Chapter two

Literature Review

2.1 Overview of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) Theories

It is crucial to realize that the theories developed by Schumann, Vygotsky,
and Krashen all adopt a social SLA perspective, emphasizing the
importance of a second language learner's experiences and interactions in
their target language (Larsen-Freeman, 2007, p. 142). According to each
hypothesis, language input has a direct impact on the production and
comprehension of the L2, taking into consideration the learner's
interactions with the outside world (Abukhattala, 2013; Barjesteh &
Veseghi, 2012; Lantolf, 2011). Since language is a means of exchanging
ideas and thoughts, it can develop organically or be learned as a person is
immersed in various contexts that call for the usage of the target language
in that specific context (Lightbown & Spada, 2013, p. 13).
It is clear that there are numerous SLA theories that explain how one learns,
acquires, and uses a second language; among these, there are similarities,
overlaps, and differences. However, each theory only appears to capture a
particular aspect of learning a second language (Menezes, 2013, p. 93).
Social SLA theories, such as Krashen's Monitor Model, acculturation, and
the sociocultural theory, hold that there is never a final endpoint of learning
a targeted language. This illustrates the significance of realizing that SLA
is a complex process (Larsen-Freeman, 2007, p. 15).
In Krashen’s theory of second language acquisition, the five main
hypotheses are composed of the following elements of the SLA (Second
Language Acquisition) hypothesis: 1) The two fundamental ideas of
language acquisition found in the acquisition-learning hypothesis. Two
language acquisition systems—the acquisition system and the learning
system—are considered in the framework of this acquisition-learning
hypothesis. 2) The natural order theory, which elaborates on the matter of
grammatical structure. 3) The monitor hypothesis, which focuses on
explaining how learning and acquisition are related and how the latter
definition affects the former. 4) The input hypothesis, which is the core of
all SLA theories and asserts that language acquisition is only possible
through comprehension of content, or "comprehensible input." 5) The
affective filter hypothesis, which explains how attitudes impact second
language acquisition success. A positive attitude toward language speakers
will lower the filter, while a negative attitude will increase it.
The majority of language teaching methodologies are based on SLA ideas,
including behaviorism, interactionism, sociocultural theory, and
comprehension theory. Johnson (2004) states, "behaviorism undermined
the role of mental processes and viewed learning as the ability to
inductively discover patterns of rule-governed behavior from the examples
provided to the learner by his or her environment" (p. 11). According to
this viewpoint, learning would take place as habits were formed through
training and drills. Since the behaviorist theory was proved to be
ineffective, Bruner's constructivist theory—which sees learning as actions
that learners design based on prior knowledge—became the theory that
most scholars adopted. Using their prior knowledge, experiences, and
practices, the students develop and construct new ideas. Learning a
language through interactions amongst students is known as interactionism.
In 1978, Hatch maintained that "one learns how to do conversation, one
learns how to interact verbally, and out of this interaction syntactic
structures are developed" (p. 11). Based on Vygotsky's philosophical
theories that culture is comprehended through language and
communication, the sociocultural theory of language learning was
developed. This point of view holds that social contacts, events, procedures,
and activities are what lead to language acquisition. The comprehension
theory of language learning, on the other hand, emphasizes the mental
process of language acquisition. According to Krashen (2004), the
comprehension theory makes reference to unconscious rather than
conscious learning. Grammatical structure emerges in a predictable order
when acquirers are given comprehension-friendly material. Language
acquisition-related brain regions will not receive input if there is a strong
affective filter (such as severe anxiety).

2.2 Previous Studies on Grammar and Usage Errors in

Non-Native Writing
The sources of errors are described, including intralingual and interlingual
errors. According to Sharma (1981, p. 48), learners' errors can be ascribed
to both intralingual and interlingual sources. Selinker (1972, p. 114), who
coined the word interlanguage, states that interlingual errors are those
brought on by the mother tongue's detrimental involvement. The learner
applies the rules, structures, and patterns of his home language to the target
language, in other words. Because of the mother tongue's detrimental
influence, the learner is unable to pick up the target language's patterns,
rules, and forms. Interlingual errors arise when the learner's native language
patterns, structures, and rules are transferred, according to Corder (1971, p.
57). Most second language learners rely on their mother tongue, according
to Kavaliauskiene (2009, p. 93), who also said that this interference could
be beneficial if the two languages are the same and detrimental if they are
different. Noor (1996, p. 25) said that the influence of the mother tongue is
the most common source of errors, adding that when Arabic-speaking
learners learn English, they tend to adopt structures that are similar to those
of their native language. Hargett (1991, p. 67) said that transfer from the
mother tongue is one of the major sources of errors in the second language
learning process. However, when the native language is not present,
intralingual errors are associated with the target language being acquired.
A breakdown in comprehending the rules of the target language,
overgeneralization, partial application of rules, teaching methods, and the
learner themselves are some of the reasons why students make mistakes
(Hargett 1991,, p. 6).
Richard (1974, p. 153) distinguishes between interlingual and intralingual
errors according to their causes. Three categories of interlingual factors are
distinguished: literal translation, mother tongue interference, and transfer
error. Four categories are used to categorize the intralingual factor:
overgeneralization, insufficient application of rules, ignorance of rule
restrictions, and postulated erroneous notions. Interlingual transfer errors
happen when a learner’s first language gets in the way of their target
language, especially when they transmit their first language either directly
or indirectly (Kaweera, 2013, p18). The learners translate directly from
their original language into the target language because they are not familiar
with its rules, structures, or even tenses. The mistakes pupils make when
attempting to comprehend and use the rules of the target language because
of their limited experience are referred to as the intralingual factor.
Interference from other language learning techniques or transfer from them
may be the source of these mistakes. Because they are not exposed to the
target language as often, foreign language learners frequently make these
mistakes. The intralingual factor occurs when pupils only partially or
incorrectly apply the rules of the target language because they have not
fully acquired or understood them (Kaweera, 2013, p. 5).
Taiseer (2008) undertook a study to investigate the common grammatical
faults that male Emirati secondary school students make when writing
English essays. The most prevalent and noticeable grammatical mistakes
discovered in the students’ essays were those related to passivization, verb
tense and form, subject-verb agreement, word order, prepositions, articles,
plurality, and auxiliaries. Similarly, Salem conducted another study at Al-
Azhar University in Egypt in 2007. According to the study, the majority of
the pupils struggled with vocabulary, idioms, English cultural awareness,
and persuasive techniques. The participants’ mistakes were also made by
advanced students because they were Al-Azhar University English majors.
Students in other grades or majoring in different disciplines cannot use the
findings. In contrast, Zuhour and Fatima (2015) investigated the prevalent
types of errors among 40 female students in the Department of English &
Translation at Tabuk University in Saudi Arabia. Grammar issues
(pertaining to tenses, prepositions, syntactic errors, subject-verb agreement,
and the use of articles), punctuation issues (pertaining to the absence,
misuse, or addition of punctuation marks), and spelling issues (pertaining
to substitution, omission, addition, disordering, segmentation, and
unrecognizable words) accounted for the majority of language problems,
according to the study’s findings (Zuhour & Fatima, 2015, p. 3).

