SKKN Typical forms of reduced relative clauses and types of applied exercises in english at the upper-Secondary level of education

“Typical Forms of Reduced Relative Clauses and Types of Applied Exercises in English at the Upper-secondary Level of Education”
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PART I: INTRODUCTION
I. Rationale for selecting the topic of the study:
A clause, in English grammar, is the smallest grammatical unit that can express a complete proposition. Generally, a simple sentence consists of a single clause while a more complex sentence may contain multiple clauses. Clauses in English are divided into two major types, main clauses and subordinate ones. As it can be seen, there are a variety of subordinate clauses. Among these subordinate clauses are adjective clauses, also called relative clauses. The module of Relative Clauses is an important content constantly appearing in a number of units in the English textbooks in upper-secondary education. One of the most important part related to this content is probably the very diversity of forms of reduced relative clauses which is considered as the most confusing to learners. 
A variety of forms of reduced relative clauses, in fact, are frequently used in everyday communications, in written English, as well as tested in students’ tests and examinations. With my own practical teaching in the recent years, I notice that in order to avoid misunderstanding others in communications and getting into big troubles in tests and examinations related to the phenomena of relative clause reduction, students are required to have a thorough knowledge of all the aspects of the relative clauses such as relative pronouns and adverbs, different types of relative clauses, distinctive features of each type that are important determinants of the way how a relative clause is reduced, ...etc. Although much attention has recently been paid to learning English, Mai Anh Tuan high school students’ knowledge of English, in general, is rather limited, even some of them have a lack of the basic knowledge. Thus, studying the reduction of relative clauses and solving exercises or questions related to this grammatical knowledge seem to be a big challenge that may make the students extremely confused and nervous. Moreover, the English textbooks at high school only introduce the topics without any detailed explanation or instruction, it is undoubtedly difficult for students to study, understand clearly and thoroughly, and memorize the lessons just by mechanically following some examples given in the textbook. What is more, in the textbooks, applied exercises focus on only some basic forms of reduced relative clauses while there is actually a wide range of other forms also commonly used. It will be better if students do know and use them correctly and flexibly. 
The facts mentioned above have constantly encouraged me to find out a solution to better the situation, which leads to my decision to select the topic “Typical Forms of Reduced Relative Clauses and Types of Applied Exercises in English at the Upper-secondary Level of Education” to study more thoroughly in my teaching experience initiative.
II. Purposes of the study:
 	This study has been conducted with a strong desire that I can help my students be aware of the importance of forms of reduced relative clauses in everyday communications, in written English, as well as in their tests and examinations. On that basis, they will gradually be able to raise their awareness of practicing and improving their skills in solving relevant exercises and questions. Besides, I would like to provide the students with a detailed and logical system of adequate theoretical contents and typical skills related to this topic for them to learn, use and apply in practice rapidly and productively. Furthermore, through this experience initiative, I hope to contribute some of my personal ideas on issues of forms of reduced relative clauses to teaching experience sources for my teacher colleagues to use as a reference in the English teaching process.
III. Objects of the study:
	In this teaching experience initiative, researching a system of theoretical points and practical skills related to forms of reduced relative clauses, and supplementary exercises based on these points and skills for further practice has been specially focused on.
IV. Scope of the study:
	The topic was studied in the English programme for high school students at Mai Anh Tuan High School in the school-year 2015-2016, and through English tests, examinations of all kinds at Mai Anh Tuan High School and other schools in Thanh Hoa province as well as other provinces all over the country in the recent years. 
V. Bases of the study:
	The experience initiative has been studied based on my own practical teaching experiences, referring to documents related to the researched topic, observing other teachers’ lessons, and consulting my colleagues.
 PART II: DEVELOPMENT
	To use typical forms reduced relative clauses correctly and flexibly, firstly, it is necessary for students to understand what a relative clause is, what type of relative clauses it is, what distinctive features each type of relative clauses has, and how to use relative pronouns and adverbs.
A. Relative Clauses Overview:
I. Relative Clause Definition: 
	A relative clause, also known as an adjective clause, is a subordinate clause that generally modifies a noun or noun phrase and is introduced by a relative pronoun (who, whom, which, that, whose), a relative adverb (when, where, why), or a zero relative pronoun (a relative in which the relative is omitted).
