The Acquisition of English Relative Clauses

English relative clauses (RCs) present a major obstacle for Iranian learners trying to improve their communicative skills in English. Not only is the English RC structurally different from its Iranian counterpart, there is also a large number of RC types the Iranian learner must deal with. In order to prepare effective lesson plans that help Iranian learners overcome the difficulties involved in acquiring English RCs, teachers need to beaware of what the structural differences are, what tendencies Iranian learners have in acquiring the RC grammatical feature, and what options are available for teaching. This first paper of a two-part series examines specific structural differences between English and Iranian RCs, summarizes research that has been done on Iranian learners acquisition and production of English RCs, and proposes that consciousness-raising (CR) and noticing activities provide the most effective classroom instruction for Iranian learners at the university level. An explanation of the rationale behind the use of CR activities and why they are suitable for Iranian learners is also included.

Keywords:

relative clauses , acquisition , production , structural differences