An analysis on the students' grammatical errors in the TOEFL test a case study of the participants of TOEFL at the center for languages and culture Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University
AJ\r ANALYSIS ON THE STUI>ENTS'
GRAMMATICAL ERRORS IN THE TOEFL TEST
A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL al The Center for Languages and
Culture SyarifHidayatullah State Islamic University
A Skripsi
Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers' Training in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Strata -1 (SI)
By:
AINI AINUR ROHMAH
9914015772
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
THE FACULTY OF TARBIY AH AND TEACHERS' TRAINING
SY ARIF HIDAY ATllLLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY
JAKARTA
2004M/1424H
AN ANALYSIS ON THE STlJDENTS'
GRATVllVIATICAL ERROJRS IN
TlIE 1'0EFL TEST
A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL at The Center for Languages and
Culture SyarifHidayatulah
State Islamic University
A Skripsi
Presented to the Faculty ofTarbiyah and Teachers' Training
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Strata-I (S 1)
By:
AJ:NI AINUR ROHMAH
9914015772
Approved by:
Advisor
Drs. Nasrun Mahmu.fu._MP\!
150 041 070
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
THE FA CUL TY OF TARBIY AH AND TEACHERS' TRAINING
SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE JSLAMJC UNIVERSITY
JAKARTA
20041\1/14241-I
Lt''.GALIZATION OF EXAMINATION COMMMITl't'.I•'.
A 'skripsi' titled "Al" ANALYSIS ON THE STUDENTS' GRAMMATICAL ERRORS
IN ·;·HE TOEfL TEST (A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL Test at rhe Cemer
for Languages and Ct.iturc Syarif ｈｩ､｡ｹｴｵｬｾｨ＠
State lslarnic University" was examined
at ex?mination session of the Faculty of Tarbiyah anj Teachers' Training Syarif
Hidayatulah State Islamic University (Ul1\1) Jakarta, on f(.bruary 6°', 2004. This 'skripsi'
has fulfilled the requirements for the Degree of Strata I (Si) at English Department .
,
.
Jakarta, February 6", 2004
Examination Committee
.ommmce
The Secretary of Committee
i_'cq[ Dr. H_-3.alman Ha -,w
NIP. i 50 062 568
ｐｲｌＮｴｬＡｾ＠
Examiner l
ｾｮＭ
Examiner II
'
,_ Mll_lliLS\2!1Qitdji,_JyLfu
NIP. i Su USO 682
DrL ｎｬＬｳｾ｣ｌｍＧｨｭｵ､＠
M. &J.
NIP. l.'.i004J 070
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the name l!f Allah the Beneficent, the Ivfercifid. All praise be to Allah, The
Almighty and The Lord of all that exist. May Allah's peace and blessing be upon His
final Prophet Muhammad SAW, his family and followers.
This "skripsi" is presented to the English Department of the Faculty of
Tarbiyah and Teachers' Training of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University
Jakarta as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Strata- I (S 1).
It is a great honor for the writer to make acknowledgement of indebtedness to
convey her sincere gratitude to Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd. who has patiently given
valuable advice and guidance to finish this "skripsi".
The writer also like rn convey her sincere gratitude particularly to:
I. Prof' Dr. H. Salman Harun, as a Dean of The Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers'
Training.
2. Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd, as a Head of English Department and al:;o Drs.
Syauki, M.Pd, as the Secretary of English Department.
3. H. Alwi Rofi'i her beloved father and Rulianti Rohadi her beloved mother who
always encourage the writer with all of their heart and
her beloved brothers
"Rofiq and Ozan" and her lovely sister" Datu!".
4. For her beloved "Mr. Jo", thanks for your love, suppo11, and encouragement to
finish this "skripsi" and all her friends, especially: Na.in, Sheren, Dian, Nina Ros.
Fido!, Ochid, Oshin, Hendra, Aly,
and her classmates in A Class '99 that the
writer can't mention one by one here, thanks for your support and cooperation.
Finally, she realizes that this "skripsi" is far from being perfect. It is a
pleasure for her to receive constructive criticism and suggestion for improving this
"skripsi''.
Jakai1a, February 2004
The writer
TABLE: OF CONTE:NTS
Acknowledgement. .
Table of Contents ..
II
List of Tables ............. .
IV
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ................................................................... .
A. The Background of Study .....
B. The Limitation and the Formulation of the Study ....
5
C. The Use of Study ...... .
5
D The Method of Study....
5
. ........
6
E. The Organization of Writing ........ .
CHAPTER Il: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ........................................ .
7
7
A. TOEFL ..
1. The Definition and the Use of TOEFL .
7
2. Grammar ..
9
a.
9
The Definition .
b. Type of Skills Tested in Structure ...
10
' -ｾＴ｜＠
B. Errnr A ialysis ...
I. The Definition and Types of Error Analysis .
'.26
2. The Sources and the Goals of Error Analysis ...
30
II
!
LIST OF TABLES
1. Table I.
The Distribution of Structure items.
2. Table II.
The Frequency of Error In Subject and Verb.
3. Table Ill.
The Frequency of Error In Verb Agreement, Tense and Form.
4. Table IV.
The Frequency of Error In Full Subordination
5. Table V.
The Frequency of Error In The Verbal.
6. Table VI.
The Frequency of Error In Pronoun Form, Agreement and Reference.
7. Table Vil. The Frequency of Error In Word form.
8. Table VIII. The Frequency of Error fn Word Order.
9. Table IX.
The Frequency of Error fn Parallel Structure.
10. Table X.
The Frequency of Error In Correct Usage
11.Table XI.
The Sequence of Structure Skill Area Based on Its High Frequency
of Error.
IV
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A. The Background of the Study
Language is a means of communication with the purpose or expressing
ideas, opinion, information, feeling, and so forth. In this era of globalization,
Indonesia is one of the countries in this world that cannot close olT from the
need of
mastering foreign language. So it can grow fully and Indonesian
people love their country and have responsibility for the development of
science, technology, and art in the whole country. In this case, mastering
English gives a contribution to increase the quality of Indonesian human
resources.
English is one of the languages, which is w;dely used all over the
world. It is clear that English will play an important role for communication
world. To realize that ideal goal, English is the first foreign language, which is
taught as the most important language in developing students and gaining
modern science, technology and arts.
Now, English is still learned and it becomes compulsory subject in
universities as well as in secondary school. For instance, to apply a job or
enter university, TOEFL score is one of the requi1ements with transcript and
recommendaiio• in order to be considered for admission.
2
It goes without saying that a student of English should be aware of the
existence of TOEFL. TOEFL is an abbreviation or "Test of English as a
Foreign Language ". It is a test that measures one's English proficiency for
non native-speaker. 1 I! is given each year to thousands of students who plan to
enter university either graduate or undergraduate level. Admission committees
in the various universities use the individual score from the TOEFL to
determine a student's competence in English. It is to measure the Corcign
students English proficiency objectively.
Before TOEFL Test is known in Jndoncsia, English is tested by using
"A Proficiency Test of English " known as ALIGU (American Language
Institute of George Town University). '"hen other forms of English from
USA, which arc known as TESL ('!'est or English as A S..:cond Language)
Recognized as a test of English as a Foreign LanguJgc, TOEFL has
become popular in Indonesia in the last two decades. It is that TOEFL Test is
"Reluctantly Accepted" by Great BRITAIN. The purpose of' a TOEFL Test is
to evaluate the English proficiency of people whose native language is not
English.
TOEFL test related to language skills such as grammar, reading, and
listening. It is clear that being a fluent speaker of English do,:s not necessarily
mean that it will get a good TOEFL score. It is important to be good not only
Deborah Philips. ｬｾｯｮｧｵＮＱ＠
1989) p. 5-6
1
f)rl!J1aralioJ1 ( .'ourse for ｊｾＩＺＮｬﾷＬ＠
(London :Longman Group Ltd.
3
m speaking but also in reading and writing for academic success. In the
TOEFL test, they are three sections, where on the llrst ｳＧｾ｣ｴｩｯｮ＠
is listening
comprehension, second section are structure and wri!!en expression, and the
third section is reading co•nprehension.
Based on the writer's observation, she found that most students
received disappointing scores on the TOEFL test that was so important lo
them. Through these observations, the writers round that many learners hav.:
some difficulties, so they made error on structure. In this cast: error
corrections helpful. 2 E1 ror correction supposedly helps the learners to figure
out the right form of language. The correc ion is only allowed on wri!len work
and gnurnnar exercises.
Grammar is a component of basic skills of foreign language. It is
clearly one c'f the most important things in language that frequently appears
some problems. According to Widson ( 1970) " Grammar is a component
3
language enables us to make our message clear and precise. " As it is k11own
that English grammar is different from Indonesian Gral11mar. Consequently,
the difference makes the learners diflkult to develop good English
proficiency because the acquired Indonesian grammar has been imprinted in
their mind. The difference between the grammar of native language and that
2
Krashen, D. Stephen, l)ri1u.:i11les a1lll J'raclice ｩＱＮｾＧ･｣ｯｊｬＯ＠
Pergamon Press Ltd., 1982), p. 117-118
:i (Jeofrey l3rouglllon el al. /('achil1K ｬｾｩｴｧｳｨ＠
1980) p. I 16
J.anguaxe 1JcquisitioJ1, (Ne\v "York.
as /•(Jreip/t l.an,1:11aKe. (London: ·1j Press Ltd,
4
of target language is one of the factors, which induces the students to make
many errors m grammar.
