Erroneous verb phrases in the speech of microteaching students of the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University - USD Repository

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

ERRONEOUS VERB PHRASES IN THE SPEECH
OF MICROTEACHING STUDENTS OF THE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
OF SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

A SARJANA PENDIDIKAN THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education

By
Paskalina Sukacita Alaman
Student Number: 061214030

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA

2011

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

ERRONEOUS VERB PHRASES IN THE SPEECH
OF MICROTEACHING STUDENTS OF THE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
OF SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

A SARJANA PENDIDIKAN THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education

By
Paskalina Sukacita Alaman
Student Number: 061214030

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM
DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
YOGYAKARTA
2011
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“I can do all things
through Him,
who gives me strength.”
(Phil 4:13)

This thesis is dedicated to my Wonderful

Counselor

My family
And the loved ones.
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STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY
I honestly declare that this thesis, which I have written, does not contain the work
or parts of the work of other people, except those cited in the quotations and the
references, as a scientific paper should.

Yogyakarta, December 2, 2011
The Writer

Paskalina Sukacita Alaman
061214030

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LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN
PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS

Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma:
Nama

: Paskalina Sukacita Alaman

Nomor Mahasiswa

: 061214030

Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan
Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:
Erroneous Verb Phrases in the Speech of Microteaching Students of the

English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University
Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata
Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain,
mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan
mempublikasikannya di Internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis
tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya
selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.

Demikian pernyataan ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.

Dibuat di Yogyakarta
Pada tanggal: 23 November 2011

Yang menyatakan

Paskalina Sukacita Alaman

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ABSTRACT
Alaman, Paskalina Sukacita. (2011). Erroneous Verb Phrases in the Speech of
Microteaching Students of the English Language Education Study Program of
Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: Sanata Dharma University.
Verb phrases are an important part in a sentence. The errors in this part can
easily be noticed and the errors may result in misunderstanding and
embarrassment. Therefore, being aware of these errors will be of significance for
the students of the English Language Education Study Program (ELESP) of
Sanata Dharma University. In addition to avoiding misunderstanding and
embarrassment, knowing their verb phrase errors helps them to improve the
quality of their English in relation to being a model for their students.
There were three research questions the researcher attempted to answer,
namely (1) What are the verb phrase errors that the students make in their speech?
(2) What are the causes of the verb phrase errors that the students make in their
speech? and (3) What are the suggestions for coping with verb phrase error
production?
The researcher carried out a document analysis to answer the first and the
second research questions. The documents were in the form of video recordings of
Microteaching students’ teaching practices. From the recordings, the researcher

collected all the utterances containing verb phrase errors and classified them into
some categories, namely omission, addition, misordering, misformation,
interlingual errors, local errors, global errors, and other errors. The document
analysis helped the researcher to also find some of the causes of the errors. In
addition to the content analysis, to answer the second and third research questions,
she conducted a survey by interviewing 5 students who produced verb phrase
errors the most frequently and variably.
The research results showed that the errors belonged to local errors (40.4
%), omission (22.7 %), misformation (10.7 %), misordering (10.2 %), addition (7.6
%), global errors (4.2 %), interlingual errors (2.7 %), and other errors (1.4 %). The
errors were caused by incomplete application of rules, nervousness, the lack of
practices and experiences in using English, the influence of Bahasa Indonesia and
falsely-hypothesized concept, overgeneralization, the ignorance of rule restrictions,
and the lack of the awareness of using appropriate grammar. Having realized the
errors and the causes, the ELESP lecturers and students can make some efforts to
deal with error production: using English in and outside class whenever possible,
making corrections wisely if students produce errors, facilitating students to expose
them more to English, practicing, acquiring more exposure to English, and learning
from others.

Keywords: errors, verb phrases, Microteaching class

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ABSTRAK
Alaman, Paskalina Sukacita. (2011). Erroneous Verb Phrases in the Speech of
Microteaching Students of the English Language Education Study Program of
Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Frasa kata kerja merupakan bagian penting dalam suatu kalimat.
Kesalahan dalam frasa kata kerja gampang terlihat dan dapat mengakibatkan
kesalahpahaman dan rasa malu. Karena itu, penting bagi para mahasiswa Program
Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris (PBI) Universitas Sanata Dharma untuk
menyadari kesalahan frasa kata kerja yang mereka hasilkan. Selain mencegah
kesalahpahaman dan rasa malu, mengetahui kesalahan yang dihasilkan dapat
membantu para mahasiswa ini untuk meningkatkan kualitas Bahasa Inggris
mereka karena mereka adalah contoh bagi para murid mereka.
Ada 3 permasalahan yang peneliti coba selesaikan yaitu (1) Kesalahan
frasa kata kerja apa saja yang dibuat oleh para mahasiswa dalam bahasa lisan

