An Error Analysis Of Using Past Tenses In Narrative Text Made By The Twelfth Graders Of Sma Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa
AN ERROR ANALYSIS OF USING PAST TENSES IN NARRATIVE TEXT MADE BY THE TWELFTH GRADERS OF SMA NEGERI 1 TANJUNG MORAWA
A THESIS
BY:
INDAH LESTARI SEMBIRING REG. ID. NO: 070705012
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA MEDAN
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT……….. i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………. ii
AUTHOR’S DECLARATION……… iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS……….. iv
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION………. 1
1.1Background of the Analysis……….. 1
1.2Problem of the Analysis……… 3
1.3Scope of the Analysis……… 3
1.4Objectives of the Analysis………. 3
1.5Significance of the Analysis……….. 4
CHAPTER II REVIEW LITERATURE………. 5
2.1 Theoretical Concepts……… 5
2.2 Description of Error Analysis………... 5
2.2.1 Types of Error………. 7
2.2.2 The Causes of Error……….... 8
2.3 English Tenses……….. 9
2.3.1 Simple Past Tense……… 10
2.3.2 Past Continuous Tense……… 13.
2.3.3 Past Perfect Tense……… 17
2.4 Explanation of Narrative Text……….. 21
CHAPTER III METHOD OF RESEARCH………. 22
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3.2 Population and Sample……….. 22
3.3 Data Collecting Method………. 24
3.4 Data Analysis Method……… 24
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS……… 26
4.1 Description of Data……… 26
4.2 Data Analysis………. 28
4.2.1 Describing The Errors……… 28
4.2.2 Types of Error……… 29
4.2.3 The Causes of Error ……….. 47
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION……….. 50
5.1 Conclusions………... 50
5.2 Suggestions………. 51 REFERENCES
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ABSTRACT
This thesis entitled “An Error Analysis Of Using Past Tenses in Narrative Text Made By The Twelfth Graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa”. Thesis describes the errors made by the twelfth graders in using past tenses especially in simple past tense, past continuous tense, and past perfect tense. One of the purposes of writing thesis is to know the types of error and the causes of them. The research uses quantitative method. The population are the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa which consist of 7 classes, and totaling the population are 259 students. The researcher applies randomly technique are taken to get a representative sample, there are 78 students as the sample. The sample is randomly taken from the attendace list. The test consists of 15 questions from English book. The students were asked to complete the questions by choosing the right answer from the choice provided below the text. The finding of analysis shows that the total of students’ correct answer the test are 807 numbers or 68.97% and incorrect are 363 numbers or 31.03%. There are 4 types of errors that for ommision are 93 or 25.62%, for addition are 40 or 11.02%, for misformation there was 133 or 36.64%, and for misordering are 97 or 26.72%. So the dominant type of error is misformation. And there are 4 causes of errors that for over-generalization there were 12 or 3.31%, for ignore of rule restriction there were 137 or 37.74%, for incomplete application of rules there were 93 or 25.62% and for cause of error false concepts hypothesized there were 121 or 33.33%. So, the dominant causes of errors was ignorance of rule restrictions.
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ABSTRACT
This thesis entitled “An Error Analysis Of Using Past Tenses in Narrative Text Made By The Twelfth Graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa”. Thesis describes the errors made by the twelfth graders in using past tenses especially in simple past tense, past continuous tense, and past perfect tense. One of the purposes of writing thesis is to know the types of error and the causes of them. The research uses quantitative method. The population are the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa which consist of 7 classes, and totaling the population are 259 students. The researcher applies randomly technique are taken to get a representative sample, there are 78 students as the sample. The sample is randomly taken from the attendace list. The test consists of 15 questions from English book. The students were asked to complete the questions by choosing the right answer from the choice provided below the text. The finding of analysis shows that the total of students’ correct answer the test are 807 numbers or 68.97% and incorrect are 363 numbers or 31.03%. There are 4 types of errors that for ommision are 93 or 25.62%, for addition are 40 or 11.02%, for misformation there was 133 or 36.64%, and for misordering are 97 or 26.72%. So the dominant type of error is misformation. And there are 4 causes of errors that for over-generalization there were 12 or 3.31%, for ignore of rule restriction there were 137 or 37.74%, for incomplete application of rules there were 93 or 25.62% and for cause of error false concepts hypothesized there were 121 or 33.33%. So, the dominant causes of errors was ignorance of rule restrictions.
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CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Analysis
Every countries has their own language to communicate. By using language, they can communicate between one another. It means that language is a mean of communication. Bennet (1968: 4) says that language is the most distinctive of human activities. It is difficult to disentangel the components because they spill over into human personality itself. As a starting-point, language may be thought of in broad terms as having many of the characteristics of a code. As such as it depends on the tacit agreement between speaker (or writer) and listener (or reader) that a set of signs, more or less systematised, shall have certain references.
Knapp and Watkins (2005: 29) say that language is always produced, exchanged or received as text; that is, language as a sytem of communication is organised as cohesive units we call texts.
Richards (1985:95) says that errors can be classified to vocabulary (lexical error), pronunciation (phonological error), grammar (syntatic error), misunderstanting of a speaker’s intention or meaning (interpretive error), production of the wrong communicative effect e.g. through the faulty use of speech act or one of the rules of speaking (pragmatic error).
Norrish (1983 : 7) explained errors as follows : “Errors is systematic deviation from the accepted system of the target language. Mistake is non-systematic deviation from the accepted system of a language being learned and it is usually due to human limitation such as tiredness, nervousness, and fatigue”. It means that errors may occur because of the limitation of human being in mastering the target language.
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Errors may occur in all components of language such as grammar. Knapp and Watkins (2005:33) say that grammar therefore needs to deal with language from three perspectives: the generic, the textual, and syntactical.
The students sometimes do not realize that they make mistake because of the ignorance of the grammar. The students sometimes face many difficulties in using tenses. The researcher realized that the mistakes or errors that students made in using tenses especially in past tenses need to be analyzed carefully.
Azar (1989: 24) describes that the simple past tense indicates that an activity or situation began and ended at a particular time in the past.
Azar (1989: 24) describes that past continuous tense is both actions occurred at the same time, but one action began earlier and was in progress when the other action occurred. Sometimes the past continuous is used in both parts of a sentence when two actions are in progress simultaneously.
Azar (1989: 39) says that past perfect tense expresses an activity that was completed before another activity or time in the past.
