Tài liệu Common errors in the use of past tense and aspects in active voice by the 11th_ grade students thanh ba high school

HANOI PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY No.2 FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES NGUYEN THI TU COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF PAST TENSE AND ASPECTS IN ACTIVE VOICE BY THE 11TH – GRADE STUDENTS AT THANH BA HIGH SCHOOL (SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN ENGLISH) SUPERVISOR: NGUYEN THI MEN, M.A. Hanoi, 2013 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to take this chance to express my deepest gratitude to Mrs. Nguyen Thi Men, M.A., my supervisor, for her patience in providing continuous and careful guidance as well as encouragement, indispensable suggestions and advice. I am greatly indebted to the teachers of English at Thanh Ba High School, in Thanh Ba district, Phu Tho province; especially Mrs. Đào Thị Quyết for her help and guidance while I was carrying out the survey. I wish to thank all the teachers at Hanoi Pedagogical University No.2, especially the teachers at the Foreign Language Faculty who helped me completing my research. Constantly, rather than finally, I want to send my thankful words to my family, for their whole – hearted encouragement and endless support. I ABSTRACT The past tense and aspects are forms of a verb that show the time, continuance or completion of an action or a state that is expressed in connection with the past at which a statement is made about it. However, the uses of the past tense aspects that are referred to in some books have not been dealt with adequately and sometimes cause confusion to learners of English. As a result, learners of English often make errors when they use the past tense and aspects. Therefore, this research work entails studying the uses of the past tense aspects and conducting a survey for error analysis. Based on the results of the survey, the types of errors and causes have found. Solutions to the problems have been suggested. II STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP Title: COMMON ERROS IN THE USE OF PAST TENSE AND ASPECTS IN ACTIVE VOICE BY THE 11TH-GRADE STUDENTS AT THANH BA HIGH SCHOOL I certify that no part of this report has been copied or reproduced by me from any other person’s work without acknowledgement and that the report is originally written by me under strict guidance from my supervisor. Date submitted: May, 2013 Student Supervisor Nguyen Thi Tu Nguyen Thị Men, M.A. III TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................ I ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................... II STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ............................................................... III TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................... IV PART ONE INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale ........................................................................................................ 1 2. Research objectives ........................................................................................ 2 3. Research questions ......................................................................................... 2 4. Research scope ............................................................................................... 2 5. Research tasks ................................................................................................ 3 6. Research method ............................................................................................ 3 7. Significance of the propose research .............................................................. 3 8. Design of the research work ........................................................................... 4 PART TWO DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1. LITERATURE REVIEW IN BRIEF ........................................................... 6 1.2 PAST TENSE AND ASPECTS ................................................................... 7 1.2.1. The simple past tense aspect ..................................................................... 8 1.2.1.1. Form of the simple past tense aspect with regular verbs ........................ 8 1.2.1.1.1. Positive form ...................................................................................... 8 1.2.1.1.2. Negative and interrogative forms ........................................................ 8 IV 1.2.1.2. Form of the simple past tense aspect with irregular verbs ...................... 8 1.2.1.2.1. Form of the simple past tense aspect: positive .................................... 8 1.2.1.2.2. Form of the simple past tense aspect: negative and interrogative forms ........................................................................................................................... 9 1.2.1.3. The regular past simple verbs: pronunciation and spelling ................... 10 1.2.1.3.1. Pronunciation of the regular past simple verbs.................................. 10 1.2.1.3.2. Spelling of the regular past simple verbs .......................................... 11 1.2.1.4. Note on the past simple form of irregular verbs ................................... 12 1.2.1.5. Uses of the simple past tense aspect..................................................... 13 1.2.1.5.1. Completed actions ............................................................................ 13 1.2.1.5.2. Past habit .......................................................................................... 14 1.2.1.5.3. Immediate past ................................................................................. 14 1.2.1.5.4. Polite inquiries .................................................................................. 14 1.2.1.6. Adverbials with the simple past tense aspect ....................................... 14 1.2.1.7. Past simple tense aspect in typical contexts ......................................... 