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ERROR ANALYSIS ON STUDENTS’ WRITING;
(A Case Study of the Eleventh Year Students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”)
A ”Skripsi”
Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of S.Pd. in English Language Education
By
Elis Fadliyah
NIM: 103014026945
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS’ TRAINING
STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY ”SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH”
JAKARTA
2008
ERROR ANALYSIS ON STUDENTS’ WRITING;
A Case Study of the Eleventh Year Students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
A ”Skripsi”
Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for the Degree of S.Pd in English Language Education
Approved by the Advisor
Drs. Arifin Toy, M.Sc.
NIP. 150 031 215
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS’ TRAINING
STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY “SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH“
JAKARTA
2008
ENDORSEMENT SHEET
The examination committee of the faculty of Tarbiya and Teachers
Training certifies that the “skripsi” (scientific paper) entitled “Error Analysis on Students’ Writing (A Case Study of the Eleventh Year Students of “MAN 2 Kota
Bogor”)”, written by Elis Fadliyah, student’s registration number is 103014026945, and was examined by the committee on 2nd June 2008, and was
declared to have passed and, therefore fulfilled one of the requirements for the academic title of “S.Pd” (Bachelor of Education) in English Language Education
at Department of English Education.
Jakarta, 2nd
June 2008
Examination committee
Chairman : Drs. Syauki, M.Pd. ( )
NIP. 150 246 289
Secretary : Neneng Sunengsih, S.Pd. ( )
NIP. 150 293 236
Examiners : 1. Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd. ( ) NIP. 150 041 070
2. Drs. H. Munir Sonhadji, M.Ed. ( )
NIP. 150 050 682
Acknowledged by:
Dean of Tarbiya and Teachers’ Training Faculty
Prof. Dr. Dede Rosyada, MA. NIP. 150 231 356
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful.
All praises be to Allah, The Lord of Worlds, by His helps, guidance, and
blessing finally the writer is able to finish this “skripsi”. Peace and blessing be
upon Muhammad SAW., his descendants, his companions, and his followers.
In this opportunity, the writer would like to express her greatest honor to
her beloved family; his parents H. Abd. Rosyid and Hj. Khoiriyah, her brothers
and sisters who always give their support and moral encouragement in finishing
her study.
The writer would love to address her thanks and great gratitude to her
advisor Drs. Arifin Toy, M.Sc., for his time, guidance, and valuable helps and
corrections during completing this “skripsi”.
The writer realized that she would have never finished in writing her
“skripsi” without the help of some people around her. Therefore, she would like to
give her gratitude and best appreciation to:
1. All lecturers in English Department who always give their motivation and
valuable knowledge during her study at State Islamic University of Syarif
Hidayatullah Jakarta.
2. Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd., the previous Head of English Department.
3. Drs. Syauki, M.Pd., the Head of English Department and Neneng Sunengsih,
S.Pd., the Secretary of English Education Department.
4. Prof. Dr. Dede Rosyada, MA., the Dean of Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers’
Training of State Islamic University of Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.
5. Drs. Kosasih Ismatullah, M.Pd., the head of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” and Drs.
Ruyani, the English teacher of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” who had sincerely spent
their spare time and offered much help in collecting the data that the writer
needed.
6. All of her classmates in class A and friends in class B and C who had shared
the time and experience together.
7. The eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”, especially class XI IPA
5 who had given their best attention and participation during gaining the data.
The words are not enough to say much appreciation for their help and
contribution in finishing this “skripsi”. May Allah SWT guides and gives you the
happiness throughout your life. May Allah, The Almighty, bless them all.
Jakarta, June 2008
The writer
TABLE OF CONTENTS
APPROVAL SHEET
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ......................................................................... i
TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................... iii
LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................... v
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. The Background of Study ................................... 1
B. The Focus of Study .............................................. 3
C. The Research Questions ....................................... 3
D. The Significance of Study .................................... 3
E. The Organization of Writing ................................ 4
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Error .................................................................... 5
1. The Definition of Error .................................. 5
2. The Error Analysis ......................................... 7
3. The Types of Error ......................................... 9
4. The Sources of Error ...................................... 10
5. Some Errors on Students’ Paragraph Writing .. 11
B. Writing ................................................................ 27
1. The Definition of Writing .............................. 27
2. The Writing Sentence .................................... 29
3. The Types of Sentence ................................... 29
CHAPTER III PROFILE OF “MAN (MADRASAH ALIYAH
NEGERI) 2 KOTA BOGOR”
A. The Curriculum ................................................... 32
B. The English Teaching Method ............................. 33
C. The English Textbook ......................................... 34
D. The Profile of English Teacher ............................ 35
E. The English Activities, Condition, and Environment .. 35
CHAPTER IV RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINDING
A. Research Methodology ........................................ 37
1. The Objective of Research ............................. 37
2. The Method of Research ................................ 37
3. The Instrument of Research ........................... 37
4. The Technique of Sample Taking .................. 38
5. The Technique of Data Collecting .................. 38
a. Observation .............................................. 38
b. Written Test ............................................. 38
c. Interview .................................................. 39
6. The Place and Time of Research .................... 39
7. The Technique of Data Analysis .................... 39
a. Data from the Observations ...................... 39
b. Data from the Written Test ....................... 40
c. Data from the Interview ........................... 41
B. Research Finding ................................................. 41
1. The Description of Data ................................. 41
2. The Analysis of Data ..................................... 42
3. Data Interpretation.......................................... 49
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
A. Conclusion .......................................................... 50
B. Suggestion ........................................................... 50
BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................... 52
APPENDIXES
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 : Common Homonyms ................................................................ 17
Table 2 : Homonym Problems ................................................................. 17
Table 3 : The Personal Details of the Teachers ........................................ 35
Table 4 : Error in Article ......................................................................... 42
Table 5 : Error in Capitalization .............................................................. 43
Table 6 : Error in Diction ........................................................................ 43
Table 7 : Error in Omissions .................................................................... 44
Table 8 : Error in Preposition .................................................................. 44
Table 9 : Error in Pronoun........................................................................ 45
Table 10 : Error in Punctuation .................................................................. 45
Table 11 : Error in Singular/Plural ............................................................. 46
Table 12 : Error in Spelling ....................................................................... 46
Table 13 : Error in Verb Tense .................................................................. 47
Table 14 : Error in Word Form .................................................................. 47
Table 15 : Error in Word Order ................................................................. 48
Table 16 : Error in Wordiness ................................................................... 48
Table 17 : Error in Wordiness ................................................................... 49
Table 18 : Error in Wordiness ................................................................... 49
APPENDIXES
Appendix 1: Class Observation
Appendix 2: The Recapitulation of Students Error
Appendix 3: Interview
Appendix 4: Test Instrument
Appendix 5: Students’ Writing
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. The Background of Study
In Indonesia, English is considered as the first foreign language
because it is necessary to be learned in order to support the people needs in
gaining a lot of information and knowledge in various fields, for example in
education, science and technology, economy, and others. To achieve its goal,
thus English is introduced in every level of learners. Even, it is delivered to
the earlier learners; it is for the kindergarten students. Moreover, English may
be obtained not only in formal education; in schools, but also in informal
education. Therefore, it will be easier for learners to master English.
English is one of compulsory subject which is given from the
beginning of Elementary School up to the Senior High School. It is shown in
curriculum by all its components; they are standard competence, based
competence, indicators, and so on. The curriculum, namely the School-Level
Curriculum, contains four English language skills; they are Listening,
Speaking, Reading, and Writing, and its language components are Grammar,
Vocabulary, and Pronunciation.
Among the skills, writing is viewed as the most difficult skill to be
learnt because it needs more knowledge in producing words, sentences, and
paragraphs, and arranging them into a good sequence whether in its structure,
logical thinking, and others. Furthermore, writing is complicated because it is
done not in one easy step but in series of steps. People begin to select the
topics, purposes, and audiences. Then they decide the organization and
presentation of ideas, topic sentences, and details. They decide the language
structures and vocabulary and to modify and to revise the paragraph.
According to Robbert M. Gorrel and Charltun Laird, “Writing requires
thinking, and thinking is always complicated and hard. Writing is complicated
also because the writer needs to do everything at once. A writer needs to do
everything at once, and the students of writing needs to study everything at
once. A writer produces words, sentences, paragraph, and extended
composition all at the same time. Words must be spelled, sentences
punctuated, and paragraph unified1. Therefore, the students have to have
extensive knowledge when they want to write anything. The extensive
knowledge will support their writing in order to be nice and interested in
reading.
In a sense, all writing starts from simple up to the complex writing.
The simple writing is the writing process which is begun by producing words
and sentences. Moreover, in producing words, the writers should pay attention
for their spelling, diction, word form, and others. And, in producing
sentences, the writer should regard the words order, sentence pattern,
punctuation, and so on. In addition, the sentence is categorized into four; they
are simple sentence, compound sentence, complex sentence, and compound-
complex sentence.
Then, the complex writing is the writing process that involves
producing paragraph and composition. According to Canavan, “Paragraph
consists of sentences (usually more than one), each with its own structural
pattern, in a series that develop one single idea”.2 In writing a paragraph, it is
necessary to be regarded its parts of paragraph, they are topic sentence,
supporting details and conclusion, and its requirements, such as unity,
completeness, order, and coherence. Furthermore, in constructing paragraph,
the writers should recognize the general rules of transitional words and
phrases, repetition and key terms, synonym and other substitutes, pronoun,
and parallelism, and others. Those are the items that usually appear when the
writers construct the paragraph.
Here, the writer tries to observe the students’ errors in writing by
regarding the previous general rules of writing process. When the students
1 Robert M. Gorrel and Charlton Laired, Modern English Handbook, (New Jersey:
Englewood Cliffs NJ, 1962), p. 1.
2 Joseph P. Canavan, Paragraph and the Short Theme, (New York: D. C. Heat and
Company, 1969), p. 29.
write, there are some errors appear, they are, for instance, the error in tenses.
The error is shown as follows:
“Last week Young Red Cross win as a favorite champion in SDB
(Sasih Darma Bakti)”
It should be:
“Last week Young Red Cross won as a favorite champion in SDB
(Sasih Darma Bakti)”.
Observing the students’ errors is the way for the writer to achieve her
research which is done at “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”. The research aims to know
the types and the most errors happened at the XI year students of “MAN 2
Kota Bogor”. This research is summarized on the “skripsi” titled “The Error
Analysis on Students’ Writing”.
B. The Focus of Study
This study focuses on XI year student of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” in first
semester 2007-2008 academic years. To make the description of this study
deeper, the problem will be limited in error analysis which is made by the
students in paragraph writing.
C. The Research Questions
Based on the background and focus of the study, the writer plans to do
an error analysis on students’ descriptive writing. The questions can be stated
as follows:
1. What types of errors do the students make in writing?
2. What is the most dominated error on students’ writing?
D. The Significance of Study
This finding (result) of this study are expected to provide useful
information on students’ errors which in turn helps teachers to correct
students’ errors and also improve the effectiveness of their teaching.
By analyzing the student’s errors in writing, the writer wishes the
result of the research would be advantageous for the readers who like writing
in order they can anticipate errors in their writing and as motivation for the
students to make good writing and to know the importance of writing in
language learning process, and used as inputs for the writer to identify what
part of the language programs are found difficult by the students.
E. The Organization of Writing
This paper is divided into five chapters, namely the first chapter is the
presentation of introduction, including the background of study, the focus of
study, the research question, the significance of study, and the organization of
writing.
The second chapter is theoretical framework. It will be divided into
three division chapters. The first is error; it includes discussing about the error
definition, error analysis, types of error, source of error, and some error in
students’ paragraph writing. The second describes writing. It involves the
definition of writing, the writing sentence, and the types of sentence. The third
chapter is the profile of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”, it includes discussing about the
history, the geographical position, the vision and mission, the curriculum and
method of English teaching learning, the condition, and the activities.
The forth chapter is about the research methodology and findings. It
consists of the purpose of the research, the place and time of research, the
technique of sample taking, the technique of data collecting, the technique of
data analysis. In research finding, it includes data description, data analysis,
and data interpretation.
The last chapter contains the conclusion of the study and some
suggestion.
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Error
When the students write in English, they can make a lot of errors. It
seems impossible if the learners or students have never been made some errors
in their language learning process, because do some errors is human and
natural.
1. The Definition of Error
There are many definitions of errors. According to Geographical
Webster, Revised Home and Office Dictionary of the English Language,
“Error is a mistake made in writing or other wise, a wondering or
deviation from the truth,3 it means that error can be found in the writing
covering a phoneme, a word, a phrase, a clause, a sentence, a paragraph, a
discourse. While in Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary Eleventh
Edition, “Error is an act involving an unintentional deviation from truth or
accuracy”.4
Dullay stated, “Errors are the flawed side of learner speech or
writing.”5 It means that there is something wrong in norms of language
performance. As the writer said before, that making errors are unavoidable
in learning process. Besides making errors are parts of learning and no one
can learn language without his/her first making errors.
3 Geographical Webster Revised Home and Office Dictionary of the English Language
(Chicago), p. 384. 4 Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary Eleventh Edition (Springfield, Massachusetts:
Merriam-Webster, Inc, 2003), p. 425.
5 Heidi Dullay, et. al., Language Two (New York: Oxford University Press, 1982), p.138.
Littlewood stated, “Errors are signs of learning failure and, as such,
not to be willingly tolerated.6 Error cannot always be easily identified.
First of all, the notion of ‘error’ presupposes a norm, and norms, in their
turn, are dependent on, amongst other things, the medium (spoken or
written language), the social context (formal or informal), and the relation
between speaker and hearer (symmetrical or asymmetrical). Furthermore,
it is quite possible for something which seems an error in isolation to be
perfectly acceptable in context, and vice versa.7
Error and mistakes are not the same. But most of the people still
misunderstand about definition of both. To be more clarified between error
and mistakes, Hubbard et.al., said “Errors caused by lack of knowledge
about the target language (English) or by incorrect hypothesis about it; and
unfortunate mistakes caused by temporary lapses of memory, confusion,
slips of the tongue and so on”.8
A mistake refers to a performance error that is either a random
guess or a “slip,” in that it is a failure to utilize a known system correctly.
It is the result of some sort of breakdown or imperfection in the process of
producing speech. These hesitations, slips of the tongue, random
ungrammaticalities, and other performance lapses in native-speaker
production also occur in second language speech, and when attention is
called to it, mistake can be self corrected.9 Such mistakes must be
carefully distinguished from errors of a second language learner,
idiosyncrasies in the interlanguage of the learner that are direct
manifestations of a system within which a learner is operating at the time.
6 William T. Littlewood, Foreign and Second language Learning, (Cambridge:
Cambridge Univrsity Press, 1988), p. 22.
7 Theo van Els, et. al., Applied Linguistic and the Learning and Teaching of Foreign
Languages (London: Edward Arnold, 1991), p. 47. 8 Peter Hubbard et. al., A Training Course for TEFL, (New York: Oxford University
Press, 1983), p. 134.
9 H. Douglas Brown, Principle of Learning and Teaching, (New York: Prentice Hall
Regents ), p. 205.
An error is a noticeable deviation from the adult grammar of a native
speaker, reflecting the interlanguage competence of the learner.10
Julian Edge, in Harmer (2001), suggested that mistake can be
divided into two broad categories: ‘slip’ and ‘attempts’. Slips are mistakes
which students can correct themselves once the mistake has been pointed
out to them, while attempts are mistakes committed when a student tries to
say something but does not yet know the correct way of saying it.11
For this paper the writer adopt the definition of genuine errors that
caused by lack of knowledge about English or by lack of incorrect
hypothesis about English. So, if the student can not correct himself when
he was challenged, it means he made an error, but he made mistake if he
can correct himself when he was challenged because a mistake is caused
by temporary lapses of memory, confusion, slips of the tongue and so on.
2. The Error Analysis
It is impossible that learners never make some errors in language
learning process. According to Peter Hubbard et.al., “The behaviorists
regarded language learning as the acquisition of skills, comparable to the
process of learning to do something practical, like driving a car. The
complex skill was broken down into a series of habits, which ere drilled
until they became automatic and unthinking. The habits were taught is a
series of small steps, so as to avoid errors.” In other words, to achieve the
English acquisition, the students must get through some errors first, and
then automatically they can learn from their own errors.
The teacher will also need to know which part of the subject matter
that most students do some errors and most students do not. Finding out
the learners’ errors then analyzing it is called Error Analysis.
10
Muhammad Farkhan, An Introduction to Linguistics, (Jakarta: UIN Jakarta Press,
2006), p. 149.
11
Jeremy Harmer, The Practice of English Language Teaching 3rd
Edition, (London:
Longman, 2001), p. 99.
There are many definition of error analysis. Oxford Concise
Dictionary defined Error analysis is “The analysis for practical but also
potentially for scientific ends, of errors made by students learning another
language”.12
Longman Dictionary of language teaching and Applied Linguistics
defines error analysis as the study and analysis of the error made by the
second language learners.13
The fact that learners do make errors and that these errors can be
observed, analyzed, and classified to reveal something of the system
operating within the learner, led to a surge of study of learners’ errors,
called error analysis. Error analysis become distinguished from contrastive
analysis by its examination of errors attributable to all possible sources,
not just those which result from negative transfer of the native language.
Error analysis easily superseded contrastive analysis, as we discovered that
only some of the errors a learner makes are attributed to the mother
tongue, that learners do not actually make all the errors that contrastive
analysis predicted they should, and that learners from disparate language
backgrounds tend to make similar errors in learning one target language.14
Corder stated, “Error analysis confirms or disproves the predictions
of the theory lying behind bilingual comparison.15
In this sense error
analysis is an experimental technique for validating the theory of transfer.
But error analysis goes beyond this; it aims at telling us something, about
the psycholinguistic processes of language learning. We hope to be able to
draw certain conclusion about the strategies adopted by the learner in the
12
Mathews, P. H, Oxford Concise Dictionary of Linguistic, (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1997), p. 117.
13
JC Richard, John Platt, and Heidi Platt, Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistic, (London: Longman, 1992), p. 127.
14
Farkhan, An Introduction..., p. 149.
15
S. P. Corder, Error Analysis and Interlanguage, (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1981), p. 35.
process of learning. In this sense, error analysis is part of the methodology
of the psycholinguistic investigation of language learning.
According to definition above the writer conclude that error
analysis is an effort to get in information about the students’ difficulty in
learning a language especially to write it.
3. The Types of Error
Theo van Els, et. al., distinguish the type of students’ error as
errors of performance and errors of competence.
Error of competence are the result of the application
of rules by the L2 learner which do not (yet) correspond to
the L2 norm; Error of performance are the result of mistakes
in language use and manifest themselves as repeats, false
starts, corrections or slips of the tongue. Error of performance occurs frequently in the speech
of both native speakers and L2 learners. They are especially likely to occur when the speaker suffers from stress,
indecision or fatigue. Corder has suggested the following operational criterion for differentiating between these two
types of error: L2 learners can recognize and correct errors of performance, but not errors of competence.
