I'm helping someone learn English (second language), and I'm having trouble explaining when to use the and when not to. For example:
Students learn better when teachers are passionate about teaching.
versus
The students learn better when the teachers are passionate about teaching.
There's a subtle difference. The first one is a general statement, whereas the second might imply a study where a group of students learned better than another.
Is the difference simply that, general v. specific?
Is the difference simply that, general v. specific?
No, but it is the starting point for teaching English as a foreign language.
I suggest starting out with only general vs. specific usage, and then adding other rules bit by bit (giving precedence to those most used):
The point is to avoid drowning the learner in rules, thus only giving more rules when the previous are understood and assimilated. I recommend getting a list of rules from a good grammar book and choosing the ones more relevant for the learner's level.
Omitting article “the” in front of plural nouns
It seems I missed the 'question' in the title and answered only the last one.
'The' isn't used with plurals when that plural implies a general reference, only when that plural implies a specific group.
So...
Students learn better when teachers are passionate about teaching.
is the equivalent to: "Any student learns better when any teacher is passionate about teaching."
Whereas...
The students learn better when the teachers are passionate about teaching.
implies that you're not talking about students in general but a particular group, for example those who study in a certain school or at a certain level; and the same goes for the teachers: you don't mean teachers in general.
Conclusion: Without a context that clarifies whether the sentence relates to a specific group of students/teachers, the first sentence (zero article) is preferred.
Yes, you are right that the difference between your two example sentences is simply one of generality vs. specificity. And this is a useful rule for a beginner to know when using plural nouns.
Of course, it is not completely straightforward: the learner has to decide whether to use a singular or plural noun in the first place. Furthermore, it is not always obvious whether the group of things being referred to is the full set or a specific subset. And later the learner will find out that the definite article is used in front of adjectival nouns representing the full set (the rich, the unemployed, etc.) and often in front of nation groups (the British are always taking about the weather; (the) Germans are reputed to have no sense of humour).
Nevertheless, while the choice of the correct article (or none) for singular nouns is complex, this rule about plural nouns is simple and worth learning.
