Paper Linguistica Corregido Final Final

7/24/2019 Paper Linguistica Corregido Final Final

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UNIVERSIDAD BERNARDO OHIGGINS

FACULTAD DE EDUCACIN

ESCUELA DE IDIOMAS

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE FREQUENCY OF SOME

ERRORS IN THE USE OF AUXILIARIES AND THIRD PERSON

SINGULAR IN A FIRST YEAR ENGLISH TEACHING STUDENT

MISEL ELIZABETH INOSTROZA OJEDA

MAURICIO ANDRS OYARZO GUTIRREZ

Professor: CAROLINA SANTANDER

Santiago, Chile

2015


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Chapter I: Theoretical framework

1.1 Error analysiss definition

During the last decades, errors, from the point of view of English teaching as a

second language, has been seen as a matter of less importance, considering that

methods like audio-lingual or grammar translation prepare the student to achieve a

perfect performance, instead of consider errors as an important data that can

help them to improve their methods and the way they get connected with the reality

of the student.

Pit Corder, on 1967, release the publication The Significance of Learners Errors,

where stated that errors are an important contribution to the teacher, creating a

clear picture of the interference the student has from his mother tongue and/or the

different ways they take to finally get an average linguistic competence. On this

hand, error analysis can be defined as a branch of applied linguistics that is

concerned to study the different types of errors students make and figure out the

causes of them.

This research will study the linguistic competence of an English teaching student,

from first year at Universidad Bernardo OHiggins, considering the statements

given by three different authors regarding this field: Pit Corder, Larry Selinker and

Albert Ellis, identifying, quantifying and analysing the frequency of his errors in

order to state an example of the importance of the consideration of errors on TESL.

1.1.1 Error analysiss definition according to Corder

As it was described above, Pit Corder can be named The father of errors

analysis. It was in his article entitled The significance of Learner Errors (1967)where this kind of analysis took a new turn. Errors used to be flaws that needed to

be eradicated. Systematically analysing errors made by language learners made

him able to determine areas that need reinforcement in teaching.1

1Corder, Pit. The Significance of Learners Errors. November 1967.


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The study of error analysis is significant in three different ways. First, for teacher:

the learners errors could tell him how the individual has progressed and,

consequently what remains to learn. Secondly, for researches: an error provides

evidence of how language is and has been acquired, and what kind of strategies or

procedures the learner is developing while is acquiring a second language. And

finally to the learner himself: It provides process of language teaching and learning,

in other words, error analysis gives us concrete conclusions that draw a picture of

the results of analyses, about how a second language can be more effectively

taught and learned.

!Errors were predicted to be the result of the

persistence of existing mother tongue habits in the

new language!

(Corder, Pit. 1981. 10).

It has to be told that the behaviouristic notion of language learning is that of

formation of correct habits from the reinforcement of the certain plausible response

to stimulus, in the light of which errors were predicted to be the result of the

persistence of existing mother tongue2.

1.1.2 Corders Model (1967-1973)

During the year 1967 to 1973, Corder developed a model that has three stages to

analyse errors, which are describe below:

a) Data Collection: It refers to the recognition of the idiosyncrasy. For this

category, Corder define two stages:

a. To detect and identify errors. This is not simple, since it involves the

context and the interpretation of the sentence/speech.

b. To interpret the real intention (semantic content) of the learner in his

intention to reconstruct the sentence in the target language.

b) Description: Accounting for idiosyncratic dialect.

c) Explanation: The last objective of error analysis.

2Corder, Pit. (1981). Error Analysis and Interlanguage. Oxford University Press.


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1.1.3 Chomsky and Error Analysis

From the early beginning of the process of language learning, errors appears as

part of the process itself, in which any individual test his knowledge until the

correct form is internalized.

The first step to understand the process of second language acquisition in children

-which is very useful for foreign language teachers- is to understand the process of

acquisition of the first language (L1) or mother tongue. In the attempt to explain the

cognitive processes involved in this learning, one of the most influential writers of

the twentieth century linguistics, Noam Chomsky, developed a theory of language

acquisition. This theory has as primary concept the "Universal Grammar", which

state the existence of gaps and internal processes by which children develop the

ability to speak. According to the author, children are born with an innategrammatical system that allows them to acquire a language. This "biological

instinct" is based on a general grammar and unconscious underlying of all

languages, and all individual grammar rules.

