EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES

ERROR ANALYSIS IN
ENGLISH TEACHING:
A REVIEW OF STUDIES
|oannaHuan, (j,) ".j
Abstracts
Lan,ua,oloarnin,isaciuallyaprocossolirialandorror.inwhichaloarnorlorm a
hypoihosis and laior on provo ii. ahori ii or adjusi ii. 1ho EA siudy. ihoroloro. is io oxamino a
loarnors orrors in a lon,iiudinal way in ordor io siaio iho individual loarnors hypoihosis and
locaio iho pro,ross s/ho is makin,. In iho li,hi ol CA (conirasiivo analysis). wo can prodici
possihlo sourcos ol orrors mado hy Chinoso EIL loarnors: hy analyzin, ihoso orrors. wo ioachors
can ,ain somo insi,his inio luiuro courso dosi,n or iypos ol romodial insiruciion. Also. ihrou,h
propor iroaimoni io iho orrors. wo can mako iho orrors work lor loarnors. raihor ihan lrusiraiin,
ihom.
Key words:Lan,ua,o loarnin, & ioachin,. orror analysis. orror & iroaimoni
Contents
1 Iniroduciion
2 Error in lan,ua,o acquisiiion
3Vhysiudyorrors:
4Vaysolanalysis:CAandEA
5Sourcosolorrors
6SiudiosolorroriyposinChinosoEILloarnors
7Idoniilyin,orrors
81roaimoniolorrors
9Possihloprohloms
10Conclusion
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1. Introduction
Errors or misiakoscommiiiodhysiudonisiniho socond/loroi,n-lan,ua,o classroom had had
a hard iimo uniil curroni viows on ihom hocamo widolyaccopiod. Evon in modorn iimos. orrors
in iho socond-lan,ua,o classroom woro onco harshly hannod. 1ho siruciuralisi (doscripiivo)
lin,uisi iook iho philosophy ihai lan,ua,o was a soi ol mochanisiic hahiis lrom iho hohaviorisi
psycholo,isiandpuiiiiniopraciicoinhisaudio-lin,ualclassroom.whoroorrorsworocarolully
avoidod ri,hi lrom iho vory ho,innin, and hannod lrom ovory loarnin, sia,o. Viih iho
omor,oncooliho,onoraiivo-iranslormaiionalihooryinlin,uisiicsandihoco,niiivomovomoniin
psycholo,y.ihoaiiiiudoiowardsorrorshaschan,odalmosiovorni,hi.Siudonis orrors aro ihus
iroaiod as a surlaco phonomonon and aro somoiimos iho loarnors own sysiom io approximaios
iho roal sysiom ol iho iar,oi lan,ua,o (Chian, 1981: 10). As a maiior ol laci. "corroci"
produciion yiolds liiilo inlormaiion ahoui iho aciual lin,uisiic sysiom ol loarnors. 1hus iho
purposo ol ihis ropori is jusi io analyzo siudonis orrors so ihai wo ioachors can ,ivo somo
comprohonsivo and considoraio loodhack io ihom and ovoniually holp ihom achiovo succosslul
loarnin,.
2. Error in first and second Ianguage acquisition
Lan,ua,oloarnin,isaprocossinwhich.likoloarnin,ioswim.loarnorsproliilrommisiakos
hy ohiainin, loodhack io mako now aiiompis ihai succossivoly approximaio iho dosirod ,oals.
Loarnors orrors can also "provido io iho rosoarchor ovidonco ol how lan,ua,o is loarnod or
acquirod. whai siraio,ios or procoduros iho loarnor is omployin, in iho discovory ol iho
lan,ua,o"(Cordor1967:167).Howovor.somoiimosiholoodhacklromanorrorcanhososiron,ly
no,aiivoihaiiholoarnorwould,ivoupmakin,nowaiiompisandiho loarnin, would ond up in
lailuro.1hisprocossisshowniniholollowin,dia,ram:

,ivoup-->lailuro

iry-->orror-->loodhack-->nowaiiompi-->dosirod,oal

1horoloro. Holloy and Kin, (1974) discuss iho rolo ol corrociion in iho socond-lan,ua,o
classroom.1hoirclaimisihaisiudoniswillho,roailydiscoura,odilcorrociionolorrorsiniho
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
classroom is unduly dono. as whon iho insirucior insisis upon sirici ,rammaiical accuracy and
whonhoolionovorcorrocis. 1hoy also proposo a classroom approach io and somo ,uidolinos lor
iho corrociion ol siudoni orrors in class.
Iurin,iho irialandorror procoss. iho rulos ihai a loarnor lormulaios aro provod corroci il
iho lorm ho producos is accopiahlo in iho iar,oi lan,ua,o. hui nood io ho rovisod il iho lorm is
unaccopiahlo. 1ho laiior appoars as an orror in his spooch. Il wo apply ihis iniorproiaiion ol iho
loarnin, procoss io socond lan,ua,o loarnin,. wo lind ihai ihoro is ono suhsianiial dilloronco
lorm iho lirsi lan,ua,o loarnin, siiuaiion. 1ho child loarnin, his lirsi lan,ua,o is oxposod io ono
lan,ua,o only and can mako his hypoihosos ahoui iho rulo siruciuro on iho hasis ol ihai lan,ua,o
and whaiovor innaio noiions ol lan,ua,o ho may havo. Vhon a loarnor is lacod wiih iho iask ol
acquirin, a socond lan,ua,o. ho also has io aiiompi io osiahlish iho rulos ol iho lan,ua,o. Liko
iho naiivo loarnor ho can uso iho ovidonco providod hy iho iar,oi lan,ua,o iisoll. and ihis will
load io orrors ol porlormanco which may ho vory liko ihoso mado hy iho moihorion,uo loarnor.
