LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Previous Study
Previous study provides the example how to do the analysis and to conduct a research to create a good research so that it is very helpful for the researcher since it also has function to regard new research finding. Further, in order to do the proper analysis related to errors in students’ writing, the writer reviews four previous studies that discussed similar topic from the recent research which can be seen as follow:
Table 2.1 Previous Studies
Study Objective Method Finding
Alfiyani (2013)
1. To describe the grammatical errors in writing made by second semester students of English.
2. To infer the causes or sources of those errors.
Qualitative &
quantitative method
As the result of errors based on surface strategy taxonomy, the findings are:
- 281 errors of omission’
- 119 errors of addition.
- 189 errors of misformation.
- 6 errors of misordering.
The result based on the sources of errors are:
- There 302 times errors source
caused by
developmental or intralingual factor.
- 294 times errors found as Ambigous errors.
- 191 times errors source caused by interlngual errors.
- 52 times errors source was founded in Unique errors.
Noviyanti (2013)
1. To know the most frequent errors that the students make
in writing
descriptive paragraph.
Qualitative method
The findings are:
- 51 errors of omission.
- 13 errors of addition,
- 99 errors of misformation.
- 8 errors of misordering.
Aminah (2016)
1. To find out the errors that occurs on the use of simple past tense in English narrative text.
2. To find out the profile of the students’ type of errors on the use of simple pas tense in English narrative text.
Qualitative method
The findings are:
Most of errors made by students are occur in errors of selection.
Khumphee and
Yodkumlue (2017)
1. To investigate the
types of
grammatical errors based on their frequency of occurrence in English essay writing.
2. To examine whether there are
any errors
influenced by their L1 interference.
Qualitative Method
The findings are:
- 1.560 errors caused by interference of their first language.
- 583 errors by used of plural forms of the verb.
- 201 errors of punctuation.
- 148 errors in the subject-verb
agreement.
- 145 errors in wrong structure
- 122 errors of omission.
3. To provide some essential
pedagogical
implications for second language learning and teaching.
The first study was done by Alfiyani (2013) who described grammatical errors in writing and infer the causes or sources of those errors. She used mix method to conduct the research. She found the type of students’ grammatical errors and the sources of errors and their frequencies. She was analyzed based on Dulay et al’s theory (1982), the surface strategy taxonomy which concern on omission, addition, misformation, and misordering errors. She was documented the students’ writing to collect the sample. This study found that omission was the highest percentage of students’ errors made in writing. The students’ errors 281 times or 47,22% out of the whole errors in surface strategy taxonomy. Meanwhile, the highest source of errors was founded in intralingual errors are 302 times or 35,99%.
The second study was done by Noviyanti (2013); this study was carried out to know the frequent errors that the students make in writing descriptive paragraph. The method used in this study is qualitative method, classifying them into the grammatical errors based on Dulay et al. With the result is the most error made by students’ in errors of misformation, the students confused in choosing the appropriate class of words.
The third study was used qualitative method for doing the research. This study was done by Aminah (2016) discuss about errors that occur on the use of simple past tense in descriptive text. He classifying the types of error based on Corder’s theory (1974). The result of this study showed there are four types of errors occur. Error of omission, error of addition, error of selection, and error of ordering. From the data analysis, the researcher found most of dominant error that occurs are error of misformation. The students are doubt to choose an appropriate word to complete the sentences.
The last was done by Khumphee and Yodkumlue (2017) focused on the grammatical errors made by undergraduate students to investigate the types of grammatical errors based on their frequency of occurrence in English essay writing, examine whether there are any errors influenced by their L1 interference and also to provide some essential pedagogical implications for second language learning and teaching. The result of this study there are five most frequently committed types of errors that were produced by the participant; they were errors in the use of punctuation, nouns, preposition, verbs, and articles. This study found that out of 4.909 grammatical errors produced by the participants, there were 1.560 errors (31,78%) caused by the interference of their first language. Among these 1.560 L1 interference errors, the use of plural forms of the verbs was found (583 errors), omission of punctuations (201 errors), error in the subject-verb agreement (148 errors), in the wrong structure of complex sentences (145 errors) and errors in the omission of some parts of a sentence (122 errors). It was found that verbs the highest errors made by the participants.
Thus, those previous studies were used as references in comparing among those relevant studies with the study conducted by the researcher. The differences appeared among these studies were the object and this study focused to find kinds of error in narrative writing.
2.2 Syntax
Syntax is one the branches of linguistics that talks about sentence or clause. This study is about the principles and processes by which sentences are constructed in particular languages. Chomsky and Lightfoot (2002) says, “Syntactic investigation of a given language has as its goal the construction of a grammar that can be viewed as a device of some sort for producing the sentences of the language under analysis.” Additionally, according to Tserdanelis and Wong (2004) “The study of phrases and sentences structure is sometimes called grammar.” Thus, the study of syntax is the study of how words combine to from phrases and ultimately sentences in languages, because it consists of phrases that are put together in particular way, a sentence has a structure.
2.3 Error Analysis
Error analysis is an activity to reveal the learning outcomes achieved by learners in developing interlanguage system in writing and speaking which consist of comparison between the errors made in target language and that target language itself. According to Erdogan (2005: 206), “error analysis deals with the learner’s performance in terms of the cognitive processes they make use of recognizing or coding the input they receive from the target language”. Therefore, a primary focus
of error analysis is on the evidence that learners error provides with an understanding of the underlying process of second language.