Chomsky claims that all languages have similar patterns and that the infants

generate language through their innate universal structures. Therefore, in second

language acquisition, according to this hypothesis, the learner tend to test the

grammatical structures and other patterns use on his mother tongue on the target

language, promoting the progress and improving the learning process.

1.1.4 Corders Errors Classifications (1981)

Corder (1981) created five procedures to analysing errors in general:

I. Collect samples of learner language: Data is collected over a period of time

and compared.

II. Identification of errors: What kind of errors are they? A difference is made

between an error and mistake. An error is where the language learner does

not possess the knowledge of the correct usage. A mistake is where the

language learner possesses the knowledge, but has a lapse in memory.

III. Description of errors: Once the mistakes are eliminated from the errors,

what classification is the error? Is it language level (structural, phonology,


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etc.), general linguistic (passive sentences, etc.) or specific linguistic

elements (nouns, articles, etc.)

IV. Explanation of errors: Why was the error made?

A. Interlingual (between two languages): the error could be interference

from first language to the second language.

B. Intralingual (within the language): the error could be developmental

which shows a gap in knowledge of the rule.

V. Evaluation of errors: How serious are the errors? Does it cause a lack of

understanding?

1.1.5 The importance of errors

Corder, on his article The Significance of Learners Errors expressed his ideasabout the importance of errors. He made a distinction between information that

errors would be helpful for teacher, researchers, and student, among others. Make

errors draw a picture of how a second language is acquired or processed in the

leaner mind and what is the methodology the teacher has to use in order to help

the learner to acquire the language in a successful way.

Corder introduced the distinction between systematic and non-systematic errors.

Unsystematic errors occur in ones native language; Corder calls these "mistakes"

and states that they are not significant to the process of language learning. He

keeps the term "errors" for the systematic ones, which occur in a second

language.

Errors are significant in three ways:

1) To the teachers: They show a students progress.

2) To the researchers: They show how a language is acquired and what

strategies the learners use.

3) To the learners: They can learn from these errors.

Errors help the learner to create his own patterns, taken from his mother tongue,

and errors are evidences that serve to choose effective strategies in order to

achieve a successful learning process.


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1.2 Error analysis according to Selinker (1995)

Learners can build or create a system by themselves, on first and second language

system. This system is called Interlanguage, a term suggested by Selinker.

Interlanguage can be defines as a continuum between the first language and the

target language.

The author omitted the concept error, considering the language used by the

learner as a whole language system. Interlanguage evidences characteristic of two

social dialects: the native language and target language.

When the relevant principles are formulated for a theory of second language, will

be fully justified, even obliged, to present as a hypothesis existence of an

independent linguistic system: on the basis of observable data resulting from

attempts by student production, a rule in the LO.We call "interlanguage" (IL) to thislanguage system (Muoz, 1972. Selinker Liceras.1992: 83-84).

Adopting a psycholinguistic perspective is understood as a system intermediate

between the codes L1 and L2.

Selinker propose the latent structure of the language as it appears in Lennenberg

(1967), to hypothesize the existence of a latent psychological structure. This

structure is active in most of L2 learners every time they try to express meanings,

which have been previously seen in the target language. He also argued that in

this hypothetical latent psychological structure, there is what Weinreich (1953) calls

interlingual identifications: a relevant concept for L2 learning model for adults,

since they constitute a psychological link between the three linguistic systems (L1,

L2, IL).

Selinker rejected the concept of continuous IL and introduces the phenomenon of

fossilization as the most important fact to explain in a theory of second language

learning.

1.2.1 Selinkers model (2008)

Selinker (2008) identified six steps for error analysis:

1. Collect data: Written data and oral data serve as a base.

2. Identify errors: What and where the error is.


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3. Classify the error: Is it an error of agreement or error in irregular verb?

4. Quantify error: How many errors of each type occur?

5. Analyse source: To analyse the source.

6. Remediate: Depending on the frequency of a type of error the pedagogical

intervention is executed.

1.2.2 Interlanguage (1972)

In order to acquire a foreign language, students will undoubtedly encounter many

difficulties, difficulties that will generate errors. But as we have seen, mistakes are

an essential part of this learning process. In the way of appropriation of this,

learners develop their communicational skills by establishing rules that determine

their own linguistic system. Their accuracy will never be exactly as equal as the

performance of a native speaker, and therefore, there will always exist differencesbetween the language spoken by the learners of a foreign language and the actual

target language. These mistakes are originated from the differences that

distinguish each language, and here arises the concept of interlanguage, another

notion closely related to errors and error analysis.