Bui. unliko iho lirsi lan,ua,o loarnor. ho also has an aliornaiivo sourco ol hypoihosos. His
,rammarlormin,mochanismhasalroadymasiorodihorulosolonolan,ua,o.andwhaiiiknows
ahouiihosiruciuroolihailan,ua,oisroadilyavailahloioassisiiniholormulaiionolhypoihosos
ahoui iho siruciuro ol iho socond lan,ua,o. 1ho individuals knowlod,o ol his moihorion,uo
hocomos pari ol iho ovidonco io ho considorod in iryin, io doiormino whai iho rulos ol iho now
lan,ua,o aro. In usin, ihis knowlod,o ho may mako orrors which aro iho rosuli ol L1
iniorloronco.
In ihis way. orrors ol hoih L1 and L2 acquisiiion aro soon io ho iho produci ol iho samo
ovorall loarnin, procoss. Vhilo providin, a lramowork wiihin which all iho ovidonco ol orror can
ho discussod. ii doos noi conirihuio io our undorsiandin, ol why iho loarnor hasos his hypoihosos
on iho moihorion,uo ai iimos and on iho iar,oi lan,ua,o ai oihor iimos. ^oihin, liko onou,h
rosoarch has hoon dono inio socond lan,ua,o loarnin, lor us io ho ahlo io undorsiand iho
inioraciion hoiwoon ihoso iwo ways ol applyin, a loarnin, siraio,y (Vilkins 1972:203204).
3. Why study errors?
Cordor(1967)siaiosihousolulnossolorroranalysisinihroorospocis:ioihorosoarchoror
lin,uisi.ioiholan,ua,oioachor.andioiholoarnorhimsoll.Vhiloanalysosolloarnorsorrors
provido insi,his inio iho naiuro ol lan,ua,o. ospocially inio iho innaio naiuro ol iho loarnors
sysiom.ihoyprovidoovonmoroinsi,hisinioihoprocossollan,ua,oioachin,andloarnin,.As
such.concroioconclusionsmayusuallyhodrawnlromihorosulisolihoanalysosro,ardin,how
asocondorloroi,nlan,ua,ocanhomoroollociivolyiau,hiandloarnod.orhowoxisiin,moihods
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ol ioachin, and loarnin, can ho improvod.
In docidin, whai should ho iho lin,uisiic inpui io lan,ua,o ioachin, maiorials. wo should
coriainly oxamino and sook an oxplanaiion lor iho orrors ihai aro iypically mado hy dilloroni
,roups ol loarnors. Irom whai wo havo soon ii is cloar ihai iho oxplanaiions will provo io ho
parily conirasiivo and parily nonconirasiivo hoiwoon L1 and L2. 1ho laci ihai orror may ho
causod hoih hy conirasiivo dilloroncos and hy iho siruciuro ol iho iar,oi lan,ua,o iisoll moans
ihaiiiisimpossihloiohasoihoconioniollan,ua,oioachin,oniirolyonihorosulisolconirasi.
Evoniliiworopossihloiomakowhollyaccuraioprodiciionsolconirasiivodilliculiios.woshould
noihavoprodiciodallihodilliculiiosihaialoarnorlacos.1hosiruciuroolihosocondlan,ua,o
iisollhasioprovidomuch ol iho conioni ol lan,ua,o ioachin,. Ii cannoi ho assumod ihai non
conirasiivo aspocis ol iho lan,ua,o will look alior ihomsolvos. 1his prohahly accounis lor iho
laciihaianyonowhohasiau,hiEn,lishiopupilslromdillorin,lan,ua,ohack,roundshaslound
ihaiihoroaromanyaspocisolihosiruciuroolEn,lishwhicharoalmosiunivorsallydilliculilor
loarnorsolEn,lishasasocondlan,ua,o(Vilkins 1972:204). 1horoloro. orrors aro also usolul
in assossin, ioachin, maiorials. Ior oxamplo. in Chian,s (1981) viow ol iho En,lish
Composiiion courso ol iho ^1^I En,lish Ioparimoni. iho hi,h lroquoncios ol orrors lound in iho
composiiions may indicaio iho insullicioncy lor iho siudonis io masior iho wriiion compononi ol
iho lan,ua,o. 1ho caroororioniod moiivaiion ol iho populaiion ol suhjocishoin,invosii,aiodis
dilloroni lrom ihai ol any oihor populaiion ol En,lish majors on iho oihor campusos. As such.
hoiiorcommandolwriiionEn,lishappoarsmoroimporianiioihomihaniooihorEn,lishmajors
onihooihorcollo,ocampusoswhomayormaynoioniorinioiho1EILprolossion(1981:205).
