English Education Department UIN Jakarta 2010

Topics of the day:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. History of error analysis identification of errors description of errors sources of errors Pedagogical implications of error analysis

10/16/2010

Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

Significance of Errors
Issues: why learners make the same mistakes? Understanding errors may give hint to understanding second language acquisition. Errors indicate three important aspects of language learning:
1. show what the learner has acquired and what remains to be learned 2. provide information on how language is learned and acquired and what strategies and procedures a language learner is utilizing. 3. serve as a guide to the language learner with respect to hypothesis about the nature of the target language.
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History of error analysis

Errors are inevitable ALL learners make mistakes and commit errors. Until late 60s errors are seen as persistent mother tongue habits in the new target language system. Contrastive Analysis was born under this assumption. Error analysis born in the sixties learner errors were not only because of the learners native language but also they reflected some universal learning strategies
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History continues .
Keshavar (1997) suggested two branches of error analysis: 1. Theoretical
What is going on in language learners minds? Universal language learning process?

2. Applied
Organizing and devising materials and teaching strategies based on the findings of theoretical analysis of errors.
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identification of errors
Errors mistakes 1. Mistakes Mistakes because of lack of attention, fatigue, carelessness, or other aspects of performance can be self-corrected when attention is called. 2. Errors use of linguistic items showing faulty or incomplete learning learner does not know what is correct, thus cannot make self-correction

10/16/2010

Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

identification of errors
Ellis (1997) two ways to distinguish errors and mistake: 1. check the consistency of learners performance:
If he sometimes uses the correct form and sometimes the wrong one, it is a mistake. if he always uses it incorrectly, it is then an error

2. ask learner to try to correct his own deviant utterance.

Where he is unable to, the deviations are errors; where he is successful, they are mistakes.
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Description of Errors
Corder (1973) classifies errors into: 1. Addition of some unnecessary or incorrect element; 2. Omission of some required element; 3. Selection of an incorrect element; and 4. Misordering of the elements.

10/16/2010

Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

Description of Errors
Error vary in magnitude: Global vs local Global errors hinder communication Local errors = minor violation of one segment of a sentence that can still be understood Overt vs covert Overt extent. errors ungrammatical at the sentence level Covert domain . errors grammatically well-formed but not interpretable within the context of communication.
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Source of Errors
Errors were understood as the implication of interference of first language habit to L2 learning. Error analysis sees that the nature of errors implicates the existence of other reasons for errors to occur: (i) interlingual transfer, and (ii) intralingual transfer.

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Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

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1. Interlingual Transfer
Interlingual transfer is a significant source for language learners Error analysis sees errors as signs that the learner is internalizing and investigating the system of the new language Interlingual errors may occur at different levels such as transfer of phonological, morphological, grammatical and lexica-semantic elements of the native language into the target language.
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2. Intralingual Transfer
Ellis (1997) states, some errors seem to be universal, reflecting learners attempts to make the task of learning and using the target language simpler. Intralingual errors result from faulty or partial learning of the target language rather than language transfer.

10/16/2010

Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

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Pedagogical Implications of Error Analysis

Students errors have always been of interest and significance to teachers, syllabus designers and test developers. This may lead educators to devise appropriate materials and effective teaching techniques, and constructing tests suitable for different levels and needs of learners.

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Teguh Khaerudin, MAppLing.

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Implications for Foreign Language Teachers

Errors tell the teacher how far towards the goal the learner has progressed and what remains for him to learn (Corder, 1987). Errors are a means of feedback for the teacher reflecting how effective he is in his teaching style and what changes he has to make to get higher performance from his students. Errors indicate the teacher the points that needs further attention. Errors show the way to be treated when their sources are identified correctly.
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Implications for Syllabus Designers

Errors are significant data as they show what items are important to be included or which items needs to be recycled in the syllabus. Keshavarz (1997) an error-based analysis give reliable results upon which remedial materials can be constructed. It is essential for a syllabus to provide with the needs for learning appropriately and errors are important evidence for that.
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