mereka? (2) Apa saja penyebab kesalahan frasa kata kerja yang dibuat oleh para
mahasiswa dalam bahasa lisan mereka? dan (3) Apa saja saran untuk menghadapi
masalah terjadinya kesalahan kata kerja?
Peneliti melakukan analisis dokumen untuk menjawab pertanyaan
penelitian yang pertama dan kedua. Dokumen yang diteliti berbentuk rekaman
video latihan mengajar mahasiswa Microteaching. Peneliti mengumpulkan semua
ungkapan yang berisi kesalahan frasa kata kerja dari rekaman tesebut dan
mengelompokkannya dalam beberapa kategori yaitu omission, addition,
misordering, misformation, interlingual errors, local errors, global errors, dan
other errors. Analisis dokumen tersebut membantu peneliti juga untuk
menemukan sedikit dari penyebab kesalahan frasa kata kerja tersebut. Selain
analisis dokumen, untuk menjawab pertanyaan kedua dan ketiga, peneliti
melakukan survei dengan melakukan interview terhadap 5 mahasiswa yang
membuat kesalahan frasa kata kerja paling banyak dan bervariasi.
Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kesalahan-kesalahan yang ditemukan
tersebut adalah local errors (40.4 %), omission (22.7 %), misformation (10.7 %),
misordering (10.2 %), addition (7.6 %), global errors (4.2 %), interlingual errors
(2.7 %), dan other errors (1.4 %). Kesalahan tersebut disebabkan oleh penerapan
aturan yang tidak lengkap, rasa gugup, kurangnya latihan dan pengalaman dalam
menggunakan Bahasa Inggris, pengaruh Bahasa Indonesia dan salah memahami

konsep, generalisasi yang berlebihan, kurangnya pengetahuan tentang batas-batas
suatu aturan tata bahasa tertentu, dan kurangnya kesadaran untuk menggunakan
aturan tata bahasa yang tepat. Setelah mengetahui kesalahan-kesalahan yang
dibuat dan penyebabnya, para dosen dan mahasiswa PBI dapat melakukan
beberapa usaha untuk mengatasi masalah ini, yaitu menggunakan Bahasa Inggris
di dalam dan di luar kelas manakala memungkinkan, memberi koreksian dengan
bijaksana ketika mahasiswa membuat kesalahan, membantu mahasiswa untuk
terbiasa dengan Bahasa Inggris, berlatih, membiasakan diri terhadap penggunaan
Bahasa Inggris, serta belajar dari orang lain.
Kata kunci: kesalahan, frasa kata kerja, kelas Microteaching
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My greatest appreciation goes to Lord Jesus Christ, the Alpha, for
allowing me to do everything for the glory of the Lord. His everlasting love
makes me strong.
I am very grateful to have a great thesis advisor like Made Frida Yulia,

S.Pd., M.Pd., who has played a very important role in guiding me in completing
this thesis. She had contributed a lot to the successful completion of my thesis.
She is such a great thesis advisor. It was so impressive to be her thesis advisee.
I am also thankful to the Microteaching lecturers, Christina Kristiyani,
S.Pd., M.Pd. and Agustinus Hardi Prasetyo S.Pd., M.A. who had given me the
opportunity to access the data I needed.
Another sincere thank you goes to Paulus Aditya Hernawan Koel, who
had provided the data I needed and my research participants, Rosa Wuri
Arimurti, Ika Ningtyas Wijayanti, Maria Ivona Purwa Susanti, Elizabeth,
and Roandryo Sigma P. Surbakti, who had spared me their time. I thank them
for everything they did to help me.
I thank my family, my beloved father, Bapak Anselmus Alaman, my
blessed mother Ibu Maria E. Jemali, and my blessed brothers Marianus M. B.
Alaman, Flabianus F. Alaman, Yosephus Vincentio Alaman, who share the
Lord’s love with me every day.
I really thank God for having my brothers and sisters in Christ like Pak
Sapto, Mas Listyan, Mas Danang, Mas Bayu, Sister Guztin, Sister Aca, Sister
Berlin, Desta, Hetma, Mbak Ocha, Mbak Yiyin, and all other YB family
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members I cannot mention. They give me love, pray for me, and support me in
many ways. They are so precious to me and may God bless them all.
I would like to express another special thank you for my beloved one,
Albertus Gustari Putra Pratama, who loves me, cares about me, and prays for
me. May God bless him.
Last but not least, again, the greatest appreciation goes to my Saviour
Jesus Christ, the Omega for loving me personally. I love Him and I live for Him.