Chiang's study also states other pedagogical implications:
A. Hakin, uso ol iho hiorarchy ol dilliculiy: Hiorarchios ol dilliculiy aro hasically
osiahlishodiniormsollroquonciosolorrorsoldilloroniclassosandsuhclassos.Iniho
ESL/EIL classroom. much moro honolii can ho dorivod lrom iho rosulis achiovod in
orror analysis. hocauso iho ioachor can havo a cloar idoa ro,ardin, whoro iho main
prohlomsolhissiudonislio.andwhaishouldhoplacodmoroomphasisinioachin,.
B.Hakin,usoolihoconirasiivoohsorvaiions:Isuallyihis(conirasiivoanalysis)isdono
io illusiraio iho possihlo iniorloronco lrom Chinoso io En,lish. and olion iho kind ol
iniorloroncoporiainsiowordordorandloxicalsolociion.Howovor.wiihduoollori.iho
En,lish ioachor mi,hi oasily lind lrom iho vasi corpus ol siudonis produciion ihoso
corrolaiod loaiuros hoiwoon iho iwo lan,ua,os which laciliiaio raihor ihan hindor
loarnin,i.o.. iho posiiivo iranslors. 1his noi only holps iho siudonis hui also mako
oasiorihoiaskolloarnin,.
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
C. 1ho usolulnoss and nood ol romodial pro,rams: Vhon iho rosuli ol orror analysos
showshi,hlroquonciosolorrors. romodial pro,rams ol somo kindaro nocossary.
I. 1ho dovolopmoni ol orrorhasod ioachin, maiorials and syllahusos lor uso in iho
composiiion class: Paiiorns ol orrors can ho huili up inio a classiliod invoniory ol
orrors io,oihor wiih iho mosi rovoalin, oxamplos in iho corpus.
E. Implicaiionslorindividualizodinsiruciion:Asonooliho,onoralirondsin1ESLandin
oducaiion in ,onoral is ioward individualizaiion ol insiruciion. iho orroranalysis
praciico is porhaps ono ol iho mosi ollociivo moans ol undorsiandin, iho
individualiiios ol iho loarnor.
I. Indorsiandin, iho siraio,ios ol iho loarnor: Indorsiandin, siudonis loarnin,
siraio,ios. iho ioachor will ho in a hoiior posiiion io ioach.
C. Implicaiions lor ioachin, moihodolo,y: As ohsorvod. many ol iho composiiion classos
aro hasod on iho solo philosophy ihai "iho moro iho siudonis wriio. iho hoiior ihoy
wriio." Alior iho orror analysis. ihis noods io ho sli,hily modiliod"1ho moro a siudoni
is ,uidod io wriio. iho hoiior ho wriios."
4. Ways of anaIysis: CA and EA
CA (Conirasiivo Analysis)isalsoiormodasCAH(ConirasiivoAnalysisHypoihosis.Brown
1980)orCLA(ConirasiivoLin,uisiicAnalysis.Irios1945).Iiarosolromacriiicalviowoliho
audiolin,ualmoihod.poiniin,ouiihaionlywiihascioniilicanddoiailoddoscripiionolL2can
lan,ua,o ioachin, ho succosslul. Irios sloilillor ,rammar (1952) onahlod a lin,uisi io
accuraiolydoscrihoihoiwolan,ua,os.andioholpiholoarnorovorcomoihodilloroncoshoiwoon
iho iwo. Laior CA was criiicizod as hoin, ioo siron,. ihus arisin, iho woak vorsion ol CA
(Vardhau,h. 1970). providin, an ohsorvaiional usoa doscripiion alior iho laci. 1ho woak
vorsionromainsiodayascrosslin,uisiicinlluonco(CLI).whichconsisisa,roaiparioliholaior
ihooryEA(ErrorAnalysis).EAarosolromihonoodolohjociivosiaiisiicsioprovoihoprovious
hypoihosis (Sawyor. 1965). hy analyzin, iho iosi scoros ol iho siudonis in a ,ivon aroa. Somo
lin,uisis holiovod ihai no maiior how scioniilic iho doscripiion and comparison ol iho iwo
siruciural sysioms may ho. a prodiciion ol loarnin, dilliculiios hasod on ihooroiicallin,uisiic
considoraiionsmaynoisullicoasavalidapproachlorihocharaciorizaiionolihooxaciloarnin,
iasks. Ii was oxpociod ihai hy runnin, an analysis ol iho orror scoros ol iho siudonis. a
quaniiiaiivo hasis would ho providod upon which ono could huild a moro roliahlo moihod ol
prodiciin,loarnin,dilliculiios.orailoasiiiwouldsupplomoniihoconirasiivolin,uisiswork.
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In iho li,hi ol EA ihoory. somo iorms havo hoon coinod io doscriho iho lo,iiimacy ol
loarnors socond lan,ua,o sysioms. Solinkor (1972) usod "iniorlan,ua,o" io doscriho iho
loarnors socond lan,ua,o sysiom ihai has a siruciurally iniormodiaio siaius hoiwoon iho naiivo
and iar,oi lan,ua,os. ^omsors "approximaiivo sysiom" (1971) and Cordors "idiosyncraiic
dialoci"(1971)aroiormsusodindoscrihin,ihosamo,onoralphonomonon.