Tenses are needed in english texts. Sometimes students still confuse how to use tense in a sentence. As in narrative text, tenses are very important to describe time in the text. Because a narration tells a story or describes a sequence of events. Smalley and Ruetten (1986:24) say that narration usually refers to telling of a story, the term is used to described the relating of an experience. That experience may be in the past (past narration), or it may be a typical experience (what people usually do), or it may be going on now (present narration).
The writer is interested to choose schools as the location of analysis and research of the students’ error. The research was conducted at SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa. The reasons to choose this school as location of the research is terms of accesibility and the same research is never conducted in there.
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1.2 Formulation of Problems Analysis
The problems of the study which the writer would like to analyze as follows:
1. What kinds of errors are made by the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa in using past tenses in the narrative text?
2. What are the causes of the errors made by the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa in using past tenses in the narrative text?
1.3 Scope of Analysis
In a research, it is very important to limit the scope of analysis to get the relevant data. It will be better by limiting the analysis into the errors of using tenses. Tenses are one of the important parts of grammar in English. In this thesis the writer would like to analyze the errors in using past tenses, especially in simple past tense, past contiuous tense, and past perfect tense in narrative text made by twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa.
1.4 Objectives of Analysis
The objectives of the study are:
• To find out the kinds of errors are made by the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa in using past tenses in the narrative text.
• To find the percentage of the errors are made by the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa in using past tenses in the narrative text.
• To find out the causes of errors are made by the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa in using past tenses in the narrative text.
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1.5 Significances of the Study
Finding of this study, the writer hopes that this thesis are expected to be useful for students and teachers. After identifying, analyzing and describing the errors it is expected that the problem can be solved and the students can improve their errors that they make and increase their knowledge about tenses, especially about past tenses (simple past tense, past continuous tense, and past perfect tense). Furthermore, this is useful for English teachers to creat and find a better strategy in teaching to determine how far they know the ability of their students’ knowledge. Beside that, this thesis can also be used as a reference for the other researchers who are interested to research the same topic in the future.
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CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
2.1 Theoretical Concepts
In learning a second language the students as the learner produce many errors misformation of foreign language. The word error is commonly used when the students give the wrong answer or respon. Error may occur in all components of language such as grammar. The learners sometimes do not realize that they make mistake because of ignorance of the grammar.
2.2 Description of Error Analysis
We often hear that people make a lot of mistakes in their past time and eventually be successful in the future. It may be occured in learning a language or a target language. The definition of error can be seen through the classification of errors. The classification is very important to explain the errors in error analysis.
Richards (1985: 96) says that errors result from incomplete learning and knowledge of learners about target language system.
Norrish (1983: 7) says that error is systematic deviation from the accepted system of the target language. Mistake is non-systematic deviation from the accepted system of a language being learned and it usually due to human limitation such as tiredness, nervousness, and fatigue. It means that errors may occure because of human factor in mastering the target language such as the limitation of memory, psychological problem and do not understand about the material of subject. In another side, the learners never recognize their errors or they never know that they have made errors.
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Learning sometimes needs a process in which the success will come by profiting from their errors. From those opinions above, it can be concluded that error is a deviation that is made by the learners because they do not understand the rules of the second language and can not be corrected by themselves while they are learning.
While the diminishing of errors is an important criterion for increasing language proficiency, the ultimate goals of second language learning is the attainment of communicative fluency in a language. Error analysis is used to analyze and classify the learners’ error from which the leaners learning problem can be inferred.
Brown (2000: 218) says that the 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.
Corder (1981: 23) says that error analysis is the study analysis of the errors made by the second of foreign language learners to the predict the errors or the difficulties in learning foreign language. Error analysis may be carried out in order to:
1) Find out how well someone learns a language. 2) Find out how well someone knows language, and
3) Obtain information on common difficulties in language learning.
Thus, error analysis is the study and the analysis of the errors made by language learners which function as to give the information on how they learn a language, how well they know the language and what difficulties faced by them in achieving the objective.
2.2.1 Types of Error
According to Dulay, Burt, and Krashen in James’ book (1998: 106) errors can be classified into four types, they are :
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It is a sentence where an element is ommited, actually it should be presented. Exemple : I not go to school by bus everyday
It should be : I do not go to school by bus everyday 2. Errors of addition
It is a phenomenon in which a certain aspect of language rules is added into a correct order (correct sentence), in order words some elements are presented which should not be presented.
Example : We do study English three times in a week It should be : We study English three times in a week 3. Misformation
Misformation is the error of using one grammatical form in the place of another grammatical form.
Example : I doesn’t know him It should be : I don’t know him 4. Misordering
It is a sentence which its order is incorrect. The sentence can be right in presented elements, but wrongly sequenced.
Example : She not does come early to school It should be : She doesn’t come early to school
2.2.2 The Cause of Error
Brown (2000: 224) says that the cause of errors can be devided into 2 categories, they are : (1) Interlingual errors, that is error caused by interference of the learner’s mother tongue. A different class of error is represented by sentences
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(2) Intralingual errors, that is cause of errors resulting from complicated system of the target language it self.
Richards (1985: 47) says that the intralingual errors are devided into 4 terms, they are: 1. Over-generalization
Over-generalization happens when a learner uses a certain structure that is over-generalized in the target language. It is caused the learners’ basic experience of certain structure. Generally, overgeneralization is the creation of one deviant structure in place of two regular structure, for example: “She can sings”. In this case, there is an over form of a structure verb “sing” becomes “sings”. It should be “She can sing”. Because “she” usually use verb + s. For example: She sings.
2. Ignore of rule restriction
Ignore of rule restriction is failure to observe the restriction of existing structures. That is the application of rules to context where they do not apply.
Example : the baby crying was It should be : the baby was crying 3. Incomplete application of rules
Incomplete application of rules means errors are due to the occurence of structures whose deviancy represents the degree of development of rules required to produce acceptable utterence. The learners fail to produce a correct sentence according to the standards rules. Example : You student
It should be : You are student 4. False Concepts Hypothesized
False concepts hypothesized means basically errors are the result from faulty comprehension of distinction in the target language.
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It should be : she did not go to school yesterday 2.3English Tenses
In this thesis, the writer will talk about the understanding of the tenses that the English language has. Edward (2001: 520) says that tense is a form of a verb that shows the time of an action or condition. If someone wants to talk about tense, he or she may not escape from grammar because tense is part of structure. Grammar may be roughly defined as the way a language manipulates and combines words in order to form longer units of meaning.