15 1.2.2. The past progressive tense aspect ........................................................... 15 1.2.2.1. Form of the past progressive tense aspect ............................................ 15 1.2.2.2. Spelling: How to add “-ing” to a verb .................................................. 16 1.2.2.3. Stative verbs ........................................................................................ 17 1.2.2.4. Uses of the past progressive tense aspect ............................................. 17 1.2.2.4.1. Actions in progress in the past .......................................................... 17 1.2.2.4.2. Actions which began before something else happened and were still in progress ............................................................................................................ 18 1.2.2.4.3. Parallel actions ................................................................................. 18 1.2.2.4.4. Repeated actions - criticism .............................................................. 19 1.2.2.4.5. Polite inquiries .................................................................................. 19 1.2.2.4.6. Using for plans ................................................................................. 19 1.2.3. The simple past perfect tense aspect ....................................................... 20 1.2.3.1. Form of the simple past perfect tense aspect ........................................ 20 1.2.3.2. Uses of the simple past perfect tense aspect ......................................... 20 V 1.2.3.2.1 The simple past perfect referring to an earlier past............................. 20 1.2.3.2.2. The past perfect as the past equivalent of the present perfect ............ 20 1.2.3.2.3. The past perfect for unfulfilled hopes and wishes ............................. 21 1.2.3.3. Obligatory and non – obligatory uses of the past perfect ..................... 21 1.2.3.4. Simple past and simple past perfect in typical contexts........................ 22 1.2.4. The past perfect progressive tense aspect................................................ 22 1.2.4.1. Form of the past perfect progressive tense aspect ................................ 22 1.2.4.2. Uses of the past perfect progressive tense aspect ................................. 23 1.2.4.2.1. Actions in the progress throughout a period ...................................... 23 1.2.4.2.2. The past perfect progressive for repeated actions ............................. 23 1.2.4.2.3. The past perfect progressive for drawing conclusions ....................... 23 1.2.4.3. The past perfect simple and past perfect progressive tense aspect in comparison ....................................................................................................... 24 CHAPTER TWO COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF PAST TENSE AND ASPECTS 2.1. SURVEY................................................................................................... 25 2.1.1. Purpose of the survey ............................................................................. 25 2.1.2. Population of the survey ......................................................................... 26 2.1.3. Type of the survey .................................................................................. 26 2.1.4. Construction of the survey ...................................................................... 26 2.1.5. Preparation of the survey ........................................................................ 27 2.1.5.1. Test items. ........................................................................................... 27 2.1.5.2. Arrangement of the survey .................................................................. 28 2.1.6. Administration of the try – out................................................................ 28 2.1.6.1. Preparation of the try – out .................................................................. 28 2.1.6.2. Try – out .............................................................................................. 29 2.1.7. Method of data analysis .......................................................................... 29 2.1.8. Results of the survey .............................................................................. 30 VI 2.2. COMMON ERRORS AND CAUSES IN THE USE OF PAST TENSES . 33 2.2.1. Error and causes in the use of the simple present perfect tense aspect for the simple past tense aspect .............................................................................. 33 2.2.2. Error and causes in the use of the past simple tense aspect of irregular verbs ................................................................................................................ 34 2.2.3. Error and causes in pronunciation of the regular past.............................. 35 2.2.4. Error and causes in the use of the simple past tense aspect for the past perfect tense aspect .......................................................................................... 36 2.2.5. Error and causes in the use of “love, like, want” in the past progressive tense aspect ...................................................................................................... 37 2.2.6. Error and causes in the use of “was/ were” in the past simple tense aspect and the past progressive tense aspect ................................................................ 38 2.2.7. Error and causes in adding “-ing” to a verb in the past progressive tense aspect and the past perfect progressive tense aspect ......................................... 39 2.2.8. Error and causes in adding “-ed” to a regular verb in the past simple tense aspect and the past perfect tense aspect ............................................................ 40 2.3. SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS AND SUGGESTED EXERCISES .............. 40 2.3.1. Suggested solutions ................................................................................ 