1homosiohviousapproachioanalyzin,iniorlan,ua,oisiosiudyihospoochandwriiin,ol
loarnors.orwhaihascomoiohocallod"loarnorlan,ua,o"(Li,hihown&Spada1993:C.|amos
1990).Produciionoldaiaisprosumahlyrollociivoolaloarnorsundorlyin,compoionco.
5. Sources of errors
Solinkor (1972) ohsorvos a loarnors "iniorlan,ua,o" and assumos ihai ihoro is a "laioni
psycholo,icalsiruciuro"inihohrainoliholoarnor.whichisaciivaiodwhonhoaiiompisioloarn
asocondlan,ua,o.Solinkoralsodiscussosihoprohlomollossilizaiioniniormsoliholoarnors
naiivolan,ua,o.iniorlan,ua,o.andiar,oilan,ua,o.
In1971.Bichardsciioslourmajoriyposorcausosoliniralin,ual(dovolopmonial)orrors:(1)
ovor,onoralizaiion.(2)i,norancoolrulorosiriciions.(3)incomploioapplicaiionolrulos.and(4)
lalsoconcopishypoihosizod.Laiorinhis1974papor.hoidoniiliossixsourcosolorrors.namoly.
(1) iniorloronco. (2) ovor,onoralizaiion. (3) porlormanco orrors. (4) markors ol iransiiional
compoionco.(5)siraio,iosolcommunicaiionandassimilaiionand(6)ioachorinducodorrors.
BichardsandSampson(1974)advocaioihosiudyolloarnorsapproximaiosysiomsandidoniily
sovonlaciorscharaciorizin,socondlan,ua,oloarnorsysioms.namoly:(1)lan,ua,oiranslor.(2)
iniralin,ual iniorloronco (3) sociolin,uisiic siiuaiion. (4) modaliiy. (5) a,o. (6) succossions ol
approximaiivosysioms.(7)univorsalhiorarchyoldilliculiy.
Schumann and Sionson (1974) in an iniroduciion io ihoir compilaiion siaio ihroo major
roasons lor orrors: (1) incomploio acquisiiion ol iho iar,oi ,rammar. (2) oxi,oncios ol iho
loarnin,/ioachin,siiuaiion.and(3)orrorsduoionormalprohlomsollan,ua,oporlormanco.such
asihodilliculiios.hoihinior andiniralin,ualonos.whicharonormallyoxpociod.
Poliizor and Bamiroz (1973) conduciod a siudy ol orrors mado hy Hoxican Amoricans. and
lound ihai orrors mi,hi rosuli lrom a numhor ol sourcos such as L1 iniorloronco. impropor
applicaiionolrulosolL2.ro,ionaldilloroncos.oic.
5.1 Brown (1980) states four sources of errors:
A.Iniorlin,ual1ranslor
In oarly sia,os. iho naiivo lan,ua,o is iho only provious lin,uisiic sysiom ihai iho
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
loarnorcan drawupon:ihusihoiniorloroncoisinoviiahlo.
B. Iniralin,ual1ranslor
Unco a loarnor has acquirod paris ol iho now sysiom. moro and moro iniralin,ual
iranslor-,onoralizaiion wiihin L2---would occur.
C. Conioxi ol Loarnin,---Bichards (1971) callod "lalso concopis" and Sionson (1974)
callod "inducod orrors." includin,: a) misloadin, oxplanaiion lrom iho ioachor. h)
lauliyprosoniaiionolasiruciuroinaioxihook.c)improporlyconioxiualizodpaiiorn.d)
conlusod vocahulary iioms hocauso ol conii,uous prosoniaiion. o) inappropriaioly
lormallormsollan,ua,o---hookishlan,ua,o.
I.CommunicaiionSiraio,ios
In ordor io ,oi iho mossa,os across. a loarnor may uso somo iochniquos liko word
coina,o.circumlocuiion.lalsoco,naios.andprolahricaiodpaiiorns.whichcan all ho
sourcosolorror.
5.2 Laurell (1987) draws a taxonomy of interlanguage errors:

Grammatical
subsystem
Sample error Description Category
Morphology
Hevas call.
Why didn't you
came to vork
Omission
Addition
Developmental
pastparticiple
tormnotacquired
Developmental
doublemarkingot
pasttense
Syntax Whatthisis Misordering
Developmental
misorderingotthe
verb
Phonology
Manis
eborubing.
(evolving)
Substitution and
addition (bis
substituted tor
v, r is tor l,
u is added)
lnterlingual
phonological
interterence trom
apanese
Semantics
She is a sensible
person.
Substitution
(sensible tor
sensitive)
lnterlingual
lrench lexical
interterence
(lrench sensible
=Lnglishsensitive)
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5.3 As to studies of errors committed by Chinese students learning English as a
second/foreign language, Huang (1974) identifies three major causes for the syntactic
errors committed by Chinese EFL learners: (1) interference from the structure of
Chinese, (2) interference from the structure of English, and (3) other causes.
