EDU 2303 Assessment 2

Error Analysis
 How Children Acquire L2? The Importance of the Context

A second language learner is different from a very young child acquiring first
language. This is true in terms of both the learner's characteristics and the
environments in which first and second language acquisition typically occur. Think
about how the characteristics and learning conditions of the following learners may
differ:
1) a young child learning a first language
2) a child learning a second language in day care or on the playground
3) adolescents taking a foreign language class in their own country
4) an adult immigrant with limited or disrupted education working in a second
language environment and having no opportunity to go to language classes.
(Lightbown & Spada, 2006)
 Error Analysis

• “A procedure used by both researchers and teachers which involves

collecting samples of learner language, identifying errors, classifying
them according to their nature and causes, and evaluating their
seriousness.”

(Keshavarz, 2012)
 The Causes/Sources of Errors
• Interlingual and Intralingual are the two main sources of errors. Interlingual
caused by first language and Intralingual caused by the second language.
• Explanation of the Sources of Errors Richards (1971a), following Corder'
classification (1967), distinguishes three types of errors with respect to their
sources:
1. Interlingual errors
2. Intralingual and development errors
3. Errors which are caused by faulty teaching techniques and also called
transfer of training errors.
4. Communicative strategies involved
5. Guessing Errors
(Keshavarz, 2012)
(Abed, 2018)
 Mistake

Caused by:
• Slips of the tongue
• Tiredness
• Nervousness
• Lack of concentration

(Keshavarz, 2012)
 A distinction has been made between errors and mistakes

• Error: Systematic, governed by rules, and appear because of learner's knowledge of

the rules of the target language is incomplete. Systematic errors happen with there is
a lack of knowledge about the second language rules. They're not recognized by
the second language learners, because they are in the learning stage and they make
those errors because of their lack of knowledge about what they are learning. ONLY
teachers (and researchers) can identify them and offer help to improve them.
• Mistake: occurs when learners fail to perform their competence, random deviations,
unrelated to any system, and instead representing the same types of performance
mistakes that might occur in the speech or writing of native speakers.

(Keshavarz, 2012)
(Abed, 2018)
(Ferrer, 2018)
 Error Types

• Receptive (Heard) errors - result in the listener misunderstanding the

speaker's intentions

• Productive (Spoken) errors - occur in the language learner's utterances

(Keshavarz, 2012)
 Receptive & Productive
• Keshavarz (2012:590f) states that competence in a language is of two kinds: receptive and
productive. These two competences "do not develop at the same rate". Errors can also be
classified as receptive and productive.
• Receptive errors are those which result in listener's misunderstanding of the speaker's
intentions, and productive errors are those which occur in the language learner's
utterances. It is easier to analyze productive errors than receptive ones. Analysis of
productive errors is based on learners' utterances , but to investigate receptive errors one
needs to look at people's reactions to orders, requests, compliments, and the like. To quote
Corder's example:
• A: What's your name?
• B: I am twelve.
• He states that B's reply is not a matter of misunderstanding the question, but rather a way
of refusing to give his/her name. So, it is somehow related to the B's intentions.

(Abed, 2018)
 Intralingual

• Caused by the second language learner.

• Process-based classification of errors means the processes through which
language earners make errors. Four main processes have been cited in
the literature (Brown,2000:288-290), the four errors types are:
• Subsitution
• Permutation
• Omission
• Addition
(Keshavarz, 2012)
(Abed, 2018)
 Classification of Errors
1- Omission: leaving out some required linguistic elements (an item left out)
•My father is* doctor.
•* Am tired.
•I am learn English well.
•I bought three book yesterday.

2- Addition: redundant use of certain elements in a sentence (adding an item incorrectly)

•They always discuss *about different matters.
•Please answer *to my letter soon.
•After class I go *to home when I saw him.

(Keshavarz, 2012)
(Abed, 2018)
 Classification of Errors

3- Substitution: replacement of incorrect elements for correct ones (replacement)

• I always *do many mistakes in spelling

4- Permutation: incorrect word order

• We *last night went to the cinema
• My brother is a driver *careful
• I don't kno why is he late.
(Keshavarz, 2012)
(Abed, 2018)
 Procedures to correct the errors
• Holley and King (1971, cited in Hendrickson, ibidem.) suggest that
teachers should not use the methods which make learners feel
embarrassed or frustrated. Therefore, teachers should be more
sensitive about how to respond to learner errors.
• As Allwright has a variety of options, Long (1977, in Allwright and
Bailey, 1994: ibidem) also notes that teachers have three choices in
deciding what to do when they find the error:
• To inform the learner that an error has been made
• To inform the learner of the location of the error
• To inform the learner of the identity of the error

("The Treatment Of Errors In The Classroom English Language Essay", 2018)

 Procedures to correct the errors
• There are many types of errors and according to Slimani (1992, in Panova
2002: 582), teachers often use seven types of feedback (or error correction
techniques) when correcting errors that occur in the language classroom.
They are: recast, translation, clarification request, metalinguistic feedback,
elicitation, explicit correction and repetition. As Slimani mentioned (ibidem) a
recast is an implicit corrective feedback that reformulates a wrong or
incomplete utterance. Translation (from the teacher) that can be seen in
many cases when students don’t know how to say a definite utterance.