However, identification of errors of competence will
only be possible if we can establish a difference between
actual and intended L2 utterances.16
Noam Chomsky made a distinction between competence and
performance. Competence is knowing what is grammatically correct;
performance is what actually occurs in practice. He regarded performance
as a faulty representation of competence, caused by psychological
restrictions, such as memory lapses and limitations, distractions, changes
of direction half-way through a sentence, hesitation and so on.17
16
Els, et. al., Applied Linguistic..., p. 52.
17
Hubbard et. al., A Training..., p. 133.
4. The Sources of Error
The final step in the analysis of erroneous learner production is that
of determining the sources of error. By trying to identify sources we can
begin to arrive at an understanding how the learner’s cognitive and
affective self relates to the linguistic system and to formulate an integrated
understanding of the process of second language acquisition.18
Errors-overt manifestation of learner’s system-arise from several
possible general sources: inter-lingual errors of interference from the
native language, inter-lingual errors within the target language, the
sociolinguistic context of communication, psycholinguistic or cognitive
strategies, and countless affective variables.19
Pit Corder (Hubbard, 1993) claims that there are three major causes
of error, which he labels ‘transfer errors’, ‘analogical errors’, and
‘teaching-induced errors’. While Hubbard proposed a slightly different
names;
a. Mother-tongue interference
Although young children appear to be able to learn a foreign language quite easily and to reproduce
new sound very effectively, older learners experience
considerable difficulty. The sound system (phonology)
and the grammar of the first language impose themselves
on the new language and this lead to a “foreign”
pronunciation, faulty grammatical patterns and,
occasionally, to the wrong choice of vocabulary.
b. Overgeneralization
The mentalist theory claims that errors are
inevitable because they reflect various stages in the
language development of the learner. It claims that the
learner processes new language data in his mind and
produces rules for its production, based on the evidence.
Where the data are inadequate, or the evidence only partial, such rules may produce incorrect pattern.
c. Context of learning A third major source of error, through is overlaps
both types of transfer, is the context of learning.
18
Brown, Principle of..., p. 213.
19 Brown, Principle of…, p. 218.
“Context” refers to the classroom with the teacher and the
material in the case of school learning or the social
situation. In a classroom context, the teacher or the
textbook can lead the learner to make faulty hypothesis about the language what Richards called “False concept”
and what Stenson termed “Induced errors.” Students often make errors because of a misleading explanation
from the teacher, faulty presentation of a structure or word in the textbook, or even because of a pattern, that
was rote memorized in a drill but not properly contextualized.20
William T. Littlewood claims that there are four major causes of
errors.
a. Overgeneralization
b. Transfer
Transfer and overgeneralization are not distinct
processes. Indeed, they represent aspects of the same
underlying learning strategy. Both result from the fact
that the learner uses what he already knows about
language, in order to make sense of new experience. In
the case of overgeneralization, it s his previous
knowledge of the second language that the learner uses. In the case of transfer, the learner uses his previous
mother-tongue experience as a means of organizing the second language data. It is significant that Barry Taylor
found transfer errors to be more frequent with beginners than with intermediate students. The beginner has less
previous second language to draw on in making hypotheses about rules, and might therefore be expected
to make correspondingly more use of his first language
knowledge.
c. Ambiguous source of many errors
d. Simplification by omission.21
5. Some Errors on Students’ Paragraph Writing
Every learner has a different type of making errors. Furthermore,
the most common errors that occur in writing are:
20
Hubbard et. al., A Training…, p. 140-143.
21 Littlewood, Foreign and..., p. 23-28.
a. Article
The occurrence of the article varies depending upon the type of
noun. The definite and indefinite article is customary to recognize a
zero article. The two article are the and a. They may be used with a
singular or a plural noun. Each of articles undergoes a change before a
word beginning with a vowel sound – the changes in pronunciation, a
changes in both pronunciation and spelling.22
The spelling of a is
changed to an before a word that begins with a vowel sound (a, e, i, o,
u). an essay, an heir (silent h). Use a before a word that begins with a
consonant sound (all the other sounds except the vowels). a pencil, a
hotel, a university (here the u sound is really a consonant sound like yu
instead of like the vowel sound of u in understanding above).23
In
Indonesian writing, no need to use article. It influences the students in
their writing. Some students did not use articles in their composition.
e.g. “I have cute little brother” it should be “I have a cute little
brother.”
The chief semantic function of articles is to mark nouns as
definite or indefinite. The signals a particular person or thing that has
been singled out from others – the students sitting next to you. A
signals unspecified one of others – a students sitting in front of row.24
22 Douglas Bibe, Stig Johanson, et. al., Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written
English, (England: Personal Education Limited, 1999), p. 260.
23
Teresa Ferster Glazier, The Least You Should Know About English Basic Writing Skills,
(New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1977), p. 6.
24
Marcella Frank, Modern English a Practical Reference Guide, (New Jersey: Prentice-
Hall, 1972), p. 125.
b. Capitalization
There are many uses of capitalization, some clearly understood
by most writers and some not so clearly understood. According to
Eugene Ehrlich, there are many rules that are presented:25
1) Sentences
The first word of every grammatical unit punctuated as a sentence is capitalized.
Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their party.
2) Poetry
The first word of every line of conventional poetry is
capitalized. The great majority of poets start each line with a
capitalize word.
One impulse from a vernal wood
May teach you more of man,
Of moral evil and of good,
Than all the sagas can.
-- William Wordsworth
3) Quotations
The first word of a quotation is capitalized, unless the
quotation is less than a sentence long. Quotations sometimes
do not consist of complete sentences. When they do not, the opening word of the quotation is not capitalized unless there
is some other reason for capitalization. When the quotation is a complete sentence, the first word is capitalized.
Dave’s father said, “You must learn to fend for yourself.”
Hobbes’s famous phrase “a kind of sudden glory” describes the feeling of the onlooker when he sees
misfortune befall another.
Sometimes a quotation of a complete sentence is
broken into two parts in the sentence quoting it. The second
part is not capitalized if it is not treated as a sentence.
“You will,” he went on, “do exactly as I say.”
4) The Words I and O
The pronoun I and the interjection O are capitalized.
Except for I, pronouns are not capitalized unless they are the
first word of a sentence or a line of poetry.
He and I are going into business together. (He is
capitalized because it is the first word of a sentence, I
because it is I.)
25
Eugene Ehrlich, Punctuation, Capitalization, and Spelling, (New York: McGraw-Hill,
1992), p. 105-117.
The interjection O, which is seen mainly in literature
and prayer but is rarely used today, is always capitalized,
even though the interjection oh is not.
Hear me, O Israel! 5) Names
Proper Nouns and Adjectives
Proper nouns and adjectives are capitalized. A proper
noun is the name of a particular person, place, or thing. A proper adjective is an adjective derived from a proper noun.
Frank met Lucy for dinner. (Frank and Lucy are proper nouns.)
The White House is the center of political activity in
the United States. (White House and United States are
proper nouns.)
Eleanor Holm was expert in the Australian crawl.
(Australian is a proper adjective.)
6) Particles
American family names beginning with the particles
Van, Von, De, Di, or Da are capitalized. Do not capitalize
foreign family names beginning with the particles van and
von. Do not capitalize foreign names beginning with the
particles de, du, di, or da unless they appear without first
names or titles.
One of the best engineers I know in Connecticut is Paul Von Hardenburg. (An American name.)
Wernher von Braun started his career as a racketeer at Dortmund, Germany. (A German name.)
7) Geographical Names Since geographical names are proper nouns, they are
capitalized. There are several conventions that are followed with geographical names.
The words such as river, ocean, mountain, and gorge
are geographical terms that are used both alone and as a part
of the names of geographical features: Mississippi River,
Atlantic Ocean, Deo Mountain. When river and the others
occur as a part of a geographical name, they are capitalized.
When they do not occur with a geographical name, they are
not capitalized.
I have seen mountains in my time, but none to rival
the Rocky Mountains.
Of all the rivers in the United States, there is none to
rival the Mississippi River.
8) Compass Directions
Compass directions are capitalized when they are part of the names of specific regions. Do not capitalize east, west,
north, and so on when they merely indicate directions: Travel
east on this road. Do not capitalize directions when they
serve as part of the name of a place or region.
An old song referred to the region just a little bit
south of South Caroline. 9) Regional Names and Nicknames
The names and nicknames of geographic regions and political units are capitalized. As in compass directions used
in regional names, all terms commonly used to name geographic regions and political units are capitalized. Not
only are the proper names of countries and regions capitalized, but so are the nicknames used by the press,
historians, and political commentators to designate such
units.
Columbus set forth from the Old World to find what
turned out to be the New World.
10) Streets, Buildings, Parks, and Companies
The names of all formally designated streets, buildings,
parks, public places, companies, and other organizations are
capitalized.
All the world has heard of New York City’s Fifth
Avenue.
The Flatiron Building was once considered a New
York landmark.
11) Organizations and Other Groups The proper names of all organizations, religions, races,
nationalities, and so on are capitalized. this rule is another specific expansion of the rule governing the capitalization of
proper names: Columbia University, Seventh-Day Adventists,
Asians, Poles, Department of Commerce.
When anything but the proper name of such a group is used, no capitals are required: college departments,
fundamentalists, bureaucrats, government officials, charities.
When a phrase is used that could serve as the name of an
organization but does not, the phare is not capitalized. only
official namea are capitalized.
We ought to organize a cheerleaders’ group.
The Tenafly Cheerleaders’ Club is a popular group.
12) Deity and Sacred Writing
Nouns and pronouns referring to God and writing held to be
sacred are capitalized.
The Koran is the holy book of the Nation of Islam.
God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost were
celebrated in a special Mass.
13) Events, Eras, Prizes, Documents The proper names of all wars, battles, historic events, treaties,
documents, prizes, and important historical periods are
capitalized. this rule is still another extension of the general
rule governing capitalization of proper names. Proper names
of wars, battles, and so on merit capitalization just as much as
the names of people or companies. The end of the Spanish Civil War saw the death of
democracy in that country. A civil war is the saddest of wars.
The Noble Prize for Literature was won by Saul Bellow in 1976.
14) Titles Civil and Military Titles
Military and civil titles are capitalized when they precede a
name, indicate high rank, or are used as substitutes for the
names of individuals.
Did you know that Consul Burton was in danger of
losing his position at that point in his career? (Title
preceding a name).
The Secretary of State is generally the most important
person in the administration of the country’s foreign
affairs. (Title of High rank. Notice that unimportant
words that are part of a title are not capitalized.
Unimportant words are generally considered to be
articles and prepositions and conjunctions of fewer
than five letters.) Academic Degrees
Capitalize all academic degrees and their abbreviations Many lawyers who hold the degree of Bachelor of Laws
(LL.B) would prefer to receive the degree Doctor of Law (J.D), which is now common in most American law schools
as the initial law degree. Books, Plays, and Periodicals
Capitalize the first word and all important words in the title
of a book, play, story, article, poem, musical work, journal,
magazine, and newspaper. The only problem in this rule is
definition of all important words. Important words are
anything but short articles, prepositions, and conjunctions.
Prepositions and conjunctions of five letters or more are
considered important.
The House of Seven Gables (The is the first word; of
has fewer than five letters.)
Much Ado About Nothing (About has five letters.)
c. Diction
Diction or word choice is choosing the right word in a
sentence. Sometimes one word has the same meaning but has
difference usage in the sentence. For example, pal – pai. That is
same when learning about homonyms, as stated by Katherine
Ploeger in her book, “Homonyms are words that sound the same or
almost the same but have different meanings. Some are possessives,
other constructions, other something else.26
Some students made mistake in diction because of their lack
of knowledge about this problem. They also generalized the meaning
of words. For example, the using of where instead when in the
sentence “When we member of scout”. They over generalized the
meaning of word “where” and used it in wrong place. The students
can know the right usage of diction only from learning by reading an
exercise in writing.
To make it clear, see these 2 tables below (common
homonyms and homonym problem).
Table 1: Common Homonyms
Possessive Pronoun
(Shows ownership)
Contraction Other
Its
Our
Their Theirs
Whose Your
It’s (It is)
They are There is
Who’s (who is) You’re (you are)
Hour (time) Are (to be verb)
There (location)
Other problem words that sound the same or almost the same
but have different meanings are listed in this table below.
Table 2: Homonym Problems
Accept (to agree)
Allowed(accepted)
Here (at this location)
Knew (past tense of
know: had knowledge)
Know (to know
Except (not allow)
Aloud (loudly)
Sight (the ability to
see)
New (never see
before)
Site (location)
26
Katherine Ploeger, Simplified Paragraph Skills, (Chicago: NTC Publishing Group,
2000), p. 21.
knowledge)
Quiet (not noisy)
Whether (if)
No (negative)
Quite (very mess)
Weather (clouds,
sunshine)
Quit (to stop)
d. Omission
Omission errors are characterized by the absence of an
item that must appear in a well-formed utterance. Although any
morpheme or word in a sentence is a potential candidate for
omission, some types of morphemes are omitted more than
others. Content morphemes carry the bulk of the referential
meaning of a sentence: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs.27
For
example, in the sentence:
“Mary president new company”.
It should be:
“Mary is the president of the new company”.
e. Preposition
A preposition shows the relation of its object to another word
in the sentence.28
A preposition is a connecting word that typically indicates
time, place, or movement. A preposition connects its object (a noun,
pronoun, or noun substitute) with some other word in a sentence.
Together the preposition, its object, and any words modifying the
object form a preposition phrase-for example, on a sunny morning.29
The use of preposition:
1) To talk about the place where someone or something is.
Prepositions are followed by a noun group. Which is called
the object of the preposition, such as, above, among, at,
behind, below, beneath, beside between, in, inside, near,
27
Dulay, Language Two …, p. 154.
28
Barry, Business English ..., p. 213.
29 Kramer, Rigg, Workbook for..., P. 15.
on, opposite, outside, over, round, through, under,
underneath.
2) To talk about the direction that someone or something is
moving in, or the place that someone or something is moving towards. The preposition are across, along, back to,
down, into, onto, out of, past, round, through, to, towards, up.
3) Many prepositions can be used both for place and direction. They are across, over.
4) We can use adverbs and adverb phrase for place and direction. They are abroad, away, downstairs, downwards,
here, indoors, outdoors, there, underground, upstairs,
anywhere, everywhere, nowhere, somewhere.
5) Many words can be used as prepositions and as adverbs,
with no difference in meaning. Remember that prepositions
have noun groups as object, but adverbs do not, such as
down the stairs, underneath the bed.
6) Use ‘at’ when you are thinking of a place as a point in
space.(at the bus stop).
7) Use ‘at’ with words such as ‘back’, ‘botton’, ‘end’, ‘front’,
and ‘top’, to talk about the different parts of place.
8) Use ‘in’ when you are talking about a place as an area. Use
‘in’ with: a country or geographical region, a city, town, or
village, a building when you are talking about people or things inside it.
9) Use ‘on’ when you are talking about place as a surface. You can also use ‘on top of’.
10) Use ‘by’ to talk about the type of vehicle or transport you use to travel somewhere.
f. Pronoun
Pronouns make up a small class of words of very high
frequency. Pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. The
pronouns that are actual substitutes may refer not only to a preceding
noun-its antecedent-but to a large part of a discourse that precedes.30
In addition, many pronouns have the ability to serve either of
two functions—they may stand alone in noun function, or they may act
as adjectives (determiners) that precede descriptive adjectives.
30
Frank, Modern English…, p. 20.
According to Marcella Frank, there are seven types of pronouns
they are:
1) Personal Pronouns Personal pronouns refer to:
a) The speaker, called the first person
Singular – I (spelled with a capital letter)
Plural- we (includes the speaker and one or more others) b) The speaker, called the first person
The person spoken to, called the second person –you (singular and plural)
c) The speaker, called the first person
The person or thing bring spoken of, called the third
person
Singular –he (for males), she (for females), it (for things;
also for live beings whose sex is unknown or unimportant
to the speaker)
Plural-they (for all live beings and for all things)
2) Interrogative Pronouns
Interrogative pronouns introduce direct or indirect questions.
There are three interrogative pronouns-who (for person),
what (for things), and which (for a choice involving either
persons or things). The three interrogative pronouns have
generalizing forms: whoever, whatever, and whichever.
3) Relative Pronoun
Relative pronouns refer to noun antecedents which immediately precede them. They introduce adjective clauses
in which they serve as subjects or objects- The man who
answered the phone was rude. (Who is the subject of the
verb answered in the adjective clause who answer the
phone). The most common relative pronouns are who (for
persons), that (for persons or things), which (for things). As
sometimes also serves as a relative pronoun-She likes the
same things as (= that) her husband does. 4) Demonstrative Pronouns
Demonstrative pronouns point out someone or something.
The most common demonstrative pronouns are this (plural
these) and that (plural those). This generally refer to what is
near at hand, that to what is farther away. This distinction in
space is related to the distinction between the adverbs here
and there-This table (over here) is prettier than that one
(over there). Demonstrative pronouns may also point to something that
has just been said-He told his wife he had just received an
increase in salary. This pleased her very much.
Occasionally a demonstrative pronoun points to a part of a
discourse that follows-I must tell you this. I can no longer
afford to go out to expensive restaurants for dinner. That or those may be more emphatic alternatives for the.
5) Reflective pronoun The reflexive pronoun is a combination of –self with one of
the personal pronouns or with the impersonal pronoun one. The reflexive pronoun generally refer to an animate being,
usually a person. The most common use of the reflexive pronoun is an object that “reflects back” to the subject; in
other words, it has the same identity as the subject. Thus, in
the sentence The child hurt himself, child and himself are
identical.
6) Reciprocal Pronoun
Reciprocal pronoun has the same identity as the subject. The
reciprocal pronoun indicates that the individual members of a
plural subject mutually react one on the other. The reciprocal
pronouns are each other and one another.
7) Indefinite Pronoun
Such pronouns refer to indefinite (usually unknown) persons
or things, or to indefinite quantities.
Indefinite person or things are all singular in form and are
used without noun antecedents. For example: somebody, someone, and something.
Indefinite quantities, such as all, another, any, both, each, either, few, least, lest, little, a lot, etc.
g. Punctuation
Punctuation is the practice or system of inserting various marks
in written test in order to aids interpretation.31
Punctuation is mainly confined to the four following general
uses:
1) Punctuation marks the ends of main sentence patterns-of
sentences or of independent clauses in sentences. The
period, question mark, and exclamation mark, with different meanings, indicate the ends of complete
sentences. The semicolon, and sometimes the colon or dash or comma, indicates secondary breaks, breaks
between independent clauses within the sentence.
31
Sylvia Chalker, Edmund Weiner, The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar, (New
York: Oxford University Press, 1998), p. 234.
2) Punctuation tends to preserve the flow from subject to
verb to complement by setting apart any elements which
interrupt the thought of the pattern-non-restrictive
modifiers, parenthetical expressions, and the like. Usually the comma is used for such purposes, although
semicolon, dashes, and parentheses sometimes mark sharper separations.
3) Punctuation separates co-ordinate elements not sufficiently separated by punctuation words. Usually
commas are sufficient for such separation, but sometimes a semicolon is used.
4) Punctuation has a number of conventional uses-to clarify
statistical material, to mark bibliographical materials, to
identify quotations, and so on. Most of these uses have
been established by custom and are mechanical habits or
traditions to be learned.