40 2.3.1.1. Suggested solutions for the error in the use of the simple present perfect tense aspect for the simple past tense aspect ..................................................... 41 2.3.1.2. Suggested solutions for the error in the use of the past simple tense aspect of irregular verbs ................................................................................... 42 2.3.1.3. Suggested solutions for the error in pronunciation of the regular past .. 43 2.3.1.4. Suggested solutions for the error in the use of the simple past tense aspect for the past perfect tense aspect ............................................................. 43 2.3.1.5. Suggested solutions for the error in the use of “love, like, want” in the past progressive tense aspect. ........................................................................... 44 2.3.1.6. Suggested solutions for the error in the use of “was/ were” in the past simple tense aspect and the past progressive tense aspect ................................. 45 VII 2.3.1.7. Suggested solutions for the error in adding “-ing” to a verb in the past progressive aspect and the past perfect progressive tense aspect ...................... 45 2.3.1.8. Suggested solutions for the error in adding “-ed” to a verb in the past simple tense aspect and the past perfect tense aspect. ....................................... 46 2.3.2. Suggested exercises ................................................................................ 47 PART THREE CONCLUSION 3.1. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................... 49 3.2. IMPLICATIONS OF THE STUDY .......................................................... 50 3.3 LIMTTATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH ... 51 REFERENCES ................................................................................................... i APPENDICES .................................................................................................. iii SURVEY QUESTIONAIRE ............................................................................. iii SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE TO INTERVIEW THE STUDENTS ................ xi SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE TO INTERVIEW THE TEACHERS ............... xv SUGGESTED EXERCISES ........................................................................... xix VIII PART ONE INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale English is considered the international language, which is used in almost all aspects of life. It is the fact that there are many foreign companies in Vietnam nowadays, therefore it can not be denied that English is an important foreign language in Vietnam and learning English seems to play an important role in developing the country. In Vietnam, English is taught at every educational level, from primary to tertiary education as a compulsory subject. However, learning English is very difficult, especially to Vietnamese because each language has its own system and Vietnamese is far different from English. These differences in the systems of languages may lead to many problems for language learners. Especially, even the tenses and aspects of verb, the language categories that students are taught first and foremost and most frequently when they study English, cause great difficulties to Vietnamese learners in general. From my observation, I myself find that even though the students at Thanh Ba High School read many grammar books and receive careful explanations from their teachers, they still make errors or are confused when they use verb tenses and aspects such as the past tense and aspects. Aiming at helping solve this problem, the study is carried out in order to find out the errors the students of Thanh Ba High School often make when they use past tenses and aspects. Furthermore, some suggestions are mentioned in the hope that studying and using English verb tenses and aspects are easier and more effective to students in general and those at Thanh Ba High School in particular. The problems posed for Vietnamese learners of English in general and the students at Thanh Ba High School in particular in regard to verb tense and aspects, especially those of the past, have not yet been adequately investigated. Therefore, this study aims to fill the gap in research in this area. 1 2. Research objectives The main objective of the study is to uncover the difficulties encountered by the students at Thanh Ba High School when they study about and use English past tenses and aspects and then provide some suggested solutions to improve the problem; therefore, it has to achieve three sub-objectives as following: 1. To find the major errors in the use of past tense and aspects often made by the eleventh- grade students at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013. 2. To find the causes of the errors in the use of past tense and aspects made by the eleventh- grade students at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013. 3. To provide some suggestions to help the students avoid the main errors in the use of past tense and aspects. 3. Research questions In order to achieve the objectives of the study, the research questions below will be addressed: 1. What kind of error in the use of past tense and aspects is the most often made by the eleventh- grade students at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013? 2. What are the causes of the errors in the use of past tenses made by the eleventh- grade students at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013? 3. What are the suggested ways for teachers and students to solve the problem? 4. Research scope The general research area of this study is grammar. The issue is errors in the use of past tenses and aspects made by the students in grade 11 at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013. The population involved in the study is one hundred eleventh – grade students at Thanh Ba High School. 