("The Treatment Of Errors In The Classroom English Language Essay", 2018)

 The procedure I followed to get the data:

• Collect data
• Identify errors
• Classify the errors
• Quantify errors
• Analyze source / cause

(Keshavarz, 2012)
 The 3 Students:

• 29 students
• KG2/5
• XXXXx Kindergarten
• They're all from United Arab Emirates
• Second language learners
 Second Language Acquisition
• I believe that my students are in the second stage which is "Early
Production."
• This stage may last about six months, during which language learners
typically acquire an understanding of up to 1,000 words. They may also
learn to speak some words and begin forming short phrases, even though
they may not be grammatically correct.
("5 Stages of Second Language Acquisition", 2018)
• Here are some suggestions for working with students in this stage of
English language learning:
• Ask yes/no and either/or questions.
• Accept one or two word responses.
• Build vocabulary using pictures
(Haynes, 2018)
XXXXXXXXX
Video

https://youtu.be/UxMJ
LuIN0U4
 XXXXXXXXXXX
• She’s 4 years old. Lovely, talkative and she sticks around me a lot. Her
friends in class are Hessa, Nawal and Jourie. She has turtles at her home,
and she likes them. Her favorite color is pink. Her favorite cartoon is Tom
and Jerry - Frozen. In house she enjoys spending her time playing with her
siblings and playing with her dolls. "Receptive errors are those which result
in listener's misunderstanding of the speaker's intentions, and productive
errors are those which occur in the language learner's utterances." I talk
with her in English to help her in developing her knowledge, she knows
some few words in English but she doesn't understand. I always try to
translate to her to help her improve. "Knowledge of other languages can
lead learners to make incorrect guesses about how the second language
works, and this may result in errors that first language learners would not
make.“
(Abed, 2018)
(Lightbown & Spada, 2006)
Receptive and Productive Error

https://youtu.be/UxMJLuIN
0U4
She writes her name, numbers and alphabets in backwards
 Writing Videos

https://youtu.be/Q-
https://youtu.be/7DJSJviwPew https://youtu.be/yGvkFrWZlcg
CQ3FH44Nw
Speaking Video

https://youtu.be/Ei3FYI6cA7I
 Evaluation
• Reversing letters means your child writes certain letters (or numbers) backwards or upside down. This is
sometimes referred to as “mirror writing.” (They all write their names in backwards, the error occurred because
the child is learning to write in two languages at the same time, which is Arabic from the right and English from
the left so they get confused from where to start, so the teacher must guide them and tell them where to start
to help them in writing well) (some kids have a related problem that can impact how they do in math. These
kids transpose numbers. Instead of writing 32, they’ll write 23. That throws off their computation and results in
wrong answers.)
• Misordering: transposing letters, which means switching the order of letters. When the child doesn't write the
letters in the right order to make a right word (doesn't know the right sequence), order of numbers or
alphabets...
• Receptive errors are those which result in listener's misunderstanding of the speaker's intentions, and
productive errors are those which occur in the language learner's utterances. It is easier to analyze productive
errors than receptive ones. The student reply is not a matter of misunderstanding the question, but rather
a way of refusing to answer. So, it is somehow related to the student's intentions. (because they try to answer
me, but since they don't understand me they rather reply back to me saying anything rather than staying quite,
I try to translate for them to teach them new words/vocabs and improve from their language)
(Abed, 2018)
(Babbin & Ed., 2018)
(Kelly, 2018)
They all write in backwards
 Strategies that can be used for each of the three students

• Translation
• Guide where to start
• Tell them what to write next
• To help them in improving and learning
 References
• 5 Stages of Second Language Acquisition. (2018). Retrieved from https://education.cu-
portland.edu/blog/classroom-resources/five-stages-of-second-language-acquisition/
• Abed. (2018). Error analysis revised. Retrieved from https://www.slideshare.net/ahmedqadoury/error-analysis-
revised?next_slideshow=1
• Babbin, E., & Ed., M. (2018). My Son Writes Numbers Backwards. Why Is That, and How Can I Help?. Retrieved
from https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/visual-processing-
issues/my-son-writes-numbers-backwards-why-is-that-and-how-can-i-help
• Clay, Marie. (1993). Reading Recovery: A Guidebook for Teachers in Training. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann
• Ferrer, M. (2018). Learner errors and error analysis. Retrieved from
https://www.slideshare.net/MelissaFerrer/learner-errors-and-error-analysis?related=1
• Haynes, J. (2018). Stages of Second Language Acquisition. Retrieved from
http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/language_stages.php
• Kelly, K. (2018). FAQs About Reversing Letters, Writing Letters Backwards and Dyslexia. Retrieved from
https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/dyslexia/faqs-about-reversing-
letters-writing-letters-backwards-and-dyslexia
• Keshavarz, M. (2012).Contrastive Analysis and Error Analysis,(2nd ed.). Tehran: Rahamana Press
• Lightbown, P., & Spada, N. (2006). How Languages are Learned.. Don Mills: Oxford University Press.
• The Treatment Of Errors In The Classroom English Language Essay. (2018). Retrieved from
https://www.ukessays.com/essays/english-language/the-treatment-of-errors-in-the-classroom-english-language-
essay.php