 	A relative clause follows the noun (phrase) it modifies, and can come both at the end and in the middle of the sentence, and often follows one of these common patterns:
 1. Relative pronoun/adverb + Subject + Verb + 
 2. Relative pronoun (as subject) + Verb +
Ex: 	 This is the man who lives near my house. 	(extracted from Oxford.edu.vn)
 Here is the laptop (which) I bought 2 years ago. 	(extracted from Oxford.edu.vn)
 II. Types of relative clauses: 
	Relative clauses are classified depending on their relationship with the nouns or noun phrases they modify. They are traditionally divided into two types: defining relative clauses and non-defining relative clauses.
1. Defining relative clauses:
 A defining relative clause is a subordinate one that identifies or categorizes its noun (phrase). That means it tells us about the specific person or thing we are talking about in a larger group of people or things. If a defining relative clause is removed from the sentence, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly. This clause is not separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma or commas. In a defining relative clause, a relative pronoun functioning as an object can be omitted if it does not come right after a preposition.	
 Ex:	The doctor who helped me while I was in sick was very kind.	
 	The girl (that) I met in Paris has already been engaged.
2. Non-defining relative clauses:
	A non-defining relative clause a subordinate clause that is used to give additional information about the noun or noun phrase but not to identify it or to create categories. That means it provide us with more information about the person or thing we are talking about. If a non-defining relative clause is removed from the sentence, we lose some details, but the overall meaning of the sentence remains the same.
	Non-defining relative clauses are always set off from the rest of the sentence by a comma or commas. In non-defining relative clauses, a relative pronoun functioning as an object cannot be omitted.
	Non-defining relative clauses often follow such antecedents as below: 
a. proper nouns:
 	 Ex:	Mrs. Beckett, who is a detective, is working for NYPD.
b. nouns or noun phrases modified by possessive adjectives: my, your, her, his,
 	 Ex:	My mother, who is a farmer, has lived on her farm for all her life.
c. nouns or noun phrases modified by demonstrative adjectives: this, that, these those.
 	Ex:	That film star, whom I met at the news conference, has just won a big
 cinema prize.
d. nouns or noun phrases modified by possessive cases.
 	Ex:	Mary’s cat, which she loves very much, is very clever and lovely.
e. nouns or noun phrases modified by adjective phrases.
 	 Ex:	The woman in white, who came to meet you, is my aunt.
III. Common Relative Pronouns and Adverbs Overview:
Relative Pronouns & Adverbs
Antecedent modified
Functions
Prepositions
Types of Relative Clauses
applicable
Who
Person/People
Subject
cannot come before “who”
Defining and 
Non-defining 
Object (informal)
Whom
Person/People
Object
can come before “whom”
Defining and
Non-defining 
Which
Thing(s)
Subject
cannot come before “which”
Defining and 
Non-defining 
Object
can come before “which”
That
Person/People and thing(s)
Subject
cannot come before “that”
Defining
Object
Whose
Person/People and things
Replacing possessive adjectives/cases
can come before “whose”
Defining and 
Non-defining 
When
Time
Replacing adverbs of time
cannot come before “when”
Defining and 
Non-defining
Where
Place(s)
Replacing adverbs of place
cannot come before “where”
Defining and 
Non-defining 
Why
Reason(s)
Replacing the phrase “for the reason(s)”
cannot come before “why”
Defining 
B. Typical Forms of Relative Clauses: 	
Generally, relative clauses are widely used in both spoken and written English to make sentences become clear in meaning and easy to understand. Relative clauses can be spoken or written in the reduced forms. However, not all relative clauses can be reduced. The reduction of relative clauses can only be applied to subject relative clauses not object relative clauses. A subjective relative clause is a relative clause with the relative pronoun serving the function of the subject. Although it is not possible to omit the relative pronoun in the subject relative clauses, we can, if we want, omit an even larger piece of the relative clause and still retain a grammatically acceptable sentence. In fact, there are a variety of ways to reduce the subject relative clauses. Below are typical forms of relative clauses, and necessary steps to practise the reduction effectively and accurately in certain situations. 
