The Nature of Learner Language by Rod Ellis

The Nature of Learner Language by Rod Ellis Chapter 2 page 15 - 30 Rega Giyang Girana Zetira 2201410088

Errors and Error Analysis At first sight, it may seem odd to focus on what learners get wrong rather than on what they get right.

Good Reasons for Focusing on Errors 1. 2. 3. They are a conspicuous feature of learner language. It is useful for teachers to know what errors learners make. Paradoxically, it is possible that making errors may actually help learners to learn when they self-correct the errors they make.

Identifying Errors � The first step in analysis learners errors is to identify them. � Compare the sentences learners produce with what seem to be normal or ‘correct’ sentences in the target language which correspond with them. � Distinguish errors and mistakes.

Errors and Mistakes Errors reflect gaps in a learner’s knowledge; they occur because the learner does not know what is correct. Ø Mistakes reflact occasional lapses in performance; they occur because, in a particular instance, the learners is unable to perform what he or she knows. Ø

Discribing Errors � Classify errors into grammatical categories. � Try to identify general ways in which the learners’ utterances differ from the reconstructed target-language utterances.

Explaining Errors � Errors are, to a large extent, systematic and, to a certain extent, predictable. � Errors are not only systematic; many of them are also universal. � Some errors are common only to learners who share the same mother tongue or whose mother tongues manifest the same linguistic property. (e. g. We went at Johannesburg last weekend)

� Learners commit errors of omission. (e. g. They leave out the articles ‘a’ and ‘the’ and leave the –s off plural nouns. ) � The use of ‘eated’ in place of ‘ate’ is an example of an overgeneralization error. � Reflact learners’ attemps to make use of their L 1 knowladge, these are known as transfer errors.

Error Evaluation � Some errors, known as global errors, violate the overall structure of a sentence. (e. g. The policeman was in this corner whistle. . . ) � Other errors, known as local errors, affect only a single constituent in the sentence (for example, the verb) and are, perhaps, less likely to create any processing problems.

Developmental Patterns The Early Stages of L 2 Acquisition � When learners do begin to speak in the L 2 their speech is likely to manifest two particular characteristics. One is the kind of formulaic chunks which we saw in the case studies; The second characteristic is propositional simplification.

� In time, though, learners do begin to learn the grammar of the L 2. This raises other questions. One concerns the acquisition order; Another conserns the sequence of acquisition of particular grammatical structures, such as past tense.

The Order of Acquisition � To investigate it, researchers choose a number of grammatical structure to study (e. g. Progressive –ing, and auxiliary be). This enables them to arrive at an accuracy order. That is, they rank the features according to how accurately each feature is used by learners. � The research treats acquisition as if it is a process of accumulating linguistic structure.

� The acquisition of a particular grammatical structure, therefore, must be seen as a process involving transitional constructions. For example, acquire irregular past tense forms (e. g. ate). � Acquisation follows a U-shaped course of development; that is, initially learners may display a high level of accuracy only to apparently regress later before finally once again perfoming in accordance with targetlanguage norms.

� Forms like ‘eaten’ and ‘ated’ represent an overgeneralization of the regular –ed past tense. This kind of reorganization, which is believed to be prevelent in L 2 acquisition. Is referred to as restructuring. � The kind of verb also influences the kind of errors learners make.

Variability in Learner Language � Learners’ choice of past tense marker depends, in part, on whether the verb refers to an event, an activity, or a state. Thus, it appears that learners vary in their use of the L 2 according to linguistic context. � The particular form-function mappings which learners amke do not always conform to those found in the target language.

� Learners also vary the linguistic forms they use in accordance with the situational context. � The Psycholinguistic—whether learners have the opportunity to plan their production. � Learners do sometimes use two or more forms in free variation.

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