Yes, I would think that like most nonnative speakers of the English language, Filipinos are generally grammar-conscious. This shouldn’t be taken to mean, though, that we speak or write English in a grammatically better way than native English speakers. It only means that as learners of English as a second or third language, we take greater pains than native English speakers in making our speech or writing grammatically, structurally, and syntactically correct. We are more careful and circumspect with our word choices. We avoid contractions. We tend to structure and stretch out our sentences along formal rather than informal lines, sometimes to the point of being obtuse or stuffy. And for the simple reason that we don’t know a lot of the English idioms and figures of speech, we tend to be literal and straitlaced—and uncolorful if not humdrum—in expressing our ideas. In short, we are grammar-conscious with our English because we don’t have the confidence to play or trifle with the language the way the native English speaker can. Of course, by dint of continuing study and practice with our spoken and written English, we can make ourselves more and more at home with English to the point of being spontaneous with it. Once we become capable of directly thinking in English (instead of translating our thoughts from our native tongue to English), we will surely be no longer grammar-conscious in expressing ourselves in English.