I. Reduced relative clauses in the form of nouns or noun phrases: 	
When a non-defining relative clause is in the form that follows, it can be reduced to a noun or noun phrase.
who/which + be/ linking V + N(Phr) = N(Phr)
Practical steps of reduction:
Step 1: Identify the relative clause starting with a relative pronoun “who/which”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be” or the linking verb from the relative clause. 
Ex:	Full Sentence: Lee Davis, who is a business teacher, wrote this book. 
Step 1: The relative clause is “who is a business teacher”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun-“who is a business teacher” 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be”-“is a business teacher” 
Reduced Sentence:	Lee Davis, a business teacher, wrote this book.
II. Reduced relative clauses in the form of preposition phrases: 	
A relative clause in the form that follows can be reduced to a preposition phrase.
 who/which/that + be + Prep.Phr = Prep.Phr
Practical steps of reduction:
Step 1: Identify the relative clause starting with a relative pronoun “who/which/that”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which/that” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be” from the relative clause. 
Ex:	Full Sentence:	 Please pass me the document that is on the desk. 
Step 1: The relative clause is “that is on the desk”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun-“that is on the desk”. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be”-“is on the desk”. 
Reduced Sentence:	Please pass me the document on the desk.
III. Reduced relative clauses in the form of adjectives or adjective phrases: 	
Reducing a relative clause to an adjective (phrase) is quite confusing because it is rather complicated and depends on a number of certain factors. Here are some typical forms of reduction commonly used. 
Form 1: A reduced relative clause in the form of an adjective (phrase), standing
 right after its antecedent. 
A relative clause reduced to an adjective (phrase), standing right after its antecedent if: 
1. its antecedent is an infinite pronoun: something, someone, anyone,
2. its antecedent is a proper noun: Sue, David, James 
3. it is a non-definite relative clause with at least two adjectives. 
4. it is a relative clause with the adjective phrase that is in a complicated form (containing a noun/noun phrase...), or modifies the be verb in the negative form.
 who/which/that + be + Adj (Phr)  =  Adj (Phr) 
Practical steps of reduction:
Step 1: Identify the relative clause starting with a relative pronoun “who/which/that”,
 paying attention to its antecedent, the type of this clause, and the form of the 
 adjective phrase. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which/that” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be” from the relative clause. 
Ex:	Full Sentences: 1. I know there is something that is wrong with you. 
2. My grandmother, who is old and sick, never goes out of the house. 
	3. Small distinctions among stamps, which are unimportant to the
 average person, would mean a great deal to the stamp collector. 
Step 1: The relative clause: 
1. “that is wrong with you”, after the antecedent “something”. 
2. “who is old and sick”, there are two adjectives “old and sick”.
3. “which are unimportant to the average person”, the adjective phrase contains a 
 noun phrase “the average person”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun: 1. “that is wrong with you” 
 2. “who is old and sick” 
 	3. “which are unimportant to the average person” 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be”: 	 1. “is wrong with you” 
 2. “is old and sick” 
 	 3. “are unimportant to the average person” 
Reduced Sentences:	1. I know there is something wrong with you. 	
2. My grandmother, old and sick, never goes out of the house. 	
3. Small distinctions among stamps, unimportant to the average
 person, would mean a great deal to the stamp collector. 
Form 2: A reduced relative clause in the form of an adjective (phrase), standing
 right before the noun it modifies. 
A relative clause reduced to an adjective (phrase), standing right before the noun it modifies if it is a non-defining relative clause with only one single adjective, or a defining relative clause with one or more than one single adjectives. 
N(,) + who/which/that + be + Adj (Phr) =  Adj (Phr) + N
Practical steps of reduction: 
Step 1: Identify the subjective relative clause starting with a relative pronoun 
 “who/which/that”, paying attention to whether the relative clause is defining or 
 non-defining, and has one or more than one single adjectives. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which/that” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be” from the relative clause. 
Step 4: Place the adjective or adjective phrase before the noun it modifies. 
Ex:	Full Sentences: 
1. That lady, who is old, is living in a nursing home. 
2. Jane has just bought a pair of glasses which is beautiful and fashionable. 
Step 1: The relative clause is: 
1. “who is old”, a non-definite relative clause with one single adjective “old”. 