Marks of punctuation
. The period marks the ends of sentences not to be
distinguished as questions or exclamations. It has also a few conventional uses, mainly to mark abbreviations.
? The question mark (interrogation point) is used at the end of a direct question-not an indirect one.
! The exclamation mark is used at the end of a
complete or incomplete sentence to indicate strong emotion
or feeling.
: The colon has mainly conventional uses, especially to
introduce formal lists; it sometimes separates independent
clauses.
; The semicolon mainly separates independent clauses,
although it sometimes separates items in series.
, The comma is the most common punctuation mark in
English, with a wide variety of uses.
- The dash, made with two hyphens on the typewriter,
sometimes marks sharp breaks between clauses and
sometimes sets off parenthetical material more sharply than a
comma would.
“ “ Quotation marks enclose direct quotations, words
reproduced as spoken or written.
( ) Parentheses have mainly conventional uses, but they
also sometimes mark material to be sharply set apart within
the sentence.
[ ] Brackets mainly have conventional uses to set off
inserted materials. Since standard typewriters usually do not
have brackets, brackets should be inserted by hand in typed
material or made with the diagonal and underlining bars.
… The ellipsis, three periods, marks an omission, usually
from quoted matter.32
Most of the students misused the punctuation, e.g., “When I
saw you for the first time. I was very surprised” he/she used a period
instead of comma. In this punctuation case, the students made errors
because they do not pay attention to the punctuation in writing,
whereas punctuation is important to make the meaning clear. They did
not realize that written English is different from spoken language.
Gestures, tones, and stressing can make the meaning clear in spoken
language but only punctuation can make the meaning clear in written
English.
This error is sometimes the result from immediate
communication strategy when the learner tried to express a meaning,
which their competence contained no appropriate items or rules at all.
Overgeneralization and transfer may also become the result of an
immediate communication strategy. Indonesian word order and
English word order is different. For example,” Smart you are” it
should be “You are smart”.
h. Singular and Plural
According to Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar,
“Singular is a word or form that denotes or refers to a single person or
thing. Singular contrasts mainly with plural in the description of nouns,
pronouns, and verb form.
Uncount nouns are sometimes described as singular because
they take singular verbs. But this is misleading, since singular count
nouns and uncount nouns do not share all the same determiners (e.g.
a/one roll but some/much bread). Invariable nouns of plural meaning
32
Robert M. Gorrel, Charlton Laird, Modern English Handbook 3rd
Edition, (New Jersey:
Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1964), p. 467-468.
lacking an –s but taking a plural verb (e.g. police) are sometimes
described as singular nouns. The term ‘singular noun’ is also
sometimes applied to a noun which, in a particular meaning, can be
used with a/an (e.g. What a pity!).33
While plural is a word or form denoting more than one.
Contrasted with singular. In English, plural applies to certain nouns,
pronouns, and determiners, and to verbs. In general, count nouns have
distinct plural forms, which in regular nouns end in –s or –es. Nouns
with irregular plurals include some of Old English origin (feet,
children, etc., and zero plurals such as sheep, deer) and some foreign
plurals (crises, errata, etc.).
A few nouns are plural only. Many end in –s (e.g. premises).
But some plural-only words are unmarked (e.g. cattle, people). 34
The plurals of most English nouns, however, conform to a
standard pattern; that is, most of them form their plurals by the
addition of s or es. If you keep the following principles in mind and
consult your dictionary whenever doubt arises, you will have no
difficulty in controlling plural forms. If the dictionary entry for a noun
shows no plural, it is formed simply by the addition of s or es.
1) English nouns that end in s, x, z, ch, or sh are made plural by
the addition of es.
business businesses
bush bushes
tax taxes
watch watches
quiz quizzes
All other proper nouns (those not ending in s, x, z, ch, or sh) are
made plural by the addition of s.
Martin The martins Sperry the Sperrys
Ford the Fords 2) Most common nouns are made plural by the addition of s.
automobile automobiles
33
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 363.
34 Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 300.
employee employees
3) Common nouns that end in y fall into two classifications: if a
noun ends in y preceded by a vowel, the plural is formed by
the addition of s. if it ends in y preceded by a consonant, the plural is formed by changing the y to i and adding es. Plurals
of nouns ending in quy are formed in this same manner. 4) The plurals of personal names accompanied by titles may be
correctly expressed in more that one ay. The modern tendency in business writing is to avoid the use of plural
titles, such as Messrs, because they are very formal in nature. 5) Most nouns that end in f, fe, or ff are made plural by the
addition of s. in some nouns, however, the f or fe is changed
to v and es is added.
6) The principle that governs nouns ending in o is divided into
four parts: if a noun ends with o preceded by a vowel, the
plural is formed by the addition of s. If a musical term ends
in o, the plural is formed by the addition of s. if a noun ends
in o preceded by a consonant, the addition of es may be
required. The modern tendency, however, is to form the
plurals of such nouns by adding just the s. check a good
dictionary when you are in doubt. Some nouns ending in o
have two plural forms.
7) Some nouns are made plural by a vowel change (man men).
8) A few nouns take en as a plural ending. (child children). 9) Some nouns are the same in the singular and the plural.
(sheep sheep) 10) A few nouns that end in s are singular in meaning and require
singular 11) verbs when used as subjects of sentence. (news mathematics)
12) Plural nouns such as scissors, thanks, goods, etc. may be either singular or plural in meaning, but they are used only
with plural verbs. They have no corresponding singular
forms.
13) Compound nouns consist of a combination of two or more
words that are written in one of these ways: in solid forms as
one word, as a hyphenated word, or as separate words.
14) The plural of a letter, a numeral, a symbol, or a word referred
to as a word is formed by the addition of an apostropedhe and
s.
15) The plural of an abbreviation is generally formed by the
addition of s to the singular form.
16) Some abbreviations have the same form for both the singular
and the plural.
17) The plural of an abbreviation made up of separate letters is formed by the addition of an apostrophe and s.
18) The plural of a contraction is formed by the addition of s.
19) Many nouns that are foreign in origin are commonly used in
formal, scientific, and technical matter. Some of these nouns
have only their foreign plurals; other have been given an
additional (English) plural. 35
i. Spelling
Spelling ability is not necessary an index to intelligence or
education, but certainly the person who spells inaccurately works
under a handicap. He is likely to be considered uneducated by anyone
who catches him in errors, and he is likely to be limited in his writing,
as he relies on simple but sometimes colorless words in order to be
safe in his spelling. Some people are sufficiently eye-minded that they
learn to spell unconsciously. By the time they have seen a word spelled
correctly several times, they know it. Others have to work on spelling,
not because they are slow or stupid but because their minds happen not
to work in the way that records spelling automatically. But fortunately
almost any intelligent person can learn to spell reasonably well if he
will work at it. A “bad” speller is usually only a person who does not
spell without learning, who has never been properly taught, or who has
never tried hard enough to learn.
In spelling, as in almost every else, there is no substitute for a
good background. The more a student reads, and the better writing he
reads, the better he is likely to spell. Any diagnosis is likely to turn up
problems like the following.
1) Habitual misspelling: the student is misspelling the
same few words over and over.
2) Carelessness: hesitating during composition to spell
every word correctly may impede writing, but there is
no excuse for leaving misspelling uncorrected after
the writing is done. An uncertain speller should
scrutinize every word before he lets any written work
out of his hands.36
35
Barry, Business English..., p. 63-67.
36
Gorrel, Laird, Modern English..., p. 510-512.
While Willis states that spelling is how to write a word
correctly, spelling error can because by lack of knowledge and the
influence of their native language. For instance; hight, wildt, forbitten,
coupel, etc. some students made many errors in this case. It caused by
the students’ lack of knowledge and the influence of their native
language. Spelling problems can be over come only through practice
and if the students need more practice, they should arrange practice
session with a friend.37
j. Verb Tense
Tense is a firm taken by a verb to indicate the time at which the
action or state is viewed as occurring.38
They made mistakes because
they did not understand well the grammar; it is also caused by intra-
lingual transfer overgeneralization.
k. Word Form
Word form is any variant of a lexeme. Used as a way of
avoiding ambiguity of word. e. g. see, sees, seeing, etc.39
Overgeneralization and transfer can be the cause of error in
word form. Indonesian word form is different from English word form.
They often over-generalize the form of words. For example, “to
responded” it should be “to respond”; “I were cooking fried rice” it
should be “I was cooking fried rice.”
37
Hullon Willis, Structure, Style, and Usage and Guide to Expository Writing, (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1964), p. 257.
38
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 395.
39
Chaker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 427.
l. Word Order
According to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary “Word
order is arrangement of words in a phrase, clause, or sentence. 40
This error is sometimes the result from immediate
communication strategy when the learner tried to express a meaning,
which their competence contained no appropriate items o rules at all.
Overgeneralization and transfer may also become the result of an
immediate communication strategy. Indonesian word order and
English word order is different. For example, ‘Smart you are” it should
be “You are smart.”
m. Wordiness
According to Buscemi et.al., “Wordiness comes from using
more words than you need to get your message across. Sometimes
students become wordy simply to provide the number of words
required by the assignment”.41 In line with Langan, he states that
“Using more words than necessary to express a meaning”.42
For example:
Not : She is the best swimmer of the three Rumanians swimmers.
But : She is the best of the three Rumanians swimmers.
B. Writing
1. The Definition of Writing
Sometimes people write something. They convey their ideas
through writing. Learning to write does not come naturally in the same
way as learning to speak. It involves many complex skills, knowledge and
40
Merriam-Webster’s…, p. 1442. 41
Santi V. Buschemi, et.al., The Basic a Rhetoric and Handbook, (Boston: McGraw-Hill
Companies, 2000), third edition, p. 373.
42
John Langan, Sentence Skills A Workbook for Writers 7th
Edition, (Boston: McGraw-
Hill, 2003), p. 384.
concepts. Before learning to write a writer must understand the definition
of writing.
In this part the writer quotes some definitions of writing.
According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, writing is to make
letters or other symbols (ideograph) on a surface.43 It means that writing is
an activity to arrange a group of letters or symbols, which have a meaning
on a medium.
Writing is an integral part of human life. Someone almost writes
something everyday. He/she maybe writes a lesson, a letter or story, etc,
learning to write does not come naturally in the same way as learning to
speak. It involves many complex skills, knowledge and concepts. One of
important aspects of learning to write is growing an awareness of self to
practice writing. Meanwhile understanding the definition of writing is a
must.
In other word, Ann Brown gave the definition of writing from
sociological view; it is a medium of interaction among people to make
relationship and to exchange information among each other in any
distances. She said, “Writing is important in our lives and as a
communicative act that transmit information and link people together”.44
The various definition of writing according to experts above can be
identified by the key words of each definition and it can be concluded in a
sentence. So the writing is a process of the mental physical act in
expressing thoughts and feeling of thinking in forming letters and words
into sentences correctly to shape experiences, to communicate and to link
people together on a surface.
43
A. S. Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, (Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 1987), p. 996.
44
Ann Brown, Helping Children’s Write, (New York: Paul Chapman Publishing Ltd,
1993), p.2
2. The Writing Sentence
The word sentence in a number of handbooks will probably find a
different definition in each one. According to the Oxford Dictionary of
English Grammar, sentence is the largest unit of language structure treated
in traditional grammar; usually having a subject and predicate, and (when
written) beginning with a capital letter and ending with full stop.45
While Donald Hall and Sven Birkerts in their book Writing Well
state that sentence is a group of words with a period, an exclamation point,
or a question mark at the end. A sentence is also a verbal structure that
reflects something about the world. It puts words in relation in order to
map our understanding of the sensible structure of things.46
In addition Enno Klammer explains that sentence is an independent
unit of expression. Moreover she explains that sentence is a group of
words containing a subject and a predicate and expressing a complete
thought.47
3. The Types of Sentence
According to Bob Brannan, there are four types of sentences they
are simple sentence, compound sentence, complex sentence, and
compound-complex sentence. 48
a. Simple Sentence
A simple sentence contains one main clause with no
subordinate clauses. It may be short and truly ‘simple’, as in
uncomplicated, or it may have several phrases that lengthen it
and add complexity. Here are several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream.
45
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 358.
46 Donald Hall, Sven Birkerts, Writing Well. 9th Ed, (Washington D. C: Addison Wesley
Longman, 1998), p. 126.
47
Enno Klammer, Paragraph Sense: A Basic Rhetoric, (New York: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, Inc, 1978), p. 2.
48
Bob Brannan, A Writer’s Workshop Crafting Paragraph, Building Essays, (New York:
McGraw–Hill, 2003), p. 502-503.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream.
b. Compound Sentence
A compound sentence merely adds one or more main clause
to a simple sentence. A sentence has two sets (or more) of subjects and verbs that are usually divided with a
coordinating conjunction like and or but and a comma-or a semicolon if the conjunction is omitted. Compound sentence
may be uncomplicated or may contain a great deal of information, but it may not contain a subordinate clause.
Here are several examples: Aaron likes ice cream, so he eats a lot of it.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream, so they eat a lot
of it.
c. Complex Sentence
Complex sentence is not necessarily any more “complex,” as
in complicated, than simple or compound sentences, but it
does certain another kind of clause-the subordinate or
dependent clause. A complex sentence, then consist of one
main clause and one or more subordinate clauses along with
whatever other phrases the sentence accumulates. Here are
several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream because it tastes sweet.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream because it tastes
sweet. d. Compound-Complex Sentence
The compound-complex sentence is just a combination of the two preceding sentence types. It consists of two or more main
clauses with one or more subordinate clauses along with accompanying phrases. Here are several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream because it tastes sweet, so he eats a lot of it.
Aaron likes ice cream that is full of chocolate chips, so he
eats a lot of it.
While John Langan in his book Sentence Skill also divides the
sentence into four types as simple, compound, complex, and compound-
complex.49
Each is explained below.
a. Simple Sentence A simple sentence has a single subject-verb combination. A
simple sentence may have more than one subject or more than one verb. For example:
The game ended early. Lola and Tony drove home.
The children smiled and waved at us.
49 Langan, Sentence Skills …, p. 139-146.
b. Compound Sentence
A compound sentence, or “double,” sentence is made up of
two (or more) simple sentences. The two complete statements
in a compound sentence are usually connected by a comma plus a joining word (and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet). For
example: The rain increased, so the officials canceled the game.
Martha wanted to go shopping, but Fred refused to drive her.
c. Complex Sentence A complex sentence is made up of a simple sentence (a
complete statement) and a statement that begins with a
dependent words such as, after, as, because, etc. For
example:
Because I forgot the time, I missed the final exam.
d. Compound-Complex Sentence
A compound-complex sentence s made up of two (or more)
simple sentences and one (or more) dependent statements.
For example:
When the power line snapped, Jack was listening to the
stereo, and Linda was reading in bed.
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
C. Error
When the students write in English, they can make a lot of errors. It
seems impossible if the learners or students have never been made some errors
in their language learning process, because do some errors is human and
natural.
4. The Definition of Error
There are many definitions of errors. According to Geographical
Webster, Revised Home and Office Dictionary of the English Language,
“Error is a mistake made in writing or other wise, a wondering or
deviation from the truth,50
it means that error can be found in the writing
covering a phoneme, a word, a phrase, a clause, a sentence, a paragraph, a
discourse. While in Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary Eleventh
Edition, “Error is an act involving an unintentional deviation from truth or
accuracy”.51
Dullay stated, “Errors are the flawed side of learner speech or
writing.”52
It means that there is something wrong in norms of language
performance. As the writer said before, that making errors are unavoidable
in learning process. Besides making errors are parts of learning and no one
can learn language without his/her first making errors.
50 Geographical Webster Revised Home and Office Dictionary of the English Language
(Chicago), p. 384.
51
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary Eleventh Edition (Springfield,
Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, Inc, 2003), p. 425.
52
Heidi Dullay, et. al., Language Two (New York: Oxford University Press, 1982),
p.138.
Littlewood stated, “Errors are signs of learning failure and, as such,
not to be willingly tolerated.53
Error cannot always be easily identified.
First of all, the notion of ‘error’ presupposes a norm, and norms, in their
turn, are dependent on, amongst other things, the medium (spoken or
written language), the social context (formal or informal), and the relation
between speaker and hearer (symmetrical or asymmetrical). Furthermore,
it is quite possible for something which seems an error in isolation to be
perfectly acceptable in context, and vice versa.54
Error and mistakes are not the same. But most of the people still
misunderstand about definition of both. To be more clarified between error
and mistakes, Hubbard et.al., said “Errors caused by lack of knowledge
about the target language (English) or by incorrect hypothesis about it; and
unfortunate mistakes caused by temporary lapses of memory, confusion,
slips of the tongue and so on”.55
A mistake refers to a performance error that is either a random
guess or a “slip,” in that it is a failure to utilize a known system correctly.
It is the result of some sort of breakdown or imperfection in the process of
producing speech. These hesitations, slips of the tongue, random
ungrammaticalities, and other performance lapses in native-speaker
production also occur in second language speech, and when attention is
called to it, mistake can be self corrected.56 Such mistakes must be
carefully distinguished from errors of a second language learner,
idiosyncrasies in the interlanguage of the learner that are direct
manifestations of a system within which a learner is operating at the time.
53
William T. Littlewood, Foreign and Second language Learning, (Cambridge:
Cambridge Univrsity Press, 1988), p. 22.
54
Theo van Els, et. al., Applied Linguistic and the Learning and Teaching of Foreign
Languages (London: Edward Arnold, 1991), p. 47. 55
Peter Hubbard et. al., A Training Course for TEFL, (New York: Oxford University
Press, 1983), p. 134.
56
H. Douglas Brown, Principle of Learning and Teaching, (New York: Prentice Hall
Regents ), p. 205.
An error is a noticeable deviation from the adult grammar of a native
speaker, reflecting the interlanguage competence of the learner.57
Julian Edge, in Harmer (2001), suggested that mistake can be
divided into two broad categories: ‘slip’ and ‘attempts’. Slips are mistakes
which students can correct themselves once the mistake has been pointed
out to them, while attempts are mistakes committed when a student tries to
say something but does not yet know the correct way of saying it.58
For this paper the writer adopt the definition of genuine errors that
caused by lack of knowledge about English or by lack of incorrect
hypothesis about English. So, if the student can not correct himself when
he was challenged, it means he made an error, but he made mistake if he
can correct himself when he was challenged because a mistake is caused
by temporary lapses of memory, confusion, slips of the tongue and so on.
5. The Error Analysis
It is impossible that learners never make some errors in language
learning process. According to Peter Hubbard et.al., “The behaviorists
regarded language learning as the acquisition of skills, comparable to the
process of learning to do something practical, like driving a car. The
complex skill was broken down into a series of habits, which ere drilled
until they became automatic and unthinking. The habits were taught is a
series of small steps, so as to avoid errors.” In other words, to achieve the
English acquisition, the students must get through some errors first, and
then automatically they can learn from their own errors.
The teacher will also need to know which part of the subject matter
that most students do some errors and most students do not. Finding out
the learners’ errors then analyzing it is called Error Analysis.
