature,

e.g. “Secretary” Division of General Studies

3.6.2 General Things to consider when writing a letter

1. Simple English

2. Paragraphing – each new paragraph begins a little to the right of the

margin .

3. Punctuation – Use of appropriate marks such as comma, colon,

periods etc.

4. Capital letter and layout.

3.7 Memo Writing

Memo is a short official note. It is seen as the heart of an organization’s internal

communications. As a general rule, letters (though with some exceptions), go to

people out side the organization, memos to people within (the organization). What

works for a successful letter will work in a memo as well.

3.7.1 Structure of a Memo

The range of memos is just as wide as the range of letters. A memo can be anything

from a quick couple of words written on a crap or a paper to convey a formal,

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multiple page memorandums on official stationery. Below is the layout of a memo.

a. HEADING: The heading includes the following four elements:

i. TO: This usually gives the recipient’s full name and titles.

ii. FROM: Formal memos specify the senders full name titles; less formal

memos use first names only.

iii. DATE: The month is spelled out before day (followed by a comma) and

then the year.

iv. SUBJECT: (Sometimes RE) Information on this line should be brief and

specific.

b. BODY – The body of the memo should be made up of short, focused

paragraphs.

3.8 Report Writing

Reports are action documents prepared to accomplish precise goals. Writing a

report largely depends on knowing what the readers want. Some of the principles

include the following:

i. Giving the most important information

ii. Connect Initial request, describe the problem and give the recommendation

(all in a simple paragraph).

iii. (Knowing) what your report should include.

(a) Written specifications usually in form of a memo stating the report

purpose, scope, expected completion date, (and, if necessary, the

budget and personnel available to help).

(b) In the absence of specification, it is up to you to ask questions about

what’s expected when the report is assigned.

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 (c) You should look at similar reports.

(d) Find out what is expected before your writing.

3.8.1 Length of the Report

The length of the report largely depends on the report’s complexity and the

organization’s style in any case. A report can be in any of the following form.

Memo

Letter Chapter Book

(e) Complex report needs navigation tools like a table of contents, sections,

headings, subheadings and appendices. A report should reflect the writer’s

position in the organization. Not his or her personality.

Summary of study session 3

In study session 3, you have learnt that:

1. A paragraph contains one central idea. The idea summaries the central idea

of the paragraph

2. The topic sentence can come first or last sentence of the paragraph followed

by the supporting details and illustrations.

3. Paragraph has three qualities of efficient organization- Unity, coherence and

development

4. How punctuation separates units of grammar by words separated by space

and sentences

5. How different conventions are used in punctuation

6. How several aspects of grammar can be used to join sentences together

7. Essay is defined as a piece of prose usually on the short side which is

devoted to a particular subject

8. The four different types of essays: Descriptive, Narrative, Expository and

43
 Narrative essays

9. How to write three types of letter writing

10. Report writing are documents prepared to accomplish precise goals and the

principles of reporting writing in English

Self- Assessment Questions (SAQS) for the study session 3

It is assumed that since you have completed this study session 3, you should be able

to answer the following questions.

SAQ 3.1 (test learning outcomes 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 and 3.4)

 What do you understand by the term paragraph

 What the methods of paragraph development

 How do you punctuate sentences

 How do you use different punctuation conventions

 How do you identify unity in paragraph

 How do you define and identify topic sentence in a paragraph

 What are the qualities of efficient organization of paragraph

 The four different types of essays writing

 The three different types of letter writing

 The difference between letter writing and report writing

Self- Assessment Questions (SAQS) for the study session 3

1. Paragraph is a basic unit of prose. It is usually composed of several

sentences that together develop one central idea. The main sentence in a

paragraph is called the topic sentence.

2. Use apostrophes correctly. Know where to place quotation marks. Know

44
 how to punctuate with parentheses. Use a hyphen for compound adjectives.

Distinguish between the colon and the semicolon. Avoid multiple

punctuations at the end of a sentence.