1
Although " the error is natural " · as John Norrish said, we should be
aware of those errors and do something to avoid making errors again and
again. In rdation to learners errors it is done a study known as "error analysis"
which is an analysis about learners' error in their process of learning a second
language. According to Allen and Corder: " in the course of learning of
second language the learner produces many forms which are not those which
would be produces by a native speaker of the standard forr>1 of the target
language"
5
Based on the opinion above, the writer would like to analyze some
error that students made on structure in TOEFL test as a matter of fact that in
learning TOEFL the students find difiicult to comprehend ｴｨＱｾ＠
Based on
the
description
is" AN ANALYSIS ON ｔｈｉｾ＠
above,
text in test.
the title of this "skripsi"
STUDENTS' GRAMMATICAL ERROR IN
THE TOEFL TEST (A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL at The
Center for Languages and Culture of Syarif
Hidayatullah State Islamic
University)
John No1Tish. /,ang11age /.ear11era11,/ lhcir ｦｾｩＮＬＭｯｲ＠
(Ne\v York: 1\!fac-(Jra»v-l-Ii!J Book
Company, J 969) p.9
5
J.P.B. Allen and S.Pit Corder (ed). l'apvrs i11 Applied U111111istics, (Lonn: Oxford
lJnivcn1ity Press, 19075) voL2, p, 8
4
5
H. The Limitation and the Formulation of the Study
The writer will limit the problem on structure faced by the students
TOEFL test. The formulation of the problem is: "' what kinds or errors
111
｡ｲﾷｾ＠
con1monly made by the participants in structure section of the TOEFL test"
C. The Use of Study
This study will discuss about errors done by paiiicipants who arc
attending TOEFL test. Its aim is to know the kind of errors commonly made
by the students in the section or structure. 13y knowing these types or
dilllculty faced by the learner, it is hoped that the teacher, the researcher and
the learner himself can improve teaching
ｾｬ･｡ｲｮｩｧ＠
process and their English
prollciency.
D. iVlethod of Study
In completing the data, the writer conducts two kinds of researches;
library and field research. In libra1y research, the writer rc:ads some books
written by experts as listed in bibliography to support this writing.
In the 11eld research, the question sheet and students answer or
structure in the TOEFL test is used as a technique of observation, through
error analvsis they are identified, described and explaiIJcd.
6
E. The Organization of Writing
This Skripsi is divided into five chapters, as follows.
First chapter is the introduction, which consists of four parts.
They are: the background of the study, the limitation and fo1mulation or the
study, the use of the study, and the organization writing.
Second chapter is divided into some parts: discussing theoretical
frameworL. They are: the definition and the type of error analysis, the cause
and the goal of error analysis, the definition of structure and the type of skill
tested in structure.
Third chapter ts research methodology and findings. Research
methodoloi,>y dealing with place and time of study, population and sample,
method of study, technique of data collecting, and technique of data analysis.
Study of data finding dealing the descriptive of data, the analysis of data and
the interpretation of data.
Fourth chapter consists of two parts; they are: conclusion and
suggestion.
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL Fll.AME\VOHK
A. TOEFL
I. The De.finition and the Use t!/ TOEFL
stands for Test or English as a Foreign Language. It is a test
ｔｏｆｾｌ＠
designed to measL1rc the English language capabtli1y of people who do not
speak English as their first language. It is given each year to thousands of
students who plan to enroll to the university either graduate or undergraduate
level. Bruce Rogers said that the goal of the TOEFL is to measure student's
competence in English objectively.'' We can say that TOEFL score is a valid
indication of student's English proficiency.
Since 1963 the TOEFL has been used by Scholarship selection
committees of government, universities as a standard measure of English
proficiency of their candidates. Now, some professional licensing and
certification '1gencies also use TOEFL score to evaluate English proficiency.
To enter university, TOEFL score is one of the requirements along with
transcript in order to be considered for admission.
6
Bruce Rogers. Ille C'o111J;fete ｃＮＱｵｩﾣａｾ＠
to ＧｻＨＩＯｾﾷＱＬＭ＠
(Boston, rvlassachusetts:
Publishers, 1993) p. xix
7
rieinlc &l-fein!e
8
It is very important to have clear understanding that material in the
TOEFL test related to grammar, listening, and reading.
The materials of The TOEFL test is divided into three section
I. Listening Comprehension
It is the first section of the TOEFL, that tests knowledge 0f spoken
English such as might be heard in a classroom or other public place.
Depending on the facilities available, a test center may use either a record or
a tape. At centers with language laboratories, each person will listen through
a pair of earphones. There are always forty listening items organized into
three groups, paiis A (short dialogs), B (longer dialogs), and C (longer minitalks), each having separate directions, It takes approximately forty minutes
to complete all items. It is spoken only once, which is preceded by a very
complete i11troduction, which includes sample items from each part.
7
2. Structure and Written Expression
The >tructure and written expression section of the TOEFL
concentrates on written English. It has two parts containing a total of forty
questions and twenty -five minutes is allowed for completing it. P'irt A
(sentence completion) which contains of simple sentences, complex
sentences and part B (Error Identification) 8
Cnrol King and Nancy Stanley. !3111kli11x ,Skills /•(JI· lhe ｬＨＩＯｾﾷＱＮ＠
1989) 2"' edition, p. 2
'!hid, p. 134
7
(Jakarta: Binarupa :\ksara,
9
3. Remling Comprehension
It is the last of the section of the TOEFL. It contains fixty items,
Forty
···five
minutes
Comprehension
1s
contains
allowed
forty
to
complete
the
parts.
items
of two
dilforcnt
Reading
types:
(i)
comprehension passages, (ii) recognit on of restatements''
Speaking about the use ofTOl'FL, as mentioned above that the goal
of the TOEFL is to measure the student's English proficiency objectively. It
means that TOEFL score as a valid indication of individual competence in
English. 10 lt is used as a standard measurement of one of requirements to
enter university either graduate or undergraduate level or apply for a job
«long with transcript and recommendation.
2. Grammar
a. The definition of Grammar
Learning English language means learning how to use it not to learn
what the language is. The essence of using language is not communication. To
communicate is to understand another and to be understood by another. To
communicate clearly, accurately and effectively we need " the knowledge of
grammar as the rules of language.
9
'
/bid,p.312
Harriet N. Moreno, et al. J'OliFL (USA: Arco Publishing Company, 1977) p. 5
0
10
Swan defined grammar as " the rules that say how words change, to
11
show different meanings, and how they are combine into sentence. In Oxford
dictionary wrote that grammar is " the rule in a language: for changing the
forms of words and combining them, into sentences. The Long man dictionary
of Contemporary defines grammar as (the study and practice of) the rules by
which words change their forms and are combined into sentence.
Cobbett wrote:
Grammar... teaches us how to make use of words;
that is to say, it teaches us how to make use of them
in the proper manner. ... to be able to choose the
words, which ought to be placed, we must be
acquainted with certain principles and rules, and these
principles
and
rules
constitute
grammar. (Cobbett, 1819)
what
io. called
12
b. The type of skill tested in structure
The structure and written expression Section of the TOEFL
concentrates on written English used in formal written English. It has two
parts containing a total
or forty questions and twenty-five minutes is allowed
for completing. It will approximately thirty-five second on each question.
Part A: Sentence Completion: there ario: fifteen questions. It is about
forty percent of them arc simple sentences, containing only one subject-verb
11
12
lVJichael Si,.van, J>racticctl Ｑｾﾷ［Ｏｩｳｨ＠
{ lsuge (Oxford LJniversities Press, 1972) p. xix
Jerc1ny l·lanner, Teaching and Learning Ciranunar, (London: LongnHln, 1989)
p. 1-5
11
combination. The other sixty percent are complex sentences, containing at
least two subject-verb combinations involving some type of subordination.
Each sentence is incurnplcte so it must choose the word or phrase given which
best completes the sentence.
Part E: Error lde111ijic11tio11; the1c arc twenty-live questions and as in
part A, about forty percent are simple sentences and sixty percent arc complex
sentences. But in part B, it is only looking for an error, the part of the sentence
that is wrong. The error is always underlined. 13
Ten elements of English sentence structure that are covered in the
structure and written expression section of the TOEFL according to Carol
King and Nancy Stanley in their book "Building Skill for the TOEFL"
organized into the following problem areas:
I. Su/Jfect - Verb
Every sentence hus at least one subject and one verb. The subject is
usually placed before the verb. The subject is always a noun
(i.e. Your
Invitation), pronoun (i.e. l1), gerund (i.e. Ampared to the other members of
the group is necessary to exclude the member from the group by
using the words any other or anyone else.
Wrong: Johan is taller than anyone Indonesia his c:lass
Correct: Johan is taller than anyone else Indonesia his class
22
3. When two persons or things are compared in two ways and
combined, all part of both comparisons must be retained.
