Investigating article use in the written English of Chinese and Malay Muet students /
This study is an analysis of compositions written by two groups of MUET students. The groups were divided based on their first language. The first group is native speakers of Mandarin while the second group has Malay Language as its native tongue. The study examined the errors the two groups of stud...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Kuala Lumpur :
Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University Malaysia,
2012
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://studentrepo.iium.edu.my/handle/123456789/6587 |
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| Summary: | This study is an analysis of compositions written by two groups of MUET students. The groups were divided based on their first language. The first group is native speakers of Mandarin while the second group has Malay Language as its native tongue. The study examined the errors the two groups of students made in the use of the English article system. The English articles (a / an, the, the zero article) are some of the most difficult and subtle structural elements for ESL learners to comprehend and acquire. In this study, patterns of use of the English articles of Malaysian ESL learners who are at the sixth form level (pre-university) of their secondary education were investigated. The instruments used for this study were participants' written essays and their responses to a fill-in-the-article worksheet. All of the errors in the essays and erroneous responses for the fill-in-the article worksheet were identified and classified into various categorisations. The articles that caused the most difficulties to the two groups of students were identified, compared and contrasted. The plausible causes for the errors were then speculated upon and investigated. It was discovered that both groups had difficulties in acquiring the English articles to a varying degree. Although both groups of students come from a first language background that does not possess an equivalent to the English article system, the subjects who have Malay language as their mother tongue appeared to have more difficulties at satisfactorily acquiring the use of the English articles than the second group of subjects. In terms of the causes of the article errors committed by the two groups of subjects investigated, it was discovered that although a great number of the errors was attributed to mother tongue interference, other causes that stemmed from developmental factors and learning strategies such as incomplete application of rules, overgeneralization, simplification and false concept hypothesized could not be ruled out. It was also discovered that some of the article errors committed by the two groups of subjects could be traced to the inherent difficulty found in the target language (the English language). This study has shed light on the difficulties ESL students face in acquiring the English article system and the manner in which students internalize the rules of use of the English articles. Such an insight into language learning problems is useful to teachers because it provides information on common trouble-spots in learning the English article system which can be used in the preparation of effective teaching materials. |
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| Item Description: | Abstract in English and Arabic. "A dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Human Sciences (Teaching English as a Second Language)." --On t.p. |
| Physical Description: | xiv, 136 leaves : ill. ; 30cm. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 99-103). |