57
Muhammad Farkhan, An Introduction to Linguistics, (Jakarta: UIN Jakarta Press,
2006), p. 149.
58
Jeremy Harmer, The Practice of English Language Teaching 3rd
Edition, (London:
Longman, 2001), p. 99.
There are many definition of error analysis. Oxford Concise
Dictionary defined Error analysis is “The analysis for practical but also
potentially for scientific ends, of errors made by students learning another
language”.59
Longman Dictionary of language teaching and Applied Linguistics
defines error analysis as the study and analysis of the error made by the
second language learners.60
The fact that learners do make errors and that these errors can be
observed, analyzed, and classified to reveal something of the system
operating within the learner, led to a surge of study of learners’ errors,
called error analysis. Error analysis become distinguished from contrastive
analysis by its examination of errors attributable to all possible sources,
not just those which result from negative transfer of the native language.
Error analysis easily superseded contrastive analysis, as we discovered that
only some of the errors a learner makes are attributed to the mother
tongue, that learners do not actually make all the errors that contrastive
analysis predicted they should, and that learners from disparate language
backgrounds tend to make similar errors in learning one target language.61
Corder stated, “Error analysis confirms or disproves the predictions
of the theory lying behind bilingual comparison.62
In this sense error
analysis is an experimental technique for validating the theory of transfer.
But error analysis goes beyond this; it aims at telling us something, about
the psycholinguistic processes of language learning. We hope to be able to
draw certain conclusion about the strategies adopted by the learner in the
59
Mathews, P. H, Oxford Concise Dictionary of Linguistic, (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1997), p. 117.
60
JC Richard, John Platt, and Heidi Platt, Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistic, (London: Longman, 1992), p. 127.
61
Farkhan, An Introduction..., p. 149.
62
S. P. Corder, Error Analysis and Interlanguage, (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1981), p. 35.
process of learning. In this sense, error analysis is part of the methodology
of the psycholinguistic investigation of language learning.
According to definition above the writer conclude that error
analysis is an effort to get in information about the students’ difficulty in
learning a language especially to write it.
6. The Types of Error
Theo van Els, et. al., distinguish the type of students’ error as
errors of performance and errors of competence.
Error of competence are the result of the application
of rules by the L2 learner which do not (yet) correspond to
the L2 norm; Error of performance are the result of mistakes
in language use and manifest themselves as repeats, false
starts, corrections or slips of the tongue. Error of performance occurs frequently in the speech
of both native speakers and L2 learners. They are especially likely to occur when the speaker suffers from stress,
indecision or fatigue. Corder has suggested the following operational criterion for differentiating between these two
types of error: L2 learners can recognize and correct errors of performance, but not errors of competence.
However, identification of errors of competence will
only be possible if we can establish a difference between
actual and intended L2 utterances.63
Noam Chomsky made a distinction between competence and
performance. Competence is knowing what is grammatically correct;
performance is what actually occurs in practice. He regarded performance
as a faulty representation of competence, caused by psychological
restrictions, such as memory lapses and limitations, distractions, changes
of direction half-way through a sentence, hesitation and so on.64
63
Els, et. al., Applied Linguistic..., p. 52.
64
Hubbard et. al., A Training..., p. 133.
7. The Sources of Error
The final step in the analysis of erroneous learner production is that
of determining the sources of error. By trying to identify sources we can
begin to arrive at an understanding how the learner’s cognitive and
affective self relates to the linguistic system and to formulate an integrated
understanding of the process of second language acquisition.65
Errors-overt manifestation of learner’s system-arise from several
possible general sources: inter-lingual errors of interference from the
native language, inter-lingual errors within the target language, the
sociolinguistic context of communication, psycholinguistic or cognitive
strategies, and countless affective variables.66
Pit Corder (Hubbard, 1993) claims that there are three major causes
of error, which he labels ‘transfer errors’, ‘analogical errors’, and
‘teaching-induced errors’. While Hubbard proposed a slightly different
names;
d. Mother-tongue interference
Although young children appear to be able to learn a foreign language quite easily and to reproduce
new sound very effectively, older learners experience
considerable difficulty. The sound system (phonology)
and the grammar of the first language impose themselves
on the new language and this lead to a “foreign”
pronunciation, faulty grammatical patterns and,
occasionally, to the wrong choice of vocabulary.
e. Overgeneralization
The mentalist theory claims that errors are
inevitable because they reflect various stages in the
language development of the learner. It claims that the
learner processes new language data in his mind and
produces rules for its production, based on the evidence.
Where the data are inadequate, or the evidence only partial, such rules may produce incorrect pattern.
f. Context of learning A third major source of error, through is overlaps
both types of transfer, is the context of learning.
65
Brown, Principle of..., p. 213.
66 Brown, Principle of…, p. 218.
“Context” refers to the classroom with the teacher and the
material in the case of school learning or the social
situation. In a classroom context, the teacher or the
textbook can lead the learner to make faulty hypothesis about the language what Richards called “False concept”
and what Stenson termed “Induced errors.” Students often make errors because of a misleading explanation
from the teacher, faulty presentation of a structure or word in the textbook, or even because of a pattern, that
was rote memorized in a drill but not properly contextualized.67
William T. Littlewood claims that there are four major causes of
errors.
e. Overgeneralization
f. Transfer
Transfer and overgeneralization are not distinct
processes. Indeed, they represent aspects of the same
underlying learning strategy. Both result from the fact
that the learner uses what he already knows about
language, in order to make sense of new experience. In
the case of overgeneralization, it s his previous
knowledge of the second language that the learner uses. In the case of transfer, the learner uses his previous
mother-tongue experience as a means of organizing the second language data. It is significant that Barry Taylor
found transfer errors to be more frequent with beginners than with intermediate students. The beginner has less
previous second language to draw on in making hypotheses about rules, and might therefore be expected
to make correspondingly more use of his first language
knowledge.
g. Ambiguous source of many errors
h. Simplification by omission.68
8. Some Errors on Students’ Paragraph Writing
Every learner has a different type of making errors. Furthermore,
the most common errors that occur in writing are:
67
Hubbard et. al., A Training…, p. 140-143.
68 Littlewood, Foreign and..., p. 23-28.
n. Additional Word
Additional words mean that there is a missing word should be
completed by the appropriate word, for instance, “I very hungry” it
should be “I was very hungry”. This error can be seen as a form of
simplification. The simplification is sometimes called “redundancy
reduction’ because it eliminates many items, which are redundant to
conveying the intended message. Redundancy reduction makes
production easier but it makes comprehension difficult or even
impossible.
o. Article
The occurrence of the article varies depending upon the type of
noun. The definite and indefinite article is customary to recognize a
zero article. The two article are the and a. They may be used with a
singular or a plural noun. Each of articles undergoes a change before a
word beginning with a vowel sound – the changes in pronunciation, a
changes in both pronunciation and spelling.69 The spelling of a is
changed to an before a word that begins with a vowel sound (a, e, i, o,
u). an essay, an heir (silent h). Use a before a word that begins with a
consonant sound (all the other sounds except the vowels). a pencil, a
hotel, a university (here the u sound is really a consonant sound like yu
instead of like the vowel sound of u in understanding above).70 In
Indonesian writing, no need to use article. It influences the students in
their writing. Some students did not use articles in their composition.
e.g. “I have cute little brother” it should be “I have a cute little
brother.”
69
Douglas Bibe, Stig Johanson, et. al., Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written
English, (England: Personal Education Limited, 1999), p. 260.
70
Teresa Ferster Glazier, The Least You Should Know About English Basic Writing Skills,
(New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1977), p. 6.
The chief semantic function of articles is to mark nouns as
definite or indefinite. The signals a particular person or thing that has
been singled out from others – the students sitting next to you. A
signals unspecified one of others – a students sitting in front of row.71
p. Capitalization
There are many uses of capitalization, some clearly understood
by most writers and some not so clearly understood. According to
Eugene Ehrlich, there are many rules that are presented:72
15) Sentences
The first word of every grammatical unit punctuated
as a sentence is capitalized.
Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of
their party. 16) Poetry
The first word of every line of conventional poetry is capitalized. The great majority of poets start each line with a
capitalize word. One impulse from a vernal wood
May teach you more of man, Of moral evil and of good,
Than all the sagas can.
-- William Wordsworth
17) Quotations
The first word of a quotation is capitalized, unless the
quotation is less than a sentence long. Quotations sometimes
do not consist of complete sentences. When they do not, the
opening word of the quotation is not capitalized unless there
is some other reason for capitalization. When the quotation is
a complete sentence, the first word is capitalized.
Dave’s father said, “You must learn to fend for
yourself.”
Hobbes’s famous phrase “a kind of sudden glory”
describes the feeling of the onlooker when he sees misfortune befall another.
71
Marcella Frank, Modern English a Practical Reference Guide, (New Jersey: Prentice-
Hall, 1972), p. 125.
72
Eugene Ehrlich, Punctuation, Capitalization, and Spelling, (New York: McGraw-Hill,
1992), p. 105-117.
Sometimes a quotation of a complete sentence is
broken into two parts in the sentence quoting it. The second
part is not capitalized if it is not treated as a sentence.
“You will,” he went on, “do exactly as I say.” 18) The Words I and O
The pronoun I and the interjection O are capitalized. Except for I, pronouns are not capitalized unless they are the
first word of a sentence or a line of poetry. He and I are going into business together. (He is
capitalized because it is the first word of a sentence, I because it is I.)
The interjection O, which is seen mainly in literature
and prayer but is rarely used today, is always capitalized,
even though the interjection oh is not.
Hear me, O Israel!
19) Names
Proper Nouns and Adjectives
Proper nouns and adjectives are capitalized. A proper
noun is the name of a particular person, place, or thing. A
proper adjective is an adjective derived from a proper noun.
Frank met Lucy for dinner. (Frank and Lucy are
proper nouns.)
The White House is the center of political activity in
the United States. (White House and United States are proper nouns.)
Eleanor Holm was expert in the Australian crawl. (Australian is a proper adjective.)
20) Particles American family names beginning with the particles
Van, Von, De, Di, or Da are capitalized. Do not capitalize foreign family names beginning with the particles van and
von. Do not capitalize foreign names beginning with the
particles de, du, di, or da unless they appear without first
names or titles.
One of the best engineers I know in Connecticut is
Paul Von Hardenburg. (An American name.)
Wernher von Braun started his career as a racketeer at
Dortmund, Germany. (A German name.)
21) Geographical Names
Since geographical names are proper nouns, they are
capitalized. There are several conventions that are followed
with geographical names.
The words such as river, ocean, mountain, and gorge
are geographical terms that are used both alone and as a part of the names of geographical features: Mississippi River,
Atlantic Ocean, Deo Mountain. When river and the others
occur as a part of a geographical name, they are capitalized.
When they do not occur with a geographical name, they are
not capitalized.
I have seen mountains in my time, but none to rival the Rocky Mountains.
Of all the rivers in the United States, there is none to rival the Mississippi River.
22) Compass Directions Compass directions are capitalized when they are part
of the names of specific regions. Do not capitalize east, west,
north, and so on when they merely indicate directions: Travel
east on this road. Do not capitalize directions when they
serve as part of the name of a place or region.
An old song referred to the region just a little bit
south of South Caroline.
23) Regional Names and Nicknames
The names and nicknames of geographic regions and
political units are capitalized. As in compass directions used
in regional names, all terms commonly used to name
geographic regions and political units are capitalized. Not
only are the proper names of countries and regions
capitalized, but so are the nicknames used by the press,
historians, and political commentators to designate such
units. Columbus set forth from the Old World to find what
turned out to be the New World. 24) Streets, Buildings, Parks, and Companies
The names of all formally designated streets, buildings, parks, public places, companies, and other organizations are
capitalized. All the world has heard of New York City’s Fifth
Avenue.
The Flatiron Building was once considered a New
York landmark.
25) Organizations and Other Groups
The proper names of all organizations, religions, races,
nationalities, and so on are capitalized. this rule is another
specific expansion of the rule governing the capitalization of
proper names: Columbia University, Seventh-Day Adventists,
Asians, Poles, Department of Commerce.
When anything but the proper name of such a group is used,
no capitals are required: college departments,
fundamentalists, bureaucrats, government officials, charities.
When a phrase is used that could serve as the name of an organization but does not, the phare is not capitalized. only
official namea are capitalized.
We ought to organize a cheerleaders’ group.
The Tenafly Cheerleaders’ Club is a popular group.
26) Deity and Sacred Writing
Nouns and pronouns referring to God and writing held to be sacred are capitalized.
The Koran is the holy book of the Nation of Islam. God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost were
celebrated in a special Mass. 27) Events, Eras, Prizes, Documents
The proper names of all wars, battles, historic events, treaties, documents, prizes, and important historical periods are
capitalized. this rule is still another extension of the general
rule governing capitalization of proper names. Proper names
of wars, battles, and so on merit capitalization just as much as
the names of people or companies.
The end of the Spanish Civil War saw the death of
democracy in that country.
A civil war is the saddest of wars.
The Noble Prize for Literature was won by Saul
Bellow in 1976.
28) Titles
Civil and Military Titles
Military and civil titles are capitalized when they precede a
name, indicate high rank, or are used as substitutes for the names of individuals.
Did you know that Consul Burton was in danger of losing his position at that point in his career? (Title
preceding a name). The Secretary of State is generally the most important
person in the administration of the country’s foreign affairs. (Title of High rank. Notice that unimportant
words that are part of a title are not capitalized.
Unimportant words are generally considered to be
articles and prepositions and conjunctions of fewer
than five letters.)
Academic Degrees
Capitalize all academic degrees and their abbreviations
Many lawyers who hold the degree of Bachelor of Laws
(LL.B) would prefer to receive the degree Doctor of Law
(J.D), which is now common in most American law schools
as the initial law degree.
Books, Plays, and Periodicals
Capitalize the first word and all important words in the title
of a book, play, story, article, poem, musical work, journal, magazine, and newspaper. The only problem in this rule is
definition of all important words. Important words are
anything but short articles, prepositions, and conjunctions.
Prepositions and conjunctions of five letters or more are
considered important.
The House of Seven Gables (The is the first word; of has fewer than five letters.)
Much Ado About Nothing (About has five letters.)
q. Diction
Diction or word choice is choosing the right word in a
sentence. Sometimes one word has the same meaning but has
difference usage in the sentence. For example, pal – pai. That is
same when learning about homonyms, as stated by Katherine
Ploeger in her book, “Homonyms are words that sound the same or
almost the same but have different meanings. Some are possessives,
other constructions, other something else.73
Some students made mistake in diction because of their lack
of knowledge about this problem. They also generalized the meaning
of words. For example, the using of where instead when in the
sentence “When we member of scout”. They over generalized the
meaning of word “where” and used it in wrong place. The students
can know the right usage of diction only from learning by reading an
exercise in writing.
To take it clear see to this 2 tables below (common
homonyms and homonym problem).
Table 1: Common Homonyms
Possessive Pronoun
(Shows ownership)
Contraction Other
Its
Our
Their
Theirs
Whose
Your
It’s (It is)
They are
There is
Who’s (who is)
You’re (you are)
Hour (time)
Are (to be verb)
There (location)
73
Katherine Ploeger, Simplified Paragraph Skills, (Chicago: NTC Publishing Group,
2000), p. 21.
Other problem words that sound the same or almost the same
but have different meanings are listed in this table below.
Table 2: Homonym Problems
Accept (to agree)
Allowed(accepted) Here (at this location)
Knew (past tense of
know: had knowledge)
Know (to know
knowledge)
Quiet (not noisy)
Whether (if)
Except (not allow)
Aloud (loudly) Sight (the ability to
see) New (never see
before)
No (negative)
Quite (very mess)
Weather (clouds,
sunshine)
Site (location)
Quit (to stop)
r. Omission Words
Omissions in sentences may occur because of the writer’s
haste, carelessness, or lack of proof reading. A few types of omissions
common in speech can be very confusing in writing. Omissions of this
short typically fall into three categories: omitted prepositions and
verbs, omission in compound constructions, and incomplete
comparisons.74
Avoid the omission of words needed to complete the meaning
of a sentence. The wording of that statement rightfully implies that
judgment is involved. Some words are important to the meaning of a
sentence, and others are not. Note that the words in parentheses could
safely be omitted from these sentences: I hope (that) he understands
my message. My father and (my) mother are interior decorators.
Words needed to clarify meaning, however, should always be
expressed.75
74
Melinda G. Kramer, Donald C. Rigg, Workbook for Writers 3rd
Edition, (London:
Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1982), P. 127.
75
Robert E. Barry, Business English for the 80’s, (London: Prentice-Hall, Inc.,
Englewood Cliffs, 1979), p. 261.
s. Preposition
A preposition shows the relation of its object to another word
in the sentence.76
A preposition is a connecting word that typically indicates
time, place, or movement. A preposition connects its object (a noun,
pronoun, or noun substitute) with some other word in a sentence.
Together the preposition, its object, and any words modifying the
object form a preposition phrase-for example, on a sunny morning.77
The use of preposition:
11) To talk about the place where someone or something is.
Prepositions are followed by a noun group. Which is called
the object of the preposition, such as, above, among, at,
behind, below, beneath, beside between, in, inside, near,
on, opposite, outside, over, round, through, under, underneath.
12) To talk about the direction that someone or something is moving in, or the place that someone or something is
moving towards. The preposition are across, along, back to, down, into, onto, out of, past, round, through, to, towards,
up. 13) Many prepositions can be used both for place and direction.
They are across, over.
14) We can use adverbs and adverb phrase for place and
direction. They are abroad, away, downstairs, downwards,
here, indoors, outdoors, there, underground, upstairs,
anywhere, everywhere, nowhere, somewhere.
15) Many words can be used as prepositions and as adverbs,
with no difference in meaning. Remember that prepositions
have noun groups as object, but adverbs do not, such as
down the stairs, underneath the bed.
16) Use ‘at’ when you are thinking of a place as a point in
space.(at the bus stop).
17) Use ‘at’ with words such as ‘back’, ‘botton’, ‘end’, ‘front’,
and ‘top’, to talk about the different parts of place. 18) Use ‘in’ when you are talking about a place as an area. Use
‘in’ with: a country or geographical region, a city, town, or village, a building when you are talking about people or
things inside it.
76
Barry, Business English..., p. 213.
77 Kramer, Rigg, Workbook for..., P. 15.
19) Use ‘on’ when you are talking about place as a surface.
You can also use ‘on top of’.
20) Use ‘by’ to talk about the type of vehicle or transport you
use to travel somewhere.
t. Pronoun
Pronouns make up a small class of words of very high
frequency. Pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. The
pronouns that are actual substitutes may refer not only to a preceding
noun-its antecedent-but to a large part of a discourse that precedes.78
In addition, many pronouns have the ability to serve either of
two functions—they may stand alone in noun function, or they may act
as adjectives (determiners) that precede descriptive adjectives.
According to Marcella Frank, there are seven types of pronouns
they are:
8) Personal Pronouns
Personal pronouns refer to: a) The speaker, called the first person
Singular – I (spelled with a capital letter) Plural- we (includes the speaker and one or more others)
b) The speaker, called the first person
The person spoken to, called the second person –you
(singular and plural)
c) The speaker, called the first person
The person or thing bring spoken of, called the third
person
Singular –he (for males), she (for females), it (for things;
also for live beings whose sex is unknown or unimportant
to the speaker)
Plural-they (for all live beings and for all things)
9) Interrogative Pronouns
Interrogative pronouns introduce direct or indirect questions.