3. There are three qualities of efficient organization of paragraph. These are

economy, simplicity and clarity.

4. Unity is one essential quality of a good paragraph and good writing. A

paragraph is a unit of thought around one main idea. All examples,

illustrations must be directly related to that one idea.

5. There are four types of essay writing. These are:

i. Argumentative Essay

ii. Descriptive Essay

iii. Expository Essay

iv. Narrative Essay

6. The three types of letter writing are:

i. Personal or Private Letters

ii. Business Letters

iii. Official Letters

7. The difference between the two concepts of writing is that when writing a

letter you use simple English and paragraphing each new paragraph begins

with a little to the right of the margin capital letter and layout while report

writing are prepared to accomplish precise goals.

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Study Session 4 Word Formation Processes in English

Introduction

This section discusses how words are formed in English. Thus, this session

shades more light on the concept morphemes

Learning outcomes for study section 4

When you have studied this session, you should be able to:

4.1 Define morpheme

4.2 Identify types of morphemes

4.3 Number of morphemes in a word

4.4 Word formation process in English

4.4.1 Simple words

4.4.2 Complex words

4.5 The major process of word formation

4.5.1 Affixation

4.5.2 Conversion

4.5.3 Compounding

4.1 Morpheme

Ogungbe and Bossan (2008) define morpheme as the smallest meaningful unit of

the grammar of a language.

4.2 Types of morphemes

Ogungbe and Bossan (2008) identify two types of morphemes in English language.

These are free and bound morphemes.

Free morphemes: These are morphemes that can stand on their own and can be

meaningful. Free morphemes are qualified or called simple words. They are root

46
words to which affixes are attached.Examples: talk, go, joy, fight, house etc.

Bound morphemes: These are morphemes that cannot stand on their own and be

meaningful. They are affixes. They can either be inflectional i.e, -s, -ed, -ing or

derivational i.e. –er, -r.

4.2.1 Identifying morphemes

One thing that is important in deciding how many morphemes a word contains is

meaning. Examples:

Boys - boy + s = 2 morphemes

Wrote- write + ed = 2 morphemes

Disadvantageous – dis+advantage+ ous = 3 morphemes

Note that morpheme is not the same thing as syllable. Syllable is the smallest

pronounceable unit of a language. For example, the word came has one syllable

{monosyllabic} but two morphemes. Thus, syllable is a phonological concept

whereas morpheme is a grammatical concept.

Summary of study session 4

In study session 3, you have learnt that:

1. Morpheme is a smallest meaningful unit in Language

2. Morphemes are of two types –free and bound morphemes

3. How to identify number of morphemes in a word

4. How words are formed in English

5. The major types of word formation in English are formed –affixation,

conversion and compounding

6. Self- Assessment Questions (SAQS) for the study session 4

7. It is assumed that since you have completed this study session 4, you should

be able to answer the following questions.

47
 8. SAQ 4.1 (test learning outcomes 4.1, 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4)

 What do you understand by the term morpheme

 How do you identify the different types of morphemes

 How words are formed in English

Self Assessment Answers (SAQS)

1. Morpheme is a smallest meaningful unit in a language

2. We identify morpheme (s) in a word by dissecting the meaning units of

words. Words that cannot further be divided into another meaningful

unit are called free morphemes while morphemes that are attached to the

free morphemes are called bound morphemes.

3. There are three basic word formation process in English these are:

1. Affixation

2. Compounding

3. conversion

Study Session 5 Pronouns or Pronominal in English

Introduction

A pronoun (or pronominal) is a word used in place of a noun, another

pronoun, noun phrase, or a noun clause in order to avoid unnecessary repetition.

Characteristics of pronouns

Pronouns can express or denote person, gender, number and case in English

5.1Pronouns indicate person: e.g.

SINGULAR PLURAL

I We

Me Us

He/she/ it They

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 5.2 Pronouns denote gender: e.g.

Masculine: He, him, his

Feminine: She, her, hers

Neuter: It, its e.t.c.