In 1on,s (1987) siudy. ho discussosihroo major sourcos ol orrors in ionso commiiiod hyiho
ihird ,radors in sonior hi,h school. 1hoy aro: (1) porlormanco orrorsoccasional lapso in
porlormancocausodhymomorylimiiaiions.(2)iniorloroncoorrorsiholoarnorslailurosioioll
ihodilloroncohoiwoonihonaiivolan,ua,oandihoiar,oilan,ua,o.(3)iniralin,ualorrorsiho
no,aiivoiranslor,onoralizaiionolruloswiihinihoiar,oilan,ua,o.
5.4 Shih (1987) discusses the reasons behind the different types of pragmatic
failure from four aspects: (pp.233254)
A. 1oachin, maiorial: ...iho ioachin, maiorials do noi provido iho noodod inlormaiion.
drills and applicaiion aciiviiios in ihis aspoci. 1ho old junior hi,h En,lish ioxihooks
aro audiolin,ual hy dosi,n and almosi comploioly siruciurally orioniod. and iho old
soniorhi,hEn,lishioxihooksin,onoralholon,ioihoiradiiionaliypoolroadors.which
all aim ai iho roinlorcomoni ol iho siruciuros. vocahulary and idioms. 1horo is liiilo
aiioniionpaidiooralcommunicaiion.
B. 1oachin, moihod: Hany collo,o En,lish majors and hi,h school En,lish ioachors lool
iimidinroalliloconvorsaiion.Vo can prodici ihai iho hi,h school siudonis usin, iho
now ioxihooks prohahly will havo a hoiior command ol oral En,lish in iho lon, run. yoi
ii is siill douhilul ihai ihoy will ho communicaiivoly compoioni in roal lilo inioraciions.
hocauso ... many ioachors do noi adopi iho communicaiivo approach in ioachin,.
C. Lan,ua,o onvironmoni: Classrooms aro prohahly iho only availahlo placos lor iho
praciico ol oral communicaiion skills. Howovor. ovon in iho classroom ihoy aro
doprivod ol opporiuniiios io spoak En,lish hocauso spokon En,lish is noi iosiod in iho
joini oniranco oxaminaiion. and many ioachors dovoio almosi all ol iho class poriod io
iho insiruciion ol ,rammar. vocahulary. roadin,. and wriiin, skills.
I. 1oachors compoionco: 1ho rosulis ol iho pra,maiic lailuro analysis rovoal ihai many
socondary school En,lish ioachors havo noi had sullicioni irainin, in oral
communicaiion. and aro noi communicaiivoly compoioni onou,h io holp siudonis io
acquiro communicaiivo skills. 1horoloro. alior six yoars ol junior and sonior hi,h
En,lish ... many Chinoso siudonis siill havo dilliculiy communicaiin,. noi io moniion
communicaiin, appropriaioly.
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
6. Studies of error types in Chinese EFL Iearners
Siudios which locus on iho analysis ol EIL/ESL orrors in iho spooch or in iho wriiion
maiorialsolChinosoloarnorshavoroconilyhoonloundliko:1SHuan,1974. VH Huan, 1977.
Chon1979.1son,1979.Ahrin,197980.Chian,1981.1on,1987andShih1987.oic.Huan,
(1974) idoniilios major causos lor iho syniaciic orrors. Huan, (1977) doals wiih orrors in six
aroas:(1)usoolwords.(2)usoolphrasos.(3),rammar.(4)rhoioric.(5)usoolpunciuaiion.and
(6) spollin,. Chons (1979) makos uso ol Buri and Kiparskys major disiinciion hoiwoon local
and ,lohal misiakos: local onos such as vorhs. nouns. doiorminors. proposiiions. adjociivos.
advorhs. pronouns: ,lohal onos such as conjunciions. orrors wiih iho uso ol suhjocis. ohjocis. and
complomonis. runon sonioncos. misplacomoni. rolaiivo clausos. sonioncos lra,monis. invorsion.
and orrors wiih oihor consiruciions. His siudy shows iho hiorarchy ol dilliculiy as lollows: (1)
vorhs. (2) nouns. (3) ,lohal orrors. (4) doiorminors. (5) proposiiions. (6) adjociivos. (7) advorhs.
(8) spollin, orrors. and (9) pronouns. Chian,s (1981) is a lullllod,od siudy. includin, loxical
orrors. ,rammaiical orrors (includin, ihoso wiih vorhs. nouns. pronouns. adjociivos and advorhs.
conjunciions. proposiiions and pariiclos. iniorjociions. doiorminors. conlusion ol iho lorm
classos. punciuaiion. capiializaiion. syllahilicaiion. ahhroviaiion. coniraciion and shori lorms.
suhjoci. ohjoci. and complomoni. quosiions. no,aiion. invorsion. and diroci/indiroci spooch.
misplacomoni. violaiion ol sonionco or vorh paiiorns). somaniic. rhoiorical and siylisiic orrors.
and miscollanoous orrors (idiosyncraiic onos). 1on,s (1987) locus is on orrors in ionso. whilo
Shihs (1987) on pra,maiic lailuro: sociopra,maiic lailuro and pra,malin,uisiic lailuro.