There are three interrogative pronouns-who (for person), what (for things), and which (for a choice involving either
persons or things). The three interrogative pronouns have generalizing forms: whoever, whatever, and whichever.
78
Frank, Modern English…, p. 20.
10) Relative Pronoun
Relative pronouns refer to noun antecedents which
immediately precede them. They introduce adjective clauses
in which they serve as subjects or objects- The man who
answered the phone was rude. (Who is the subject of the
verb answered in the adjective clause who answer the
phone). The most common relative pronouns are who (for
persons), that (for persons or things), which (for things). As sometimes also serves as a relative pronoun-She likes the
same things as (= that) her husband does. 11) Demonstrative Pronouns
Demonstrative pronouns point out someone or something.
The most common demonstrative pronouns are this (plural
these) and that (plural those). This generally refer to what is
near at hand, that to what is farther away. This distinction in
space is related to the distinction between the adverbs here
and there-This table (over here) is prettier than that one
(over there).
Demonstrative pronouns may also point to something that
has just been said-He told his wife he had just received an
increase in salary. This pleased her very much.
Occasionally a demonstrative pronoun points to a part of a
discourse that follows-I must tell you this. I can no longer
afford to go out to expensive restaurants for dinner. That or those may be more emphatic alternatives for the.
12) Reflective pronoun The reflexive pronoun is a combination of –self with one of
the personal pronouns or with the impersonal pronoun one. The reflexive pronoun generally refer to an animate being,
usually a person. The most common use of the reflexive pronoun is an object that “reflects back” to the subject; in
other words, it has the same identity as the subject. Thus, in
the sentence The child hurt himself, child and himself are
identical.
13) Reciprocal Pronoun
Reciprocal pronoun has the same identity as the subject. The
reciprocal pronoun indicates that the individual members of a
plural subject mutually react one on the other. The reciprocal
pronouns are each other and one another.
14) Indefinite Pronoun
Such pronouns refer to indefinite (usually unknown) persons
or things, or to indefinite quantities.
Indefinite person or things are all singular in form and are
used without noun antecedents. For example: somebody, someone, and something.
Indefinite quantities, such as all, another, any, both, each,
either, few, least, lest, little, a lot, etc.
u. Punctuation
Punctuation is the practice or system of inserting various marks
in written test in order to aids interpretation.79
Punctuation is mainly confined to the four following general
uses:
5) Punctuation marks the ends of main sentence patterns-of
sentences or of independent clauses in sentences. The
period, question mark, and exclamation mark, with
different meanings, indicate the ends of complete
sentences. The semicolon, and sometimes the colon or
dash or comma, indicates secondary breaks, breaks
between independent clauses within the sentence.
6) Punctuation tends to preserve the flow from subject to verb to complement by setting apart any elements which
interrupt the thought of the pattern-non-restrictive modifiers, parenthetical expressions, and the like. Usually
the comma is used for such purposes, although semicolon, dashes, and parentheses sometimes mark
sharper separations. 7) Punctuation separates co-ordinate elements not
sufficiently separated by punctuation words. Usually
commas are sufficient for such separation, but sometimes
a semicolon is used.
8) Punctuation has a number of conventional uses-to clarify
statistical material, to mark bibliographical materials, to
identify quotations, and so on. Most of these uses have
been established by custom and are mechanical habits or
traditions to be learned.
Marks of punctuation
. The period marks the ends of sentences not to be
distinguished as questions or exclamations. It has also a few
conventional uses, mainly to mark abbreviations.
? The question mark (interrogation point) is used at the
end of a direct question-not an indirect one.
79
Sylvia Chalker, Edmund Weiner, The Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar, (New
York: Oxford University Press, 1998), p. 234.
! The exclamation mark is used at the end of a
complete or incomplete sentence to indicate strong emotion
or feeling.
: The colon has mainly conventional uses, especially to introduce formal lists; it sometimes separates independent
clauses. ; The semicolon mainly separates independent clauses,
although it sometimes separates items in series. , The comma is the most common punctuation mark in
English, with a wide variety of uses. - The dash, made with two hyphens on the typewriter,
sometimes marks sharp breaks between clauses and
sometimes sets off parenthetical material more sharply than a
comma would.
“ “ Quotation marks enclose direct quotations, words
reproduced as spoken or written.
( ) Parentheses have mainly conventional uses, but they
also sometimes mark material to be sharply set apart within
the sentence.
[ ] Brackets mainly have conventional uses to set off
inserted materials. Since standard typewriters usually do not
have brackets, brackets should be inserted by hand in typed
material or made with the diagonal and underlining bars.
… The ellipsis, three periods, marks an omission, usually from quoted matter.80
Most of the students misused the punctuation, e.g., “When I
saw you for the first time. I was very surprised” he/she used a period
instead of comma. In this punctuation case, the students made errors
because they do not pay attention to the punctuation in writing,
whereas punctuation is important to make the meaning clear. They did
not realize that written English is different from spoken language.
Gestures, tones, and stressing can make the meaning clear in spoken
language but only punctuation can make the meaning clear in written
English.
This error is sometimes the result from immediate
communication strategy when the learner tried to express a meaning,
which their competence contained no appropriate items or rules at all.
80
Robert M. Gorrel, Charlton Laird, Modern English Handbook 3rd
Edition, (New Jersey:
Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1964), p. 467-468.
Overgeneralization and transfer may also become the result of an
immediate communication strategy. Indonesian word order and
English word order is different. For example,” Smart you are” it
should be “You are smart”.
v. Singular and Plural
According to Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar,
“Singular is a word or form that denotes or refers to a single person or
thing. Singular contrasts mainly with plural in the description of nouns,
pronouns, and verb form.
Uncount nouns are sometimes described as singular because
they take singular verbs. But this is misleading, since singular count
nouns and uncount nouns do not share all the same determiners (e.g.
a/one roll but some/much bread). Invariable nouns of plural meaning
lacking an –s but taking a plural verb (e.g. police) are sometimes
described as singular nouns. The term ‘singular noun’ is also
sometimes applied to a noun which, in a particular meaning, can be
used with a/an (e.g. What a pity!).81
While plural is a word or form denoting more than one.
Contrasted with singular. In English, plural applies to certain nouns,
pronouns, and determiners, and to verbs. In general, count nouns have
distinct plural forms, which in regular nouns end in –s or –es. Nouns
with irregular plurals include some of Old English origin (feet,
children, etc., and zero plurals such as sheep, deer) and some foreign
plurals (crises, errata, etc.).
A few nouns are plural only. Many end in –s (e.g. premises).
But some plural-only words are unmarked (e.g. cattle, people). 82
The plurals of most English nouns, however, conform to a
standard pattern; that is, most of them form their plurals by the
81
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 363.
82 Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 300.
addition of s or es. If you keep the following principles in mind and
consult your dictionary whenever doubt arises, you will have no
difficulty in controlling plural forms. If the dictionary entry for a noun
shows no plural, it is formed simply by the addition of s or es.
20) English nouns that end in s, x, z, ch, or sh are made plural by
the addition of es. business businesses
bush bushes tax taxes
watch watches
quiz quizzes
All other proper nouns (those not ending in s, x, z, ch, or sh) are
made plural by the addition of s.
Martin The martins
Sperry the Sperrys
Ford the Fords
21) Most common nouns are made plural by the addition of s.
automobile automobiles
employee employees
22) Common nouns that end in y fall into two classifications: if a
noun ends in y preceded by a vowel, the plural is formed by
the addition of s. if it ends in y preceded by a consonant, the plural is formed by changing the y to i and adding es. Plurals
of nouns ending in quy are formed in this same manner. 23) The plurals of personal names accompanied by titles may be
correctly expressed in more that one ay. The modern tendency in business writing is to avoid the use of plural
titles, such as Messrs, because they are very formal in nature. 24) Most nouns that end in f, fe, or ff are made plural by the
addition of s. in some nouns, however, the f or fe is changed
to v and es is added.
25) The principle that governs nouns ending in o is divided into
four parts: if a noun ends with o preceded by a vowel, the
plural is formed by the addition of s. If a musical term ends
in o, the plural is formed by the addition of s. if a noun ends
in o preceded by a consonant, the addition of es may be
required. The modern tendency, however, is to form the
plurals of such nouns by adding just the s. check a good
dictionary when you are in doubt. Some nouns ending in o
have two plural forms.
26) Some nouns are made plural by a vowel change (man men).
27) A few nouns take en as a plural ending. (child children). 28) Some nouns are the same in the singular and the plural.
(sheep sheep)
29) A few nouns that end in s are singular in meaning and require
singular
30) verbs when used as subjects of sentence. (news mathematics)
31) Plural nouns such as scissors, thanks, goods, etc. may be either singular or plural in meaning, but they are used only
with plural verbs. They have no corresponding singular forms.
32) Compound nouns consist of a combination of two or more words that are written in one of these ways: in solid forms as
one word, as a hyphenated word, or as separate words. 33) The plural of a letter, a numeral, a symbol, or a word referred
to as a word is formed by the addition of an apostropedhe and
s.
34) The plural of an abbreviation is generally formed by the
addition of s to the singular form.
35) Some abbreviations have the same form for both the singular
and the plural.
36) The plural of an abbreviation made up of separate letters is
formed by the addition of an apostrophe and s.
37) The plural of a contraction is formed by the addition of s.
38) Many nouns that are foreign in origin are commonly used in
formal, scientific, and technical matter. Some of these nouns
have only their foreign plurals; other have been given an
additional (English) plural. 83
w. Spelling
Spelling ability is not necessary an index to intelligence or
education, but certainly the person who spells inaccurately works
under a handicap. He is likely to be considered uneducated by anyone
who catches him in errors, and he is likely to be limited in his writing,
as he relies on simple but sometimes colorless words in order to be
safe in his spelling. Some people are sufficiently eye-minded that they
learn to spell unconsciously. By the time they have seen a word spelled
correctly several times, they know it. Others have to work on spelling,
not because they are slow or stupid but because their minds happen not
to work in the way that records spelling automatically. But fortunately
almost any intelligent person can learn to spell reasonably well if he
83
Barry, Business English..., p. 63-67.
will work at it. A “bad” speller is usually only a person who does not
spell without learning, who has never been properly taught, or who has
never tried hard enough to learn.
In spelling, as in almost every else, there is no substitute for a
good background. The more a student reads, and the better writing he
reads, the better he is likely to spell. Any diagnosis is likely to turn up
problems like the following.
3) Habitual misspelling: the student is misspelling the
same few words over and over.
4) Carelessness: hesitating during composition to spell
every word correctly may impede writing, but there is
no excuse for leaving misspelling uncorrected after
the writing is done. An uncertain speller should
scrutinize every word before he lets any written work
out of his hands.84
While Willis states that spelling is how to write a word
correctly, spelling error can because by lack of knowledge and the
influence of their native language. For instance; hight, wildt, forbitten,
coupel, etc. some students made many errors in this case. It caused by
the students’ lack of knowledge and the influence of their native
language. Spelling problems can be over come only through practice
and if the students need more practice, they should arrange practice
session with a friend.85
x. Verb Tense
Tense is a firm taken by a verb to indicate the time at which the
action or state is viewed as occurring.86
They made mistakes because
84
Gorrel, Laird, Modern English..., p. 510-512. 85
Hullon Willis, Structure, Style, and Usage and Guide to Expository Writing, (New
York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1964), p. 257.
86
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 395.
they did not understand well the grammar; it is also caused by intra-
lingual transfer overgeneralization.
y. Word Form
Word form is any variant of a lexeme. Used as a way of
avoiding ambiguity of word. e. g. see, sees, seeing, etc.87
Overgeneralization and transfer can be the cause of error in
word form. Indonesian word form is different from English word form.
They often over-generalize the form of words. For example, “to
responded” it should be “to respond”; “I were cooking fried rice” it
should be “I was cooking fried rice.”
z. Word Order
According to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary “Word
order is arrangement of words in a phrase, clause, or sentence. 88
This error is sometimes the result from immediate
communication strategy when the learner tried to express a meaning,
which their competence contained no appropriate items o rules at all.
Overgeneralization and transfer may also become the result of an
immediate communication strategy. Indonesian word order and
English word order is different. For example, ‘Smart you are” it should
be “You are smart.”
D. Writing
2. The Definition of Writing
Sometimes people write something. They convey their ideas
through writing. Learning to write does not come naturally in the same
way as learning to speak. It involves many complex skills, knowledge and
87
Chaker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 427.
88 Merriam-Webster’s…, p. 1442.
concepts. Before learning to write a writer must understand the definition
of writing.
In this part the writer quotes some definitions of writing.
According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, writing is to make
letters or other symbols (ideograph) on a surface.89 It means that writing is
an activity to arrange a group of letters or symbols, which have a meaning
on a medium.
Writing is an integral part of human life. Someone almost writes
something everyday. He/she maybe writes a lesson, a letter or story, etc,
learning to write does not come naturally in the same way as learning to
speak. It involves many complex skills, knowledge and concepts. One of
important aspects of learning to write is growing an awareness of self to
practice writing. Meanwhile understanding the definition of writing is a
must.
In other word, Ann Brown gave the definition of writing from
sociological view; it is a medium of interaction among people to make
relationship and to exchange information among each other in any
distances. She said, “Writing is important in our lives and as a
communicative act that transmit information and link people together”.90
The various definition of writing according to experts above can be
identified by the key words of each definition and it can be concluded in a
sentence. So the writing is a process of the mental physical act in
expressing thoughts and feeling of thinking in forming letters and words
into sentences correctly to shape experiences, to communicate and to link
people together on a surface.
89
A. S. Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, (Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 1987), p. 996.
90
Ann Brown, Helping Children’s Write, (New York: Paul Chapman Publishing Ltd,
1993), p.2
3. The Writing Sentence
The word sentence in a number of handbooks will probably find a
different definition in each one. According to the Oxford Dictionary of
English Grammar, sentence is the largest unit of language structure treated
in traditional grammar; usually having a subject and predicate, and (when
written) beginning with a capital letter and ending with full stop.91
While Donald Hall and Sven Birkerts in their book Writing Well
state that sentence is a group of words with a period, an exclamation point,
or a question mark at the end. A sentence is also a verbal structure that
reflects something about the world. It puts words in relation in order to
map our understanding of the sensible structure of things.92
In addition Enno Klammer explains that sentence is an independent
unit of expression. Moreover she explains that sentence is a group of
words containing a subject and a predicate and expressing a complete
thought.93
6. The Types of Sentence
According to Bob Brannan, there are four types of sentences they
are simple sentence, compound sentence, complex sentence, and
compound-complex sentence. 94
a. Simple Sentence
A simple sentence contains one main clause with no
subordinate clauses. It may be short and truly ‘simple’, as in
uncomplicated, or it may have several phrases that lengthen it
and add complexity. Here are several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream.
91
Chalker, Weiner, The Oxford..., p. 358.
92 Donald Hall, Sven Birkerts, Writing Well. 9th Ed, (Washington D. C: Addison Wesley
Longman, 1998), p. 126.
93
Enno Klammer, Paragraph Sense: A Basic Rhetoric, (New York: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, Inc, 1978), p. 2.
94
Bob Brannan, A Writer’s Workshop Crafting Paragraph, Building Essays, (New York:
McGraw–Hill, 2003), p. 502-503.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream.
b. Compound Sentence
A compound sentence merely adds one or more main clause
to a simple sentence. A sentence has two sets (or more) of subjects and verbs that are usually divided with a
coordinating conjunction like and or but and a comma-or a semicolon if the conjunction is omitted. Compound sentence
may be uncomplicated or may contain a great deal of information, but it may not contain a subordinate clause.
Here are several examples: Aaron likes ice cream, so he eats a lot of it.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream, so they eat a lot
of it.
c. Complex Sentence
Complex sentence is not necessarily any more “complex,” as
in complicated, than simple or compound sentences, but it
does certain another kind of clause-the subordinate or
dependent clause. A complex sentence, then consist of one
main clause and one or more subordinate clauses along with
whatever other phrases the sentence accumulates. Here are
several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream because it tastes sweet.
Aaron and his younger sister like ice cream because it tastes
sweet. d. Compound-Complex Sentence
The compound-complex sentence is just a combination of the two preceding sentence types. It consists of two or more main
clauses with one or more subordinate clauses along with accompanying phrases. Here are several examples:
Aaron likes ice cream because it tastes sweet, so he eats a lot of it.
Aaron likes ice cream that is full of chocolate chips, so he
eats a lot of it.
While John Langan in his book Sentence Skill also divides the
sentence into four types as simple, compound, complex, and compound-
complex.95
Each is explained below.
e. Simple Sentence A simple sentence has a single subject-verb combination. A
simple sentence may have more than one subject or more than one verb. For example:
The game ended early. Lola and Tony drove home.
95
John Langan, Sentence Skills A Workbook for Writers 7th
Edition, (Boston: McGraw-
Hill, 2003), p. 139-146.
The children smiled and waved at us.
f. Compound Sentence
A compound sentence, or “double,” sentence is made up of
two (or more) simple sentences. The two complete statements in a compound sentence are usually connected by a comma
plus a joining word (and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet). For example:
The rain increased, so the officials canceled the game. Martha wanted to go shopping, but Fred refused to
drive her. g. Complex Sentence
A complex sentence is made up of a simple sentence (a
complete statement) and a statement that begins with a
dependent words such as, after, as, because, etc. For
example:
Because I forgot the time, I missed the final exam.
h. Compound-Complex Sentence
A compound-complex sentence s made up of two (or more)
simple sentences and one (or more) dependent statements.
For example:
When the power line snapped, Jack was listening to
the stereo, and Linda was reading in bed.
C. Writing Paragraph
1. The Definition of Paragraph
Considering the facts that everyone has his/her own opinion and
view about something, many writing experts also give their opinion and
view in a paragraph. A paragraph can be defined in many ways; it depends
on the one who will give the definition. Reid says that a paragraph is a
series of sentences about one idea called the topic. A paragraph usually
consists of four to eight sentences about a single topic. Usually, a
paragraph begins with a general sentence that introduces the topic, begins
with an indentation.96
While Oshima in her book Writing Academic English states that a
paragraph is a basic unit of organization in writing in which a group of
related sentences develops one main idea. A paragraph can be as short as
96
Joy M. Reid, The Process of Paragraph Writing, (New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc,
1994), p. 29.
one sentence or as long as ten sentences. The number of sentences is
unimportant; however, the paragraph should be long enough to develop
the main idea clearly, and a paragraph may stand by itself. 97
Bob Brannan
says in his book A Writer’s Workshop Crafting Paragraph, Building
Essays that a paragraph is a collection of related sentences that are clearly
connected to one another and that make some point. There is no set length
for a paragraph, the kind of writing and audience for it usually determining
the number of sentences.98
Gorrell writes in his book Modern English
Handbook that a paragraph is the conventional working unit for
developing an idea with more detail and more precision than a sentence
allows.99
While John Langan states that a paragraph is a series of sentences
about one main idea, or point. A paragraph typically starts with a point,
and the rest of the paragraph provides specific details to support and
develop that point.100 And then Donald Hall and Sven Birkerts express
their thoughts in their book entitled Writing Well that a paragraph is small
box of sentences, making a whole shape that is at the same time part of
another whole. It is a miniature essay itself, with its own variable
structure. The paragraph within the essay makes a sign for the reader; it
alerts the reader to the part structure of an essay. Paragraphs give signals
and directions and help to connect writers with audiences. Paragraphs are
partly arbitrary, and they will vary in length and purpose according to the
essay’s occasion. 101
Margaret Pogemiller Coffey states that a paragraph is
a group of sentences that clearly and concisely express one basic idea. The
97
Alice Oshima, Ann Hogue, Writing Academic English. 3rd
Edition, (London: Longman,
1999), p. 16.