As it has been mentioned above that tense is time. English language has sixteen different tenses. These sixteen tenses are different to one another. The differences happenned in the forms of the used verbs and the time of verbs action take places. In other words, we may say that an English verb will be very important to its usages.
2.3.1 Simple Past Tense
Thompson (1986: 162) says that simple past tense is used for an action whose time is not given but which occupied a period of time now interminated, or occurred at a moment in a period of time now interminated.
Azar (1989: 24) describes that the simple past tense indicates that an activity or situation began and ended at a particular time in the past.
FORM
S+ [VERB+ed] o Examples:
• You called Debbie. • Did you call Debbie? • You did not call Debbie. USE 1 Completed Action in the Past
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Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.
Examples:
• I saw a movie yesterday. • I didn't see a play yesterday. • Last year, I traveled to Japan. • Last year, I didn't travel to Korea. • Did you have dinner last night? • She washed her car.
• He didn't wash his car.
USE 2 A Series of Completed Actions
We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.
Examples:
• I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
• He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
• Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs? USE 3 Duration in Past
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The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.
Examples:
• I lived in Brazil for two years.
• Shauna studied Japanese for five years. • They sat at the beach all day.
• They did not stay at the party the entire time. • We talked on the phone for thirty minutes. USE 4 Habits in the Past
The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.
Examples:
• I studied French when I was a child. • He played the violin.
• He didn't play the piano.
• Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid? • She worked at the movie theater after school.
• They never went to school, they always skipped class. USE 5 Past Facts or Generalizations
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The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 4 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expressio
Examples:
• In She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing. • He didn't like tomatoes before.
• Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?
• People paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past.
2.3.2 Past Continuous Tense
Thompson (1986: 163) says that past continuous tense is chiefly used for past actions which continued for some time but whose exact limits are not known and are not important.
Azar (1989: 24) describes that past continuous tense is both actions occurred at the same time, but one action began earlier and was in progress when the other action occurred. Sometimes the past continuous is used in both parts of a sentence when two actions are in progress simultaneously.
We usually use the past continuous to talk about activities that lasted for some time in the past. The actions can be interruped by something or can be happening at the same time. USE 1: Duration in the past
We use the Past Continuous to talk about actions or situations that lasted for some time in the past, and whose duration time is unknown or unimportant.
Examples:
• I was watching TV yesterday in the evening. • She was sleeping on the couch.
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USE 2: Interrupted actions in progress
The Past Continuous is often used when one action in progress is interruped by another action in the past. We usually use when or while to link these two sentences.
Sentence in Past Continuous +
WHEN
+
Sentence in
e.g. I was singing e.g. my wife came home
WHEN/WHILE +
Sentence in Past Continuous +
Sentence in e.g. I was singing e.g. my wife came home
Examples:
• I was talking with James when the telephone rang. • While Angelica was playing tennis, the plane crashed . • When Bob was painting windows, it started raining. USE 3: Actions in progress at the same time
We also use this tense to talk about two or more activities happening at the same. Sentence in Past Continuous
+
WHEN/WHILE +
Sentence in Past Continuous e.g. I was singing e.g. She was cooking
WHEN/WHILE +
Sentence in Past Continuous +
Sentence in Past Continuous e.g. I was singing e.g. She was cooking
Examples:
• I was watching TV and Barbara was reading a book.
• While Barbara was reading a bok was eating the dinner and talking. • The family was eating the dinner and talking.
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• When Bob was painting windows, Mary was working in the kitchen. USE 4: Timid / polite questions
If we want to ask a polite question, we can use the Past Continuous. Examples:
• I was wondering if you could open the window. • I was thinking you might help me with this problem.
Even though the sentences have a past continuous form, they refer to the present moment. Their meaning is similar to the "could you" sentences, but they are more polite.
USE 5: Irritation
Remember that you can also express irritation over somebody or something in the past. Examples:
She was always coming late for dinner! Form
To form a sentence in the Past Continuous, you need:
1. The proper conjugation of the auxiliary verb "to be" in the past form 2. The Present Participle of your verb (verb + ing)
1. Auxiliary verb "to be"
The past form of the auxiliary verb "to be" is: 1. For the first and third person singular: "was" 2. For all others: "were"
Examples:
• She was always coming late for dinner! • You were always coming late for dinner!
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2. The Present Participle
The present participle is of a verb is a verb form that appears with th The present participle is formed by adding -ing to the verb.
talk + ing = talking be + ing = being There ar Positive Sentences
Subject
+
Auxiliary verb
+
Verb + ing
e.g. I/a dog etc. was / were e.g. swimming/talking etc.
Examples:
• At 3 p.m., I was having lunch.
• They were talking about her when she walked into the room.
• While Kenneth was cleaning the living room, Sam was washing the dishes. • We were all thinking about our holidays.
Questions
Examples:
• Was she going to the theater when it started raining?
• What were the defenders doing when Kenneth struck the ball? • Were you painting your house yesterday at 5 p.m.?
• Was Mary shopping when the mall was burning? Auxiliary verb
+
Subject
+
Verb + ing
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Negative Sentences
Examples:
• He asked me why I wasn’t having dinner at the hotel. • We weren’t playing football when the earthquake began.
2.2.3 Past Perfect Tense
Thompson (1986: 175) says that past perfect tense can be used similarly for an action which began before the time of speaking in the past, and was still continuing at that time, stopped at that time or just before it. But note that the past perfect can also be used for an action which stopped sometime before the time of speaking.
Azar (1989: 39) describes that past perfect tense expresses an activity that was completed before another activity or time in the past.
This tense is also used in reported speech, third conditional sentences, or to show dissatisfaction with the past.
Use
1. Completed action before another action in the past
2.
3.
4. Dissatisfaction with the past
USE 1: A completed action before another action in the past
The first use of this tense is to emphasize that one action in the past happened before another action in the past.
Subject
+
Auxiliary verb +
Verb + ing
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Examples:
• I had finished my homework before I went playing football. • John had never been to London before we went there last year. USE 2: Third conditional
Use the Past Perfect with third conditional sentences. Examples:
• If we had gone by taxi, we wouldn't have been late.
• If Mary had studied harder, she would have passed the exam. USE 3: Reported speech
Use the Past Perfect with sentences in reported speech. Examples:
• Mary said she had already seen this film. • He asked if I had read Harry Potter. USE 4: Dissatisfaction with the Past
We often use the Past Perfect to show our dissatisfaction with the past. Such sentences typically start with "I wish ..." or "If only ...".
Examples:
• I wish I had taken more food. I'm hungry now. • If only I had taken more food. I'm hungry now.
The Past Perfect is also used with expressions such as: "as if/though": • John looked as if he had done something terrible.
• She looked as though she hadn't slept all night. Form
To form a sentence in the Past Perfect, what you need is:
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2. The Past Participle of your verb. 1. Auxiliary verb "to have"
The past form of the auxiliary verb "to have" is "had":
• Mary had finished her homework before Mike came home. 2. The Past Participle
participle can be either
The regular verbs are formed by adding -ed to the verb: Verb
explain play talk walk use
Past Participle explained played talked walked used
The formation of the irregular verbs doesn’t follow one rule. Therefore they should be memorized.
Verb Past Participle
eat eaten
go gone
see seen
sell sold
wear worn
Positive Sentences
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e.g. I/a dog etc. Had e.g. eaten/given/gone etc.
Examples:
• Before I went to the park, I had finished my work.
• If he had made the right choice, he wouldn't be unhappy now. • Mary said she had already seen this movie before.
• I wish I had had enough courage to kiss her! Questions
Auxiliary verb +
Subject
+
Past participle
Had e.g. I/a dog etc. e.g. eaten/given/gone etc.
Example:
• Had she eaten the dinner before she went to the cinema? •
Negative Sentences Subject
+
Auxiliary verb +
Verb + ing
e.g. I/a dog etc. had not e.g. eaten/given/gone etc.
Examples:
• I had not seen this movie , before we went to the cinema yesterday to see it. • If he hadn't made the mistake, he would be happy now.
• Mary said she had not visited for a long time. • I wish I hadn't done it!
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2.3 Explanation of Narrative Text
Knapp and Watkins (2005: 29) say that a text is any completed act of communication such as a greeting between friends in the street, a television advertisement, a novel, or a film and so on. As far as speech and writing are concerned, a text stands alone as an act of communication.
Reading a narrative text help we to read dealing with problematic events which lead to a cricis or turning point, which in turn find a resolution. Smalley and Ruetten (1986:24) say that narration usually refers to telling of a story, the term is used to described the relating of an experience. That experience may be in the past (past narration), or it may be a typical experience (what people usually do), or it may be going on now (present narration).
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CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research Method
The are three kinds of research based on the location of the research i.e. library, laboratory, and field research (Bungin, 2005: 40 - 41). In this thesis, the writer took field research to collect the data and the writer also applied library research to obtain information to support the analysis. The method of the study that used is quantitative method. It meant that quantitative research applies numbers from collecting the data, describing the data, until the result of research. The result of the test was described as they were in term of exiting condition without any interference of the researcher.
This research was conducted at SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa which is located on Jl. Batang Kuis, psr VIII Tanjung Morawa. The subject of the research was the twelfth graders of SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa. They consist of seven classes that devided two programs. They are IPS and IPA program. The reason to choose SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Morawa as location of the research is in terms of accessible time and fund and the same research had never been conducted in there.
3.2 Population and Sample
The population of this research was the twelfth graders. They consist of seven classes that devided two programs. They are IPS and IPA program. IPA program which consist of four classes (III1, III2, III3, III4) and IPS program consist of three classes (III1, III2, III3). The
total amount of the students were 259 as the population. “If the number of population are more than one hundred, the sample can be taken 10%-50%, if they are less than 100 population, the researcher may take all the students as the sample” (Arikunto, 2002: 108). It was taken randomly from the attendace list in order to take data without caring about the
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students intelligence (low or high) and to final the average of the students’ ability. In sampling process, the student’s names from each class was written in peaces of paper and rolled each peace of paper that put in a box, after that the box was shaken and then the roll each piece of paper was taken as much as the researcher need as sample namely 30% from population in each class.
Table 1
The number of Population and Sample
No Class Population Sample 30%
1 XII. IA-1 30 9
2 XII. IA-2 35 11
3 XII. IA-3 35 11
4 XII. IA-4 37 11
5 XII. IS-1 40 12
6 XII. IS-2 41 12
7 XII. IS-3 41 12
Total 259 78
Based on the information from their English teacher, I know that they have learned about Past Tenses from the first semester at eleventh grade until first semester at twelve grade. So I presume that they already have good basic about the structure of past tenses. 3.3Data Collecting Method
The writer gave a test to collecting the data as the data collecting method. The writer asked the twelfth graders as the respondents who took part in the test to have a test which contains 15 questions. The writer only gave 60 minutes for the students to answer the questions. Each correct answer was scored 1 and wrong answer was scored 0, so the highest
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score was 15. The items of the test were taken from book. The aim of this test was to analyze the student’s errors in using past tenses in the narrative text.
3.4 Data Analysis Method
The data was analyzed to identify the cause of the problems . In analyzing the students’ errors, the research used some procedures, they were:
1. scoring the students’ answers
The researcher obtained the scoring by applying the following formula by Arikunto (2005 : 176)
S = R Where : S : Score
R : Right answer
2. identifying the students’ errors. 3. classifying the errors.
4. finding causes of the errors.
The researcher obtained the percentage errors by applying following formula by Bungin (2005 : 172)
% 100 × =
N Fx n
Where :
n : The percentage of errors
Fx : Number of errors for each types N : Number of all errors
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CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS
4.1 Description of Data
After answering the test, the students’ answers were tabulated. The following table shows the score of students’ achievement in aswering the test and then calculated to know the everage scores.
Table 1
The Students’ Scores
No The Students’ Initial
Name Correct Incorrect
1 AAS 11 4
2 AAS 10 5
3 ACD 12 3
4 AP 7 8
5 AS 12 3
6 BPA 11 4
7 BRK 9 6
8 BS 14 1
9 CH 12 3
10 D 12 3
11 DA 10 5
12 DA 14 1
13 DA 12 3
14 DIR 12 3
15 DM 9 6
16 DNS 14 1
17 DNIPL 12 3
18 DPS 10 5
19 DW 9 6
20 E 8 7
21 EF 6 9
22 EP 12 3
23 ESB 6 9
24 FHH 10 5
25 FH 12 3
26 FIS 13 2
(30)
28 FR 12 3
29 GM 11 4
30 HS 8 7
31 IK 5 10
32 IN 10 5
33 J 10 5
34 JI 12 3
35 JPU 11 4
36 KA 10 5
37 LL 7 8
38 MA 13 2
39 MF 7 8
40 MFR 7 8
41 MHS 5 10
42 MIL 14 1
43 MN 8 7
44 MS 12 3
45 MT 6 9
46 MTH 9 6
47 MYS 9 6
48 NH 13 2
49 NMS 12 3
50 NP 12 3
51 NR 11 4
52 NS 8 7
53 NS 12 3
54 P 11 4
55 PTD 10 5
56 RAH 14 1
57 RH 9 6
58 RL 7 8
59 RP 14 1
60 RY 9 6
61 SDT 14 1
62 SGSB 9 6
63 SH 5 10
64 SHN 12 3
65 SK 10 5
66 SP 11 4
67 SS 11 4
68 SW 10 5
69 TAK 5 10
70 TDSS 10 5
71 TM 9 6
72 TP 15 0
73 TR 12 3
74 WA 12 3
(31)
76 WNS 12 3
77 WP 12 3
78 YAW 6 9
Total Score 807 363
Average 10.35 4.65
Based on the table above, the total score from the correct answers were 807 and incorrect answers were 363. Then, the average score from the correct answers were 10.35 and incorrect answers were 4.65. Average shows that about ten questions are answerable for the students whereas the remain five are non answerable.
4.2 Data Analysis
4.2.1 Describing the Errors
To find out the students’ errors, the items analysis procedures were used. In this analysis, the errors were based on the students’ response in aswering the test. If the students made incorrect respon then it was called that he or she made errors.
The following table shows the items analysis of the students’ response. Table 2
The Item Analysis
Item number Correct Percentage Incorrect Percentage
1 61 78.21 17 21.80
2 31 39.74 47 60.26
3 43 55.13 35 44.87
4 40 51.28 38 48.79
5 58 74.36 20 25.64
6 65 83.33 13 16.67
7 37 47.44 41 52.56
8 51 65.39 27 34.62
9 48 61.54 30 38.46
10 67 85.90 11 14.10
11 49 62.82 29 37.18
12 69 88.46 9 11.54
13 66 84.62 12 15.39
(32)
15 72 92.31 6 7.69
Total 807 68.97 363 31.03
Based on the table above, it shows that the total of students’ correct answer was 807 or 68.97% and incorrect 363 or 31.03%.
4.2.2 Types of Errors
To know the types of errors made by the students, we can see it from the table below. Table 3
Types of Errors
1. I got out of bed and ………. into the bathroom with a spring in my step. a. went
b. do went c. gone
The right answer is: a. went
No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AP gone
2 BPA gone
3 DM gone
4 EP gone
5 HS gone
6 IK gone
7 MF gone
8 MFR gone
9 MHS gone
10 MN gone
11 MT gone
12 NS gone
13 RH gone
14 SGSB gone
15 SHN gone
16 TAK gone
(33)
Total 17
2. Father ………. his fishing gear the day before. a. had already prepare
b. already had prepared c. had already prepared
The right answer is: c. had already prepared
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering 1 AAS already had
prepared
2 AAS already had
prepared
3 AP had already
prepare
4 ACD already had
prepared
5 AS already had
prepared
6 BPA already had
prepared
7 CH already had
prepared
8 D already had
prepared
9 DA already had
prepared
10 DM already had
prepared
11 DNIPL already had
prepared
12 DPS already had
prepared
13 E already had
prepared
14 FH already had
prepared
15 FHS already had
prepared
(34)
prepared 17 FR already had
prepared
18 HS already had
prepared
19 J had already
prepare
20 JI already had
prepared
21 JPU already had
prepared
22 KA already had
prepared
23 LL already had
prepared
24 MA already had
prepared
25 MFR had already
prepare
26 MS already had
prepared
27 MT had already
prepare
28 NH already had
prepared
29 NMS already had
prepared
30 NP already had
prepared
31 NS already had
prepared
32 RL already had
prepared
33 RY already had
prepared
34 SGSB already had
prepared
35 SH had already
prepare
36 SHN already had
prepared
37 SP already had
prepared
38 SS already had
prepared
39 SW already had
prepared
40 TAK had already
prepare
(35)
41 TDSS had already prepare
42 TM already had
prepared
43 TR already had
prepared
44 WA already had
prepared
45 WIN already had
prepared
46 WNS already had
prepared
47 YAW had already
prepare
Total 8 39
3. I, too, ……….. mine, but earlier. a. has prepared
b. had prepared c. had been prepared
The right answer is: b. had prepared
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering 1 AAS had been
prepared
2 AP had been
prepared
3 ACD had been
prepared
4 DM had been
prepared
5 EF had been
prepared
6 EP had been
prepared
7 ESB had been
prepared
8 FHH had been
prepared
9 FR had been
prepared
(36)
prepared 11 IK had been prepared
12 J had been
prepared
13 JI had been
prepared
14 KA had been
prepared
15 MF had been
prepared
16 MFR had been
prepared
17 MHS had been
prepared
18 MN had been
prepared
19 MT had been
prepared
20 NMS had been
prepared
21 NR had been
prepared
22 NS has prepared
23 NS had been prepared
24 P had been
prepared
25 PTD had been
prepared
26 RH has prepared
27 SDT had been prepared
28 SGSB had been
prepared
29 SH has prepared
30 SW had been prepared
31 TAK has prepared
32 TDSS has prepared
33 WNS had been prepared
34 WP had been
prepared
35 YAW has prepared
(37)
4. We took out the fishing gear from the car and ……… to the coast. a. races
b. race c. raced
The right answer is: c. raced
No
Students’ initial
name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AAS race
2 AP race
3 ACD race
4 DA race
5 DM race
6 E race
7 EF race
8 ESB race
9 FHH race
10 FR race
11 HS race
12 IK race
13 IN race
14 J race
15 JI race
16 KA race
17 LL race
18 MF race
19 MFR race
20 MHS races
21 MT race
22 MYS race
23 NMS race
24 NR race
25 NS race
26 NS race
27 P race
28 PTD race
29 RL race
30 SGSB race
31 SH race
32 SK race
33 SP race
(38)
35 TAK race
36 TDSS race
37 WNS race
38 YAW races
Total 36 2
5. The waves ……….. calm and the sea was as peaceful as a world without wars. a. were
b. was c. did were
The right answer is: a. were
No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AAS was
2 AS was
3 CH was
4 D did were
5 DA did were
6 DM was
7 EP did were
8 HS was
9 JPU was
10 MHS did were
11 MN was
12 MS was
13 MT did were
14 MTH was
15 RH was
16 RY did were
17 SGSB was
18 SS Was
19 TAK did were
20 WP did were
Total 8 12
6. Then, it ……….. time. a. waiting was
b. was waiting c. is waiting
(39)
The right answer is: b. was waiting No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 DM is waiting
2 EF is waiting
3 ESB is waiting
4 HS is waiting
5 IK is waiting
6 MF is waiting
7 MHS is waiting
8 MN is waiting
9 MTH is waiting
10 RY is waiting
11 SH is waiting
12 SR is waiting
13 TAK is waiting
Total 13
7. Surprisingly, the fishing line ………. the water when I felt a bite. a. barely had touched
b. had barely touched c. had barely touch
The right answer is: b. had barely touched
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering 1 AAS barely had
touched
2 AAS barely had
touched
3 AP had barely
touch
4 AS barely had
touched
5 CH barely had
touched
6 D barely had
touched
7 DA barely had
touched
(40)
touched 9 E barely had
touched
10 EF barely had
touched
11 ESB barely had
touched
12 FHH barely had
touched
13 FH barely had
touched
14 FIS barely had
touched
15 FMG barely had
touched
16 HS had barely
touch
17 IK barely had
touched
18 J barely had
touched
19 LL barely had
touched
20 MA barely had
touched
21 MF had barely
touch
22 MFR had barely
touch
23 MHS had barely
touch
24 MS barely had
touched
25 MT had barely
touch
26 NH barely had
touched
27 NR barely had
touched
28 NS had barely
touch
29 P barely had
touched
30 PTD barely had
touched
31 RL barely had
touched
32 RP barely had
touched
(41)
33 RY barely had touched
34 SH had barely
touch
35 SS barely had
touched
36 SW had barely
touch
37 TAK had barely
touch
38 TR barely had
touched
39 WA barely had
touched
40 WIN barely had
touched
41 YAW had barely
touch
Total 10 31
8. At the beginning, I ……….. it was my imagination. a. were thought
b. thought c. think
The right answer is: b. thought
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AP think
2 BRK think
3 DA think
4 DPS think
5 DW think
6 E think
7 EF think
8 ESB think
9 GM think
10 IK think
11 IN think
12 LL think
13 MF think
(42)
15 MHS think
16 MT think
17 MTH think
18 MYS were thought
19 NS think
20 RH think
21 RL think
22 SH think
23 SK think
24 TAK think
25 TM were thought
26 WP think
27 YAW were thought
Total 3 24
9. but when I asked my father if he ……….. the cries for help, he told me that he did. a. had also heard
b. also had heard c. have also heard
The right answer is: a. had also heard
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AAS also had heard
2 AAS also had heard
3 BPA have also heard
4 BS have also
heard
5 DA have also
heard
6 DNIPL have also
heard
7 DPS have also
heard
8 E have also
heard
9 EF have also
heard
10 ESB have also
heard
(43)
11 FH also had heard 12 GM have also
heard
13 IK have also
heard
14 IN have also
heard
15 J also had heard
16 JPU also had heard
17 LL have also heard
18 MTH also had heard
19 MYS also had heard
20 NP have also heard
21 RAH also had heard
22 RL have also heard
23 RY also had heard
24 SGSB also had heard
25 SK have also heard
26 SS also had heard
27 TR also had heard
28 WA also had heard
29 WIN also had heard
30 YAW also had heard
Total 15 15
10. The woman ……….. . a. was crying
b. crying c. crying was
The right answer is: a. was crying
No Students’ initial name Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 DIR crying
2 E crying was
3 EF crying was
(44)
5 IK crying was
6 LL crying was
7 MTH crying
8 MYS crying was
9 RL crying was
10 SP crying
11 TM crying was
Total 4 7
11. She ……… towards a tree. a. was pointing
b. is pointing c. pointing
The right answer is: a. was pointing No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AP is pointing
2 BRK is pointing
3 DA is pointing
4 DIR is pointing
5 DPS is pointing
6 DW is pointing
7 E is pointing
8 EF pointing
9 ESB is pointing
10 FHH pointing
11 GM is pointing
12 IN is pointing
13 KA is pointing
14 LL is pointing
15 MF is pointing
16 MFR is pointing
17 MHS is pointing
18 MT is pointing
19 NS is pointing
20 P pointing
21 PTD pointing
22 RH is pointing
23 RL is pointing
(45)
25 SHN is pointing
26 SK is pointing
27 TAK is pointing
28 TDSS pointing
29 TM pointing
Total 6 23
12. A cat ………. on the topmost branch. a. are standing
b. standing c. was standing
The right answer is: c. was standing
No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 BRK standing
2 DIR standing
3 DW standing
4 GM standing
5 MIL standing
6 MN standing
7 MYS are standing
8 SW standing
9 YAW are standing
Total 7 2
13. Unfortunately, I grabbed the branch which the cat ……… on and it broke. a. standing was
b. was standing c. standing
The right answer is: b. was standing
No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
(46)
2 DA standing
3 DPS standing
4 DW standing
5 IK standing
6 IN standing
7 MN standing
8 MTH standing
9 NR standing was
10 SH standing
11 SK standing
12 TM standing was
Total 10 2
14. A cat could jump down from that height! Father explained like nothing ……… . a. had happen
b. has happened c. had happened
The right answer is: c. had happened No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 AP has happened
2 BPA has happened
3 BRK had happen
4 DA has happened
5 DNIPL has happened
6 DW had happen
7 EF had happen
8 ESB had happen
9 FHH had happen
10 JPU has happened
11 KA has happened
12 LL has happened
13 MF has happened
14 MFR has happened
15 MHS has happened
16 MN has happened
17 MT has happened
18 NP has happened
19 NS has happened
(47)
21 RH has happened
22 RL has happened
23 RY has happened
24 SH has happened
25 SHN had happen
26 TAK has happened
27 TDSS had happen
28 YAW had happen
Total 9 19
15. “I ………. want to waste such a big fish on a cat with an owner who has no manners!” I joked light-heartedly.
a. not b. not did c. did not
The right answer is: c. did not
No
Students’ initial name
Wrong answer
Types of errors
Omission Addition Misformation Misordering
1 BRK not
2 DW not
3 IK not did
4 MHS not
5 MYS not did
6 TM not did
Total 3 3
From the tables above, we can conclude the type of errors in one table as shown below:
Table 4
The Dominant Types of Errors
Types of Errors Occurence Percentage
Omission 93 25.62
Addition 40 11.02
(48)
Misordering 97 26.72
Total 363 100%
From the table above, we can conclude that misformation is the dominant type of error.
4.2.3 The Causes of Errors
After know the result of types or errors, we can conclude the causes of errors. There are 121 numbers of misformation is caused false concepts hypothesized, 93 numbers of ommission is caused of incomplete application of rules, 97 numbers of misordering and 40 numbers of addition are caused of ignorance of rule restrictions, 12 numbers of misformation is caused of over-generalization.
Table 5
The Dominant Causes of Errors
Causes of Errors Occurence Percentage
Over-generalization 12 3.31
Ignorance of rule restrictions 137 37.74 Incomplete application of rules 93 25.62 False concepts hypothesized 121 33.33
Total 363 100%
From the table above, we can conclude that ignorance of rule restrictions is the dominant cause of error.
(49)
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 5.1Conclusions
After analyzing the data, conclusions are drawn as the following :
1. The total of students’ correct answer were 807 or 68.97% and incorrect 363 or 31.03%. 2. There were 4 types of errors, they were addition, omission, misformation and misordering. It
was found that for error omission was 93 or 25.62%, addition was 40 or 11.02%, misformation was 133 or 36.64%, and misordering was 97 or 26.72%. So, the dominant types of errors was misformation.
3. There were 4 causes of errors, they were over-generalization, ignorance of rule restriction, incomplete application of rules and false concepts hypothesized. It was found that for over-generalization there were 12 or 3.31%, for ignore of rule restriction there were 137 or 37.74%, for incomplete application of rules there were 93 or 25.62% and for cause of error false concepts hypothesized there were 121 or 33.33%. So, the dominant causes of errors was ignorance of rule restrictions.
(50)
5.2Suggestions
1. The English teacher should find the better strategy in teaching to determine the ability of students’ knowledge and motivate the students to learn tenses, so they will be able to improve their error next.
2. The students should learn more about tenses, more attractive, and active to use them or practice them in their daily conversation to make them more familiar in using tenses.
(51)
REFERENCES
Arikunto, S. 2002. Prosedure Penelitian Suatu Pendekatan Praktek. Jakarta: Rikena Cipta. _________ . 2005. Dasar-Dasar Evaluasi Pendidikan Edisi Revisi. Jakarta: Bumi Aksara. Azar, Betty. Schamper. 1989. Understanding and Using English Grammar. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Bennet. 1968. Language and Language Teaching. London: Cambridge University Press. Brown, H. D. 2000. Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. Longman.Bungin, H. Burhan. 2005. Metodelogi Penelitian Kuantitatif. Jakarta: Kencana Predana Media
Group.Corder, S. Pit. 1981. Error Analysis and Interlanguage. London: Oxford University Press.
Edward, E. Wilson. 2001. Writing and Grammar Communication in Action. USA: Prentice-Hall, Inc.
James, Carl. 1998. Errors in Language Learning and Use. New York: Addison Wesley Longman.
Knapp and Watkins. 2005. Genre, Text, Grammar. Australia: University of New South Wales.
Leng, G. J. 2009. Jazz Up Your Writing. Singapore: Singapore Asian Publications. Norrish, Jhon. 1983. Language Learner and Their Errors. London: Macmillan.
Richards, J.C. 1985. The Context of Language Teaching. America: Cambridge University Press.
Smalley and Ruette. 1986. Refening Composition Skills. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Thompson, A.J and Martinet, A. V. 1986. A Practical English Grammar. New York: Oxford University Press.
(52)
APPENDIX 1
Complete the following text by using Simple Past Tense, Past Continuous Tense, or Past Perfect Tense. You may choose your answer from the choice provided below the text.
On a Fishing Trip
I had just woken up from my sweet dreams. I sat on the comfortable bed and rubbed my bleary eyes. I turned my head lazily to the calender. It was the day I had been waiting for! I did a little dance. Father and I were going to East Coast Park to fish. I loved fishing. Although it was a little boring. I thought it trained my patience. I had always desired to be the world’s most skilful fisherman with branded fishing equipment.
I got out of bed and 1) ……… into the bathroom with a spring in my step. In minutes, I was out of the bathroom. As fast as lighting, I went down the staircase, two steps at a time. Father 2) ... his fishing gear the day before. I, too, 3) ……….. mine, but earlier. In no time, we were in the car, ready to set off.
The air in East Coast Park was great, good for anyone to relax. The weather was marvellous for anyone going there to fish too. We took out the fishing gear from the car and 4) ……….. to the coast. The waves 5) ………. calm and the sea was as peaceful as a world without wars. We spent a few minutes getting our things ready.
Soon, the rattling sound of the fishing line being reeled out into the sea was heard. Then, it 6) ………..time.
Surprisingly, the fishing line 7) ……….. the water when I felt a bite. A fish was too strong for me to fight back. Only in times like this would father help. Father took over my position and reeled in the line. How strong he was! Father was my role model of a great fisherman.
“Wow! The fish is a big one!” I exclaimed as I pointed at the fish. Father nodded without speaking. The fish was finally out of the water! I took action. I immediately took a bucket, without water, and passed it to father. Father tossed the fish into the bucket. With his
(53)
sweaty hands, father wiped off the perspiration on his forehead. We then put the rod on the ground as we wanted to put on some new bait.
“Help! Help!”
At the beginning, I 8) ………. it was my imagination, but when I asked my father if he 9) ……… the cries for help, he told me that he did. As a boy who liked to help. I, together with father, immediately traced the source of the cry. It appeared that it came from a large, fat woman. The woman 10) ………... She 11) ……….. towards a tree. A cat 12) ……… on the topmost branch.
“A cat that could climb up but couldn’t get down,” I thought, amused. Without hesitation, I climbed up the tree as agile as a monkey.
I then reached out, trying to grab the cat but, suddenly, my sweaty palms betrayed me. My hands slipped off the tree! Unfortunately, I grabbed the branch which the cat 13)……….. on and it broke. I fell with a thud but luckily, I escaped death, I was slightly injured. I got up and apologized to the woman. However, instead of saying ‘no problem’ I was shocked. I stomped my feet with fury. I regretted acting like a hero. That cat had no problem taking care of itself after all.
“Never mind. Just take it as a lesson. Anyway, why did not you use the fish that you have just caught to lure the cat down? A cat could jump down from that height!” father explained like nothing 14) ………..
“I 15)... want to waste such a big fish on a cat with an owner who has no manners!” I joked light-heartedly. Father laughed and I followed suit.
As it was already late, we got ready and went home with the good news of a big fish and a story to tell.
1) a. went 2) a. had already prepare
b. do went b. already had prepared
(54)
3) a. has prepared 4) a. races
b. had prepared b. race
c. had been prepared c. raced
5) a. were 6) a. waiting was
b. was b. was waiting
c. did were c. is waiting
7) a. barely had touched 8) a. were thought
b. had barely touched b. thought
c. had barely touch c. think
9) a. had also heard 10) a. was crying
b. also had heard b. crying
c. have also heard c. crying was
11) a. was pointing 12) a. are standing
b. is pointing b. standing
c. pointing c. was standing
13) a. standing was 14) a. had happen
b. was standing b. has happened
c. standing c. had happened
(55)
b. not did c. did not
(1)
5.2Suggestions
1. The English teacher should find the better strategy in teaching to determine the ability of students’ knowledge and motivate the students to learn tenses, so they will be able to improve their error next.
2. The students should learn more about tenses, more attractive, and active to use them or practice them in their daily conversation to make them more familiar in using tenses.
(2)
REFERENCES
Arikunto, S. 2002. Prosedure Penelitian Suatu Pendekatan Praktek. Jakarta: Rikena Cipta.
_________ . 2005. Dasar-Dasar Evaluasi Pendidikan Edisi Revisi. Jakarta: Bumi Aksara.
Azar, Betty. Schamper. 1989. Understanding and Using English Grammar. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Bennet. 1968. Language and Language Teaching. London: Cambridge University Press. Brown, H. D. 2000. Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. Longman.Bungin, H. Burhan. 2005. Metodelogi Penelitian Kuantitatif. Jakarta: Kencana Predana Media
Group.Corder, S. Pit. 1981. Error Analysis and Interlanguage. London: Oxford University Press.
Edward, E. Wilson. 2001. Writing and Grammar Communication in Action. USA: Prentice-Hall, Inc.
James, Carl. 1998. Errors in Language Learning and Use. New York: Addison Wesley Longman.
Knapp and Watkins. 2005. Genre, Text, Grammar. Australia: University of New South Wales.
Leng, G. J. 2009. Jazz Up Your Writing. Singapore: Singapore Asian Publications. Norrish, Jhon. 1983. Language Learner and Their Errors. London: Macmillan.
Richards, J.C. 1985. The Context of Language Teaching. America: Cambridge University Press.
Smalley and Ruette. 1986. Refening Composition Skills. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Thompson, A.J and Martinet, A. V. 1986. A Practical English Grammar. New York: Oxford University Press.
(3)
APPENDIX 1
Complete the following text by using Simple Past Tense, Past Continuous Tense, or Past Perfect Tense. You may choose your answer from the choice provided below the text.
On a Fishing Trip
I had just woken up from my sweet dreams. I sat on the comfortable bed and rubbed my bleary eyes. I turned my head lazily to the calender. It was the day I had been waiting for! I did a little dance. Father and I were going to East Coast Park to fish. I loved fishing. Although it was a little boring. I thought it trained my patience. I had always desired to be the world’s most skilful fisherman with branded fishing equipment.
I got out of bed and 1) ……… into the bathroom with a spring in my step. In minutes, I was out of the bathroom. As fast as lighting, I went down the staircase, two steps at a time. Father 2) ... his fishing gear the day before. I, too, 3) ……….. mine, but earlier. In no time, we were in the car, ready to set off.
The air in East Coast Park was great, good for anyone to relax. The weather was marvellous for anyone going there to fish too. We took out the fishing gear from the car and 4) ……….. to the coast. The waves 5) ………. calm and the sea was as peaceful as a world without wars. We spent a few minutes getting our things ready.
Soon, the rattling sound of the fishing line being reeled out into the sea was heard. Then, it 6) ………..time.
Surprisingly, the fishing line 7) ……….. the water when I felt a bite. A fish was too strong for me to fight back. Only in times like this would father help. Father took over my position and reeled in the line. How strong he was! Father was my role model of a great fisherman.
“Wow! The fish is a big one!” I exclaimed as I pointed at the fish. Father nodded without speaking. The fish was finally out of the water! I took action. I immediately took a
(4)
sweaty hands, father wiped off the perspiration on his forehead. We then put the rod on the ground as we wanted to put on some new bait.
“Help! Help!”
At the beginning, I 8) ………. it was my imagination, but when I asked my father if he 9) ……… the cries for help, he told me that he did. As a boy who liked to help. I, together with father, immediately traced the source of the cry. It appeared that it came from a large, fat woman. The woman 10) ………... She 11) ……….. towards a tree. A cat 12) ……… on the topmost branch.
“A cat that could climb up but couldn’t get down,” I thought, amused. Without hesitation, I climbed up the tree as agile as a monkey.
I then reached out, trying to grab the cat but, suddenly, my sweaty palms betrayed me. My hands slipped off the tree! Unfortunately, I grabbed the branch which the cat 13)……….. on and it broke. I fell with a thud but luckily, I escaped death, I was slightly injured. I got up and apologized to the woman. However, instead of saying ‘no problem’ I was shocked. I stomped my feet with fury. I regretted acting like a hero. That cat had no problem taking care of itself after all.
“Never mind. Just take it as a lesson. Anyway, why did not you use the fish that you have just caught to lure the cat down? A cat could jump down from that height!” father explained like nothing 14) ………..
“I 15)... want to waste such a big fish on a cat with an owner who has no manners!” I joked light-heartedly. Father laughed and I followed suit.
As it was already late, we got ready and went home with the good news of a big fish and a story to tell.
1) a. went 2) a. had already prepare
b. do went b. already had prepared
(5)
3) a. has prepared 4) a. races
b. had prepared b. race
c. had been prepared c. raced
5) a. were 6) a. waiting was
b. was b. was waiting
c. did were c. is waiting
7) a. barely had touched 8) a. were thought
b. had barely touched b. thought
c. had barely touch c. think
9) a. had also heard 10) a. was crying
b. also had heard b. crying
c. have also heard c. crying was
11) a. was pointing 12) a. are standing
b. is pointing b. standing
c. pointing c. was standing
13) a. standing was 14) a. had happen
b. was standing b. has happened
(6)
b. not did