Paskalina Sukacita Alaman

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE ……………………………………………………………………...i
APPROVAL PAGES ……………………………………………………………..ii
DEDICATION PAGE ……………………………………………………………iv
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY……………………………………v
PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI …………………………………...vi
ABSTRACT ……………………………………………………………………..vii
ABSTRAK ……………………………………………………………………….viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ……………………………………………………...ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS ………………………………………………………..xi
LIST OF TABLES ……………………………………………………………...xiii
LIST OF FIGURE ……………………………………………………………....xiv
LIST OF APPENDICES ………………………………………………………..xv

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION
A. Research Background …………………………………………1
B. Research Problems…………………………………………….5
C. Problem Limitation …………………………………………...6
D. Research Objectives …………………………………………..6
E. Research Benefits ……………………………………………..7
F. Definition of Terms …………………………………………...8

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CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
A. Theoretical Description ……………………………………...11
1. Verb Phrases …………………………………………………11
2. Errors and Mistakes ………………………………………….15
3. Error Analysis ………………………………………….……21
B. Theoretical Framework ……………………………………...22

CHAPTER III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
A. Research Methods …………………………………………...24
B. Research Setting ……………………………………………..26
C. Research Participants ………………………………………..26
D. Instruments and Data Gathering Technique …………………27
E. Data Analysis Technique ……………………………………29
F. Research Procedure ………………………………………….30

CHAPTER IV. RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
A. The Errors in English Verb Phrases …………………………32
B. The Causes of the Errors and the Suggestions for Coping with
the Error Production …………………………………………43

CHAPTER V. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
A. Conclusions ………………………………………………….50
B. Recommendations …………………………………………...52
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………...54
APPENDICES
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LIST OF TABLES
Table

Page

2.1. Non-Finite Verb Phrases ……………………………………………………15
3.1 Checklist of Verb Phrase Error Types ……………………………………...30
3.2 Frequency Distribution of Error Types ………………………………………...30
4.1. The Summary of the Interview Results ……………………………………..43

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LIST OF FIGURE
Figure

Page

4.1 The Frequency of the Verb Phrase Error Occurrences ……………………...33

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LIST OF APPENDICES
Appendix

Page

A. The Samples of Video Transcripts …………………………………..56
B. The Checklist of Verb Phrase Error Types ………………………….67
C. Error Classifications and Examples …………………………………88
D. Frequency Distribution of Error Types ……………………………...94
E. The Blueprint of the Interview Guide ……………………………….96
F. The Interview Guide ………………………………………………...98
G. The Interview Transcripts ………………………………………….100

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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, the researcher is going to discuss the research background,
research problems, problem limitation, research objectives, research benefits, and
definition of terms.

A. Research Background
In a language, grammar is something which is of great importance.
Meaning can be expressed well through the use of appropriate grammar.
Inappropriate grammar can lead to chaos in delivering ideas and even, eventually,
may lead to misunderstanding. According to Bennet in his article entitled The
Importance of Good Grammar (2008), avoiding grammatical errors can help
people avoid low grades, lost employment opportunities, lost business, and
embarrassment. He also writes that grammatical errors in both speaking and
writing can distract from the message itself and cause negative feelings in the
listener or reader.
In schools, universities, or other educational institutions, English grammar
can be learned either explicitly or implicitly. In the English Language Education
Study Program (ELESP) of Sanata Dharma University, English grammar is
learned explicitly in Structure classes. There are five Structure classes in the
ELESP, namely Structure I, Structure II, Structure III, Structure IV, and Structure
V. In Structure V class the materials taught in the previous classes are reviewed.
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These Structure classes indeed are intended to help the ELESP students to
improve their knowledge of and skill in using appropriate English grammar.
Besides, English grammar is learned most implicitly in other classes such as
Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing.
Being good at using appropriate grammar is essential for ELESP students
since they are prepared and trained to be good English teachers. Perhaps it is true
that without using appropriate grammar, people can still deliver their thoughts or
information and others can still understand what they intend to say. However,
ELESP students are prepared not only to be able to speak English, but also to be
able to teach others. It is not enough for them just to be able to speak English only
to communicate because they are the ones who are responsible for teaching others
the knowledge of using appropriate grammar. If they themselves cannot use
English grammar appropriately, their students absolutely cannot do either and
eventually, if they themselves do not use appropriate grammar, nobody can be
expected to do then.
Unfortunately, some English Language Education Study Program of
Sanata Dharma University students, especially those who had taken all Structure
classes, who were supposed to have had the knowledge of and skill in using
appropriate grammar, often had problems with English grammar. Some lecturers
even often complained about this. In writing their thesis, for example, some
students still made many errors, even some silly ones. Another example is that in
teaching practices, students often made grammatical errors in speaking whereas