As the process to observe, analyze, and classify the deviations of the rules of the second language, then to reveal the systems operated by learners. As Dulay et al and Burt (in Brown, 2007: 205) says that “error is considered as ‘goofs’. An error emphasizes that is a deviation from adult grammar of native speaker which reflects the learners inter language. The learners make errors because they lack knowledge of the rules of the target language.
From the explanations above, it can be clarified that error analysis is an activity to identify, classify, and describe the errors made by students in writing and also to obtain the information on common difficulties faced by students in their writing.
2.4 The Differences between Mistakes and Errors
Language learning is a process to develop the language skills. In developing the skills, students are often making mistakes and errors. Students are usually committing errors when they lack of knowledge about grammar rules, appropriate words or sentences. When they make a mistake, correct or errors sentences and free utterance. It is important to know mistakes and errors because those are technically different.
According to Mourtaga (2004) pointed out that “errors and mistakes are different from each other because an error cannot be self-corrected and is caused by a learner inadequate knowledge of the target language whereas a mistake can be self-
corrected”. Error occurs repeatedly and cannot be recognized by the learners.
Hence, only the teacher or researcher can locate them.
According to Edge (1989 in Harmer, 2002:99) states that “mistakes can be divided into three broad categories: ’slips’ (that is mistakes which students can correct themselves once the mistake has been pointed out to them), ‘errors’ (mistakes which cannot correct themselves and which need explanation), and ‘attempts’ (that is when a student tries to say something but does not know yet the correct).”
Meanwhile, an error based on Ellis (2008; 17) is “error can be defined as a deviation from the norms of the target language.” The students lack of knowledge about the rules making a complete sentence. Therefore, it can be concluded errors is systematic and cannot be self-corrected, because it reflects the student competence in target language.
2.5 Types of Error
Dulay et al (1982: 146), explained that the most useful and commonly used as bases for the descriptive classification errors can be classified into four types, they are:
2.5.1 Error of Omission
Omission errors are characterized by the absence of an item that must appear in a well-formed utterance. The learner may omit grammatical morphemes in producing a sentence. Grammatical or function words, on the other hand, are those little worse that play a minor role in carrying the meaning of a sentence.
2.5.2 Error of Addition
Addition errors are the opposite of omissions. They are characterized by the presence of an item which should not appear in a well-formed utterance. There are three types of addition errors, they are:
1. Double marking, two items rather than one are marked for the same feature. For example:
a) He doesn’t knows my name. (Dulay et al, 1982: 157) b) We didn’t went there. (Dulay et al, 1982: 157)
2. Regularizations, a marker that is typically added to a linguistic item is erroneously added to exceptional items of the given class that do not take a marker. For example sheeps and putted are both regularizations in which the regular plural and past tense markers–sand–ed respectively, have been added to items which do not take marker.
3. Simple additions, if an addition error is not a double marking or regularization, it is called a simple addition.
2.5.3 Error of Misformation
Misformation errors are characterized by the use of the wrong form of the morpheme or structure. While in omission errors the item is not supplied at all, in misformation errors the learner supplies something, although it is incorrect.
Example:
1) The dog eated the chicken. (Dulay et al, 1982: 158) It should be: the dog ate the chicken
2) I doesn’t know him. (Dulay et al, 1982: 158) It should be: I don’t know him.
2.5.4 Error of Misordering
Errors of misordering are characterized by the incorrect placement of a morpheme or group of morphemes in an utterance. Example:
1) He is all the time late.
It should be “he is late all the time”. (Dulay et al, 1982: 162) 2) What daddy is doing.
It should be “what is daddy doing?” (Dulay et al, 1982: 162)
Corder (1974) in Ellis (2008:56) distinguishes three types of error according to their systematicity:
a. Pre systematic errors occur when the learners is unaware of the existence of a particular rule in the target language. These are random.
b. Systematic errors occur when the learner has discovered a rule but it is the wrong.
c. Post systematic errors occur when the learner knows the correct target language rule but uses it inconsistently (i.e. makes a mistake).
2.4 Narrative Text
Writing is clearly a system of human intercommunication by means of conventional visible marks, but it is evident from what has been said that what the primitives understood as writing is not the same thing as what we do (Gelb, 1952).
Writing is a complex activity. Writing is a difficult subject, especially for students.
In general, writing divided into four types there are, exposition, narration, description, and argumentation. Narrative deals with problematic events which lead to a crisis or turning point of some kind, which is turn to find a resolution.
A narrative relates a series of events, real or imaginary, in an organized sequence.
According to Kane (2000:366) “A narrative is a meaningful sequence of events told in words.” It is sequential in that the events are ordered, not merely random.
Sequence always involves an arrangement in time (and usually other arrangements as well). A narrative is a piece of text which tells a story and in doing so, entertains or informs the reader or listener (Anderson&Anderson,2003: 6).
Narratives provide human interest and entertainment, spark our curiosity, and draw us close to the storyteller. In addition, narratives can create a sense of shared history, linking people together, and provide instruction in proper behavior or moral conduct (McWhortes, 2010: 10).
Thus, based on the explanations above, it can be concluded that a narrative text is telling story to amuse or entertain the reader with actual or imaginary experiences in different ways. Narrative was written in past form because almost of them tell the stories that already happened. Hence, the writer interested to discuss the narrative text because the students are easier to write and tell the stories.