1.3 Error Analysis according to Ellis

This author analyses the mistakes that learners relate to the incorrect usage of

either strategy. Thus, we have the following taxonomy, which depend on where the

errors are in:

a) Learning strategies.

b) Production strategies.

c) Communication strategies.

d) Compensatory strategies.

e) Recuperative strategies

Around the categorization of errors, Ellis generated much controversy, since the

lack of criteria established normalizes the skills that lead each taxonomy, which

can be found in the study of the same area.

In other words Ellis (1994) gave a distinction between errors and mistakes.


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1.3.1 Ellis model for error analysis (1995)

According to Ellis this model (1995) stated a practical advice and clear examples of

how analyse and identify learner errors:

I. Selection of a corpus of language

II. Identification of errors

III. Classification of errors

IV. Analysis and explanation of errors.

1.3.2 The importance of error analysis according to Ellis

The study of errors offers great advantages for improving language pedagogy; Theresults cannot be out of fashion since they evidence those areas of the language

teachers that need to be focus on, such as grammar, lexis, discourse, etc. In other

words, it is by analysing errors that important suggestions for language method

design can be made, involving all the pedagogical areas designed, from syllabus to

materials.3

3Ellis, Rod (2003). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. UK. Oxford University Press.


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Chapter II: Methodological Framework

2.1 Objectives

The general convention about errors is that they play a negative roll in general.

Particularly in language teaching, errors have been consider as a harmful element,

since teachers tend to expect an almost perfect performance from their students.

On the same hand, they have forgotten the important data that errors bring to the

learning process: errors help to create a clear picture of the learner advance, of the

level of his improvement and, as we have seen before on this paper, can even help

the teacher to choose a most effective method in order to achieve a better and

faster progress.In order to demonstrate and evidence the importance of error analysis, this

research will identify, quantify and analyse the errors made by a student of first

year of the English Teaching Program at Universidad Bernardo Ohiggins, on the

attempt to identify how this data can collaborate on the learning process and how

errors can be very useful for the learner to process the information, improve his

performance and finally be able to use effectible a foreign language.

2.2 General Objective

To identify, quantify and analyse the errors made by a student of first year of

English Teaching, specifically the errors made on auxiliaries and the use of third

person singular in present simple tense.

2.3 Specific Objectives

I. Identify errors committed regarding the use of auxiliaries and third person

singular on present simple tense.

II. Quantify these errors in order to identify a frequency.

III. Analyse how this data can collaborate with the learning process.


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2.4 Research Questions

1) How many correct and incorrect verb forms were detected on the learners

oral performance?

2) How many errors, regarding these verb forms, were found?

2.5 Sample description

The individual to be interviewed studies in Bernardo OHiggins University, English

pedagogy, he is in first year, second semester. He has the knowledge to

understand questions in present simple, and also how to give full answer and

create complete sentences, even though using only present simple tense.

The student is 33 years old, he lives in Maip, Santiago and before study in

Universidad Bernardo Ohiggins, he coursed the previous semester in Universidadde Las Amricas.

2.6 Instrument

The instrument to analyse the learner possible errors is an interview compound by

four questions listed above:

1) What do you do in a regular day?

2) Tell me about your daily routine.

3) What does your mother do?

4) Who is your favourite person in the world?

2.7 Procedure

i. The student was selected from the evening program English teaching, first

year at Universidad Bernardo Ohiggins randomly, asking for a volunteer.

ii. He was interview by Mauricio Oyarzo (researcher) according to the question

presented above.

iii. Once the data was collected, it was separated into sentence (one verb per

sentence).

iv. Once the errors were identified, the quantitative results were represented in

graphs.

Chapter III: Data Analysis


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At this point of the research, the data collected will be quantified analysed

according the classification exposed on the Theoretical Framework. As it has been

exposed on Chapter II, even though the learner to be analysed has committed

different kind of errors/mistakes, for the purpose of this research, we will consider

only the errors regarding the use of auxiliaries and third person singular.