98
Brannan, A Writer’s..., p. 35.
99
Gorrel, Laird, Modern English..., p. 52
100
Langan, Sentence Skills…, p. 11.
101
Hall, Birkerts, Writing Well..., p 183.
paragraph can be complete in itself, or it can be a part of an essay, a
research report, a book, and so on. Indent (leave a space) at the beginning
of every paragraph. Also leave a margin (a column of space) on both the
left- and right- hand sides of the page.102
In written form, English divided into paragraph to distinguish one
main idea from other main ideas. A paragraph is a series of sentences
about one idea. The paragraph is the basic unit of composition. A
paragraph is a group of sentences which develop one central idea,103
as
conventionally defined a paragraph contains a topic sentence and
supporting material; it begins with capital letter, the first line is indented,
and it concludes with an end stop.104
The first sentence of a paragraph is always indented so that that the
reader will know a new subject or a different aspect of the same subject is
being dealt with, the writer does this by leaving a blank space at the
beginning of the paragraph. The student should think of indentation as
simply another kind of punctuation. Just as a sentence ends with a period,
so each new paragraph begins with an indentation.
Cowan stated, “Paragraph is composed of a sentence or chunk of
sentences which the writer has grouped some definite reasons”.105
The
definition above can be concluded that the paragraph is a group of
sentences developed based on a subject that has related statements and
definite reason, which begins by indenting the first word from the left-
hand margin, or by leaving extra space.
102
Margaret Pogemiller Coffey, Communicating Through Writing, (New Jersey:
Prentice-Hall Regents, Englewood Cliffs, 1987), p. 2.
103
Martin L. Arnaudet and Marry E. Barrett, Paragraph Development, (New jersey:
Prentice Hall, Inc, 1981), p. 1. 104
William D. Baker, Reading and Writing Skills, I (USA: McGraw-Hill, 1971), p. 294.
105
Elizabeth Cowan, Writing Brief Edition, (Glenview: Scott, Foresman and Company,
1983), p. 119.
In order to make statements with paragraphs, a writer must be able
to construct good ones. The paragraph must have unity, and for unity,
he/she often requires a topic sentence. The paragraph must have coherence
within itself, and a series of paragraphs must cohere to form the essay. So
once a writer understands precisely what a paragraph does and how it does
it, he/she will be able to check and revise the writing for smoothness.106
Finally, a writer must learn to develop the paragraph until it is
adequate in its fullness and in its length, and until it presents its material in
the best possible order.
2. The Basic Parts of Paragraph
A paragraph generally is a group of sentences, which consist of
only one central idea and are developed with some supporting details, each
other has unity and coherence as well. Further, in his book Coffey states
that “A paragraph has three basic parts: the topic sentence, the developing
sentences, and the conclusion. Each part plays a role in writing a good
paragraph”.107
a. Topic Sentence
Topic sentence mostly talk about what the writer is interested
in to write. Lorc says that the most important of topic sentence should
catch the reader’s interest. She adds to get the interesting one writer
should use a vivid language, be controversial, and humanize (connect
to the topic with people).
Therefore, when a writer feels interested and necessary to write
about something, he at least firstly must have a definite purpose or
point of view.108
Therefore, he must have a strong reason for stressing
106
Cowan, Writing Brief..., p. 119.
107
Coffey, Communication Through..., p. 3.
108
Joseph P Canavan, Paragraph and the Short Theme (London: D.C. Heat and
Company, 1969), p. 32.
a particular aspect of his thought about the subject. In contrast, the
topic would probably weak, if there just only has a simply facts.
The important of topic sentence existences bring many writing
experts feel necessary in giving enforcement of it. Frank J.D Angelo in
his books titled process and taught in composition states, “The thought
of such a paragraph can usually be expressed in a single, coincide
statement called the topic sentence, which is ordinary stated at the
beginning of paragraph”.109
He adds it also introduces the term to be
defined.110
It means that topic sentence has important plays in a
paragraph because it will give any description about the whole of
paragraph to the reader. So that, the topic sentence needs appoint in
giving idea that is worth to develop a paragraph further.
Some reader may feel confused at that time they did not find
the topic sentence at the beginning of paragraph. It just because that
they do not know how the writer develops his paragraph. Therefore,
the position of the topic sentence depends on the methods that the
writer will develop it.
The topic sentence is mostly placed at the beginning of
paragraph, but it can be played in the middle or even at the end of it.
Coffey says “Although the topic sentence can be located in the middle
or at the end of a paragraph, it is most commonly found at the
beginning.111
The writer who begins his paragraph with the topic sentence
actually has advantage, at least the reader immediately can sign the
main idea that writer will develop in his paragraph. MacCrimmon says,
109
Frank J.D Angelo, Process and Taught in Composition, (Boston: Winthrop, 1977), p.
228.
110
Angelo, Process and…, p. 228. 111
Coffey, Communication through..., p. 23.
“The reader can then follow the movement of paragraph easily for he
or she will expect and expand the idea.112
b. Supporting Details
Overall, everybody knows that supporting details is one of the
contents in building a paragraph. The task of the detail is to cover
completely the idea that is presented in the topic sentence.113
No one can say exactly how many sentences that the details
will take. As mentioned above in the requirement of paragraph,
completeness in a paragraph is relative. However, the important rule is
to present all the information or details that necessary to express an
idea and does not make any unnecessary points. In other words, it is an
error to give too much information or not to give it enough.
c. Conclusion
Some writers build up their paragraphs with only two kinds of
sentences; topic sentence and a number of supporting sentences,
whereas, others add their paragraph with the clincher as the closing
sentence. The clincher shows the main idea (topic sentence) that is
stated again at the end of a paragraphs s conclusion.
Martin says, “The clincher sentence is a concluding sentences
that summery what a paragraph has said.114
It means that the clincher
entice restates the main idea or summarize the detail that develop in
the main idea.
So far, besides to end a paragraph, a clincher sentence is also
needed to sign the reader that the writer has finished discussing the
idea. As Coffey states, “Conclusion of a paragraph is generally one
sentence that brings the development of your idea to close”.
112
James MacCrimmon, Writing with a Purpose , ( Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984), p. 22
113
Coffey, Communication through…, p. 24.
114
Jerome Martin, Heath English, (New York: D.C. Heat and Company, 1984), p. 33
3. The Characteristic of Paragraph
As the part of writing a paragraph has uniquely characteristic that
is different with other part of writing. It consists of sentences (usually
more than one), each with its own structural pattern, in a series that
develops one single idea. Generally, a paragraph consists of a main idea in
the form of a generalization with supporting material that enables the
reader to accept generalization.115
It is clear, based on the above opinion, if a writer will develop
paragraph in writing, he/she has to understand and hold on the
characteristics of paragraph in every subject of writing. They are:
a. Sentence that have own structural pattern.
b. Main idea as point of paragraph and supporting materials, which
support main idea.
c. Conclusion.
4. The Function of Paragraph
When a writer makes paragraph on a writing work, he/she tries to
present distinctive styles of organization and development of thought to
readers. A model paragraph illustrates two important functions of
paragraphing:
a. Paragraphing enables a writer to organize and develop effectively a
single important idea.
b. Paragraphing enables a writer to effectively develop the thesis of a
longer piece of writing.116
Based on the first point it is frequently found in a writing work that
a writer expresses main idea in the form of a generalization known as a
topic sentence or statement sentence. Nevertheless, occasionally she
115
Canavan, Paragraph and…, p. 29.
116
Canavan, Paragraphs and..., p. 32.
develops her main idea by a number of sentences known as support. She
lets the reader concludes the main idea from the contents of the paragraph.
A paragraph or a group of paragraphing can serve as one link in a
chain of thought.117 The statement refers to the second point above. It
explains as a group of sentences relate to each other and to main idea. So a
group of paragraphs relate to another and to the thesis of a theme or an
even longer pieces of writing.
However, Elizabeth Cowan stated some uses of function
paragraphs are to:
a. Add drama and get the reader’s attention.
b. Make a transition from one part of the writing to another.
c. Set off conventional dialogue.
d. Break up long paragraphs or making paragraphs of about equal length.
e. Accommodate the author’s personal writing style.
f. Emphasize a point, develop an example, or add detail.118
Those function paragraphs are amusing and fascinating to learn.
But the main thing about them is that they are useful. By knowing about
function paragraphs, the students are not confused when they read writing
in books or others reading materials and find paragraphs that do not
always begin with a new thought and give a develop message.
5. The Paragraph Development
Developing a paragraph
A paragraph might be organized as follows:
a. Transition, to relate a paragraph to the one previous
b. Generalization or topic sentence, to state the subject.
c. Supporting material, to elaborate the generalization.
d. Summary, to restate the generalization, perhaps in a modified form.
e. Transition, to lead to the following paragraph.119
117
Canavan, Paragraph and…, p. 33.
118 Cowan, Writing Brief..., p. 138-142.
The important feature of an effective paragraph is development.
There are four requirements of a good paragraph namely unity,
completeness, order of movement, and coherence.120
a. Unity
One important feature of an effective paragraph is unity: all
sentences within the paragraph are related to the main point.
Unity in a paragraph is internal consistency. If the paragraph
is unified, each succeeding sentence will support that idea. A
unified paragraph makes clear reading. There are two
important features to remember about paragraphs:
1) A paragraph is a group sentences that develops one main
point or idea.
2) A paragraph has unity when all of its sentences are
related to the main point.
The best way to keep a paragraph unified is to be sure what
writers intend it to do. If the topic sentence accurately reflects
the intent, then all writers have to do in the paragraph is what they meant to do when they wrote the topic sentence. The
topic sentence is their guideline through the paragraph. b. Completeness
Completeness is relative. How much explanation an idea requires depends on how much the reader needs. This a
decision the writer must make out of knowledge of the subject and of the audience. It is an error to give either too
much explanation or not enough. Unless you give your
readers the information they need, you make it difficult for
them to understand you. Incomplete paragraphing is a
common fault in freshman writing, once a student realizes the
important of developing his generalizations with supporting
details.
c. Order of Movement
The movement of a paragraph should follow some clear
order. The order of sentences within a paragraph is largely
decided by the pattern of organization your purpose requires.
A well-constructed paragraph moves in some consistent
direction, there are some directions in the movement of a paragraph.
1) General to particular The paragraph begins with a general statement, then
moves to particular which explain or illustrate, or
119
Baker, Reading and…, p. 128.
120 McCrimmon, Writing with..., p. 84-97.
persuade the reader to accept the generalization. In effect,
the topic sentence at or near the beginning of the
paragraph is an introductory summary of the content.
That sentence may be followed by one or more explanatory statement which help to make its meaning
clear. Then the paragraph proceeds with the number of specific examples or supporting details which illustrate
the meaning of the topic sentence. 2) Particular to general
The paragraph begins from a series of explanatory or illustrative statements to the conclusion drawn from
them. Topic sentence at or near the end of paragraph.
3) Whole to parts
Paragraph moves through a succession of parts or stages
of the whole. Often in the first, second, or third order.
This kind of paragraph is sometimes called enumerative,
because it lists or enumerates the parts of a topic. It is
useful in summaries which show only the headings under
which a topic is to be discussed.
4) Question to answer/ Effect to cause
Less common is the paragraph that begins with a question
and gives the answer, or begins with an effect and moves
toward the cause. Such a paragraph may have no explicit
topic sentence, since the answer or the cause is given by the paragraph as a whole.
d. Coherence Literally, the word cohere means to hold together. A
paragraph is said to have coherence when its sentences are woven together or flow into each other. If a paragraph is
coherent, the reader moves easily from one sentence to the next and reads the paragraph as an integrated unit, not a
collection of separate sentences.
6. The Types of Paragraph
According to Janet R. Mayer, there are two major types of
paragraph, namely:
a. Paragraph that comes within a whole essay.
There are several good ways to organize this kind of paragraph:
Put the topic sentence first, when the topic sentence comes
at the beginning of the paragraph it usually becomes a kind of
promise to the reader that the rest of the paragraph will have
something to do with the topic sentence.
The topic sentence will come at the end, in this type a
writer first give the explanation about the topic sentence and then
give the conclusion using topic sentence of one paragraph at the
end.
The topic sentence in the middle of the paragraph,
sometimes the paragraph has an unwritten overall topic that is
implied in the details of the individual sentence and all sentences
provide bits of information.
b. The opening or introduction paragraph of an essay
This kind of paragraph makes a promise to the reader that
the whole essay will discuss a certain topic.
For example, in an essay in which you want to prove the
truth of something, your opening paragraph may state the point to
be proven. You make a contract with your reader that you are
going to prove something to hem. Give the evidence you can
provide in the rest of your essay for the truth of your essay topic.
And the more evidence you can provide, the more your reader will
be confidences of the truth of your topic statement.121
While Donald Pharr and Santi V.Buscemi stated that there
are nine types of paragraph, namely description, narration,
exemplification, process analysis, causal analysis, definition,
classification, comparison/contrast, and argument.122
1) Description
In description, the emphasis is on sensory detail-engaging
the reader’s ability to see, hear, feel, smell, and so on.
2) Narration
The narrative paragraph within an essay, tells a story in
order to entertain the reader or point out a significant
effect caused by the story’s events. Narrative paragraphs
use time order, with the writer employing transitions to
121
Janet R. Mayes, Writing and Rewriting, (New York: Macmillan Publishing .co. Inc,
1972), p. 378-380.
122
Donald Pharr, Santi V. Buscemi, Writing Today: Contexts and Option for the Real
World Brief Edition, (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004), p. 55-60.
ensure that the reader can follow the events without
losing the “thread” of the story.
3) Exemplification
When writers use the exemplification option, they are trying to prove a general assertion by providing specific
evidence to back the assertion up. 4) Process Analysis
The process analysis strategy has two possible purposes. One is to explain to the reader how to do something:
perform a task, repair machinery, and so on. The second purpose is to explain how an activity happened in the past
or happened routinely.
5) Causal Analysis
Paragraphs developed using causal analysis normally
concentrate on either cause or effect.
6) Definition
Writers use definition to clear up possible confusion
about a troublesome term or to bring new meaning to a
commonplace word or idea.
7) Classification
Writers classify when they take large subjects and divide
them into smaller subjects. Classification is a way of
making a subject clear by discussing its parts or
categories. 8) Comparison/Contrast
When writers compare and contrast two subjects, writers have to options for structuring their paragraph or essay. If
writers use the subject-by-subject approach, writers discuss one of the subjects first, then the other. In an
essay, writers can use various paragraphs strategies, including most of the ones in this section. If writers use
the point-by-point approach, however, writers compare
and contrast the two subjects in relation to one point of
comparison per sentence or group of sentences.
9) Argument
Writers could use any type of paragraph when developing
an argument, but most paragraphs used in argument make
and support assertions. In argument paragraph, writers
are, obviously, trying to prove their point. However, any
subject worth arguing has very good arguments on each
side. The yield is a type of paragraph that acknowledges
the other side’s assertions. Yield paragraphs do not
appear in all argument paragraphs, but they are useful
devices.
CHAPTER III
THE PROFILE OF “MAN 2 KOTA BOGOR”
A. The Curriculum
Curriculum is one of the important component which may significantly
support the requirements of teaching learning process in the school.
Comprehensively, it is defined as the learning which is planned and guided by
the school, whether it is carried on in groups or individually, inside or outside
of the school.
Curriculum can be viewed as a program arranged by an educational
institution to provide sequentially organized knowledge, understanding, skills,
and concepts for the learners. A significant aspect of curriculum is the
instuments to bring the needs of the learner together with the needs of society.
In this research, the curriculum used in “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” is The
School-Level Curriculum – the “KTSP”. The “KTSP” is operated in “MAN 2
Kota Bogor”. It has been developed into syllabus, the lesson plan, and annual
program. It is developed and implemented by the school based on the national
educational standards.
In learning and teaching activities, teachers try to take into account the
learners’ potentials, developmental level, and their living environment in
developing the course syllabus and instructional materials. In addition, they
also have to considere variety and integratedness, responsiveness, relevance,
holisticism, and continuity, even the balance between national and local needs
in the selection, gradation and presentation of their instructonal materials.123
In terms of the development of the syllabus of English subject, the
teacher tries to elaborate the items of the Content Standards into the
description of learning and teaching activities, of lesson materials, of a variety
of competency indicators, of time allocation, of lerning and teaching
resources, and even of evaluation instruments and techniques.
123
Bahrul Hasibuan, “KTSP: Problem or Solution”, in Onward English Education
journal, No. 2 Volume. I, December 2007, p. 31.
B. The English Teaching Method
As the writer had observed, the teaching method of English teacher in
XI year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” may be categorized into the
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). It might be shown from several
teaching techniques the teacher used that involved dominantly the students’
activity in expressing something whether spoken or written. The teacher didn’t
dominate the class, but he let his students’ intervention. He used the authentic
materials when he taught them reading comprehension, for instance a reading
passage taken from a mass media and others. This affected them to be
interested because the issues given had already been known for most of them.
Also the teacher used another media which enabled his students to learn
creatively and cooperatively, for example pictures and realia. The media
provided the students more information and the students were expected to
have a respond to every information and problems given.
Theoretically, Communicative Language Teaching aims the learners
become active in communicating. It is useful for them to express something in
their daily life. The goals of Communicative Language Teaching are contained
in a communicative competence.
Communicative competence, according to Menachem B. Dagut, stands
for “… the ability to communicate both actively, by expression, and passively,
by comprehension, in the foreign language”.124 Moreover, it may be classified
into four dimensions, they are:
a. Grammatical competence: is the degree to which the language user has
mastered the linguistic code, including vocabulary, grammar,
pronunciation, spelling, and word formation.
b. Sociolinguistic competence: is the extent to which utterances can be
used or understood appropriately in various social contexts. It includes
knowledge of speech acts such as persuading, apologizing, and
describing.
124
Menachem B. Dagut, “a Teaching Grammar of the Passive Voice in English”, in Bertil
Malmberg and Gerhard Nickel (eds.), International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language
Teaching, (Hemsbach: Beltz Offsetdruck, 1985), p. 2.
c. Discourse competence: is the ability to combine ideas to achieve
cohesion in form and coherence in thought, above the level of the
single sentence.
d. Strategic competence: is the ability to use strategies like gestures or “talking around” an unknown word in order to overcome limitation in
language knowledge.125
It is clear that in learning a language, the learners need not only
knowledge of structures and vocabularies, but also they require to know how
the language elements work together when the learners try to produce a well
communication as an achievement of communicative competence.