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each of them was supposed to be a model of someone using good grammar, as an
English teacher candidate should be.
In the Microteaching class the researcher attended, she conducted some
observations on her classmates’ use of appropriate English grammar. She took
notes of any grammatical errors which were produced when they practiced
teaching in front of the class. The errors made were related to inappropriate use of
English tenses, articles, relative and noun clauses, and prepositions. This little
evidence showed that some ELESP students, who were supposed to have had the
knowledge of appropriate English grammar, could still have problems in applying
the set of grammatical rules. It was these small observations and all the
complaints from ELESP lecturers about the quality of their students’ grammar use
that made the researcher decide to undertake a research on some inappropriate use
of English grammar. There was some kind of concern in the heart of the
researcher that encouraged her to do something, at least to make others realize this
phenomenon.
The researcher chose to conduct her research on speech or oral production.
There were some reasons for choosing to focus on the spoken language. Firstly, it
was obvious that grammatical errors themselves could be made when students
used English either in writing or in speech. Errors even were more likely to occur
in speaking since students should have taken less time to think about what to
speak than what to write. Fluency is important, but accuracy is important, too.
Secondly, the researcher believes that it is important for university students,
especially teacher candidates, to pay more attention to improving the awareness of

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the grammatical errors in their speech, then to the awareness of using appropriate
grammar. It is because most learning occurs through imitation. People, especially
children in most cases, imitate what they hear from their teachers and what they
hear is the spoken language of their teachers. Therefore, teachers had inevitably to
be careful with what comes out of their mouth. They were supposed not to be bad
examples for their students. As mentioned previously, they are supposed to be a
good model of an English speaker. Besides, avoiding grammatical errors can help
avoid lost employment opportunities and embarrassment. When they apply for a
job in an educational institution or company, very often they have to pass some
Microteaching or interview tests. It may be difficult to make the employer
impressed or sure about their qualifications if they say “I can had more time to
learn” instead of “I could have more time to learn.” Using grammar appropriately
helps them to avoid embarrassment.
The researcher examined the errors related to English verb phrases. The
reason to focus on this particular material was that errors in verb phrases are so
apparent and easily recognized since a verb phrase is the main part of a clause.
An English clause consists of at least a noun phrase as the subject and a verb
phrase. What tense a sentence belongs to, which shows the time of the situation, is
indicated by the verb phrase of the sentence, specifically, its finite verb phrase.
The meaning of the sentence “I can had more time to learn” can still be grasped
but the sentence is grammatically inaccurate. That sentence is a bad example for
students. In the job realm, the sentence may bother other people who understand
English grammar; in this case, employers. In addition, whether a sentence has an

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active or a passive meaning is determined by the verb phrase. The sentence “It has
eaten” is completely different in meaning from the sentence “It has been eaten.”
The former is an active sentence whether the latter is a passive one and the use of
the former to mean to say the latter will distract the message intended to deliver.
Distraction in the delivery of a message can lead to misunderstanding.
The researcher chose to carry out a research in the Microteaching class
organized by the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma
University in the academic year 2010/2011. One reason to choose the
Microteaching class was that the students enrolled in the course were those who in
general had taken all the Structure classes. In addition, the students were being
prepared for teaching in schools. It means that, as mentioned previously, they
were the students who were supposed to be a model of someone using appropriate
grammar. She researched the students’ speech when they practice teaching. She
focused on the verb phrase errors in their speech and then she analyzed them.

B. Research Problems
There are three problems formulated and they are presented as follows.
1. What are the verb phrase errors that Microteaching students have made in
their speech?
2. What are the causes of the errors that the students have made in their speech?
3. What are the suggestions for coping with the error production?

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C. Problem Limitation
The researcher limited her research by choosing the Microteaching class in
the ELESP in the academic year 2010/2011. The reason to choose the class was
that simply it was the Microteaching which was being run at the time the
researcher decided to conduct her research. The reason to choose them was that
they were representative of students who have taken all Structure classes, at least
once. In addition, they were preparing themselves for Program Pengalaman
Lapangan (PPL), in which they would teach Junior High School and Senior High
School students.
Through the study, the researcher investigated only the errors related to
English verb phrases. The reason for the researcher to focus only on these errors
was that the researcher believed that verb phrases were crucial. The errors in this
part were bad examples for students and might bother other people who
understand English grammar. In addition, the errors might result in
misunderstanding.

D. Research Objectives
The researcher has formulated the problems previously. Based on those
problems, the researcher formulates the objectives of this research, namely to find
out:
1. The verb phrase errors that Microteaching students have made in their speech.
2. The causes of the errors that the students have made in their speech.
3. The suggestions for coping with the error production.