20
Comparison 1: Maria is as tall as Johan
Comparison 2: Maria may be taller than Johan
Combined: Wrong: Maria is as tall, if not taller than Johan
Correct: Maria is as tal I as, If not taller than Johan
9.
Unnecessary Repetition
Many verbs express the general idea of more or less within their specific
meaning. If a verb implies the idea of more, it is unnecessary to repeat this
idea by adding the word more to the sentence.
21
Wrong: The store raised the cost by ten dollars more
ｃｯｭｾ｣ｴＺ＠
I 0.
The stcre raised the cost by ten dollars.
Correct Usage
There are six verbs that cause problems Indonesia correct usage because
their meaning 'lfe similar and some of their forms are irregular. Three of these
verbs (sit, lie, and rise) are never followed by a direct object and are never
Indonesia the passive form. The other three verbs (set, lay and raise Oare
followed by direct objects and can be passive forrnn
Wrong: The campers got up as soon as the sun had raised
Correct: the campers got up as soon as the sun had risen
20
21
22
Ibid, p. 271-282
!hid, p. 284-288
fhil/,p.290-300
23
B. ERROR ANALYSIS
It is unavoidable that a learner makes errors in his language learning
process It will always occur although the best effort has been done. Making
errors can be regarded as an essential part of learning, as proverb says, " we
can learn rhrough our errors".
Errors have played an important role in the study of language
acquisition in general and examining second and foreign language acquisition
in particular. Students made errors do not mean a failure or inadequacy bd
learner can view them as important evidence or strategies or procedures
imployed. In other words, errors give sign lo teachers and researchers how the
target language learning is successfully achieved.
According to H. Douglas Brown: "As Corder (1997; 167) noted: f\
learners errors .......... are significant in [that] they provide to the researcher
evidence of ho\'1 language is learned or acquired, what strategies or
procedures the learner is employing in the discovery oflanguage .
Pit Corder stated:
lt is on the basis or information the teacher gels from
errors that he varies his leaching procedurios and
materials, the pace
23
I--L Douglas Bro\vn,
1-lall, 1980), p. 164
Jlrincip/es ＨｾＡ＠
or the
progress, and the amount of
Lan;.:uage J,ear11l11K and Teaching .(Ne\v Jersey : Prerllice
24
practice, which he plans at any moment. For this reason it
is impo1iant that the teacher should be abie not only to
detect and
describe
understand
the
occurrence.
errors
linguistically
psychological
reasons
but
for
also
their
z,1
The study of Jeuners' errors is called error analysis. It is a way of
looking at the errors made by the learner of a target language. Since the
analysis is based oh factual data of learners' errors. It is a procedure, which is
usually, used by language teachers and researchers, which covers sample
collection, identification of the sample, error explanation error classification
that are based on the cause of errors and evaluation of errors.
Rod Ellis said:
Typically this involves the collection of samples of
classroom learner-language (usually written and usually
discrete, decontextualised utterances), the classification
of errors according to the ､ｩｦｾ･ｲｮｬ＠
levels of language
description, the explanation ol' cttors by reference to
vari-0us learning process and the evaluatidn of errors for
the -purposes of assessment of remediation.
25
To know further about error analysis, the study will disct1ss the
following area:
2
·'
S. Pit. Corder, ＱｾＭｲｯ＠
Atut!J•sis atul J111er/a11g11age, (London: Oxford U1'1lversity Press,
1981). P.35
25
R.od Ellis, l•.'rror Anaf.rsis, (London: Long111an (iroup Lin1ilcd, 197,:D p. 74
25
1. The Definition and Types of Error Analysis
There are several opinions given by some linguists to get clear
understanding about error. Dullay et al defined error as " flawed side of
learner speech of writing. They are those parts of conversation or composition
that deviate from selected norm of mature language perfonnance. "
26
Pit Corder said: "... the term erroneous to mean other superficially
deviant or inappropriate in terms of the target language grammar ... "
27
Then, Douglas Brown said: ,. Put in another way, an error 1s a
noticeable deviation from the adult grammar or a native speaker, reflecting
ｴｨｾ＠
language competence of the learner."·'8
Sridhar stated: " Error, on the other hand, are systematic, consistent
.
'
. "J9
dcv1ances stage o! Jearmng. •
Jn addition, Henry Guntur Tarigan and Djago Tarigan said :
...... , kesalahan disebalAan faktor kompetensi.
Artinya
s1swd
memang
IJclum
memahami
sistem
linguistik bahasa yang digunakan. Kesalahan biasanya
terjadi sccara konsisten, jndi sccara sistematik ,,Jo ( ...
Error is caused by a competence factor. It means that the
students have not understood the use or the target
26
Dullay ct al. /,anguage lirn (New York, Oxford Universities Press, I%2 ),p. I 38
J.P.ll. Allen aod S. Pi! Corder (cd), Techniques i11 Applied l.i11g11islics (London: Oxford
University Press, I 974 ) vol .3, p. I 22
28
1-f. Douglas Brown. Op. Cit, p. 165
29
Jacek Fisiak (ed), Ｈｾｯｮｲ｡ｳｴｨ･＠
Linguistics and the La11g111.Jge l'eacJ11!r, (England: Perga1non
Press ltd , I 981) p. 224
27
30
1-Ienry Guntur Tarigan and f)jago 'farigan, Pe11g,rjara11 Analisis Kesalahan Berbahasa (
13andung : Penerbit Angkasu, I 988) cct ke-10. p. 75. 76
26
language linguistic system yet. Error usually happens
consistently. Thus, it does systematically)
From the opinions above it can be concluded that error, which each
linguist explains is something to do with unacceptable and inappropriate
forms of the grammar of the target language and the competence of the second
language learner.
Error
ｩｾ＠
usually compared with mistake. Both of them indicate that
forn1 or structure that the learner used is unacceptable and inappropriate
according to the native speaker. We should distinguish errors from mistake in
language learner." Mistakes are inconsistent deviation caused by performance
factors, e.g.; the slip of tongue.
According to Corder "Mistake refers to a perfonnano;e error such as a
fatigue and inattention, while the error itself is one caused by lack of language
rule knowledge (competence factor) or systematic deviation due to the learner
is still developing knowledge of the second language rule s.ystem.
31
Mistake
(the error of performance; will characteristically be unsystematic.
Pramono said: " it has no significant pedago,gical implication".
32
The
learners are normally capable of recognizing and correcting such as lapses nr
.ii
)
2
Dullay et al. Op. Cit. p. U9
Pra1nono . Analisa J\111g(!iura11 /Juhasa CYogyakarta, UGtvJ press, 1996) p. 51
27
mistakes, which are not the result of a deficiency in competence but the result
of imperfection in the process of producing speechH
The errors are systematic. It is natural for the learners to make errors;
even many native speakers make many mistakes in speaking.
11
· The
errors are
necessary part of learning language and the process of leading to the errors is
clearly a creative one. Errors also believed lo be an indicator of the learners'
stage in their target language development and it can determine their level 'Jf
mastery of language system.
Relating lo students' error there is error analysis. To understand
about the meaning or error analysis some authors have de lined it
S. Pit Corder said:
But because the emphasis in 'error analysis', has, till now,
been almost wholly concerned with the practical objectives
of planning remedial syllabuses and devising appropriate
techniques of 'correction', it too has suffers from similar
inadequacies as a technique for describing the learner's
'eta! de dialecte', as proliciency test. 35
Jn addition, Henry Gunlur Tarigan and Djago Tarigan said:
Melalui
kegiatan
pengkitjian
kesalahan
itu
dapat
diungkapkan berbagai ha! mengenai kesalahan berbahasa
yang dibuat atau dilakukan oleh siswa. Hal-hal yang
JJ
34
.is
l-1. Douglas Bro\vn . ()fJ.(:il. p. l 70
John Norri sh , Lan,ftUaKe I.earner.\' anti ll1eir Ｑｾﾷｲｯｳ＠
S. Pit Corder, Op. Cit. p. 145
( ... : l'vtacn1illan Press ltd, 1983 ) p. 44
28
dimaksud antara lain latar belakang, sebab musabab dan
ragam kesalahim. Pada gilirannya, hal itu dapat d1gunakan
sebagai umpan balik dalam penyempumaan atau perbaikan
pengajaran bahasa. (Through error analysis it can be found
background, causes and types f error made by the students.
In turn, it can be used as a feedback in correcting and
planning
language
remed:al teaching).
teaching,
especially
m
planning
36
It is clear that error analysis is used as an instrument for evaluating
teaching process and remedial activities conducted.