2 Because tense is one of the most complex grammar including passive voice and active voice. Thus, in scope of my study, I just focus on the active voice so that I can find the common errors in the use of past tense and aspects, and the suggested solutions for this problem. 5. Research tasks The study involves fulfilling the following tasks 1. To study the forms of past tenses and aspects. 2. To research the regular past verbs: pronunciation and spelling. 3. To research the spelling: how to add “-ing” to a verb in the past progressive tense aspect. 4. To study the uses of past tense and aspects. 5. To conduct a survey to find out common errors and causes. And basing on the finding, some suggested solutions to the problem can be introduced. 6. Research method To gain the objectives and aims of the study, the following methods have been used: 1. Quantitative method. 2. Qualitative method. 7. Significance of the propose research Errors in learning any language, especially in English, as a foreign language, are very normal and sometimes predictable but sometimes unpredictable. Therefore, it is indispensable for teachers to have some suitable solutions to the problem. After finished, the study is hoped to provide: 1. Input for students in general and the students at Thanh Ba High School in particular in order to minimize their errors in the use of past tense and aspects in active voice. 2. Input for teacher of English in general and the teachers of English at Thanh Ba High School in particular with essential information on various kinds of 3 errors made by their students and some suggested solutions to help them effectively improve the teaching process towards the theme. 8. Design of the research work The study has three main part including introduction, development, and conclusion. PART I: INTRODUCTION This part includes rationale, research questions, research objectives, research questions, research scope, research tasks, research methods, and design of the research work PART II: DEVELOPMENT This has two chapter named “theoretical background” and “common errors in the use of past tense and aspects made by the students in grade 11 at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013”. In chapter one, the theoretical backgrounds on the past tense and aspects, which consist two sections named “Literature review in brief” and “past tense and aspects”. In the second section of this chapter, almost of all theoretical background s on past tense and aspects are provided such as forms of verb, the uses of past tense and aspects, and so on. Chapter 2 is “Common errors in the use of past tense and aspects made by the students in grade 11 at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013”. In this chapter, four sections are introduced. Section 1 includes the survey, section 2 mentions the kinds of error in the use of past tense and aspects made by the students in grade 11 at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013. Section 3 explains the causes of the errors. And the last section, some suggested solutions are provided to help the students in grade 11 at Thanh Ba High School in the academic year of 2012 – 2013reduce making errors in the use of past tense and aspects. 4 PART III: CONCLUSION This part provides a brief summary. 5 PART TWO DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1. LITERATURE REVIEW IN BRIEF Past tense and aspects have been written by many grammarians like L. G. Alexander (1988), Betty Schrampfer Azar (1992), Elaine Walker Steve Elsworth (1988), John Eastwood (1992), George Jule (2006), Alice Maclin (1981), Raymond Murphy (1985) ect., and each of them has their own way to describe the past tense and aspects. In general, they focus on the information, usages, ect. In the book English Grammar, L. G. Alexander (1988) describes the usages of the past tense. He mentions the forms, usages, keywords of the past tense and aspects. Moreover, he clearly describes the form of the simple past tense with regular verbs and irregular verbs; Pronunciation and spelling rules of regular verbs with simple past tense aspect and mentions the rule to add “-ing” to verbs in past progressive tense aspect as well as cases of typical contexts in which the simple past and simple past perfect tense aspects are used. In addition, he compares between the simple past perfect tense aspect and the past perfect progressive tense aspect on forms, usages and adverbials as signals. And he also describes both similarities and differences between present perfect progressive and past perfect progressive tense aspect. Together with L. G. Alexander (1988), in the book Oxford practice Grammar intermediate, John Eastwood (2006) also shows the forms and usages of all the past tense aspects. Beside, he provides a clear comparison between past simple and past progressive tense aspects; past perfect and past simple tense aspects; present perfect and simple past tense aspects. 6 In the book Understanding and using English Grammar, Betty Schrampfer Azer (1993) shows us a time diagram. Basing on it, we can more easily understand and use the past tense and aspects. He also describes the forms, usages of the past tense and aspects using a table with 3 columns. The first column includes the time diagrams showing when actions occur. The second one provides examples to clearly demonstrate what are discussed on the time diagram. And the last column supplies explanations what are demonstrated on the time diagram and examples in the first two columns. In the other book named English Grammar in use, Raymond Murphy (1994) also focuses on all past tense and aspects. In each past tense aspect, the author regularly provides some examples and analyzes them so that the learners can understand easily. Besides, the author introduces some exercises for learners to practice more about what they have learned. In the book English grammar for ESL learners, Ed Swick (2005) describes general information on past tense and aspects including definitions, forms, uses, key words and some notes on regular verbs and irregular verbs. In summary, many researchers have conducted research on the past tense and aspects. However, few of them point out the common errors in the use of the past tense and aspects. In fact, there are various errors that learners of English often make when they use the past tense and aspects, and the same is true to the students at Thanh Ba High School. As a result, the study is carried out to uncover the common errors in the use of past tense and aspects made by the eleventh grade students at Thanh Ba High School, the causes of the errors and to provide the effectively suggested solutions to this problem. 