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E. Research Benefits
After analyzing the grammatical errors in the use of verb phrases that the
students make in their speech as well as the causes of and suggestions for coping
with the errors, this study is hoped to be beneficial for:
1. The lecturers of the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata
Dharma University
Quality is one thing that is offered by the English Language Education
Study Program of Sanata Dharma University to the students. No doubt this is
closely related to the role of the lecturers. It is expected that after realizing those
errors and the causes and suggestions for coping with the problem, the lecturers
will pay more attention to the difficult parts of verb phrases, the material in which
students often make mistakes. The awareness can make the lecturers motivated to
find teaching strategies which can help the students better their grammar. The
results of the research can be valuable information for the lecturers to help them
solve their students’ problems.
2. The students of the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata
Dharma University
It is expected that after realizing the errors students frequently make and
the causes, the students of the ELESP of Sanata Dharma University, especially
those who will teach English to others, be motivated and learn to better their own
grammar by trying to minimize the same errors in the use of verb phrases. They
will know the errors which they are likely to produce and the causes so that they

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can be more aware of them and be motivated not to make the same errors. Thus,
realizing those parts will improve their learning.
3. Future researchers
It is expected that the results of the research will be valuable information
for the future researchers who are interested in researching similar phenomenon or
problem. The knowledge of the researchers who want to conduct another similar
research or continue the research will be enriched. They can use any information
they need from the research to help them or guide them to conduct some similar
researches.

F. Definition of Terms
Here is some explanation of the terms the researcher uses which can help
the readers understand the study.
1. Errors
According to Dulay, Burt, and Krashen (1982), errors are the competence
errors which result from the lack of knowledge of the rules of the target language
and the performance errors caused by factors such as fatigue and inattention (p.
139). Errors are one of the things the researcher tried to find out in the utterances
produced by Microteaching students of the ELESP in the academic year
2010/2011. The researcher tried to examine the students’ errors in using verb
phrases in the spoken language. The errors were any inappropriate verb phrases
or, in other words, the verb phrases which violated English grammatical rules.

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In the study it is needed to understand the difference between an error and
a mistake, although it may not be always an easy task. Brown (1987, p.170) has
pointed out that errors are different from mistakes. Mistakes can be a random
guess or a slip reflecting a performance error.
2. Verb Phrases
According to Hadisoeprapto (1984), a phrase is a word or a group of
words (more than one) which does not consist of a subject and a predicate (p. 47),
e.g. a beautiful house and have been watching. Furthermore, he also points out
that a verb phrase is a group of words which consists of auxiliary verbs and verbs
and functions as a predicate (p. 49), e.g. is walking, where is is the auxiliary verb
and walking is the verb. The researcher seeks to find the verb phrases in the
participants’ speech which violate English grammatical rules. This is done to
answer the first research question.
3. Speech
According to Pei (1966), speech means the verbal expression of thought
(p. 255). Speech means the language used when speaking, or spoken language. In
the study, the researcher examines the grammatical errors concerning English verb
phrases in the students’ speech when they practiced teaching in front of the class.
4. Microteaching
Microteaching is a form of instructional development where small groups
of peers observe each other teaching, provide feedback, and engage in discussion
with the goal of one another’s instructional ability (Teaching Support Services,
2007). In the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma

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University, Microteaching class is one of the classes organized by the college
intended to prepare its students before they teach in schools. The researcher used
the speech or spoken language of the Microteaching students of the English
Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University in the academic
year 2010/2011 to be analyzed.

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CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

There are two main parts in this chapter. The researcher is going to present
the theoretical description and theoretical framework based on the theoretical
concepts. In the theoretical description, the researcher is going to present the kinds
of English verb phrases, the theory of errors, and the theory of error analysis. In
the theoretical framework, the researcher is going to synthesize all the relevant
theories, which will be helpful in conducting and completing the research.

A.

Theoretical Description
In this part, the researcher presents some theories. The first is about verb

phrases. In this part, the kinds of verb phrases, namely finite verb phrases and
non-finite verb phrases are presented. Additionally, the characteristics of each of
them are also presented. The second is about errors, including various types of
errors and the sources of errors and the last concerns error analysis.
1.

Verb Phrases
According to Hadisoeprapto (1984), a verb phrase is a word or a group of

words which may consist only of a verb or a combination of an auxiliary verb and
a verb and functions as a predicate (p. 49), e.g. is walking. According to Quirk,
Greenbaum, Leech, and Svartvik there are some kinds of verb phrases (1972, pp.
71-75).

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a.

Finite Verb Phrases
Finite verb phrases have some characteristics which differentiate them

from non-finite verb phrases. The verb phrases also consist of simple and complex
finite verb phrases.
1)

The Characteristics of Finite Verb Phrases
Finite verb phrases have some characteristics. These are the characteristics

and the examples of each.
a)

Tense Distinction
Finite verb phrases have tense distinction, that is, present tense and past

tense to express grammatical time relations, e.g.
[1]

She reads a book.

b)

The Verb Phrase of a Main Clause
Finite verb phrases can occur as the verb phrase of a main clause, e.g.