2.3 Factors Influencing Error Patterns

Internal and external influences are just two of the many variables that
might affect SLA. Learner characteristics such as age, motivation, attitude,
personality, and first language competency are examples of internal factors,
sometimes referred to as individual difference factors. On the other hand,
external factors—also referred to as social factors—usually include the
technological, cultural, political, and economic environments. Keller
(1998, p. 31) believed that two key components of a good language
acquisition process are the learner’s age and language proficiency, with the
former having a significant impact on the latter. Psychologists, linguists,
and educators have focused a lot of attention on the physiological
implications of age in acquiring a first or second language. Many hours and
efforts have been devoted to examining the connection between age and
SLA from many perspectives. It’s widely accepted that children are better
at SLA than adults, yet this is still up for question when it comes to learning
motivation. According to Cazden (1988, p. 12), who bases this on several
studies, children, adolescents, and adults will all go through the same
learning phase where they must cope with language facts. They differ
significantly, though, in terms of learning speed and accomplishment.
Adults typically do better in the beginning due to their superior cognitive
abilities, but children can perform better in terms of pronunciation and
standard accent, and after a lengthy learning period, they may have a higher
chance of successfully learning and using a second language. There are
differing views, but it is impossible to overlook the significance of the age
component in SLA (p. 2).

2.4 Pedagogical Approaches to Addressing Errors

The best way to correct language learners’ mistakes is to let them correct
their own mistakes with the assistance of their teacher. Another method is
to let one student in a classroom correct his or her mistakes; if this is not
possible, we ask the teacher to correct the students’ mistakes in the target
language. One method acknowledges that learners’ mistakes are an
essential part of learning a target language, and in fact, it has rejected error
correction entirely. It is crucial to note that errors should be fixed if the goal
is to improve communication in the target language, if teaching a second or
foreign language calls for it, or if learning the target language is the
intention. For the majority of language researchers, error correction can be
viewed as a kind of feedback (Doe, 2015).

Mackey (1967, p. 68) highlighted the significance of error perception and

correction, pointing out various techniques for correcting errors in his study
as follows: Techniques of correcting are some of the most important
classroom techniques. The teacher may first try to diagnose the cause of the
error. He also added that the results of this study would encourage teachers
to develop a positive attitude towards their students’ errors and suggested
ways of correcting errors that will help, rather than hinder, the learning
process (p. 4).
Understanding the mistakes made by language learners is essential to
comprehending the particular linguistic difficulties they face. This
understanding enables teachers to create accurate plans to deal with and
successfully correct these errors. Additionally, learners benefit from error
analysis since it allows them to spot trends in their errors and actively try
to improve their language skills. When students move components of their
native language (L1) into the target language (L2), they are making
interlingual blunders (James, 1998, p. 41).
According to Brown (2020, pp. 1-2), these kinds of mistakes are usually
caused by the grammatical, syntactic, lexical, and cultural conventions of
the two languages. Even if a student uses their mother tongue to form
sentences correctly, their usage of the target language may be imprecise or
unintelligible. According to Lightbown and Spada (2019), interlingual
errors can lead to misunderstandings or confusion when idiomatic
expressions or phrasal verbs are taken literally from the source language
into the target language. Finally, learners make interlingual mistakes
because their first language affects how they learn and use the target
language (pp. 1-2).
Correction of errors is a type of feedback. Because of its significance in the
subject of teaching languages, it has been extensively researched in recent
years. The book Teaching English as a Foreign Language by Broughton et
al. (2021, p. 14) lays out several steps for error correction. The first step, in
their opinion, is to identify the error. Whether the learner's intended
statement aligns with the typical interpretation of what they actually said
or wrote is the fundamental question to address. Establishing the error's
potential cause and providing an explanation for its occurrence constitute
the second stage. Doing this is crucial because a teacher can develop a more
effective teaching method to address an error by fully understanding its
reasons. Assessing the error's seriousness is the third step. After
determining the error's location, the final step is rectification. The teacher
should handle mistakes very carefully because everyone has experienced
the feeling of having their work returned with red ink. Many students also
complain bitterly about their teacher correcting their work so frequently
that they no longer write a single letter of a piece of writing to submit to
the teacher (p. 14).
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