An error analysis of the use of prepositions in english writings by 12th graders at a school in gia lai province

Abstract

Teaching and learning English is increasingly gaining attention in Vietnam. To excel in English, both teachers and learners must prioritize grammar, which serves as a fundamental aspect. English prepositions play a significant role in helping students form a well-structured sentence, however, learning English prepositions has always been a challenge for Vietnamese learners. This study aimed at analyzing the common errors in using English prepositions committed by grade 12 students and to find out the influence of interlanguage factors on making those errors along with the suggestions for learning and teaching process at Truong Chinh High School, Chu Se district, Gia Lai province. This research adapted both quantitative method and qualitative method. To collect the data of this research, the researcher used a prepositions test, a guided writing assignment, a questionnaire and an interview to achieve the research aims. The frequencies of error were calculated in percentage and categorized into 4 groups including omission errors, substitution errors, addition errors, misordering errors. The procedure of collecting data was based on Corder’s method which includes five main steps: collecting data, identification of errors, description of errors, explanation of errors, and evaluation of errors. The research findings show that grade 12 students at Truong Chinh high school face challenges while learning prepositions, omission errors were the most common types of errors that students committed, specifically, prepositional phrase collocations and directional prepositions, temporal prepositions, and spatial prepositions are the four types of prepositions that students often struggle with. The findings of the research suggest that students' usage of English prepositions in writing is influenced by their mother tongue. Therefore, to enhance the efficacy of teaching and learning, students and teachers at Truong Chinh High School should focus on understanding the distinctions between Vietnamese and English prepositions