Here, the English teacher of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” tried to let the
students to know their ability in producing English whether spoken or written
by serving them the materials communicatively. He arranged the teaching
situation without his determination and opened widely the opportunity for the
students to express their ideas based on the given context.
C. The English Textbook
The English textbook which is used by the teacher and the eleventh
students at “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” is the English textbook published by
Grafindo Media Pratama and titled “Contextal Learning: Developing
Competencies in English Use for SMA”, edited by Bachrudin Musthafa.
The textbook has been consistently harmonious with the principles of
developing communicative competence with the emphasis on the ability to
understand and to produce both oral and written text.
It provides with practice of using English in contextual, integrated, and
collaborative ways to develop the ability to use English appropriately and
accurately.
125
http://www.freewebs.com/dzchun/Unit%202.htm (Friday, 3rd
of August 2007: 19.33).
D. The Profile of English Teacher
There are five English teachers at “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”, the following
information show the personal details of the teachers:
Table 3: The Personal Details of the Teachers
No. Name Age Sex Honorary/Public
Servant Civil
Teaching
Experiences Class
Latest
Education
1. Drs. Ruyani
46 Male Public Servant
Civil Since 1994 (14 years)
X, XI
S 1 from
“IAIN
Jakarta”
English Education
Department
2. Sri
Damayanti 40 Female
Public Servant
Civil
Since 1995
(13 years) XII
S 1 from
“IAIN
Bandung”
English
Education
Department
3. Jijah
Jilhijjah 37 Female
Public Servant
Civil
Since 2004
(4 years) XII
S 1 from
“IAIN
Jakarta”
English
Education Department
4. Wiwik
Sutiani 25 Female Honorary
Since 2005
(3 years) X
S 1 from
UNPAK
English
Education
Department
5. Rida
Nurul
Istiqomah
27 Female Honorary Since 2005
(3 years) XI
S 1 from
“IAIN”
Bandung
English
Education
Department.
E. The English Activities, Condition, and Environment
As the writer had observed, the activities that involved English were
implemented by the English teacher and the students inside and outside of the
classroom. The English teacher delivered the course mostly in English inside
the class. And, the discourse which was employed by the English teacher and
the students outside the classroom was about greetings or other simple
expressions. Moreover, the interaction among the English teachers and others
used English in low intensity.
The activities which have mentioned above affected the students
became accustomed in expressing something in English and this condition
might led them to be competence in English. Also, the purpose of teaching
and learning process might be easily achieved, that was the communicative
goals.
The students’ English ability improvement were also supported by
providing of English facility, for instance the English laboratory, and English
instruments, for instance the availability of some posters which were written
by using English and other foreign languages, the English novels, magazines,
and books, and so on.
CHAPTER IV
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINDING
A. Research Methodology
1. The Objective of Research
The objectives of this research are:
a. To know the types of errors the students made in writing.
b. To know the most errors made by the students.
2. The Method of Research
In this research, the writer uses the qualitative method. It is called
qualitative because, as Donald Ary, et al., imply that, “Qualitative method
seeks to understand a phenomenon by focusing on the total picture rather
than breaking it down into variables”.126
In case, phenomenon refers to the
study of finding the students’ error types and the most their error types
occur in their descriptive writing.
Since this study only focuses on specific school namely “MAN 2
Kota Bogor”, it is also considered as a case study. Meanwhile, based on
Donald Ary, et al., the purpose of case study “…… is to arrive at a
detailed description and understanding of the entity. In addition a case
study can result in data from which generalization method, such as
interview, observation, and achieves to gather data”.127
3. The Instrument of Research
The writer uses a written test as the instrument for collecting the
data. For the test, the teacher gave selected topics that related with person,
126
Donald Ary, et al., Introduction to Research in Education Sixth Edition, (Belmont:
Wadsworth Group Thomson Learning Inc., 2002), p. 25.
127 Ary, et al., Introduction to … p. 27.
place, and things, that have relation with descriptive text and students were
asked to write a descriptive writing.
Besides that the writer uses observation and interview to complete
the data needed.
4. The Technique of Sample Taking
The population of the study includes all XI year of science students
of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”. There are 400 students in this level. They are
divided into ten classes. In order to take the sample of the school the
purposive sampling is used, that is Science V become the sample of the
research. Thus, the total number of sample is 40 students.
5. The Technique of Data Collecting
There are three techniques of collecting data applied in this
research; they are observation, written test, and interview.
a. Observation
Observation technique is used to collect the data about the
implementation of teaching English in the classroom during the
teaching learning process. It deals with the activities of English teacher
in teaching writing. The observation was conducted 7 times for the
English teacher on September 5 up to December 8, 2007. In this case,
the writer acted as an observer whom observed the teaching-learning
process without being involved in the process.
b. Written Test
Written test is a technique in collecting the data to find out the
students’ errors type in descriptive writing they have made and to
know the most errors type occur in their writing. In gaining data, the
teacher addresses the students a test to write descriptive writing with
the chosen topic relates to person, place, and thing.
c. Interview
This technique is used to supplement the data needed which are
not covered by two techniques previously, such as the reason why the
teacher used the technique of teaching writing selected by him, and the
background of his study. This technique was used to interview a
teacher of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”.
6. The Place and Time of Research
The research was held at the eleventh year students of “MAN 2
Kota Bogor”, which is located at Jl. Padjajaran no. 6 Bogor, West Java.
The research was carried out on October 5 up to December 8, 2007. On
October 5, 2007, the writer asked permission with the headmaster to do
research. On October 11, 2007, she continued her research to observe the
teaching writing process. On November 19, 2007, she continued her
research interviewing with the English teacher. On November 23, 2007,
she continued her research to give the writing test to the student. On
December 5, 2007, she continued her research to discuss the students’
writing with her and explained the error made by the students.
7. The Technique of Data Analysis
The raw data obtained through observation, written test and
interview, are analyzed in some ways as shown below:
a. Data from the Observations
The data analysis is conducted by arranging the data which is
obtained systematically, this is done to make it easier for the writer to
write the research report.
As the writer had observed, the process of teaching writing in
XI year of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor” is appropriate with the standard
competence and based competence of writing skill. It is shown from
the material that the teacher gave to the students and also the process
of teaching learning. The material used by the teacher was related to
the genre/discourse. Also the process of teaching learning was students
centered. He didn’t dominate in class, he tried to make the students
active and practice the language in class. For example, he taught past
continuous tense in the form of narrative text, he asked the students
opinion in the material that was discussed, and he made the students
practice it directly.
The teacher taught the genre in detail. He explained the
grammatical pattern, the schematic structure, and gave the example of
the genre. To see the students’ comprehension, he discussed, revised,
and analyzed it in class with the students. Also he tried to make them
to produce a writing or text.
The teacher taught the English language skills (listening,
speaking, reading and writing) appropriately. But when the writer
observed, she viewed that the teacher were less to teach the English
language component, such as grammar, phonology, morphology (the
study of how words are put together), syntax (sentence structure), and
semantic (meaning). (See appendix)
b. Data from the Written Test
The data gain from the written test is analyzed by using data
Percentage Table (Tabel Persentase). According to Anas Sudjono,
Percentage Table is “Tabel Distribusi Frekuensi Relatif juga
dinamakan Tabel Persentase. Dikatakan “Frekuensi Relatif” sebab
frekuensi yang disajikan disini bukanlah frekuensi yang sebenarnya,
melainkan ferekuensi yang dituangkan dalam bentuk angka
persenan”.128
128
Anas Sudjono, Pengantar Statistik Pendidikan, (Jakarta: Raja Grafindo Persada, 2005)
p. 42.
His idea may be approximately turned into English as follows:
Distribution Table of Relative Frequency is also named table of
percentage. It is called “Relative Frequency” because the frequency
which is stated here is not the real frequency, but it is a frequency
which is cited in percentage number form.
Hence, she makes the table of percentage from the frequency of
information and it is divided the number of students. Its formula is:
f p = X 100% N
f = frekuensi yang sedang dicari persentasenya (error)
N = jumlah frekuensi/banyaknya individu (total error)
p = angka persentase (percentage)129
(See appendixes)
c. Data from the Interview
The data gain from interview used to confirm the data collected
by the other technique previously. These data made the researcher
more convinced what the teacher had done and stated.
B. Research Finding
1. The Description of Data
In this occasion, to process the data the writer analyzes the
students’ writing errors. Then, she marks the sentences containing errors
by underlined the word to indicate the errors. After that, she marks it to
classify the types of errors on the students’ writing.
The writer examines the forty students’ writing test to take an
appropriate sample of the whole population. Next, she counts the kinds of
error made by the students in writing and the number of errors by
tabulating and calculating the result of errors. Then, she processes the
129 Sudjono, Pengantar Statistik… p. 43.
calculation of result of the test by changing the result of errors into
percentage. Next, she makes graphic of writing error based on the
calculation.
2. The Analysis of Data
From the data collected, the writer found thirteen types of errors of
the writing. The focus of errors will be analyzed, as the following criteria;
a. The Analysis of Error Types.
After identifying each student’s error, the writer would like to
analyze the students’ error in their writing based on their types of their
error. They are:
1) Article
In Indonesian writing, there is no need to use article. It
influences the students in their writing. Some students use wrong
articles in their composition. They were confused to use a or an
before singular noun that is initialized with vowel, for examples:
Table 4
Error in Article
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Young Red Cross is a
extracurriculer movement in sector humanity and healthty.
2. MAN 2 BOGOR is a Islamic high School in Bogor
1. Young Red Cross is an
extracurricular movement in sector of humanity and healthy.
2. MAN 2 Bogor is an Islamic High School in Bogor.
The students made 3 errors or 0.67%.
2) Capitalization
Some students cannot decide whether an expression or a
word should be capitalized or not. They used capital letter not in
the certain words or, simply said, out of the rules. They also used
the wrong capital letter in particular words. They did not put any
capital letter at the beginning of the sentence, in the name of a
person, place, and abbreviation. Also, they used capital letter in the
middle of the sentence, for examples:
Table 5
Error in Capitalization
Corpus Reconstruction
1. honeybees used to medicine.
2. he is live in Cijeruk Village.
3. Taman buah Mekarsari is one of the
biggest fruit garden and popular in
the Indonesia.
4. “… he is go to mosque raya bogor
for pray Dzuhur”.
1. Honeybees are used as medicine.
2. He lives in Cijeruk Village.
3. Taman Buah Mekarsari is one of
the biggest and popular fruit
garden in Indonesia.
4. “… he goes to mosque of Raya
Bogor to pray Dzuhur”.
The students made 68 errors or 15.14%.
3) Diction
Diction or word choice is choosing the right word in a
sentence. Sometimes one word has the same meaning but has
different usage in the sentence. Some students choose the wrong
words whose meaning doesn’t appropriate with the sentence. The
result is that a sentence is unclear or the students fail to express
what they mean, for examples:
Table 6
Error in Diction
Corpus Reconstruction
1. If you follow in Young Red Cross
you can many study about Humanity
and healthty.
2. They can make us happy for doing
activities at house.
3. MAN 2 too have many kinds
Extraculiculer.
4. It’s have 2 direction, science and
social.
5. The bathroom is seldom to be clean
by school watch man.
1. If you join with Young Red Cross
you can study more about
humanity and healthy.
2. They can make us happy for doing
activities at home.
3. MAN 2 also has many kinds of
extracurricular.
4. It has 2 departments; science and
social.
5. The bathroom is seldom to be
cleaned by the janitor.
6. Young Red Cross in MAN 2 Bogor
have many parts, one of them its me.
6. Young Red Cross in MAN 2
Bogor has many members, one of
them is me.
The students made 20 errors or 4.45%,
4) Omissions
Sometimes, the students miss several words in their text
when they are writing a composition. There are 30 students that
miss some words in their writing. Because of that when the writer
analyzing each of student’s writing, she should add some words to
complete their writing. For examples:
Table 7
Error in Omissions
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Lion skin yellow.
2. School area clean and healthy.
3. Koran very important.
4. Garden is place that comfortable
and fresh.
5. I must sleep 9 clock.
1. The lion’s skin is yellow.
2. The school area is clean and
healthy.
3. The Koran is very important.
4. Garden is a comfortable and fresh
place.
5. I must sleep at 9 o’clock.
The students made 61 errors or 13.58%.
5) Preposition
Some students made error in using preposition. They used
wrong preposition in a sentence, especially in indicating to the
address, for examples:
Table 8
Error in Preposition
Corpus Reconstruction
1. It’s location on Padjajaran street
no.6.
2. The school location in Padjajaran
street. No.6.
1. It is located at Padjajaran street
No. 6.
2. The school is located at Padjajaran
street No. 6.
The students made 4 errors or 0.89%.
6) Pronoun
Some students made errors in using pronoun. The pronoun
they choose doesn’t fit with the subject, complement, object, or
possessive, for examples:
Table 9
Error in Pronoun
Corpus Reconstruction
1. He is pet animal
2. The rabbit usually eat the carrot or
spinach. He is very happy, if we
give it.
1. It is a pet.
2. The rabbit usually eats the carrot or
spinach. It is very happy if we feed
it.
The students made 12 errors or 2.67%.
7) Punctuation
Some students made errors in punctuation. They didn’t use
punctuation in the end of the sentence, and between independent
(main) clauses and coordinate conjunction, for examples:
Table 10
Error in Punctuation
Corpus Reconstruction
1. “MAN 2 Bogor can be
championship in many Event for
example in a week ago …
2. he is famous in group students and
teacher
3. In MAN 2 Bogor does many
Extrakurikuler
1. “MAN 2 Bogor Can Be A
Champion In Many Events, For
Example, In A Week Ago …
2. He Is Famous In The Group Of
Students And Teachers.
3. MAN 2 Bogor Has Many
extracurricular.
The students made 15 errors or 3.34%.
8) Singular/Plural
Some students made mistake in using singular and plural
noun. They didn’t use the plural form for the plural nouns, made
errors to the words that come after expression of quantity, and used
incorrect irregular plural nouns, for examples:
Table 11
Error in Singular/Plural
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Houses are protect place for
Humans of sunshine, rainy and
others.
2. All students and teacher must for
read Al-Qur’an
3. They have six feet, and they have
two wing.
4. There are usually fifty three room.
5. All animal afraid him.
1. Houses are the protective places for
humans from sunshine, rain and
others.
2. All students and teachers must read
Al-Qur’an.
3. They have six feet and two wings.
4. There are usually fifty three rooms.
5. All animals afraid him.
The students made 27 errors or 6.01%.
9) Spelling
Spelling is how to write a word correctly. More students
misspelled certain words, especially for the English words that
changed into Indonesian language and made some incorrectly
separated words, for examples:
Table 12
Error in Spelling
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Extraculiculer
2. Favourit
3. Voly ball
4. Sains
5. Scouth
6. Handphone
7. Be cause
1. Extracurricular
2. Favorite
3. Volleyball
4. Science
5. Scout
6. Hand phone
7. Because
The students made 59 errors or 13.14%.
10) Verb Tense
Most of students made mistake in tense, they were confused
in using tenses in their writings. They made errors in the form of
simple present tense, simple past tense, simple continuous tense,
and passive form, for examples:
Table 13
Error in Verb Tense
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Last week Young Red Cross win as
a favorite champion in SDB (Sasih
Darma Bakti).
2. … they went to Bogor Great
Mosque for pray together everyday.
3. Mr. Kosasih is going to school,
everyday.
4. He is seriously if studying and listen
very well. he didn’t much speak.
1. Last week Young Red Cross won
as a favorite champion in SDB
(Sasih Darma Bakti).
2. … they go to Bogor Great Mosque
for praying together everyday.
3. Mr. Kosasih goes to school
everyday.
4. He studies seriously and listens
very well. He doesn’t much speak.
The students made 88 errors or 19.6%.
11) Word Form
Indonesian word form is different with English word form.
They often over generalize the form of words. Some students made
errors in using word form in their composition. For instance, they
misuse a word when the sentence followed by modal auxiliary, or
using inappropriate word in a sentence like adjective and adverb,
for examples:
Table 14
Error in Word Form
Corpus Reconstruction
1. Garden is comport place.
2. The function of them are for sleepy,
having fun together family …
1. Garden is a comfortable place.
2. The functions of them are for
sleeping, having fun together with
family …
3. We can to pick fruit and to consume
fresh fruit.
3. We can pick and consume fresh
fruit.
The students made 24 errors or 5.35%.
12) Word Order
This error is, sometimes, the result from immediate
communication strategy when the learner tried to express meaning,
which their competence contained no appropriate items on rules at
all. Indonesian word order and English word order are different, for
examples:
Table 15
Error in Word Order
Corpus Reconstruction
1. It has exclusive perfume and form
nice.
2. Address my home at Jln. Mayjen
HE. Sukma.
3. my room favorite is my bedroom 4. There is more place interesting.
1. It has exclusive perfume and nice
form.
2. My address on Jln. Mayjen H.E.
Sukma.
3. My favorite room is my bedroom. 4. There are more interesting places.
. The students made 34 errors or 7.57%.
13) Wordiness
In the student’s writing, they sometime added some useless
words in a sentence that had better to be omitted. Some students
repeated a word in the same sentence. They also used two words
that have equal meanings. It simply means that they say the same
thing twice, for examples:
a) Repeated words
Table 16
Error in Wordiness
Corpus Reconstructions
1. The Young Red Cross it is a
extracurikuller movement in sector
humanity and healthty.
1. The Young Red Cross is an
extracurricular movement in sector
of humanity and healthy.
2. Color paint it is white. 2. The paint is white.
b) Unnecessary words
Table 17
Error in Wordiness
Corpus Reconstruction
1. In the garden can become place to playing, to break, etc.
2. All students and teacher must for read Al-Qur’an.
1. The garden can become a place to play, to break, etc.
2. All students and teachers must read Al-Qur’an.
c) Redundancies
Table 18
Error in Wordiness
Corpus Reconstruction
1. There are still many more flowers in
Indonesia.
2. He is pet animal
1. There are still many flowers in
Indonesia.
2. It is a pet.
The students made 34 errors or 7.57%.
3. Data Interpretation
From the data mentioned above, we can see that there are thirteen
kinds of errors made by the students. There are article, capitalization,
diction, omissions, preposition, pronoun, punctuation, singular/plural,
spelling, verb tense, word form, word order, and wordiness. The highest
error is made on verb tense with 88 errors or 19,6%, and the lowest is
article.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
C. Conclusion
Based on the data and the discussion on the previous chapter, the
writer would like to conclude that the types of error that always made by the
students in their English writing are verb tense (88 errors or 19.6 %),
capitalization (68 errors or 15.14 %), omissions (61 errors or 13.58 %),
spelling (59 errors or 13.14 %), word order (34 errors or 7.57 %), wordiness
(34 errors or 7.57 %), singular/plural (27 errors or 6.01 %), word form (24
errors or 5.35 %), diction (20 errors or 4.45 %), punctuation (15 errors or 3.34
%), pronoun (12 errors or 2.67 %), preposition (4 errors or 0.89 %), and article
(3 errors or 0.67 %). Each of students of the eleven year of “MAN 2 Kota
Bogor” made many errors on the types of error as mentioned above. The
highest error is 88 errors or 19.6 % of errors in verb tense.