4.1 Quantitative analysis of data

After the analysis of the sample, the next results has been found:

Total number of sentences

analysed

Total number of errors

detected

39 20

Table A

As is shown on Table A, over a total of 39 sentences, 20 errors were found. This

total comprehends all the errors detected, which represent the 51% of total

sentences analysed.

As it has been said, this research will focus only on the errors regarding the use of

auxiliaries and third person singular. On this sense, these items compound the

28% of the errors found, as seen on Graphic 1.

Graphic 1.

4.1.1 Errors regarding the use of auxiliaries found on the sample

20%

8%

23%

49%

Errors made in regard to the use of Auxiliariesand Third Person Singular

Auxliary

Third person

Other erros

No error


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analysed

Total number of Auxiliary

errors detected

39 8

Table B

Table B describes the total number of errors detected regarding the use of

auxiliaries, considering a universe of 39 sentences. These represent the 20% of

the sample.

4.1.2 Errors regarding the use of Third Person


analysed

Total number of Third Person

errors detected

39 3Table C

Table C describes the quantity of errors regarding the use of third person singular

on the sample. As it is shown, there were only 3 errors detected, representing the

8% of the total number of sentences.

4.2. Analysis of the quantitative information

Since the porpoise of this research is to analyse the occurrence and frequency of

errors committed for the learner in regard to the use of auxiliaries and third person

singular in present simple tense, some conclusions can be done in order to answer

the research question exposed previously on the Chapter II.

4.2.1 Answers to the research questions

1) The learner is it has been shown above, used a total of 38 verb forms, from

which 20 are errors. These errors sentences represent a 51% of the

complete oral performance.2) From this total number of errors, 28% (11 sentences) are regarded to the

use of auxiliaries and third person singular. There is a clear tendency of the

learner to use wrongly the auxiliary does andthe use of S at the end of the

verbs when he is using third person. There are also some errors made in

regard to auxiliaries, which were confused with others auxiliaries from others


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tenses: She did the reason (instead of was), as well as the confusion of

some vocabulary: She forgotmy mistakes (instead of forgave).


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3) Conclusions

Making errors is part of the natural method humans have to learn language: if

they do it to acquire their mother tongue, they will use the same strategies to learn

a foreign language, and in this hand, teacher must consider it as an intrinsic part of

the process.

Even when the errors are constant and seems to be fossilized, if the main purpose

of the learners is to achieve a successful communicative performance, these

errors did not affect the comprehension of the message. On the other hand,

considering that the sample is a student from the English Teaching Program, these

errors has to be consider as an importance matter of interest, in order to achieve a

higher level of accuracy, and avoid any interferences on the futures process of

learning, since an incorrect internalization of a verbal tenses can impair thelearning of other and/or more complex tenses. This data can helps the teacher to

get a clear picture of the status of the learner, and the class in general.

On this case in particular, as this research has identify some possible

fossilizations, the teacher can encourage the learner to practice on this matter in

particular, improving an correcting the patterns that has been learnt wrongly and

warranting the correct comprehension of others and more complex verbal tenses.

In general, error analysis can contribute to the teacher task in order to look for

effective methodologies and activities that can help to fix and reinforce the errors

detected.

Error analysis, from the point of view of English teaching, plays an important role in

order to supervise and have a correct control of the learning process. Through the

analysis of the students errors, teacher can apply better and more effective

methodologies, achieving a students higher level of competence and making

easier the learning of future subjects.

Since this data helps the teacher to get a picture of the students difficulties during

the process of learning, it has to be said that errors not always plays a harmful roll

in language learning. Through the process of trial and error, the student can also

get a picture of his process, contributing to his own process and also making the

whole process more effective.


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In summary, it can be said that the consideration of errors must be an important

part of the learning process, and even more, errors are part of the process. The

teacher can take advantage of this data in order to collaborate and assist the

learner regarding his particular necessity, as well as the student can achieve a

higher level of linguistic and communicative competence trough the process of trial

and error. Considering that, there is no reason to see errors/mistakes as a negative

factor, but as an important source of information about the process and the

different techniques students create as they are learning a foreign language.


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References

ALEXOPOULOU ANGLICA (2010), La funcin de la interlengua en el

aprendizaje de lenguas extranjeras ,Universidad Nacional y Kapodistraca de

Atenas.