2. “which is beautiful and fashionable”, a definite relative clause with more than 
 one single adjectives “beautiful and fashionable”. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun: 	1. “who is old” 
2. “which is beautiful and fashionable” 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be”: 	1. “is old” 
2. “is beautiful and fashionable” 
Step 4: Place the adjective or adjective phrase before the noun it modifies. 	
1. old lady 	
2. beautiful and fashionable glasses 
Reduced Sentences:	1. That old lady is living in a nursing home. 
2. Jane has just bought a pair of beautiful and fashionable glasses. 
IV. Reduced relative clauses in the form of compound adjectives: 	
Sometimes, learners do not pay much attention to this type of reduction, however, it is very common in both spoken and written English that a relative clause can be reduced to a compound adjective and placed in front of the antecedent noun. 
N1 (,) + who/which/that + be/have/last/ + Cardinal + N2
= Cardinal-N2(sing) + N1
Practical steps of reduction:
Step 1: Identify the relative clause starting with a relative pronoun “who/which/that”,
 and containing a phrase formed from a cardinal and a noun. 
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which/that” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “be/have/last/” from the relative clause.
Step 4: Form the compound adjective from a cardinal and a noun in the relative clause 
 by placing a hyphen between them, the noun must be in the singular form. 
Step 5: Place the compound adjective in front of the antecedent noun.
Ex:	Full Sentence:	 They have a house which has five rooms. 
Step 1: The relative clause is “which has twenty rooms”.
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun-“which has five rooms”.
Step 3: Leave out the verb-“has five rooms”.
Step 4: Form the compound adjective-“ five-room”.
Step 5: Place the compound adjective before the antecedent noun-“ five-room house”.
Reduced Sentence:	They have a five-room house.
V. Reduced relative clauses in the form of paraphrases: 	
It is also common in English that a reduced relative clause can be in the form of a paraphrase, a statement that expresses something that somebody has written or said using different words, especially in order to make it easier to understand. When the verb “have” meaning possession, we can omit relative pronoun and “have” and use with(+) or without(-).
 who/which/that + have(+/-) + N(Phr) = with/ without + N(Phr)
Practical steps of reduction:
Step 1: Identify the relative clause in the form 
 “who/which/that + have(+/-) + N(Phr)”
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun “who/which/that” from the relative clause. 
Step 3: Leave out the verb “have(+/-)” from the relative clause.
Step 4: Use “with/without” in front of the noun/noun phrase of the relative clause.
 “With” is used for the affirmative form of the verb “have”, and “without” for
 the negative.
Ex:	Full Sentences:	1. The man likes bikes which has new wheels and tires. 
	2. He puts new tires on bikes which don’t have good tires.
Step 1: The relative clause is:	1. “which has new wheels and tires”
2. “which don’t have good tires”
Step 2: Leave out the relative pronoun:	1. “which has new wheels and tires”
2. “which don’t have good tires”
Step 3: Leave out the verb “have(+/-)”:	1. “has new wheels and tires”.
2. “don’t have good tires”
Step 4: Use “with/without” in front of the noun/noun phrase where it is suitable.
1. with new wheels and tires (affirmative)
	2. without good tires (negative)
Reduced Sentences:	1. The man likes bikes with new wheels and tires. 
	2. He puts new tires on bikes without good tires.
VI. Reduced relative clauses in the form of infinitive phrases: 	
This form of reduced relative clause is very familiar to learners due to its frequent appearance, however, mistakes are unavoidable because they fail to recognize the major factors related to and only applicable to this form. 
Relative clauses can be changed to infinitive phrases when they follow the antecedents with ordinal numbers, the phrase “the only”, or the superlative. 
An infinitive phrase can be a reduction of a relative clause when this clause express necessity/duties/ purposes/ permission. In this case, the main clause has the verb “have” and the relative clause contains modal verbs such as can, could, must, have to,; or the sentence usually starts with “Here + be”/ “There + be”.
A reduced relative clause can be in the form of either active or passive infinitive phrase, which depends on whether the form its main verb is active or passive.
1. Reduced relative clauses in the form of active infinitive phrases: