DESIGNING A SUPPLEMENTARY ENGLISH WRITING MATERIAL FOR THE FRESHMAN AT THAINGUYEN UNIVERSITY
OF MEDICINE AND PHARMACY
Nguyen Quynh Trang1*, Duong Cong Dat2
1University of Medicine and Pharmacy - TNU, 2University of Education - TNU
ABSTRACT
In all of the four macro skills, it can be said that writing could be the most difficult and the most complex. It is not only a skill tested in every valid language examination, but also a skill that learners should possess and demonstrate in academic contexts. Students at Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy will be exposed to many paper works like writing reports in Local and International conferences, letters, memos and e – mail necessary for the smooth flow of office transactions and operations. Therefore, teacher should give much emphasis on how to help the students improve and develop their writing skills as early as possible.
This study adopted qualitative research method. The survey investigated 67 freshmen at Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy to test students’ writing performance and to analyze the writing errors. Besides, personal observation and interviews were applied to collect more data for the analysis. Based on the results of the analysis and discussion, the researcher has proposed a supplementary writing syllabus to improve their writing performance.
Keywords: writing; writing errors; error correction; writing activities; TUMP; Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy
INTRODUCTION*
It is quite possible that, today, more communication takes place in the written than in the oral mode. It is also not risky to call writing the single most consequential technology ever invented. The immensity of written record and the knowledge conserved in libraries, data banks, and multilayered information networks make it difficult to imagine an aspect of modern life unaffected by writing. “Access”, the catchword of the knowledge society, mean access to written intelligence. Writing not only offers ways of reclaiming the past, but is a critical skill for shaping the future.
However, to learn and to acquire the macro skills is indispensable. In all of the four macro skills, it can be said that writing could be the most difficult and the most complex. There is no doubt that writing is the most difficult skill for L2 learner to master. The difficulty lies not only in generating and organizing ideas, but also in translating these notions into
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legible text. Yet, it is very necessary to look into the dynamics of writing and its teaching, as writing is a skill not only tested in every valid language examination, but also a skill that learners should possess and demonstrate in academic contexts. In addition to this, writing includes numerous considerations and choices to be made regarding “higher level skill”, such as content, structure and organization, and “lower skills” such as punctuation and choice of appropriate vocabulary items and grammatical structures.
We are now moving to a more modern world.
It is a must that we should also adapt to the call of times so not to be left behind. Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy is a producer of medicine and pharmacy doctors locally and globally. As their profession calls, students will be exposed to many paper works like writing reports in Local and International conferences, letters, memos and e – mail necessary for the smooth flow of office transactions and operations. Therefore, teacher should give much emphasis on how to
help the students improve and develop their writing skills as early as possible.
Realizing the tremendous responsibilities placed in the shoulders of the English teacher, the researcher is convinced to investigate the errors committed by the students in their written composition and look into what are the main causative factors that influence the students written composition with the end view of proposing some remedial procedures and designing “A SUPPLEMENTARY ENGLISH WRITING MATERIAL” to help freshman enhance their writing competence.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Learning a language, according to Krashen (1982: 10) can be understood as the conscious learning of a language that is studying the rules, being aware of them and being able to talk about them. Sharing the same vein, Brown (2002: 278) states language learning is also conscious process in which learners attend to form, figure out rules, and are generally aware of their own process. One of the main factors that one faces difficulties while learning a second language as the process of learning is often hindered by the knowledge of one’s first language because every language has its own set of rules for grammar, syntax, and pronunciation.
Making errors is the most natural thing in writing because they are normal and unavoidable in learning process. No one could learn without making errors. This study is anchored with the theories of defining errors by Corder (1980). According to him, errors can be seen as breaches of the code which deviate from what is regarded as the norm. Errors are indicative of the learner’s transitional stage in language learning. They then reveal something about the learner’s underlying knowledge of the target language.
As states by Cunning Worth (1987:29) this is considered as systematic deviations from the norms of language being learnt. Nevertheless,
concept “learnt” is just relative. Learners may learn the language in different situations inside or outside the classroom, therefore it is also probable that they may have learnt the language but they may have forgotten it.
Hence, there would be challenging for language teachers to decide whether students have or not learned the language.
On the other hand, the error correction plays an important part in second language acquisition. It has been a long issue which language researchers probed and the results have been mixed. According to Truscott (1996) error correction does not improve the acquisition of a second language. He also denies the positive effect of corrective feedback in SLA on the belief that it is potentially harmful since it interrupts the flow of discourse that could provide the comprehensible input. Lyons and Heasley (1992) also have negative view about the benefits for highlighting or repeated correction on the development of learning second language.
However, classification errors is not always easy because it depends on the nature of classification as well as the purpose of the writer. It is also based on various criteria and aspects. It is certainly that if learners commit errors duce to the first language interference, there will be the presence of inter lingual errors. According to Ferris (2003) there are four types of written errors namely Morphological errors, Lexical errors, Syntactic errors and Mechanical errors. From her view about these kinds of errors, it can be easier for teachers and learners to follow because of its comprehension. Morphological errors include errors which relate to verbs such as tense, form, subject – verb agreement and errors relates to nouns as article, determiners, and noun endings. Lexical errors are the errors of word choice, word form, informal usage, idiom errors and pronoun errors. Syntactical errors consist of errors in
Mechanical errors are the errors of pronunciation, spelling and capitalization.
SUBJECT AND METHODOLOGY
To gather the samples of the study, the researcher used Slovin’s formula by which there were sixty seven first year students who were chosen through simple random sampling. They were the first year students of Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy in the second semester of the school year 2016 – 2017. They were from two classes of the first year handed by the researcher. The names of the students were placed in a box and drawn the corresponding number for each.
This study adopted qualitative research method. With regards to qualitative, the written errors in the study were then analyzed based on the Error analysis model adapted from Ferris (2005) which focuses along Global and Local errors while she adapted a writing rubric from California USA (2009) derived from Pierce College to rate their writing performance along content and organization.
To be able to analyze and interpret the information gathered, the researcher used of Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS Statistics). With the help of this software, the researcher determined to obtain accurate results of frequency counts, percentage, mean rating and weighted mean of written errors.
FINDINGS
Students’ Writing Performance
The table 1 reflects the writing performance of the students along four dimensions:
Content, Organization, Development and Language Use. As revealed in the table 1, the students have the highest Mean Score 2.19 in Content, followed by the Development with Mean Score 2.09, Organization with
Mean Score 2.00, and the least Language Use with 1.89.
The overall Mean Score of the students in the writing performance is 8.15, in which the student who get the highest score obtained 15 while the student who got the lowest scored 3.
The findings suggest that the students performed best in Content dimension than in other terms included in the writing rubric.
Accordingly, they performed the lowest in the language use. This means that the students are quite good in content to express in writing better than the qualities of a good paragraph.
The researcher also noticed the same problem in her basic English classes and even in her own major classes. She observes that whenever she gives an essay type test, the students display a feeling of frustration and disappointment. She also finds out that most of the students’ essays lack clarity of thought and organization, especially the weaknesses in language use. She attributes this to the students’ limited vocabulary and failure to master the three basic qualities of paragraph – unity, coherence and organization and emphasis.
Students also claim that writing test is very difficult since they cannot concretize what they are thinking using the English language.
They usually complain about knowing the answer in an essay question but they cannot express it in English. In addition, writing test does not only let them answer a question but it will also require them organize their thoughts in at least five to seven sentences.
The overall Mean Score of 8.15 reveals that the students have an unimpressive performance in the English writing composition. This research contributed to other researches claiming that the English writing of the students is seriously deteriorating.
Table 1. Writing performance of the students
Dimension Lowest
Score
Highest Score
Mean
Score SD
Content 0 4 2.19 0.8392
Organization 0 4 2.00 0.816
Development 0 4 2.09 0.866
Language Use 1 4 1.89 0.844
Total Writing Score 3 15 8.15 2.966
Table 2. Writing errors of the students Dimension
Lowest Score
Highest Score
Mean
Score SD
Morphological Error 3 10 6.69 1.743
Lexical Errors 2 9 5.61 1.809
Syntactic errors 2 9 6.60 1.634
Mechanical Errors 2 9 5.54 1.570
Total Errors 10 34 24.43 6.270
Writing Errors of the Students along Global and Local errors
The writing errors of the students are shown in Table 2. The dominant type of error committed by them is morphological errors, as shown in the mean of 6.69 (SD = 1.743).
The least number of errors is 3 but the most errors are 10. It means that the students do not know how to identify, analyze and describe the structure of morphemes and other units of meaning in a language like words, affixes, and parts of speech and intonation/stress, implied context. This trend is attributed to their limited writing exposure in class.
Another writing error is in syntax with a mean score of 6.60 (SD = 1.634). The least errors are 2 while the most are 9. These findings point out that students fail to recognize the proper arrangement of words in order to come up with a logical and comprehensible statement. It reflects their limited knowledge of word order.
Lexical errors committed by the students had a mean of 5.61 (SD = 1.809), with 2 the least and 9, the most. This finding indicates that students fail to use the right word to capture the meaning conveyed in their statements.
Wrong choice of word spoils the message.
This error reflects the students’ limited vocabulary and inadequate understanding on
Another type of error is on mechanical errors.
Students committed a mean of 5.54 errors (SD = 6.27), with 2, the least errors; and 9, the most. This finding manifests the inability of students to spell, indent, and punctuate their sentences. It reflects their minimal knowledge of mechanics in writing a composition.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on the findings, the researcher strongly recommends the following:
1. English teacher should conduct pre – test to their students to gauge the real language needs of students prior to instruction. The results of the diagnostic testing can guide them in organizing writing lessons that address their misconceptions and weaknesses.
2. Language teacher should expose all students to activities as self – editing or peer editing that are geared in developing the students’ awareness of errors to avoid.
3. The University should annually conduct writing competitions among students to create a writing culture in situation. Writing workshops, especially in summer, can be conducted for teachers and students to nurture the inclinations of teachers and students in writing.
4. Related studies along qualities of good paragraphs as well as the correction should be
assist students in correcting their mistakes and to develop good writing skills.
5. Curriculum designers in the university as well as teachers in English must design lessons in English in such a way that Vietnamese students will appreciate using English even when outside their English classrooms.
6. Last but not least, an English language program should be created to enhance students’ writing performance. The program could be in the form of remedial exercise designed to address the common writing errors. Vitally, in composition, it could be equipped with computer-aided and animated audio and visual presentations competent to motivate in learning English.
CONCLUSION
In order to develop the students’ writing skill, the author has reviewed relevant literature on errors, making errors, errors correction, and classification error. Then, supplementary writing activities among which some are simplified, designed and selected should be related to the topics in textbooks, so that students either have knowledge about the topics in some ways, or offer students different types of the same topic.
The research focuses on designing a supplementary syllabus for the First Year students at Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy. The researcher hopes that with this syllabus the students will find English writing lessons enjoyable, and suitable then the evaluation will be done to judge the usefulness and practicality.
REFERENCES
1. Brown, H. D. (2002). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching.(3rd Ed) Eaglewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, p 278
2. Corder, S.P. (1980). Error Analysis and Interlanguage. Oxford University Press
3. Cunningsworth, A.(1987). Evaluation and selecting EFL teaching materials. London:
Heinemann Education Book, p 87.
4. Ferris, D. (2003). Response to Student Writing:
Implications for Second Language Students.
Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
5. Ferris, D. R. (2005). Treatment of error in second language student writing. Ann Arbor:
University of Michigan Press.
6. Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Pergamon, p 10
7. Lyons.L.H and Heasley. B. (1992), Study writing, Cagayan University press.
8. Truscott, J. (1996). The case against grammar correction in L2 writing classes. Language Learning 46.
TÓM TẮT
THIẾT KẾ TÀI LIỆU BỔ TRỢ KĨ NĂNG VIẾT CHO SINH VIÊN NĂM THỨ NHẤT TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC Y DƯỢC THÁI NGUYÊN
Nguyễn Quỳnh Trang1*, Dương Công Đạt2
1Trường Đại học Y Dược – ĐH Thái nguyên, 2Trường Đại học Sư Phạm – ĐH Thái Nguyên
Trong bốn kĩ năng, có thể nói rằng kĩ năng viết là khó nhất và phức tạp nhất. Nó không những là kĩ năng được kiểm tra trong các bài thi ngôn ngữ, mà còn là kĩ năng người học cần có và thể hiện được trong học tập. Với sinh viên trường Đại học Y dược Thái Nguyên, kĩ năng viết thể hiện trong rất nhiều thể loại như viết báo cáo trong các hội thảo trong nước và quốc tế, viết thư, viết sổ ghi nhớ, viết thư điện tử. Vì vậy, giảng viên cần tập trung vào việc giúpđỡ sinh viên nâng cao và phát triển kĩ năng viết sớm nhất có thể.
Nghiên cứu này áp dụng phương pháp nghiên cứu khoa học định tính. Bảng khảo sát được tiến hành với 67 sinh viên năm thứ nhất trường Đại học Y dược Thái Nguyên để kiểm tra kĩ năng viết, và phân tích các lỗi trong văn viết. Bên cạnh đó, quan sát và phỏng vấn giúp cho tác giả thu thập thêm các thông tin, chứng cứ. Dựa trên kết quả phân tích, tác giả đề xuất chương trình Viết bổ trợ để đáp ứng nâng cao khả năng viết của sinh viên năm thứ nhất trường Đại học Y dược Thái Nguyên.
Keywords: kĩ năng viết; lỗi văn viết; sửa lỗi; hoạt động viết; TUMP; Đại học Y Dược Thái Nguyên
Ngày nhận bài: 27/8/2018; Ngày phản biện: 10/9/2018; Ngày duyệt đăng: 12/10/2018