D. Suggestion
Based on this fact the writer would like to give her suggestion to the
teacher and the students:
a. For Teacher
1. Gives more time for the student to study the form and the appropriate
tenses in writing.
2. Teaches them some materials that the students made errors in their
writing.
3. Teaches the writing skill and the English language components.
4. Makes writing a daily experience.
5. Has most writing done in class.
6. Discuss the problem of the students’ writing in class.
b. For Students
1. Must have more practice to use the right form of tense and to state the
appropriate tense in writing
2. Discuss the problem in writing with their classmate and teacher.
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Appendix 1
CLASS OBSERVATION I
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 39 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Handout
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English.
Then, he tells about his imagination to be a president.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Conditional Sentence”. Then, the teacher asks
the students to imagine something. He tells to them about his imagination.
3. Whole Class Activity
The teacher asks some students to tell their imagination. Then, he
asks them to answer his question: “What would you do if you were the
new President of Indonesia?” and “Where would you be now if you were a
police officer?” After that, the students find a partner and answer the
partner’s questions in a complete statement. Use if-clause in answering the
questions and each pairs takes turning in questioning and answering. Then,
he states two things which will suggest an idea to the students. He asks the
students to make up the sentences by using if-clause. Then, he explains the
conditional sentence. Moreover, he asks the students to put the verbs into
the correct form individually.
C. Closure
The teacher concludes the material and gives the assignments to make
conditional sentences.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to produce spoken or written conditional
sentences which are related to the given themes by the teacher and to use the
certain verbs correctly in conditional sentences.
CLASS OBSERVATION II
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 39 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Handout
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English.
Then, he asks them about their last weekend. He spends this activity about
5 minutes.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Narrative text and Past Continuous Tense”.
Then, the teacher asks the students to open the textbook about narrative
text.
3. Whole Class Activity
The students are asked to read the text and answer the questions.
After that, the teacher asks them to pay attention to the italic words that
explain the past continuous activity. He asks them to mention about two
activities in the text and to state which sentences come first. After the
students identify the past continuous sentence, then he explains it to them.
After that, he asks them to write the appropriate form of words in brackets
to make a good sentence in a form of past continuous tense. The students
do the activity individually. Then, they check the right answer in a class
together.
C. Closure
The teacher asks the students to identify the structure of narrative text.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to arrange the narrative text and to determine the
structure of each sentences based on the given text (narrative text).
CLASS OBSERVATION III
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 39 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Pictures
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English.
Then, he gives motivation by telling his activity that has a relation with the
topic.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Descriptive Text”. The teacher gives the
pictures of “Bogor Botanical Garden” and asks the students to describe it.
He asks the students to mention some words that relate to the topic and to
explain it in sentences. The students discuss it and share their opinions.
3. Whole Class Activity:
The teacher gives an example of descriptive text and the students
answer the question based on the text. After that, the teacher and the
students study and discuss the descriptive text and analyze its social
function, the objectives, the structure, and language features. Moreover,
the students write the structure of the text and the characteristics of the
descriptive text individually.
4. Teacher and Students Talk
When observing this class, the writer finds that the teacher is good
enough to conduct the activities. He can handle the problems
professionally. He is able to create the interactive circumstances and to
stimulate his students to express their ideas.
C. Closure
The teacher asks the students about the problem that they face on
today’s lesson and concludes the material. Also, he gives the assignment to
find some examples of descriptive text.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to determine the parts of descriptive text, to
mention the characteristics of its, and to identify the structure of every
sentences in the text.
CLASS OBSERVATION IV
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 40 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Handout
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English. He
gives motivation by telling a famous person and describes him/her clearly.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Descriptive Text”. The teacher distributes the
text about Albert Einstein. The teacher asks some students to read some
paragraphs loudly and corrects the pronunciation of the students. Then, the
students are asked to answer the questions based on the text for reading
comprehension and to identify the structure of the text.
3. Group Work Activity
After identifying the text, the students, in group that consists of 4
persons, are given the assignment by the teacher to make a paragraph by
selecting three pictures given by the teacher.
4. Teacher and Students Talk
When observing this class, the writer finds that the teacher is good
to conduct the activities, especially, to make the students talk in English.
They are active enough in getting involved with the speaking activity.
C. Closure
The teacher gives an assignment to translate the descriptive text in a
textbook.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to read the text with the correct pronunciation, to
answer the questions, to identify the structure of the text, and to produce the
simple descriptive text in group.
CLASS OBSERVATION V
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 40 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Handout
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English. He
gives motivation by telling his famous person and describes the person
clearly.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Descriptive Text”. The teacher asks the students
to open the textbook and to read the descriptive text. He asks some
students to read some paragraphs loudly and corrects their pronunciation.
Then, he asks the students to identify the detail information for describing
the things, the places, and the persons in a text by asking “What details
does the author use to describe the woman?” He tells the students to use
the words that are related to the sense of sight, sound, touch, smell, and
taste (sensory words) in writing a descriptive paragraph.
3. Individual Activity
After identifying the text, the students are given the assignment by
the teacher to make a descriptive paragraph with different things, such as,
people, things, or places. They are asked to select one topic and to describe
it for making descriptive paragraph.
4. Teacher and Students Talk
When observing this class, the writer finds that the teacher is good
to conduct the activities, especially, to make the students talk in English.
He is able to attract their students to be able to states their ideas whether
spoken or written by delivering them the interesting issues or problems.
C. Closure
The teacher concludes the material and gives the assignments to find
some examples of descriptive text.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to read the text with the appropriate
pronunciation, to identify the detail information by involving the sensory
words, and to produce the descriptive paragraph individually.
CLASS OBSERVATION VI
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 39 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Handout
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English. He
tells about the latest information. He spends this activity about 5 minutes.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Report Text”. The teacher asks the student to
open the textbook about report text.
3. Whole Class Activity
The teacher asks the student some questions that are related with
the topic. He asks about the rainbow. After that, he asks the students to
complete the text with the verbs given in the box. After the students finish
the task, they correct it together with their teacher. Moreover, the teacher
asks the students to identify the structure of report text. He explains the
report text and enlightens the structure, the objective, language features,
and the characteristic of report text to the students.
4. Individual Activity
The students are asked to arrange the paragraphs into the correct
order to become a good text in the form of report text.
C. Closure
The teacher concludes the material and gives the assignments to find
some examples of report text.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to use the new words appropriately, to analyze
the parts of reports text, and to reconstruct the scrambled paragraph into the
perfect paragraph.
CLASS OBSERVATION VII
Observed Class : Eleventh year students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”
Teacher : Drs. Ruyani
Number of Students : 40 students
A. Equipment and Material
1. Textbook
2. Whiteboard
3. Board marker
4. Paper
5. Newspaper
B. Procedures
1. Warm-Up Activity
In this stage, the teacher greets his students warmly in English.
Then, he tells about the latest information. He has this activity about 5
minutes.
2. Presentation
Today’s lesson is “Report Text”. The teacher asks the students to
read the report text in the newspaper.
3. Whole Class Activity
The teacher asks some questions to the students about the text in
the newspaper. He asks the students to retell the main idea of certain
paragraphs and to identify the structure, the characteristics, and the
language features. After that, he points some students to report the certain
text in the newspaper.
C. Closure
The teacher concludes the material and gives assignments to find some
examples of report text.
D. Conclusion
The students are able to identify the structure, the characteristics, and
the language features of the report text, to determine the main idea of report
text, and to re-present the report text based their ability.
Appendix 2
The Recapitulation of Students Error
Errors
Stu
den
ts’
Na
me
Art
icle
Cap
ital
izat
ion
Dic
tion
Om
issi
ons
Pre
po
siti
on
Pro
nou
n
Pu
nct
uat
ion
Sin
gula
r/P
lura
l
Sp
elli
ng
Ver
b T
ense
Wo
rd F
orm
Word
Ord
er
Wo
rdin
ess
Tota
l E
rror
Student 1 2 5 1 3 - - 3 4 7 3 1 - 5 34
Student 2 - - - 3 - - - 1 1 1 1 - - 7
Student 3 - - 1 1 - - - - - 1 - - - 3
Student 4 - - - 1 - - 1 - - - - 1 3 6
Student 5 - 1 - 4 - - 1 1 3 - - 1 11
Student 6 - - - - - 3 - 1 - 3 - - - 7
Student 7 - 2 1 3 - - - 1 1 1 1 1 - 11
Student 8 - 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 3 4 - 1 2 16
Student 9 - - - - - - - - - - - 2 1 3
Student 10 - 3 - 4 - - - - 2 2 4 1 3 19
Student 11 - - - 7 - - - 1 1 1 1 8 3 22
Student 12 - 6 2 1 - - - - 1 3 - - - 13
Student 13 - - 3 - - - - 1 1 1 5 1 1 13
Student 14 - 3 - 2 - - - 1 3 1 - 1 3 14
Student 15 - 3 1 1 - 3 - 1 - 4 1 - - 14
Student 16 - 2 - - - - - 5 1 - - - 8
Student 17 - 1 - 2 - 1 1 1 6 - 1 - 1 14
Student 18 - 3 - - 1 - - 2 3 - - - - 9
Student 19 - - - 1 - - - - - - - - - 1
Student 20 - - 3 1 - - - - - 5 - 1 1 11
Student 21 - 7 - 1 - - 3 - 3 6 - - 2 22
Student 22 - 2 - 2 - - - - 1 2 - 1 - 8
Student 23 - 1 - - - - - 1 3 1 - - - 6
Student 24 - 4 - 1 - - 2 - 1 2 4 2 4 20
Student 25 - 1 - 3 - - 1 - 3 - - 1 9
Student 26 1 2 - 3 1 - - - 3 3 - 1 - 14
Student 27 - 3 - 1 - - 2 2 2 6 - 2 - 18
Student 28 - 1 2 4 - - - 1 - 2 - 3 - 13
Student 29 - - - - - 1 - 1 1 7 - - - 10
Student 30 - 3 3 1 - - - 1 2 - - - - 10
Student 31 - 3 - - - - - 1 - 9 2 1 1 17
Student 32 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 2 - 4 - 2 - 17
Student 33 - 1 - 3 - - - 1 - 2 - 1 1 9
Student 34 - - - 1 - - - - - - - 1 - 2
Student 35 - - 1 1 1 - - - - 1 - 2 1 7
Student 36 - 2 - 1 - - - - - 1 2 - - 6
Student 37 - 2 - 1 - - 2 - 3 - - - - 8
Student 38 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1
Student 39 - 3 - 1 - - - - - 4 - - 1 9
Student 40 - 1 1 - - - - - 5 2 - - 1 10
3 68 20 61 4 12 15 27 59 88 24 34 34 450
Total %
0.6
7%
15
.14%
4.4
5%
13
.58%
0.8
9%
2.6
7%
3.3
4%
6.0
1%
13
.14%
19
.6%
5.3
5%
7.5
7%
7.5
7%
10
0 %
Appendix 3
Interview
Nama Sekolah : MAN 2 Kota Bogor
Nama Guru : Drs. Ruyani
Guru Bahasa Inggris Kelas : XI
A. KUALIFIKASI GURU
1. Apakah pendidikan tertinggi yang pernah Bapak/Ibu tempuh?
Jawab: S 1 “IAIN Jakarta” Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris.
2. Apakah status Bapak/Ibu di sekolah ini?
Jawab: PNS (Guru dan Wakil Ketua Komite Madrasah)
3. Sudah berapa tahun Bapak/Ibu mengajar di sekolah ini?
Jawab: Dari tahun 1994 (14 tahun).
4. Berapa jam pelajaran Bapak/Ibu mengajar Bahasa Inggris selama
seminggu di sekolah ini?
Jawab: 28 jam pelajaran dalam seminggu (kelas X, XI)
5. Sebelum mengajar di sekolah ini, apakah bapak/Ibu pernah mengajar di
sekolah lain?
Jawab: Ya
6. Jika jawaban no. 5 “Ya” Bapak/Ibu sebutkan nama sekolah tersebut dan
berapa lama?
Jawab: STM, Daruttafsir, selama 4 tahun.
7. Selain Bahasa Inggris, apakah Bapak/Ibu mengajar mata pelajaran lain?
Jawab: Ya
8. Jika jawaban no. 7 “Ya”, mohon Bapak/Ibu sebutkan mata pelajaran
tersebut?
Jawab: Pelajaran Psikologi di “STAI” Samsul Ulum.
B. PERSIAPAN MENGAJAR
9. Sebelum mengadakan pertemuan tatap muka di kelas, apakah Bapak/Ibu
membuat persiapan mengajar tertulis tentang pengajaran menulis?
Jawab: Ya
10. Persiapan mengajar tertulis tentang pengajaran menulis yang Bapak/Ibu
susun tercakup dalam?
Jawab: Administrasi Guru
11. Apakah dalam membuat persiapan mengajar tertulis tentang pengajaran
menulis Bapak/Ibu mengacu pada Silabus?
Jawab: Ya
C. MATERI PELAJARAN
12. Materi pelajaran Bahasa Inggris khususnya untuk pengajaran menulis yang
Bapak/Ibu ajarkan diambil dari?
Jawab: Grafindo dan hasil penataran GMP Guru.
13. Alasan Bapak/Ibu menggunakan sumber tersebut dalam mengajarkan
menulis adalah?
Jawab: Tahu editornya, selain itu buku ini merupakan hasil
analisis/identifikasi dengan kurikulum, dan kaya akan model materinya
dan penyediaan materi.
D. PROSES BELAJAR MENGAJAR WRITING
14. Teknik yang Bapak/Ibu gunakan dalam mengajarkan menulis adalah?
Jawab: Aturan mengajar.
15. Alasan Bapak/Ibu memakai teknik (teknik-teknik) yang telah Bapak/Ibu
sebutkan pada pertanyaan no. 14 adalah?
Jawab: Membuat siswa belajar dengan pengalamannya.
16. Trik-trik apa yang Anda gunakan untuk membantu siswa agar menyerap
pelajaran menulis dengan baik?
Jawab: Membuat outline, biarkan anak untuk menulis, guru sebagai
director dan fasilitator.
17. Topik apa yang biasanya digunakan dalam mengajar menulis?
Jawab: Topik yang fenomenal.
18. Apa yang Bapak/Ibu lakukan agar pembelajaran menulis menjadi
contextual/meaningfulness?
Jawab: Menekankan menulis itu penting, mempunyai daya informasi yang
luas jika menjadi penulis, agar ada pembiasaan.
19. Setelah siswa menulis, maka siapa saja yang membaca tulisan siswa?
Jawab: Grouping, menyebar.
20. Bagaimankah kegiatan siswa di kelas dalam proses belajar menulis?
Jawab: menentukan judul sendiri, penekanan ke independently, home
work.
E. HAMBATAN DAN PEMECAHAN HAMBATAN MENGAJAR MENULIS
21. Hambatan-hambatan yang Bapak/Ibu alami dalam mengajarkan menulis
adalah?
Jawab: Diakibatkan pemikiran bahasa itu parsial, lack of vocabulary,
structure yang terlalu hapalan/teoritis, pemahaman menulis belum
dianggap penting.
22. Tindakan Bapak/Ibu bila mengalami hambatan mengajar menulis akibat
hal yang telah disebutkan di atas adalah?
Jawab: Menyadarkan kepada anak bahwa menulis penting (product
ability), anak harus terus-menerus menulis dengan cara memperhatikan
tulisan-tulisan orang lain. Bersinergi.
23. Bagaiman Bapak/Ibu menanggapi siswa yang belum paham dengan materi
yang diberikan?
Jawab: Perlakuan yang berbeda bagi yang mempunyai kesulitan,
memberikan perhatian yang lebih. Semua anak punya potensi tapi ada
klasifikasinya. Unggul dilayani secara umum dan diberikan pengayaan,
anak diberikan tes yang sama, anak yang unik dilayani secara umum dan
khusus, dalam arti melaksanakan remedial.
24. Apa yang Bapak lakukan jika siswa melakukan kesalahan (error)?
Jawab: Kepada kelas diajukan pertanyaan (classroom assessment)
penilaian berbasis kelas.
25. Siapa yang mengoreksi tulisan anak?
Jawab: Antar anak, guru memberi komentar.
Appendix 4
TEST INSTRUMENT
1. Write a descriptive writing with the topic that has a relation with person,
place, and thing!
Appendix 5
Students’ Writing
PESERTA WISUDA
FAKULTAS ILMU TARBIYAH DAN KEGURUAN
UIN SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH JAKARTA
1. Nama : Elis Fadliyah 2. Tempat/Tanggal Lahir : Bogor, 18April 1984
3. NIM : 103014026945 4. Jurusan : Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris
5. Program : Reguler 6. Judul Skripsi : Error Analysis on Students’ Writing
(A Case Study of the Eleventh Year
Students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”)
7. Pembimbing : Drs. Arifin Toy, M.Sc.
8. Penguji : 1. Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd
2. Drs. H. Munir Sonhadji, M.Ed.
9. Tanggal Lulus : 2 Juni 2008
10. Nomor Ijazah :
11. Indeks Prestasi/Yudisium : 3.28/Amat Baik
12. Jabatan dalam Organisasi
Kemahasiswaan
: -
13. Alamat Asal : Jln. Abdul Fatah No. 30 Cibitung RT
12/03
Kec. Tenjolaya Kab. Bogor 16620 (0251) 626 978
0856 9490 7723 14. Alamat Sekarang : Jln. Abdul Fatah No. 30 Cibitung RT
12/03 Kec. Tenjolaya Kab. Bogor 16620
(0251) 626 978 0856 9490 7723
15. Nama Ayah : H. Abd. Rosyid
16. Pendidikan Terakhir Ayah : PGAN 6 tahun
17. Pekerjaan Ayah : Pensiunan PNS di DEPAG Bogor
18. Nama Ibu : Hj. Khoiriyah
19. Pendidikan Terakhir Ibu : SD
20. Pekerjaan Ibu : Ibu Rumah Tangga
Jakarta, 3 Juni
2008
Calon
Wisudawan/Wati
(Elis Fadliyah)
SURAT PERNYATAAN
Assalamu’alaikum Wr. Wb
Dengan hormat, Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini
Nama : Elis Fadliyah
Tempat/Tanggal Lahir : Bogor, 18 April 1984
NIM : 103014026945
Jurusan/Prodi : Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris/S1
Menyatakan bahwa skripsi yang saya susun dengan judul “Error Analysis on
Students’ Writing (A Case Study of the Eleventh Year Students of “MAN 2 Kota Bogor”)” dan telah dinyatakan lulus dalam munaqasah pada tanggal 2 Juni
2008 dihadapan para penguji adalah benar-benar hasil karya sendiri, bukan hasil
karya orang lain, atau hasil plagiat karya orang lain.
Demikian surat pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya untuk digunakan
sebagaimana mestinya.
Wassalamu’alaikum Wr. Wb.
Jakarta, 3 Juni 2008
Penulis,
(Elis Fadliyah)