Errors are divided into "transfer error, analogical error and teachinginduced error". These three types of errors are viewed from the psychological
process in acquiring a second language.
a. Transfer Error is error because of interference from a mother tongue. A
student that has not known the rules of the target language will use the
same rules as he obtained in his native language. S. Pit Corder stated:" It
is clear that on Ihis theory the making of errors is an inevitable, even
perhaps a necessar;1 part of the learning process. It also accounts llir ti· e
similarity of many errors to the forms or the mother tongue, we can call
these transfer error" 37
J(i
37
l--Ien1y Guntur Tarignn and Djago ·rarigan, OpC'it. P- 75
J. P B. Allen and S. Pit Corder, Up. Cit. p. I 30
29
b. Analogical Error is error because of misconception in applying the rules of
the target language. As S. Pit Corder stated:
"However, even hhen a learner has discovered a correct rule he may
still continue to make errors because he has not yet discovered the
precise set of categories to which the rule applies. Errors of this sort
. . or ana Iog1ca
. I errors. ' · ·1X
are errors o f over genera I 1zat1on
c. Teaching Induced Error is error that has something to do with the methods
or materials of the teaching. Pit Corder stated:
There is a third type of error whicJ, is more dif11cult to establish in any
particular case, namely errors arising from the methods or materials
used in the teachiPg ......... Only this class of error, teaching induced
error, is avoidable or redundant and represents in efficiency in the
.
I11ng
. process.·19
Iearrnng-tcac
2. The Sources and the Goal of Error Analysis
The Sources of errors can be divided into two types. First, errors caused
by the interference of the learner's mother tongue, which are called
Interlingual. Henry Gunlur Tarigan stated: " a) Kesalahan antar bahasa
(interlanguage errors), yaitu kesalahan yang disebabkan ofeh interferensi
bahasa ibu sang siswa terhadap bahasa kedua yang dipelajarinya"·IO
38
39
411
Ibid
Ibid
.
Henry Guntur Tarigan and Djago Tarii/a'l1, Op. Cir, p'.85
30
Second,
ｉｮｴｲ｡ｬｩＱｾｵ＠
errors which reflect the learners competence at a
particular stage and illustrate some of the general characteristic of language
acquisition. It is relate to a specific interpretation of the target language,
which is
Ｑ｡ｩｆｾｳｴ･､＠
(over-generalization
as universal phenomena. They include generalization
and
ignorance
of rule
restrictions),
incomplete
application of rules and false concept hypothesis.
Jack C. Richards stated in his book: " An examination of the errors .
suggests that intralingual errors are those, which reflect the general
characteristics of rule learning, such as faulty generalization, incomplete
application of rules, and failure to learn conditions under which rules apply. 11
On the other hand, Brown ( 1987) divides sources of errors based on the
backgrounds that underline them, into four types. J11terli11gual Tramfer is
interference from the native language or second language when he is
attempting. Once learners have begun to acquire parts of the new system.
b1t.raling11a/ Tram/er Ge11eralh11rimr, within the tar»et
language 1s
c
manifested and a third major is source of error is the Context of Leaming.
Context refers for example, to the classroom with its teacher and its materials
in this case of school learning or the social situation in the case of ｵｮｴｾｯｲ｣､＠
second language learning. Com1111m1mtio11 Strategy is the fourth source or
-1i Jack C. Richards (ed). Error Analysis, (London Long1nan (Jroup Lin1i11::d, !997). Third
Impression, p. J 74
31
errors. It actually includes the former three sources as a learner tries to get a
-I'
n1essage across to a I1carcr or rea der. -
The goal of error analysis is for prag111atic use. According to Corder, crrcr
analysis has two functions " the first is a theoretical one and the second is a
practical one .. u The most practical use of the analysis of error is for the
teacher. It is for feedback value in designing pedagogical material and
strategies. Sujoko in his book Error Analysis wrote:
....... Because (i) errors provide feedback, they tell
the teacher something about the effectiveness of his
teaching technique, (ii) show him what parts of the
syllabus he has been following have been inadequately
learned or taught and need further attention, (iii) they
enable hi111 to decide whether he must devote more time
to the item he has been working on, (iv) they provide
the information for designing a remedial syllabus or a
program of re-teaching. ,,H
It is a part of methodology of investigating the language learning process that
has a feedback to both descriptive linguistics and psycholinguistics.
42
H. Douglas Brown, Op. Cit. p. t77-183
S. Pit Corder, Op. Cit. p. 45
"' Sujoko, Error Analysis (SurakartaFKtP Univcrsitas Scbclas Maret, I 999) p. l 8
43
CHAPTER Ill
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINDINGS
A. RESEARCH c'vlETHODOLOGY
1. The Purpose of Research
The purpose of the research in this "skripsi" is to know the common
error that made by the participants of the TOEFL test in the structure section
of the TOEFL. Because so many students find it difficult lo complete structure
section of the TOEFL. So the writer hopes it can enhance the writer's
knowledge in English and also help the teacher and learner to improve their
English proficiency.
2. Time and Location
As stated in Chapter One on the method of study, besides library
research a field research was also conducted. The field research
ｳｴ｡ｲｾ､＠
from
October 2003 up to January 2004. It was conducted by using participants'
work on TOEFL test, which held from June to September 2003 at The Center
for Languages and Culture.
3. Technique of Sample Taking
In this research, the writer took the population from the participants of
the TOEFL test during the pcriod from June to September 2003. The total
number or the participants is 80. In this research 30 students or the population
were taken randomly
4. Techniqnc of Data Collecting
In collecting data, the writer use a question
ｳｨ･ﾷｾｴ＠
and student's answer
or the TOEFL test to be analyzed.
5. Technique of Data Analysis
In this part, the data or the studrnt's error in slructurc were analyzed.
The analysis is focused on the skill tested on structure and written cxpressien.
First, idcntirication or recognition of error. In this step, the items were
classified into each type or skill area that tested. The frequency of error of
each items were classified into each items.
The frequency of errors was calculated with statistical method. She
uses the relative frequency distributions, which the formula is:
I) =
ｾ＠
N
x l 00 0,;,'
P = percentage
F =Frequency or error occurred
N =Number of sample which is observed
34
B. RESEARCH FINDINGS
1. Data Descriptions
As the writer has mentioned in the preceding chapter that this "skripsi"
discussed on the errors done by the participants of the TOEFL test. To get
data she took the question sheet and students' answer to be analyzed. The lest
covered 9 skill areas, which are broken down into 40 items. The following
table is the classification of each items based on its ski hi areas.
Table I
Structure Items and Its Distributions
No
Sldll Area
Number
Item
of Items
-----·------
Subject and Verb
2
5, 7, 9, I I, 15, 17
----
6
Verb Agreement, Tense and j 19
Form
3
Full Subordination
1, 6, 8
3
4
The Verbal
4, 10, 13,21,22,26,29,31
8
5
Pronoun Form, Agreement, ! 16, 20, 25, 35
4
Reference
6
Word Form
24,27,28,30,32,34,37,40
8
7
Word Order
3, 12, 14, 38
4
8
Parallel Structure
ｾＭ
9
I0
ｾｃｯｲ･｣ｴ＠
Usage
Unnecessary Repet1lion
----------- ---
L
139
8, 23, 33, 36
---
5
==:=.:::..-_·----··--·------ ·----- . .
j
36
b.
Verb Agreement, Tense and Form
Table Ill
Frequency of Error
T---------- ------------
Ｏｴｾｯ＠
111tcm
Skill Arca
'---__J_______________________ --
2
Verb Agreement, Tense,
Ｍｾ
Frequency
of Error
ｾＭ
ｾＭ
l'crccntagc
of Error
19
ﾷＭｾ
19.99
6
The item is about verb agreement, tense, and form. From the table
above it is shown that there are only 6 students or (19.99 %) from 30
samples who made error in this item.
c. Full Subordination
Table IV
Frequency of Error
/ No- Skill Arca
Item
Frequency of
Error
ｐ･ｲ｣ｮｴ｡ｧｾＭ＠
Error
-
3
Full Subordination
--·-
I
4
13.33
6
10
33.33
8
6
19.99
3
20
22.22
-----
Ttltal
37
Those items are about full subordination. In these items, there are
4 students (13. 33 %) who made error in item I, 10 students (33. 33 %) in
item 6 and 6 students (19.99 %) in item 8. On the a.verage there are 22.22
% of students who chose the wrong answer.
d. The Verbal
Table V
Frequency of Error
No Skill Area
ｬｴ｣ｾＭｔｆｲｱｵ･ｮｹ＠
of
!Error
Percentage of
Error
4
6
19.99
10
11
36.66
13
21
69.99
21
10
I
1---1-------------+---
4
The Verbal
ＡＭｾﾷ
10
26
16
53.33
?9
15
49.99
31
15
49.99
In those verbal items, many students made error in this skill area.
It was described by the table above that 43.33 % students made errors.
There are 6 students ( 19. 99 % ) who made error in item 4, l I students
(36.66 'Vo) in item 10, 21 students (69.99 %) in item 13, 10 >tudents in
38
item 21 and 22, 16 students (53.33 %) in item 26, and 15 students (49.99
%) in item 29 and 31.
e.
Pro1101111
1-/Jrm, Agreement, and Reference
Tallie IV
Frequency of Error
Frequency of
Error
.....