7. Identifying errors
Uno ol iho common dilliculiios in undorsiandin, iho lin,uisiic sysiom ol hoih lirsi and
socond lan,ua,o loarnors is iho laci ihai such sysioms cannoi ho dirocily ohsorvod. 1hoy musi
ho inlorrod hy moans ol analyzin, produciion and comprohonsion daia. Vhai makos iho iask
ovon ihornior is iho insiahiliiy ol loarnors sysioms. Sysioms aro in a consiani siaio ol llux as now
inlormaiion llows in and causos oxisiin, siruciuros io ho rovisod. Bopoaiod ohsorvaiions ol a
loarnor will olion rovoal apparonily unprodiciahlo or ovon coniradiciory daia. In undoriakin, iho
iask ol porlormanco analysis. iho ioachor and rosoarchor aro callod upon io inlor ordor and lo,ic
in ihis unsiahlo and variahlo sysiom.
Cordor (1971) providod a modol lor idoniilyin, orronoous or idiosyncraiic uiiorancos in a
socond lan,ua,o. Accordin, io iho modol. any sonionco uiiorod hy iho loarnor and suhsoquonily
27
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".l
iranscrihod can ho analyzod lor idiosyncrasios. A major disiinciion is mado hoiwoon ovori and
covoriorrors.Ilaplausihloiniorproiaiioncanhomadoolihosonionco. ihon ono should lorm a
roconsiruciion ol iho sonionco in iho iar,oi lan,ua,o. comparo iho roconsiruciion wiih iho
ori,inal idiosyncraiic sonionco. and ihon doscriho iho dilloroncos.Ilihonaiivolan,ua,ooliho
loarnorisknown.ihomodolindicaiosusin,iranslaiionasapossihloindicaiorolnaiivolan,ua,o
iniorloroncoasihosourcoolorror.Insomocasos.noplausihloiniorproiaiionispossihloaiall.
andihorosoarchorisloliwiihnoanalysisolihoorror(Brown 1980:220).
Il iho ioachor and rosoarchor is noi iho naiivo spoakor ol iho iar,oi lan,ua,o. douhlo
chockin, ol iho idoniiliod orrors hy a naiivo spoakor is noodod (Chian, 1981.1on, 1987. Shih
1987).
Chian, also poinis oui ihai a succosslul idoniilicaiion ol orrors is a proroquisiio io any
succosslulanalysisolorrors.Iidopondsoniwolaciors:(1)acloarundorsiandin,olwhaiorrors
aro(aworkin,doliniiionolorrorisihoroloronocossary.and.ilpossihlo.aihooroiicalono).(2)
ihoanalysis sonsiiiviiy or sonsihiliiy io iho lan,ua,o.
8. Treatment of errors
Errors in siudonis oral produciion aro usually i,norod in a communicaiivo classroom
aciiviiy. Siudonis succoss is doiorminod as much hy ihoir lluoncy as ii is hy ihoir accuracy.
1horoloro. orrors aro ioloraiod and soon as a naiural ouicomo ol iho dovolopmoni ol
communicaiionskills.Vhaiihoanalysiworksonisihoirwriiionlorms.
8.1 Correction and improvement:
"Corrociion" rolors io iho procoss. or iho rosulis ihorool. ol hrin,in, a pioco ol siudoni
wriiin, io a ,rammaiically unmisiakon lovol. Horo ",rammar" rolors io iho collociion ol
hasic morpholo,ical and syniaciic rulos which ,ovorn iho hasic wolllormodnoss ("woll
lormodnoss" horo in a proihooroiical sonso) ol iho iar,oi lan,ua,o.
"Improvomoni" rolors io iho procoss. or rosulis ihorool. ol hrin,in, iho composiiion io
a hi,hor lovol. such ihai violaiions ol rhoiorical principlos. illlormodnoss in moanin,.
violaiions ol lo,ic. poor uso ol words. dolocis in siylo. oic.. will also ho iondorod io.
8.2 Criteria of correction:
8.2.1 Vhonovor corrociion or improvomoni is dono. ,roai considoraiion musi ho ,ivon
io iho conioxi in which iho corrociod or improvod oxprossion occurs.
8.2.2 Excopi in casos whoro iho moanin, ol an oxprossion is pariicularly amhi,uous.
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
duhious. ordisioriod. iho conioni or moanin, ol iho oxprossion should ho kopi
iniaci.
8.2.3 Considoraiion will also ho ,ivon io iho soi ol prosupposiiions (iho soi ol
oxiralin,uisiic lacis) ihai holp spocily iho "rolaiivo woll lormodnoss" ol iho
sonionco or oxprossion.
8.2.4 Lovol ol usa,o and varioiios ol iho L2 musi also ho considorod. ^ormally. any
oihor social or ro,ional varioiy ol En,lish such as iho spokon or wriiion lan,ua,o
ol an undorprivilo,od class is noi accopiahlo and should ho improvod.
8.2.5 Caro will ho iakon noi io iako ",rammar" lrom a purisiic poini ol viow. Ex. shall
and will is noi io ho considorod dilloroni unloss pariicular conioxis lavor ono or
iho oihor.