[2]
c)

He makes his bed every morning.
Mood
Finite verb phrases have mood, indicating the speaker’s attitude to the

predication (indicative, imperative: to express a command, and subjunctive: to
express a wish, recommendation, and so forth). Both the imperative and the
present subjunctive consist of the base form of the verb, e.g.
[3]

I suggest you give him a call.

d)

Finite Verb Form
Finite verb phrases have a finite verb form, e.g.

[4]

The baby cried.

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2)

Kinds of Finite Verb Phrases
Finite verb phrases consist of simple and complex finite verb phrases. The

former differs from the latter in the way that they consist of only one verb.
a)

Simple Finite Verb Phrases
The finite verb phrase is simple when it consists of only one verb, which

may be imperative, present, or past, e.g.
[5]

I run quickly.

b)

Complex Finite Verb Phrases
There are four basic types of complex finite verb phrases (Quirk et al.,

1972). Each consists of two verbs.
i)

Type A (Modal/Periphrastic)
It consists of a modal or periphrastic auxiliary + the base of the verb-

phrase head, e.g.
[6]

They may disturb.

ii)

Type B (Perfective)
It consists of the auxiliary have + the –ed participle of the verb-phrase

head. For example:
[7]
iii)

They have disturbed.
Type C (Progressive)
It consists of the auxiliary be + the –ing participle of the verb-phrase head.

For example:
[8]

They are disturbing.

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iv)

Type D (Passive)
It consists of the auxiliary be + the –ed participle of the verb-phrase head.

For example:
[9]

They are disturbed.

v)

Various Combinations
These four types can also enter into various combinations with each other.

These are the combinations and the examples.
[10]

AB: They may have disturbed.

[11]

AC: They may be disturbing.

[12]

AD: They may be disturbed.

[13]

BC: They have been disturbing.

[14]

BD: They have been disturbed.

[15]

CD: They are being disturbed.

[16]

ABC: They may have been disturbing.

[17]

ABD: They may have been disturbed.

[18]

ACD: They may be being disturbed.

[19]

BCD: They have been being disturbed.

[20]

ABCD: They may have been being disturbed.

b.

Non-Finite Verb Phrases
Non-finite verb phrases have no tense distinction or imperative mood, and

cannot occur in construction with a subject of a main clause (as shown in Table
2.1.), e.g.
[i] *She to cry. It should be She cried.

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Since modal auxiliaries have no infinitive or participle form, they cannot occur in
non-finite verb phrases. However, as presented in Table 2.1, the auxiliaries have
and be have no such restriction.

Table 2.1. Non-Finite Verb Phrases
Infinitives
Simple

Complex

Participles

to disturb

disturbing

B

to have disturbed

having disturbed

C

to be disturbing

being disturbing*)

D

to be disturbed

being disturbed

BC

to have been disturbing

having been disturbing

BD

to have been disturbed

having been disturbed

CD

to be being disturbed

being being disturbed*)

BCD

to have been being disturbed?

having been being disturbed?

(Quirk et al., 1972, p. 75)
Notes:
* Unacceptable
? Speakers feel them awkward

2.

Errors and Mistakes
According to Dulay et al. (1982, p. 138), errors are the flawed side of

learner speech or writing. They are those parts of conversation or composition that
deviate from some selected norm of mature language performance. Furthermore,
as discussed previously, they state that errors are the competence errors which

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
16
result from the lack of knowledge of the rules of the target language and the
performance errors caused by factors such as fatigue and inattention (Dulay et al.,
1982, p. 139). The performance errors are also called “mistakes”. According to
Brown (1987, p.170), mistakes can be a random guess or a slip reflecting a
performance error. Therefore, mistakes can be corrected by those who produce
them, while errors cannot and need further explanation.
a.

Error Types
There are some sorts of errors based on linguistic category (Dulay et al.,

1982, pp. 154-172), namely:
1)

Omission
Omission is the absence of an item that must appear in a well-formed

utterance, e.g.
[ii] *Mary president of the new company instead of Mary is the president of the
new company.

2)

Addition
Addition is the presence of an item that must not appear in a well-formed

utterance. There are some kinds of addition.
a)

Regularization
Regularization, or also often called overgeneralization, is the application

of a regular rule to an item which requires a special rule, e.g.
[iii]*eated instead of ate
b)

Double Marking

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Double marking is an error in which a concept is expressed twice when the
language requires its expression only once. It is also called simple addition error.
The example of this kind of error is double negation, e.g.
[iv]

*We hardly never go instead of We hardly go or We never go.

3)

Misformation
It is the use of the wrong form of a morpheme or structure. There are three

types of misformations, namely:
a)

Regularization Errors
Regularization errors that fall under the misformation category are those in

which a regular marker is used in place of an irregular one, e.g.
[v]

*runned instead of ran

b)

Archi-forms
They are the use of one member of a class of forms to represent others in

the class, e.g.
[vi]
c)

*Them going to town instead of They are going to town.
Alternation
It is the use of members of one grammatical class for each other, for

example plural for singular. It is also called alternating form.