5
Total
Pronoun Form
Percentage
of Error
··----------
16
12
39.99
20
9
29.99
25
4
13.33
35
13
·f3.33
4
38
24.99
Those items are about pronoun form. In them items, there are 12
students (39.9) %) who made error in item 16, 9 students (29.99 %) in
item 20, 4 students (13. 33 %) in item 35. So on the: average, there are
24. 99 %
GRAMMATICAL ERRORS IN THE TOEFL TEST
A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL al The Center for Languages and
Culture SyarifHidayatullah State Islamic University
A Skripsi
Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers' Training in
Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Strata -1 (SI)
By:
AINI AINUR ROHMAH
9914015772
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
THE FACULTY OF TARBIY AH AND TEACHERS' TRAINING
SY ARIF HIDAY ATllLLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY
JAKARTA
2004M/1424H
AN ANALYSIS ON THE STlJDENTS'
GRATVllVIATICAL ERROJRS IN
TlIE 1'0EFL TEST
A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL at The Center for Languages and
Culture SyarifHidayatulah
State Islamic University
A Skripsi
Presented to the Faculty ofTarbiyah and Teachers' Training
in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Strata-I (S 1)
By:
AJ:NI AINUR ROHMAH
9914015772
Approved by:
Advisor
Drs. Nasrun Mahmu.fu._MP\!
150 041 070
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
THE FA CUL TY OF TARBIY AH AND TEACHERS' TRAINING
SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE JSLAMJC UNIVERSITY
JAKARTA
20041\1/14241-I
Lt''.GALIZATION OF EXAMINATION COMMMITl't'.I•'.
A 'skripsi' titled "Al" ANALYSIS ON THE STUDENTS' GRAMMATICAL ERRORS
IN ·;·HE TOEfL TEST (A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL Test at rhe Cemer
for Languages and Ct.iturc Syarif ｈｩ､｡ｹｴｵｬｾｨ＠
State lslarnic University" was examined
at ex?mination session of the Faculty of Tarbiyah anj Teachers' Training Syarif
Hidayatulah State Islamic University (Ul1\1) Jakarta, on f(.bruary 6°', 2004. This 'skripsi'
has fulfilled the requirements for the Degree of Strata I (Si) at English Department .
,
.
Jakarta, February 6", 2004
Examination Committee
.ommmce
The Secretary of Committee
i_'cq[ Dr. H_-3.alman Ha -,w
NIP. i 50 062 568
ｐｲｌＮｴｬＡｾ＠
Examiner l
ｾｮＭ
Examiner II
'
,_ Mll_lliLS\2!1Qitdji,_JyLfu
NIP. i Su USO 682
DrL ｎｬＬｳｾ｣ｌｍＧｨｭｵ､＠
M. &J.
NIP. l.'.i004J 070
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the name l!f Allah the Beneficent, the Ivfercifid. All praise be to Allah, The
Almighty and The Lord of all that exist. May Allah's peace and blessing be upon His
final Prophet Muhammad SAW, his family and followers.
This "skripsi" is presented to the English Department of the Faculty of
Tarbiyah and Teachers' Training of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University
Jakarta as a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Strata- I (S 1).
It is a great honor for the writer to make acknowledgement of indebtedness to
convey her sincere gratitude to Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd. who has patiently given
valuable advice and guidance to finish this "skripsi".
The writer also like rn convey her sincere gratitude particularly to:
I. Prof' Dr. H. Salman Harun, as a Dean of The Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers'
Training.
2. Drs. Nasrun Mahmud, M.Pd, as a Head of English Department and al:;o Drs.
Syauki, M.Pd, as the Secretary of English Department.
3. H. Alwi Rofi'i her beloved father and Rulianti Rohadi her beloved mother who
always encourage the writer with all of their heart and
her beloved brothers
"Rofiq and Ozan" and her lovely sister" Datu!".
4. For her beloved "Mr. Jo", thanks for your love, suppo11, and encouragement to
finish this "skripsi" and all her friends, especially: Na.in, Sheren, Dian, Nina Ros.
Fido!, Ochid, Oshin, Hendra, Aly,
and her classmates in A Class '99 that the
writer can't mention one by one here, thanks for your support and cooperation.
Finally, she realizes that this "skripsi" is far from being perfect. It is a
pleasure for her to receive constructive criticism and suggestion for improving this
"skripsi''.
Jakai1a, February 2004
The writer
TABLE: OF CONTE:NTS
Acknowledgement. .
Table of Contents ..
II
List of Tables ............. .
IV
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ................................................................... .
A. The Background of Study .....
B. The Limitation and the Formulation of the Study ....
5
C. The Use of Study ...... .
5
D The Method of Study....
5
. ........
6
E. The Organization of Writing ........ .
CHAPTER Il: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ........................................ .
7
7
A. TOEFL ..
1. The Definition and the Use of TOEFL .
7
2. Grammar ..
9
a.
9
The Definition .
b. Type of Skills Tested in Structure ...
10
' -ｾＴ｜＠
B. Errnr A ialysis ...
I. The Definition and Types of Error Analysis .
'.26
2. The Sources and the Goals of Error Analysis ...
30
II
!
LIST OF TABLES
1. Table I.
The Distribution of Structure items.
2. Table II.
The Frequency of Error In Subject and Verb.
3. Table Ill.
The Frequency of Error In Verb Agreement, Tense and Form.
4. Table IV.
The Frequency of Error In Full Subordination
5. Table V.
The Frequency of Error In The Verbal.
6. Table VI.
The Frequency of Error In Pronoun Form, Agreement and Reference.
7. Table Vil. The Frequency of Error In Word form.
8. Table VIII. The Frequency of Error fn Word Order.
9. Table IX.
The Frequency of Error fn Parallel Structure.
10. Table X.
The Frequency of Error In Correct Usage
11.Table XI.
The Sequence of Structure Skill Area Based on Its High Frequency
of Error.
IV
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A. The Background of the Study
Language is a means of communication with the purpose or expressing
ideas, opinion, information, feeling, and so forth. In this era of globalization,
Indonesia is one of the countries in this world that cannot close olT from the
need of
mastering foreign language. So it can grow fully and Indonesian
people love their country and have responsibility for the development of
science, technology, and art in the whole country. In this case, mastering
English gives a contribution to increase the quality of Indonesian human
resources.
English is one of the languages, which is w;dely used all over the
world. It is clear that English will play an important role for communication
world. To realize that ideal goal, English is the first foreign language, which is
taught as the most important language in developing students and gaining
modern science, technology and arts.
Now, English is still learned and it becomes compulsory subject in
universities as well as in secondary school. For instance, to apply a job or
enter university, TOEFL score is one of the requi1ements with transcript and
recommendaiio• in order to be considered for admission.
2
It goes without saying that a student of English should be aware of the
existence of TOEFL. TOEFL is an abbreviation or "Test of English as a
Foreign Language ". It is a test that measures one's English proficiency for
non native-speaker. 1 I! is given each year to thousands of students who plan to
enter university either graduate or undergraduate level. Admission committees
in the various universities use the individual score from the TOEFL to
determine a student's competence in English. It is to measure the Corcign
students English proficiency objectively.
Before TOEFL Test is known in Jndoncsia, English is tested by using
"A Proficiency Test of English " known as ALIGU (American Language
Institute of George Town University). '"hen other forms of English from
USA, which arc known as TESL ('!'est or English as A S..:cond Language)
Recognized as a test of English as a Foreign LanguJgc, TOEFL has
become popular in Indonesia in the last two decades. It is that TOEFL Test is
"Reluctantly Accepted" by Great BRITAIN. The purpose of' a TOEFL Test is
to evaluate the English proficiency of people whose native language is not
English.
TOEFL test related to language skills such as grammar, reading, and
listening. It is clear that being a fluent speaker of English do,:s not necessarily
mean that it will get a good TOEFL score. It is important to be good not only
Deborah Philips. ｬｾｯｮｧｵＮＱ＠
1989) p. 5-6
1
f)rl!J1aralioJ1 ( .'ourse for ｊｾＩＺＮｬﾷＬ＠
(London :Longman Group Ltd.
3
m speaking but also in reading and writing for academic success. In the
TOEFL test, they are three sections, where on the llrst ｳＧｾ｣ｴｩｯｮ＠
is listening
comprehension, second section are structure and wri!!en expression, and the
third section is reading co•nprehension.
Based on the writer's observation, she found that most students
received disappointing scores on the TOEFL test that was so important lo
them. Through these observations, the writers round that many learners hav.:
some difficulties, so they made error on structure. In this cast: error
corrections helpful. 2 E1 ror correction supposedly helps the learners to figure
out the right form of language. The correc ion is only allowed on wri!len work
and gnurnnar exercises.
Grammar is a component of basic skills of foreign language. It is
clearly one c'f the most important things in language that frequently appears
some problems. According to Widson ( 1970) " Grammar is a component
3
language enables us to make our message clear and precise. " As it is k11own
that English grammar is different from Indonesian Gral11mar. Consequently,
the difference makes the learners diflkult to develop good English
proficiency because the acquired Indonesian grammar has been imprinted in
their mind. The difference between the grammar of native language and that
2
Krashen, D. Stephen, l)ri1u.:i11les a1lll J'raclice ｩＱＮｾＧ･｣ｯｊｬＯ＠
Pergamon Press Ltd., 1982), p. 117-118
:i (Jeofrey l3rouglllon el al. /('achil1K ｬｾｩｴｧｳｨ＠
1980) p. I 16
J.anguaxe 1JcquisitioJ1, (Ne\v "York.
as /•(Jreip/t l.an,1:11aKe. (London: ·1j Press Ltd,
4
of target language is one of the factors, which induces the students to make
many errors m grammar.