8.3 Classification of errors:
In any siudy ol orror analysis ol ihis kind. iho orrors idoniiliod havo io ho duly
classiliod il siaiomonis concornin, whoro iho suhjocis dilliculiios lio aro io ho mado. i.o..
whai kinds ol orrors occur moro olion ihan whai oihors. 1ho iask. howovor. is hy no moans
an oasy ono. 1his is hocauso vory olion classos ol orrors ovorlap. and occasionally somo
orrors simply do noi lond ihomsolvos io a cloarcui caio,orizaiion. 1horo sooms io ho no
idoal modol ol classilicaiion ol iho iromondous varioiios ol orrors lound in siudoni
composiiions. All modols loak. in ono way or anoihor. And. ii sooms no modols can ho as
oxhausiivo and inclusivo as ihoy aro idoally supposod io ho:inoacholihomihorousuallyis
ihonoodola",arha,ocan"ioiakocaroolihosowhichdonoilallappropriaiolyinioanyol
iho classos and suhclassos osiahlishod (which is usually ,ivon iho hoadin,
"miscollanoous"). 1hus. iho analysi has io osiahlish his own modol ol classilicaiion. in
which ho can classily all orrors inio somo major caio,orios. and ihon suh or suhsuh
caio,orios in hiorarchical siruciuro aro suhsumod undor oach ol ihoso major hoadin,s
appropriaioly.
8.4 Enumerationand registration of errors:
1ho way in which orrors aro couniod or onumoraiod allocis dirocily iho scoros
lroquoncios.andsiaiisiicsolorrors.andihoroloroihorosulis.conclusions.andovaluaiivo
poworolihorosulis.uosiionsmayarisoasiowhoihorihosamoiypoolorrorscommiiiod
hyihosamosuhjociinihosamopiocoolwriiin,shouldhoconsidorodasconsiiiuiin,only
ono or moro orrors. 1o answor ihoso and similar quosiions. wo can mako uso ol iho
disiinciion drawn hoiwoon "iypo" and "iokon" ol lin,uisiic oxprossions (Poirco 193158
29
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".l
and Lyons 1977)(noio1)andwillcouniallihoindividual"insianiiaiions"oriokonsoliho
samoiypoolorrorandosiahlishorrorlroquonciosandsiaiisiicsihorohy.Andwhiloihorois
dilliculiy in classilyin, orrors and vory olion iho samo orror may lall inio moro ihan ono
caio,ory. ihoorroris. howovor. onumoraiod only oncooiihor as an orror in ono aroa or as
onoinanoihor.andnoiashoih.
All iho illlormod oxprossions or orrors idoniiliod lrom iho corpus aro ro,isiorod or
rocordod onio iho HandSori Punchod Chard Sysiom (noio 2) and. in considoraiion ol iho
imporianiroloolconioxiinjusiilyin,ihosiaiusolanlin,uisiicoxpross.ihoywillhooniorod
inlullsonioncolormraihorihaninisolaiion.
8.5 Scores, frequencies, and statistics of errors:
As has hoon discussod in iho procodin, sociion. orror counis aro usually siricily on
iokons (occurroncos) raihor ihan iypos ol orrors. So aro orror scoros. lroquoncios. and
siaiisiics.
Scorin, or couniin, ol orrors was dono ai iho samo iimo whon iho idoniilicaiion iask
washoin,donowhaiovororrorwasloundwasimmodiaiolyoniorodonioacorpuscard.
Iroquoncios ol orrors so lar discussod holon, io iwo iypos: ahsoluio and rolaiivo onos.
Ahsoluio lroquoncios aro ihoso which indicaio aciual occurroncos ol orrors. usually
oxprossodhynaiuralnumhorssuchas"\orhorrors:838".whichindicaiosihai.inacoriain
corpus. ihoro aro so many occurroncos ol orrors. Bolaiivo lroquoncios. howovor. aro
ihooroiically ihoso which aro workod oui wiih rospoci io possihlo occurroncos ol orrors.
Suchlroquonciosarosupposodlyihorosulisoliholollowin,lormula:
^umhorolaciualoccurroncosolorrors
Bolaiivolroquoncy=
^umhorolpossihlooccurroncosororrors
1hosorolaiivolroquonciosolorrors.ihou,hsu,,osiodlorusohysuchorroranalysisas
Iuskova (1969) and Schachior and ColcoHurcia (1977). romain prosonily inaccossihlo
sinco ihoro aro yoi no ways io know how many iimos an orror could havo occurrod in a
coriainconioxiollan,ua,ouso.1horoisnoiyoia"norm"olorrors.
Alihou,hihoorrorlroquonciosaroahsoluioinihosonsoolIuskovaandoihors. ihoy
arorolaiivoinanoihorsonsorolaiivoioihoioialolwordsacoriain,roupol suhjocis havo
wriiion.Ioroxamplo.wocancouniallihovorhs.nouns.oic..ina,ivoncorpusandsoohow
manyoccurroncosoloachcaio,oryhavohoonmisiakon.
Iinally.whilosomoli,urosolorrorlroquonciosaromadorolaiivoionumhorsolwords.
caromusihoiakonihaiihoyshouldalwayshoohiainodlromdividin,ihoahsoluionumhors
olorrorshyihoircorrospondin,numhorsolwords.andnoihyanyoihormoanssuchashy
30
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
dividin,oquallyhoiwooniwoavora,osaialoworlovol.