4)

Misordering
It is the incorrect placement of a morpheme or group of morphemes in an

utterance, e.g.

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[vii]

*I don’t know what is that instead of I don’t know what that is.

Omission, addition, misformation, and misordering all fall under a surface
strategy taxonomy, which highlights the ways surface structures are altered.

5)

Developmental Errors
They are the ones similar to those made by children learning the target

language as their first language, e.g.:
[viii] *Dog eat it instead of The dog ate it.
The article and past tense marker are omitted in sentence [40]; these are also
found in the speech of children learning English as their first language.

6)

Interlingual Errors
They are similar in structure to a semantically equivalent phrase or

sentence in the learner’s native language. For example:
[ix]

*The man funny instead of The man is funny.

7)

Ambiguous Errors
They are those that could be classified equally well as developmental or

interlingual. That is because these errors reflect the learner’s native language
structure, and at the same time, they are of the type found in the speech of
children acquiring a first language. For example:
[x]

*I no have a car instead of I don’t have any car.

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8)

Other Errors
These errors are unique to a second language learner and do not fit into

any other category. For example:
[xi]

*She do hungry instead of She is hungry.

Developmental, interlingual, ambiguous, and other errors all fall under a
comparative taxonomy, which is based on comparisons between the structure of
second language errors and certain other types of constructions

9)

Global Errors
They are the errors that affect overall sentence organization and

significantly hinder communication. For example:
[xii]

*English language use many people instead of English language is used by
many people.

10)

Local Errors
Errors that affect single elements (constituents) in a sentence do not

usually hinder communication significantly. These include errors in noun and
verb inflections, articles, auxiliaries and the formation of quantifiers. For
example:
[xiii] *Why like we each other? instead of Why do we like each other?

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b.

Error Sources
According to Tarigan and Tarigan (1988, pp. 85-89), errors can be

classified into interlanguage errors and intralingual errors. Interlanguage errors
result from the interference of learners’ first language (L1) in the language being
learned (second language/L2). On the other hand, intralingual errors are those
which are not affected by learners’ L1 and reflect general characteristics of the
learned rules. There are four causes of intralingual errors, namely:
1)

Overgeneralization
It is the application of the regular strategies to new situations. An L2

learner creates a deviant language structure in his L2 production based on his
experience in L1 production. Richards points out that this may happen because L2
learners want to ease their “linguistic burdens” (as cited in Tarigan & Tarigan,
1988). For example:
[xiv]

*The girl is walks on foot to school instead of The girl walks on foot to

school.

2)

Ignorance of Rule Restrictions
It is the failure to observe the rule restrictions in the target language; the

application of some rules in the contexts in which those rules are not applicable.
For example:
[xv]

*the book that I read it instead of the book which I read

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3)

Incomplete Application of Rules
Incomplete application of rules happens when learners create deviant

structures in their language production because they may be interested in how to
use language efficiently to communicate without having to master all the rules
necessary for the utterances they produce. It reflects the level of the development
of the rules necessary to produce acceptable utterances. For example:
[xvi]

*You like this? instead of Do you like this?

4)

Falsely-Hypothesized Concepts
Falsely-hypothesized concepts result from inappropriate understanding on

the distinctions in the target language. For example:
[xvii] *We are live in a small but beautiful house instead of We live in a small
but beautiful house.
[xviii] *She was said, “I don’t know the answer” instead of She said, “I don’t
know the answer.”

5. Error Analysis
Dulay et al. (1982) define an error analysis as the listing and classification
of the errors contained in a sample of learner’s speech or writing (p. 277). Asher
(1994, p. 740) states that an error analysis is the procedure of describing and
explaining errors systematically. He further points out that the error analysis has
pedagogical and psycholinguistic aim. The pedagogical aim is roughly to provide

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
22
feedback about teaching methods and materials. The psycholinguistic aim is to
throw light on how languages are learned and produced.
There are two major purposes to study learners’ errors (Dulay et al., 1982,
p. 138). The first one is that it provides data from which inferences about the
nature of the language learning process can be made. The second one is that it
indicates to teachers and curriculum developers which part of the target language
students have most difficulty producing correctly and which error types detract
most from a learner’s ability to communicate effectively.