1
Although " the error is natural " · as John Norrish said, we should be
aware of those errors and do something to avoid making errors again and
again. In rdation to learners errors it is done a study known as "error analysis"
which is an analysis about learners' error in their process of learning a second
language. According to Allen and Corder: " in the course of learning of
second language the learner produces many forms which are not those which
would be produces by a native speaker of the standard forr>1 of the target
language"
5
Based on the opinion above, the writer would like to analyze some
error that students made on structure in TOEFL test as a matter of fact that in
learning TOEFL the students find difiicult to comprehend ｴｨＱｾ＠
Based on
the
description
is" AN ANALYSIS ON ｔｈｉｾ＠
above,
text in test.
the title of this "skripsi"
STUDENTS' GRAMMATICAL ERROR IN
THE TOEFL TEST (A Case Study of the Participants of TOEFL at The
Center for Languages and Culture of Syarif
Hidayatullah State Islamic
University)
John No1Tish. /,ang11age /.ear11era11,/ lhcir ｦｾｩＮＬＭｯｲ＠
(Ne\v York: 1\!fac-(Jra»v-l-Ii!J Book
Company, J 969) p.9
5
J.P.B. Allen and S.Pit Corder (ed). l'apvrs i11 Applied U111111istics, (Lonn: Oxford
lJnivcn1ity Press, 19075) voL2, p, 8
4
5
H. The Limitation and the Formulation of the Study
The writer will limit the problem on structure faced by the students
TOEFL test. The formulation of the problem is: "' what kinds or errors
111
｡ｲﾷｾ＠
con1monly made by the participants in structure section of the TOEFL test"
C. The Use of Study
This study will discuss about errors done by paiiicipants who arc
attending TOEFL test. Its aim is to know the kind of errors commonly made
by the students in the section or structure. 13y knowing these types or
dilllculty faced by the learner, it is hoped that the teacher, the researcher and
the learner himself can improve teaching
ｾｬ･｡ｲｮｩｧ＠
process and their English
prollciency.
D. iVlethod of Study
In completing the data, the writer conducts two kinds of researches;
library and field research. In libra1y research, the writer rc:ads some books
written by experts as listed in bibliography to support this writing.
In the 11eld research, the question sheet and students answer or
structure in the TOEFL test is used as a technique of observation, through
error analvsis they are identified, described and explaiIJcd.
6
E. The Organization of Writing
This Skripsi is divided into five chapters, as follows.
First chapter is the introduction, which consists of four parts.
They are: the background of the study, the limitation and fo1mulation or the
study, the use of the study, and the organization writing.
Second chapter is divided into some parts: discussing theoretical
frameworL. They are: the definition and the type of error analysis, the cause
and the goal of error analysis, the definition of structure and the type of skill
tested in structure.
Third chapter ts research methodology and findings. Research
methodoloi,>y dealing with place and time of study, population and sample,
method of study, technique of data collecting, and technique of data analysis.
Study of data finding dealing the descriptive of data, the analysis of data and
the interpretation of data.
Fourth chapter consists of two parts; they are: conclusion and
suggestion.
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL Fll.AME\VOHK
A. TOEFL
I. The De.finition and the Use t!/ TOEFL
stands for Test or English as a Foreign Language. It is a test
ｔｏｆｾｌ＠
designed to measL1rc the English language capabtli1y of people who do not
speak English as their first language. It is given each year to thousands of
students who plan to enroll to the university either graduate or undergraduate
level. Bruce Rogers said that the goal of the TOEFL is to measure student's
competence in English objectively.'' We can say that TOEFL score is a valid
indication of student's English proficiency.
Since 1963 the TOEFL has been used by Scholarship selection
committees of government, universities as a standard measure of English
proficiency of their candidates. Now, some professional licensing and
certification '1gencies also use TOEFL score to evaluate English proficiency.
To enter university, TOEFL score is one of the requirements along with
transcript in order to be considered for admission.
6
Bruce Rogers. Ille C'o111J;fete ｃＮＱｵｩﾣａｾ＠
to ＧｻＨＩＯｾﾷＱＬＭ＠
(Boston, rvlassachusetts:
Publishers, 1993) p. xix
7
rieinlc &l-fein!e
8
It is very important to have clear understanding that material in the
TOEFL test related to grammar, listening, and reading.
The materials of The TOEFL test is divided into three section
I. Listening Comprehension
It is the first section of the TOEFL, that tests knowledge 0f spoken
English such as might be heard in a classroom or other public place.
Depending on the facilities available, a test center may use either a record or
a tape. At centers with language laboratories, each person will listen through
a pair of earphones. There are always forty listening items organized into
three groups, paiis A (short dialogs), B (longer dialogs), and C (longer minitalks), each having separate directions, It takes approximately forty minutes
to complete all items. It is spoken only once, which is preceded by a very
complete i11troduction, which includes sample items from each part.
7
2. Structure and Written Expression
The >tructure and written expression section of the TOEFL
concentrates on written English. It has two parts containing a total of forty
questions and twenty -five minutes is allowed for completing it. P'irt A
(sentence completion) which contains of simple sentences, complex
sentences and part B (Error Identification) 8
Cnrol King and Nancy Stanley. !3111kli11x ,Skills /•(JI· lhe ｬＨＩＯｾﾷＱＮ＠
1989) 2"' edition, p. 2
'!hid, p. 134
7
(Jakarta: Binarupa :\ksara,
9
3. Remling Comprehension
It is the last of the section of the TOEFL. It contains fixty items,
Forty
···five
minutes
Comprehension
1s
contains
allowed
forty
to
complete
the
parts.
items
of two
dilforcnt
Reading
types:
(i)
comprehension passages, (ii) recognit on of restatements''
Speaking about the use ofTOl'FL, as mentioned above that the goal
of the TOEFL is to measure the student's English proficiency objectively. It
means that TOEFL score as a valid indication of individual competence in
English. 10 lt is used as a standard measurement of one of requirements to
enter university either graduate or undergraduate level or apply for a job
«long with transcript and recommendation.
2. Grammar
a. The definition of Grammar
Learning English language means learning how to use it not to learn
what the language is. The essence of using language is not communication. To
communicate is to understand another and to be understood by another. To
communicate clearly, accurately and effectively we need " the knowledge of
grammar as the rules of language.
9
'
/bid,p.312
Harriet N. Moreno, et al. J'OliFL (USA: Arco Publishing Company, 1977) p. 5
0
10
Swan defined grammar as " the rules that say how words change, to
11
show different meanings, and how they are combine into sentence. In Oxford
dictionary wrote that grammar is " the rule in a language: for changing the
forms of words and combining them, into sentences. The Long man dictionary
of Contemporary defines grammar as (the study and practice of) the rules by
which words change their forms and are combined into sentence.
Cobbett wrote:
Grammar... teaches us how to make use of words;
that is to say, it teaches us how to make use of them
in the proper manner. ... to be able to choose the
words, which ought to be placed, we must be
acquainted with certain principles and rules, and these
principles
and
rules
constitute
grammar. (Cobbett, 1819)
what
io. called
12
b. The type of skill tested in structure
The structure and written expression Section of the TOEFL
concentrates on written English used in formal written English. It has two
parts containing a total
or forty questions and twenty-five minutes is allowed
for completing. It will approximately thirty-five second on each question.
Part A: Sentence Completion: there ario: fifteen questions. It is about
forty percent of them arc simple sentences, containing only one subject-verb
11
12
lVJichael Si,.van, J>racticctl Ｑｾﾷ［Ｏｩｳｨ＠
{ lsuge (Oxford LJniversities Press, 1972) p. xix
Jerc1ny l·lanner, Teaching and Learning Ciranunar, (London: LongnHln, 1989)
p. 1-5
11
combination. The other sixty percent are complex sentences, containing at
least two subject-verb combinations involving some type of subordination.
Each sentence is incurnplcte so it must choose the word or phrase given which
best completes the sentence.
Part E: Error lde111ijic11tio11; the1c arc twenty-live questions and as in
part A, about forty percent are simple sentences and sixty percent arc complex
sentences. But in part B, it is only looking for an error, the part of the sentence
that is wrong. The error is always underlined. 13
Ten elements of English sentence structure that are covered in the
structure and written expression section of the TOEFL according to Carol
King and Nancy Stanley in their book "Building Skill for the TOEFL"
organized into the following problem areas:
I. Su/Jfect - Verb
Every sentence hus at least one subject and one verb. The subject is
usually placed before the verb. The subject is always a noun
(i.e. Your
Invitation), pronoun (i.e. l1), gerund (i.e. Ampared to the other members of
the group is necessary to exclude the member from the group by
using the words any other or anyone else.
Wrong: Johan is taller than anyone Indonesia his c:lass
Correct: Johan is taller than anyone else Indonesia his class
22
3. When two persons or things are compared in two ways and
combined, all part of both comparisons must be retained.
20
Comparison 1: Maria is as tall as Johan
Comparison 2: Maria may be taller than Johan
Combined: Wrong: Maria is as tall, if not taller than Johan
Correct: Maria is as tal I as, If not taller than Johan
9.
Unnecessary Repetition
Many verbs express the general idea of more or less within their specific
meaning. If a verb implies the idea of more, it is unnecessary to repeat this
idea by adding the word more to the sentence.
21
Wrong: The store raised the cost by ten dollars more
ｃｯｭｾ｣ｴＺ＠
I 0.
The stcre raised the cost by ten dollars.
Correct Usage
There are six verbs that cause problems Indonesia correct usage because
their meaning 'lfe similar and some of their forms are irregular. Three of these
verbs (sit, lie, and rise) are never followed by a direct object and are never
Indonesia the passive form. The other three verbs (set, lay and raise Oare
followed by direct objects and can be passive forrnn
Wrong: The campers got up as soon as the sun had raised
Correct: the campers got up as soon as the sun had risen
20
21
22
Ibid, p. 271-282
!hid, p. 284-288
fhil/,p.290-300
23
B. ERROR ANALYSIS
It is unavoidable that a learner makes errors in his language learning
process It will always occur although the best effort has been done. Making
errors can be regarded as an essential part of learning, as proverb says, " we
can learn rhrough our errors".
Errors have played an important role in the study of language
acquisition in general and examining second and foreign language acquisition
in particular. Students made errors do not mean a failure or inadequacy bd
learner can view them as important evidence or strategies or procedures
imployed. In other words, errors give sign lo teachers and researchers how the
target language learning is successfully achieved.
According to H. Douglas Brown: "As Corder (1997; 167) noted: f\
learners errors .......... are significant in [that] they provide to the researcher
evidence of ho\'1 language is learned or acquired, what strategies or
procedures the learner is employing in the discovery oflanguage .
Pit Corder stated:
lt is on the basis or information the teacher gels from
errors that he varies his leaching procedurios and
materials, the pace
23
I--L Douglas Bro\vn,
1-lall, 1980), p. 164
Jlrincip/es ＨｾＡ＠
or the
progress, and the amount of
Lan;.:uage J,ear11l11K and Teaching .(Ne\v Jersey : Prerllice
24
practice, which he plans at any moment. For this reason it
is impo1iant that the teacher should be abie not only to
detect and
describe
understand
the
occurrence.
errors
linguistically
psychological
reasons
but
for
also
their
z,1
The study of Jeuners' errors is called error analysis. It is a way of
looking at the errors made by the learner of a target language. Since the
analysis is based oh factual data of learners' errors. It is a procedure, which is
usually, used by language teachers and researchers, which covers sample
collection, identification of the sample, error explanation error classification
that are based on the cause of errors and evaluation of errors.
Rod Ellis said:
Typically this involves the collection of samples of
classroom learner-language (usually written and usually
discrete, decontextualised utterances), the classification
of errors according to the ､ｩｦｾ･ｲｮｬ＠
levels of language
description, the explanation ol' cttors by reference to
vari-0us learning process and the evaluatidn of errors for
the -purposes of assessment of remediation.
25
To know further about error analysis, the study will disct1ss the
following area:
2
·'
S. Pit. Corder, ＱｾＭｲｯ＠
Atut!J•sis atul J111er/a11g11age, (London: Oxford U1'1lversity Press,
1981). P.35
25
R.od Ellis, l•.'rror Anaf.rsis, (London: Long111an (iroup Lin1ilcd, 197,:D p. 74
25
1. The Definition and Types of Error Analysis
There are several opinions given by some linguists to get clear
understanding about error. Dullay et al defined error as " flawed side of
learner speech of writing. They are those parts of conversation or composition
that deviate from selected norm of mature language perfonnance. "
26
Pit Corder said: "... the term erroneous to mean other superficially
deviant or inappropriate in terms of the target language grammar ... "
27
Then, Douglas Brown said: ,. Put in another way, an error 1s a
noticeable deviation from the adult grammar or a native speaker, reflecting
ｴｨｾ＠
language competence of the learner."·'8
Sridhar stated: " Error, on the other hand, are systematic, consistent
.
'
. "J9
dcv1ances stage o! Jearmng. •
Jn addition, Henry Guntur Tarigan and Djago Tarigan said :
...... , kesalahan disebalAan faktor kompetensi.
Artinya
s1swd
memang
IJclum
memahami
sistem
linguistik bahasa yang digunakan. Kesalahan biasanya
terjadi sccara konsisten, jndi sccara sistematik ,,Jo ( ...
Error is caused by a competence factor. It means that the
students have not understood the use or the target
26
Dullay ct al. /,anguage lirn (New York, Oxford Universities Press, I%2 ),p. I 38
J.P.ll. Allen aod S. Pi! Corder (cd), Techniques i11 Applied l.i11g11islics (London: Oxford
University Press, I 974 ) vol .3, p. I 22
28
1-f. Douglas Brown. Op. Cit, p. 165
29
Jacek Fisiak (ed), Ｈｾｯｮｲ｡ｳｴｨ･＠
Linguistics and the La11g111.Jge l'eacJ11!r, (England: Perga1non
Press ltd , I 981) p. 224
27
30
1-Ienry Guntur Tarigan and f)jago 'farigan, Pe11g,rjara11 Analisis Kesalahan Berbahasa (
13andung : Penerbit Angkasu, I 988) cct ke-10. p. 75. 76
26
language linguistic system yet. Error usually happens
consistently. Thus, it does systematically)
From the opinions above it can be concluded that error, which each
linguist explains is something to do with unacceptable and inappropriate
forms of the grammar of the target language and the competence of the second
language learner.
Error
ｩｾ＠
usually compared with mistake. Both of them indicate that
forn1 or structure that the learner used is unacceptable and inappropriate
according to the native speaker. We should distinguish errors from mistake in
language learner." Mistakes are inconsistent deviation caused by performance
factors, e.g.; the slip of tongue.
According to Corder "Mistake refers to a perfonnano;e error such as a
fatigue and inattention, while the error itself is one caused by lack of language
rule knowledge (competence factor) or systematic deviation due to the learner
is still developing knowledge of the second language rule s.ystem.
31
Mistake
(the error of performance; will characteristically be unsystematic.
Pramono said: " it has no significant pedago,gical implication".
32
The
learners are normally capable of recognizing and correcting such as lapses nr
.ii
)
2
Dullay et al. Op. Cit. p. U9
Pra1nono . Analisa J\111g(!iura11 /Juhasa CYogyakarta, UGtvJ press, 1996) p. 51
27
mistakes, which are not the result of a deficiency in competence but the result
of imperfection in the process of producing speechH
The errors are systematic. It is natural for the learners to make errors;
even many native speakers make many mistakes in speaking.
11
· The
errors are
necessary part of learning language and the process of leading to the errors is
clearly a creative one. Errors also believed lo be an indicator of the learners'
stage in their target language development and it can determine their level 'Jf
mastery of language system.
Relating lo students' error there is error analysis. To understand
about the meaning or error analysis some authors have de lined it
S. Pit Corder said:
But because the emphasis in 'error analysis', has, till now,
been almost wholly concerned with the practical objectives
of planning remedial syllabuses and devising appropriate
techniques of 'correction', it too has suffers from similar
inadequacies as a technique for describing the learner's
'eta! de dialecte', as proliciency test. 35
Jn addition, Henry Gunlur Tarigan and Djago Tarigan said:
Melalui
kegiatan
pengkitjian
kesalahan
itu
dapat
diungkapkan berbagai ha! mengenai kesalahan berbahasa
yang dibuat atau dilakukan oleh siswa. Hal-hal yang
JJ
34
.is
l-1. Douglas Bro\vn . ()fJ.(:il. p. l 70
John Norri sh , Lan,ftUaKe I.earner.\' anti ll1eir Ｑｾﾷｲｯｳ＠
S. Pit Corder, Op. Cit. p. 145
( ... : l'vtacn1illan Press ltd, 1983 ) p. 44
28
dimaksud antara lain latar belakang, sebab musabab dan
ragam kesalahim. Pada gilirannya, hal itu dapat d1gunakan
sebagai umpan balik dalam penyempumaan atau perbaikan
pengajaran bahasa. (Through error analysis it can be found
background, causes and types f error made by the students.
In turn, it can be used as a feedback in correcting and
planning
language
remed:al teaching).
teaching,
especially
m
planning
36
It is clear that error analysis is used as an instrument for evaluating
teaching process and remedial activities conducted.
Errors are divided into "transfer error, analogical error and teachinginduced error". These three types of errors are viewed from the psychological
process in acquiring a second language.
a. Transfer Error is error because of interference from a mother tongue. A
student that has not known the rules of the target language will use the
same rules as he obtained in his native language. S. Pit Corder stated:" It
is clear that on Ihis theory the making of errors is an inevitable, even
perhaps a necessar;1 part of the learning process. It also accounts llir ti· e
similarity of many errors to the forms or the mother tongue, we can call
these transfer error" 37
J(i
37
l--Ien1y Guntur Tarignn and Djago ·rarigan, OpC'it. P- 75
J. P B. Allen and S. Pit Corder, Up. Cit. p. I 30
29
b. Analogical Error is error because of misconception in applying the rules of
the target language. As S. Pit Corder stated:
"However, even hhen a learner has discovered a correct rule he may
still continue to make errors because he has not yet discovered the
precise set of categories to which the rule applies. Errors of this sort
. . or ana Iog1ca
. I errors. ' · ·1X
are errors o f over genera I 1zat1on
c. Teaching Induced Error is error that has something to do with the methods
or materials of the teaching. Pit Corder stated:
There is a third type of error whicJ, is more dif11cult to establish in any
particular case, namely errors arising from the methods or materials
used in the teachiPg ......... Only this class of error, teaching induced
error, is avoidable or redundant and represents in efficiency in the
.
I11ng
. process.·19
Iearrnng-tcac
2. The Sources and the Goal of Error Analysis
The Sources of errors can be divided into two types. First, errors caused
by the interference of the learner's mother tongue, which are called
Interlingual. Henry Gunlur Tarigan stated: " a) Kesalahan antar bahasa
(interlanguage errors), yaitu kesalahan yang disebabkan ofeh interferensi
bahasa ibu sang siswa terhadap bahasa kedua yang dipelajarinya"·IO
38
39
411
Ibid
Ibid
.
Henry Guntur Tarigan and Djago Tarii/a'l1, Op. Cir, p'.85
30
Second,
ｉｮｴｲ｡ｬｩＱｾｵ＠
errors which reflect the learners competence at a
particular stage and illustrate some of the general characteristic of language
acquisition. It is relate to a specific interpretation of the target language,
which is
Ｑ｡ｩｆｾｳｴ･､＠
(over-generalization
as universal phenomena. They include generalization
and
ignorance
of rule
restrictions),
incomplete
application of rules and false concept hypothesis.
Jack C. Richards stated in his book: " An examination of the errors .
suggests that intralingual errors are those, which reflect the general
characteristics of rule learning, such as faulty generalization, incomplete
application of rules, and failure to learn conditions under which rules apply. 11
On the other hand, Brown ( 1987) divides sources of errors based on the
backgrounds that underline them, into four types. J11terli11gual Tramfer is
interference from the native language or second language when he is
attempting. Once learners have begun to acquire parts of the new system.
b1t.raling11a/ Tram/er Ge11eralh11rimr, within the tar»et
language 1s
c
manifested and a third major is source of error is the Context of Leaming.
Context refers for example, to the classroom with its teacher and its materials
in this case of school learning or the social situation in the case of ｵｮｴｾｯｲ｣､＠
second language learning. Com1111m1mtio11 Strategy is the fourth source or
-1i Jack C. Richards (ed). Error Analysis, (London Long1nan (Jroup Lin1i11::d, !997). Third
Impression, p. J 74
31
errors. It actually includes the former three sources as a learner tries to get a
-I'
n1essage across to a I1carcr or rea der. -
The goal of error analysis is for prag111atic use. According to Corder, crrcr
analysis has two functions " the first is a theoretical one and the second is a
practical one .. u The most practical use of the analysis of error is for the
teacher. It is for feedback value in designing pedagogical material and
strategies. Sujoko in his book Error Analysis wrote:
....... Because (i) errors provide feedback, they tell
the teacher something about the effectiveness of his
teaching technique, (ii) show him what parts of the
syllabus he has been following have been inadequately
learned or taught and need further attention, (iii) they
enable hi111 to decide whether he must devote more time
to the item he has been working on, (iv) they provide
the information for designing a remedial syllabus or a
program of re-teaching. ,,H
It is a part of methodology of investigating the language learning process that
has a feedback to both descriptive linguistics and psycholinguistics.
42
H. Douglas Brown, Op. Cit. p. t77-183
S. Pit Corder, Op. Cit. p. 45
"' Sujoko, Error Analysis (SurakartaFKtP Univcrsitas Scbclas Maret, I 999) p. l 8
43
CHAPTER Ill
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND FINDINGS
A. RESEARCH c'vlETHODOLOGY
1. The Purpose of Research
The purpose of the research in this "skripsi" is to know the common
error that made by the participants of the TOEFL test in the structure section
of the TOEFL. Because so many students find it difficult lo complete structure
section of the TOEFL. So the writer hopes it can enhance the writer's
knowledge in English and also help the teacher and learner to improve their
English proficiency.
2. Time and Location
As stated in Chapter One on the method of study, besides library
research a field research was also conducted. The field research
ｳｴ｡ｲｾ､＠
from
October 2003 up to January 2004. It was conducted by using participants'
work on TOEFL test, which held from June to September 2003 at The Center
for Languages and Culture.
3. Technique of Sample Taking
In this research, the writer took the population from the participants of
the TOEFL test during the pcriod from June to September 2003. The total
number or the participants is 80. In this research 30 students or the population
were taken randomly
4. Techniqnc of Data Collecting
In collecting data, the writer use a question
ｳｨ･ﾷｾｴ＠
and student's answer
or the TOEFL test to be analyzed.
5. Technique of Data Analysis
In this part, the data or the studrnt's error in slructurc were analyzed.
The analysis is focused on the skill tested on structure and written cxpressien.
First, idcntirication or recognition of error. In this step, the items were
classified into each type or skill area that tested. The frequency of error of
each items were classified into each items.
The frequency of errors was calculated with statistical method. She
uses the relative frequency distributions, which the formula is:
I) =
ｾ＠
N
x l 00 0,;,'
P = percentage
F =Frequency or error occurred
N =Number of sample which is observed
34
B. RESEARCH FINDINGS
1. Data Descriptions
As the writer has mentioned in the preceding chapter that this "skripsi"
discussed on the errors done by the participants of the TOEFL test. To get
data she took the question sheet and students' answer to be analyzed. The lest
covered 9 skill areas, which are broken down into 40 items. The following
table is the classification of each items based on its ski hi areas.
Table I
Structure Items and Its Distributions
No
Sldll Area
Number
Item
of Items
-----·------
Subject and Verb
2
5, 7, 9, I I, 15, 17
----
6
Verb Agreement, Tense and j 19
Form
3
Full Subordination
1, 6, 8
3
4
The Verbal
4, 10, 13,21,22,26,29,31
8
5
Pronoun Form, Agreement, ! 16, 20, 25, 35
4
Reference
6
Word Form
24,27,28,30,32,34,37,40
8
7
Word Order
3, 12, 14, 38
4
8
Parallel Structure
ｾＭ
9
I0
ｾｃｯｲ･｣ｴ＠
Usage
Unnecessary Repet1lion
----------- ---
L
139
8, 23, 33, 36
---
5
==:=.:::..-_·----··--·------ ·----- . .
j
36
b.
Verb Agreement, Tense and Form
Table Ill
Frequency of Error
T---------- ------------
Ｏｴｾｯ＠
111tcm
Skill Arca
'---__J_______________________ --
2
Verb Agreement, Tense,
Ｍｾ
Frequency
of Error
ｾＭ
ｾＭ
l'crccntagc
of Error
19
ﾷＭｾ
19.99
6
The item is about verb agreement, tense, and form. From the table
above it is shown that there are only 6 students or (19.99 %) from 30
samples who made error in this item.
c. Full Subordination
Table IV
Frequency of Error
/ No- Skill Arca
Item
Frequency of
Error
ｐ･ｲ｣ｮｴ｡ｧｾＭ＠
Error
-
3
Full Subordination
--·-
I
4
13.33
6
10
33.33
8
6
19.99
3
20
22.22
-----
Ttltal
37
Those items are about full subordination. In these items, there are
4 students (13. 33 %) who made error in item I, 10 students (33. 33 %) in
item 6 and 6 students (19.99 %) in item 8. On the a.verage there are 22.22
% of students who chose the wrong answer.
d. The Verbal
Table V
Frequency of Error
No Skill Area
ｬｴ｣ｾＭｔｆｲｱｵ･ｮｹ＠
of
!Error
Percentage of
Error
4
6
19.99
10
11
36.66
13
21
69.99
21
10
I
1---1-------------+---
4
The Verbal
ＡＭｾﾷ
10
26
16
53.33
?9
15
49.99
31
15
49.99
In those verbal items, many students made error in this skill area.
It was described by the table above that 43.33 % students made errors.
There are 6 students ( 19. 99 % ) who made error in item 4, l I students
(36.66 'Vo) in item 10, 21 students (69.99 %) in item 13, 10 >tudents in
38
item 21 and 22, 16 students (53.33 %) in item 26, and 15 students (49.99
%) in item 29 and 31.
e.
Pro1101111
1-/Jrm, Agreement, and Reference
Tallie IV
Frequency of Error
Frequency of
Error
.....
5
Total
Pronoun Form
Percentage
of Error
··----------
16
12
39.99
20
9
29.99
25
4
13.33
35
13
·f3.33
4
38
24.99
Those items are about pronoun form. In them items, there are 12
students (39.9) %) who made error in item 16, 9 students (29.99 %) in
item 20, 4 students (13. 33 %) in item 35. So on the: average, there are
24. 99 %