5.3 Pronouns show person: e.g.

(a) First person

I am a farmer

(b) Second person

You are a farmer

(c) Third person

He is a farmer

5.4 Pronouns show case: e.g.

Subjective case Objective case Possessive case

{Nominative} {Accusative} {Genitive}

I me my/ mine

We us our/ours

He him his

She her her/hers

They them their/theirs

Who whom whose

Functions of Pronouns

1. The Subjective /Nominative Function

The subject or nominative case form of pronoun can appear in

1.1 Subject

He killed the rat

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 She ate the food

1.2 Complement positions or follow Be form of verb

It was they who called the police man

The overall best student in GST 111 last year was he

2. The Objective or Accusative case function

1.1 object of a sentence i.e.

Mary slapped me

She gave me an orange

1.2 subject of infinitive i.e.

They want him to contest for the post of chairman of his local

government area.

1.3 object of infinitive i.e.

She sent the boy to call me

1.4 object or complement of prepositions that mean after prepositions i.e.

The girl sat beside me

This food is for me

3. The Genitive or possessive case function

1.1 Before a gerund i.e

I like her writing

I hate his snoring

1.2 It modifies noun

Her paper

His car

1.3 It functions after Be form of a verb or a linking verb

The book is mine

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 The chair is your

Summary of study session 5

In study session 5, you have learnt that:

1. A Pronoun is a word used in place of a noun to avoid unnecessary repetition

2. There are four characteristics of pronouns in English

-Person

-gender

-number

-case

3. Cases are further classified into three:

-The subjective/nominative case

-The objective/accusative case

-The Genitive/ Possessive case

4. How pronouns function at sentence level in English

-The subjective/nominative case function

-The Objective/ Accusative case function

-The Genitive/ Possessive casefunction

Self – Assessment Questions (SAQS) for study session 5

1. It is assumed that since you have completed this study session 5, you should

be able to answer the following questions

 Define pronoun

 The characteristics of pronoun

 Pronouns that show person, number, gender and case in English

51
  The three types of cases and their functions in English

Self – Assessment Questions (SAQS) for study session 5

1. Pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. She, herself, it, and this

are examples of pronouns. If we substituted pronouns for the nouns in

the sentence e.g. “Please give the present to Karen” it would read

“Please give it to her”

2. Personal pronouns have four characteristics:

1. Person (first, second or third; first is viewed right from the eyeballs,

second is as though someone is controlling you like “You enter the

room”, and third is from over the shoulder), Number (Singular or

Plural), Gender (Male, female or neutral), and finally Case as

subjective or nominative case, objective or accusative case and

genitive or possessive case.

3 Pronouns that are subjective can only function as subject of a sentence i.e.

I, We, They and He while pronouns that are objective can only function at the

object position of a sentence that is after the main verb i.e. us, them, me while

genitive or possessive pronouns can only show possession in English i.e. our, his

their, mine.

References

Ahmed, S.B. et al., (1999). Essential English for school certificate, Ibadan:

Spectrum

Crystal, D., (1995). A First dictionary of linguistics and phonetics London: Andre

Deutch.

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Halliday, M.A.K. (1985) Introduction to Functional Grammar. London: Edward

Arnold.

Huddleston, R., (1996). English grammar –An online. Cambridge: CUP.

Leech, G. & Svartvik, J. (2012). A communicative grammar, Oxford OUP.

Ogungbe and Bossan (2008) Communication in English a Complete Guide for

Undergraduates. Star Link Communication,

Plateau State, Nigeria.

Quirk, R.S. Greenbaum, Leech, G. and Svartrik J. (1985) A Comprehensive

Grammar of the English Language. Longman, New
York, U.S.A
Quirk, R. and Greenbaum, S. (1999) A Student’s Grammar of the English

Language.England: Pearson Education Ltd.

Qurk, R. & Greenbaum S., (2006). A University grammar of English, Indiana:

Darling Kindsley.

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