B. Theoretical Framework
In this section the researcher will address the synthesis of all the theories
to support her research. First of all, it is important to really understand what an
error means and how important it is to study students’ errors. The researcher
learns that errors, as Dulay et al. explain (1982, p. 138), are the parts of a
conversation or composition which are inappropriate to a language’s rules. To pay
attention to errors is necessary because it can help the teacher to give feedback to
students and, as Asher (1994, p. 740) points out, later it can help him improve his
teaching methods and materials. Since it is not easy to examine which erroneous
utterances are errors and which are mistakes, the researcher decided to analyze all
utterances which violated the rules of verb phrases.
To identify and examine students’ errors, an error analysis must be done.
Error analysis is an activity aimed at identifying and “making use” of the errors
that the students produced. In this study the researcher attempts to conduct an

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23
error analysis on the Microteaching students’ speech or spoken language. After
collecting the errors, she uses Dulay’s classification of errors, namely omission,
addition, misordering, misformation, interlingual errors, local errors, global errors,
and other errors (Dulay et al., 1982, pp. 154-172) to analyze those errors. The
researcher decides not to use all categories to avoid confusion in the discussion of
the research results because some of the categories are very similar to each other.
In addition to using Dulay’s classification of errors, the researcher uses Tarigan’s
four causes of intralingual errors, namely overgeneralization, ignorance of rule
restrictions, incomplete application of rules, and falsely-hypothesized concepts
(Tarigan & Tarigan, 1988, pp. 85-89) to help find out what causes those errors.
She uses that theory since she is convinced that this theory will be very helpful for
her in focusing on the intralingual errors, in digging up the reasons why the
participants make such errors.

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

CHAPTER III
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In this chapter, firstly the researcher is going to discuss the methods,
setting, participants, and instruments and data gathering technique of the research.
After that, the researcher is going to describe the data analysis technique.
Eventually, she is going to give some description about the steps of the research
procedure.

A.

Research Methods
This study was a sort of a descriptive research because it was aimed at

describing the grammatical errors related to the use of verb phrases found in the
speech or spoken language of Microteaching students of English Language
Education Study Program (ELESP) of Sanata Dharma University in the academic
year 2010/2011. According to Sprinthall, Schmutte, and Sirois (1991), a research
is typically called descriptive when the primary purpose of the research is
description, rather than some other basic goal such as looking for differences
between groups or relationships among variables (p. 98).
The researcher carried out a document analysis, or also often called
content analysis (Ary, Jacobs, & Razavieh, 2007, p. 461), since the researcher
collected some data related to the incorrect verb phrases in the participants’
speech in documents. The content analysis was conducted mainly to answer the
first research question, that is, to find out the verb phrase errors produced by the
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PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
25
students in their speech. In addition, the method was employed to answer the
second research question, that is, to find out the causes of the errors that the
students produced. However, because the researcher realized that it was not
enough just to employ this method to answer the second research question, she
also conducted a survey to help her to find out what caused the verb phrase errors.
The documents themselves, according to Bogdan and Biklen (2003), are
materials such as photographs, videos, films, memos, letters, diaries, clinical case
records, and memorabilia of all sorts (p. 57). There are three main types of
documents (Bogdan & Biklen, 2003, p. 58).
1.

Personal documents: those produced by individuals for private purposes

and limited use such as letters, diaries, and autobiographies.
2.

Official documents: produced by organizational employees for record-

keeping and dissemination purposes such as memos, newsletters, and files and the
like are used to study bureaucratic rhetoric.
3.

Popular culture documents: produced for commercial purposes to

entertain, persuade, and enlighten the public such as commercials, TV
programmes, news reports, or audio and visual recordings.
The researcher used the second type of document, specifically, student records.
The records are usually kept by schools and particularly elaborate and important
(Bogdan & Biklen, 2003, p. 129).
Gall, Gall, and Borg (2007) state that content analysis has been defined as
a generic name for a variety of means of textual analysis that involve comparing,
contrasting, and categorizing a corpus of data to test hypotheses (p. 288). There

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26
are some steps in a content analysis in a qualitative research. Firstly, it typically
begins with identifying documents and records that are representative of the
phenomenon that the researcher plans to study. The next will be determining
which materials might be relevant to his research study. Then, he determines how
he can collect these materials for analysis within the guidelines for ethical conduct
of research. Eventually, he will need to consider the validity of the materials (Gall
et al., 2007, p. 292).
As having been stated previously, the researcher also conducted a survey.
The survey research was carried out by the researcher mainly to help her to
answer the second and third research questions. She carried out a sample survey.
A sample survey is one that investigates only part of a population (Ary et al.,
2007, p. 451). They further explain that a sample survey can be done to measure
opinions, achievements, and other psychological or sociological contracts. In this
study, the survey was done by having interviews with some of the participants.

B. Research Setting
The research was carried out in the Microteaching class of the ELESP in
the academic year 2010/2011. The research was conducted in the odd semester of
the academic year 2011/2012.

C. Research Participants
The participants of the research were 30 Microteaching students of the
English Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University in the academic

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
27
year 2010/2011 who were doing their teaching practices. The reason to choose the
participants was that they were representative of senior students, who had learned
English grammar for such a long time and at that time they were being prepared to
teach. All those students were the participants for the content or document
analysis, bu