9. PossibIe probIems
InaddiiionioihodilliculiyBrown(1980) has poiniod oui...sysiomsaro in a consiani siaio
ol llux as now inlormaiion llows in and causos oxisiin, siruciuros io ho rovisod (220). ihoro aro
somo limiis ol iho ollori dono in orror analysis (wo would i,noro iho "poriphoral roasons"
(Ulsson. 1973)suchaslackoliniorosi.wandorin,olaiioniion.andlazinoss.oic.):
A. Ii placos ioo much aiioniion on orrors and losos si,hi ol iho valuo ol posiiivo
roinlorcomoniolcloarcommunicaiion.
B.Iiovoromphasizosproduciiondaiahuilan,ua,oisaciuallyspoakin,&lisionin,.wriiin,
&roadin,.
C.Iilailsioaccounilor iho siraio,y ol avoidanco: ihus iho ahsonco ol orror doosni moan
naiivolikocompoionco.
I. Ii koops us ioo closoly locusod on spocilic lan,ua,os raihor ihan viowin, univorsal
aspocisollan,ua,o.
E.Uralproduciionishardioanalyzohocausoolsomopossihloiochnicalprohlomsandalso
iho communicaiivo dosi,n in iho classroom aciiviiios. Accordin, io iho lunciional
syllahus. siudonis oral produciion is ihoir vohiclo lor classroom communicaiion: whai
counisisihomossa,ohoin,convoyod.Errorsinihissonsoarousuallyioloraiod.
10. ConcIusion
Errors sorvo as a imporiani moans lor ioachors and rosoarchors io ohsorvo iho loarnors
loarnin, procoss and loarnin, siraio,ios. Vo loarn hy ohsorvin, orrors in childrons L1
acquisiiionihaiihoyaciivoly,onoralizoihoirownlin,uisiicsysiomandihusholpL2loarnorsio
,onoralizo ihoirs. 1ho conirasiivo viow (CA) onahlod a lin,uisi io accuraioly doscriho iho iwo
lan,ua,os.andioholpiholoarnorovorcomoihodilloroncoshoiwoonihoiwo.1hoanalyiicway
(EA)supplomonisCAwiihohjociivosiaiisiics.1holormorprovidosaprodiciionolpossihloorror
sourcos so ihai ioachors can avoid ihoir occurronco: iho laiior iakos carolul idoniilicaiion ol
siudonis orrors and dolihoraio classilicaiion ol iho idoniiliod onos. By iracin, iho rocords ol
orrors. wo soo siudonis pro,ross (noio3). and moanwhilo. nocossary chan,os in ioachin,
ohjociivos aro roquirod and romodial insiruciion should ho providod il nocossary. Also. wo
shouldkoopinmindihaiovoromphasisonorrorscanlrusiraioloarnorsmoiivaiion:ihorocordol
orrorsshouldhokopiamon,ioachorsandrosoarchors.Iurihormoro."corroci"wriiin,dosonoi
31
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".l
moan ",ood" wriiin,. As lar as lan,ua,o prolicioncy is concornod. appropriaionoss should ho
noiiliod as woll: ihoroloro. cross-culiural pra,maiic inlormaiion should lirsi ho acquirod hy
lan,ua,o ioachors and ihon ho convoyod ihrou,h ioachin, procoss.

1. "1ho disiinciion is now widoly omployod." Lyons (1977:13) romarks. "...iho rolaiionship
hoiwoon iokons and iypos will ho rolorrod io as ono ol insianiiaiion: iokons. wo will say.
insianiiaio ihoir iypo." Ho ,ivos iho lollowin, pair ol sonioncos as oxamplo:
(1) 1horo aro nino loiiors in iho word roloronco.
(2) 1horo aro livo loiiors in iho word roloronco.
Boih sonioncos aro corroci undor a coriain circumsianco. In (1) loiior-iokons aro considorod.
sinco ihoro aciually aro nino loiiors ihoro: in (2). loiior-iypos. sinco iho loiior o is insianiiaiod
lour iimos. Likowiso. wo may spoak ol word-iokons and word-iypos. orror-iokons and orror-iypos.
oic.
2. 1his was invoniod in 1924 hy a Briiish namod Allrod Parkins. 1ho moihod usos od,o-
punchod daia-soriin, cards ol various sizos. 1ho 4x 6 cards ihai iho prosoni siudy makos uso ol
aro claimod io ihooroiically havo an almosi inliniio classilicaiory capaciiy ol 364.
3. Siricily spoakin,. pro,ross should ho siaiod in iorms ol iho samo ,roup ol suhjocis. 1his
implios ihai in ordor io undorsiand such pro,ross. lollow-up siudios ol iho idoniical ,roup should
ho carriod on ovor a poriod ol all lour yoars. Vhilo ii is assumod ihai ihoro is a hi,h do,roo ol
,onoralizahiliiy ol iho rosulis ol iho siudy. iho lroquoncios ol orrors aro supposod io apply noi
only io ihai spocilic populaiion ol suhjocis. hui io populaiions ol suhjocis ol similar hack,rounds
as woll. In ihis considoraiion. ialkin, ahoui siudoni pro,ross horo is noi ioially unroasonahlo and
impossihlo.
32
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EBBUB A^ALYSIS I^ E^CLISH 1EACHI^C:A BE\IEV UI S1IIIES
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