AZEVEDO, M. (1980). The Interlanguage of Advanced Learners: an Error

Analysis of Graduate Students` Spanish en IRAL, 18, pp. 217-227.

CASTILLEJOS LPEZ WILLELMIRA, Error analysis in a learner corpus. What are

the learners strategies?, Universidad Autnoma Chapingo, Mexico

CORDER, PIT. The Significance of Learners Errors. November 1967.Ellis, Rod (2003). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. UK. Oxford

University Press.

CORDER, S. P. (1971): idiosyncratic dialects and error analysis, en richards, j. c.

(1974). 158-171. corder, s. p. (1973): introduccin a la lingstica aplicada.

(versin espaola de 1992). mxico, limusa.

GALINDO MERINO MMAR (2004), Principales modelos de anlisis de datos en

la investigacin sobre adquisicin de segundas lenguas, Dpto. de Filologa

Espaola, Lingstica General y Teora de la Literatura Universidad de Alicante.

KARRA MARIA (2008), Second Language Acquisition: Learners' Errors and Error

Correction in Language Teaching

KEES, D; WANDER, L AND MARJOLIJN, V (2005). Second Language Acquisition.

London and New York: Routledge.

MALDONADO MARTNEZ ROBERTO (2013), anlisis de errores en la

adquisicin/aprendizaje del espaol en estudiantes letones , Mster Universitario

en Formacin de Profesores de Espaol.


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NIAN LIU (2012), Anlisis de errores y evolucin de la interlengua de los

estudiantes sino hablantes: esbozo de un estudio longitudinal longitudinal,

Departamento de Filologa Espaola Facultad de Filosofa y Letras Universidad

Autnoma de Barcelona.

QUIONES ALBA (2008). Anlisis de errores y de actuacin en producciones

escritas de aprendices alemanes de espaol. Estudio lxico-semntico, Tesis

doctoral indita

SELINKER, Interlanguage International Review of Applied Linguistics in

Language Teaching

S. GRAMLEY AND V. GRAMLEY (2008) Bielefeld Introduction to Applied

Linguistics. Bielefeld: Aisthesis.

TAYLOR G., Errors and explanations, Applied Linguistics 7: 144-166, 1986.

ZHANG MENG (1955), Error Analysis and Interlanguage, Associate Professor of

English Education and Head of the Foreign Language Department at Zhengzhou

Teachers College in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, China.


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Appendix

! Interview applied.

! Interview answered by the learner.

! Interview analysis.


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Interview applied






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Interview applied


I work everyday and I come to the university, but I work a lot everyday. The

only day I rest is Wednesday, because I no have classes. On the weekend I

play football and I rest. I study also, but not always I can.


I start at 6 oclock, I take a shower and I eat breakfast and I go to work. I

work to five thirty and after, I go to the university. After the university. I eat

something when Im there, but no always I can. I go to my house when I

finish, I eat and finally I sleep. The next day I do everything again.


She dont have job, she spend the time in the house. She do all the things inthe house, cook, clean, and care my dog.


Not favourite, but I admire my mother, she have patience with me, I am not

best person, but she is very nice with my, she forgot all my mistakes. She all

the time with me, whatever I do, she is with me, she doesnt fail me. Also,

my first teacher, she was the reason why I am studying English, her

advices, her values, were very goods.


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Interview Analysis

!"#$"#%" '(()(

I work everyday no error

and I come to the university no errorbut I work a lot everyday no errorThe only day I rest is Wednesday otherbecause I no have classes auxiliaryOn the weekend I play football otherand I rest no errorI study also no errorbut not always I can otherI start at 6 oclock no errorI take a shower no error

and I eat breakfast otherand I go to work no errorI work to five thirty otherand after I go to the university no error

After the university. I eat something when Im there no errorbut no always I can no errorI go to my house when I finish no errorI eat no errorand finally I sleep no error

The next day I do everything again otherShe dont have job auxiliaryshe spend the time in the house third personShe do all the things in the house auxiliarycook, clean, and care my dog third personNot favourite no errorbut I admire my mother no errorshe have patience with me auxiliaryI am not best person otherbut she very nice with my auxiliary

she forgot all my mistakes otherShe all the time with me auxiliarywhatever I do no errorshe with me auxiliaryshe don't fail me third person

Also, my first teacher no errorshe did the reason auxiliary


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why I am studying English no errorher advices, her values, were very goods other

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