1.2 PAST TENSE AND ASPECTS According to Alice Maclin (1981) in the book Reference guide to EnglishA handbook of English as a second language, tense is described “to be the term used to show relationship between time and other conditions and the form of the verb.” Not all changes in the verb form are directly related to time. The way the action is understood to take place also affects verb forms. In addition to showing 7 time, different forms show conditions such as certainty, definiteness, possibility and whether or not the action is completed “mood” and “ aspect” are grammatical terms that show how the verb expresses ideas that go beyond yesterday/ today/ tomorrow division. In the book named English grammar for ESL Learners, Ed Swick (2205) also introduced on the past tense: “The past tense is used to show something that has happened in the past”. There are three past tense formations: (1) a habitual or frequent action, (2) an action in process or incomplete, and (3) an emphatic response in the past tense. 1.2.1. The simple past tense aspect 1.2.1.1. Form of the simple past tense aspect with regular verbs 1.2.1.1.1. Positive form John Eastwood (2006) in the book Oxford practice grammar intermediate and Raymond Murphy (1994) in an other book named English Grammar in use defined the form of regular verbs in the past tense: “A regular past form ends in ed.” For example: We invited them to our party but they decided not to come. The police stopped me on my way home last night. 1.2.1.1.2. Negative and interrogative forms Raymond Murphy (1994) in an other book named English Grammar in use show : “ in the negative and interrogative forms we use did/ did not + infinitive”. For example: Negative forms interrogative forms You did not enjoy? Did you enjoy? 1.2.1.2. Form of the simple past tense aspect with irregular verbs 1.2.1.2.1. Form of the simple past tense aspect: positive L. G. Alexander (1988), in the book named Longman English Grammar, and Raymond Murphy (1994), in the book English Grammar in use, defined on 8 form of the simple past tense aspect with irregular verbs: “Many verbs are irregular. The past simple does not end in –ed” (The irregular is listed in Appendix I). For example: Write  wrote: Mozart wrote more than 600 pieces of music. See  saw: We saw Rose in town a few days ago. Go  went: I went to the cinema three times last week. John Eastwood (2006), in the book Oxford practice grammar intermediate, added information on irregular verbs “to be”: “the past simple is the same in all persons except in the past tense of be”. I/ He/ She/ It/  was I was ill last week You/ We/ They  were Those cakes were nice 1.2.1.2.2. Form of the simple past tense aspect: negative and interrogative forms According to the book named Oxford practice grammar intermediate, John Eastwood (2006) shows that “we use did in negatives and questions” Negative Interrogative I/ You/She/He/ It/we/they did not Did I/You/We/They/She/He/ It stop? stop Or didn’t stop In the other book, Oxford practice grammar, John Eastwood (1992) also notes that “we don’t use a past form such as stopped, rang in a negatives and questions”. For example : NOT “the car did not stopped and NOT did you rang?” We also use was and were in negatives and questions: Negative Interrogative I/He/She/It was not OR wasn’t Was I/She/He/It? You/They/We were not OR weren’t Were You/They/We? For example: I wasn’t very well last week Where was your friend last night? 9 To sump up, we have negative and interrogative form for irregular verb with common verbs, verbs “to be”, modal verbs”. Negative forms Interrogative forms Common verbs S + did not + Infinitive Did (not) + S + Infinitive…? Modal verbs S + past of modal verb + Past of modal verbs (not)+ S + not + Infinitive Infinitive ? Verb “to be” S + was/were + not… Was/ were (not) + S? Have S + had not… Had (not) + S? 1.2.1.3. The regular past simple verbs: pronunciation and spelling 1.2.1.3.1. Pronunciation of the regular past simple verbs According to the book named Longman English Grammar, L. G. Alexander (1988) introduced clearly about pronunciation of the regular verbs in the past simple tense aspect: “Verbs in the regular past always end with a “– d” in their spelling, but the pronunciation of the past ending is not always the same”. Play/ played /d/ The most common spelling characteristic of the regular past is that “– ed” is added to the base form of the verb: opened, knocked, stayed. ect. Except in the case noted below, this –ed is not pronounced as if it were an extra syllable, so “opened” is pronounced as /əʊpənd/, knocked: /nɒkt/, etc Arrive/arrived /d/ Verbs which end in the following sounds have their past endings pronounced as /d/. the “– ed” ending is not pronounced as an extra syllable: /b/: rubbed /g/: tugged /dʒ/: managed /l/ : filled /m/ : dimmed /n/: listened Vowel + /r/: stirred /v/: loved /z/: seized Work/ worked /t/ Verbs which end in the following sounds have their past endings pronounced as /t/. The “– ed” ending is not pronounced as an extra syllable: 10 /k/: packed /s/: passed /tʃ/: watched /ʃ/: washed /f/: laughed /p/: tipped Post/posted /id/ Verbs which end the sounds /t/ or /d/ have their past endings pronounced /id/: posted, added. The “– ed” ending is pronounced as an extra syllable added to the base form of verb. NOTE: Dream/ dreamed /d / or dreamt /t/ A few verbs function as both regular and irregular verb and may have their past forms spelt “– ed” or “– t” pronounced /d/ or /t/. For example : burn, dream, lean, learn, smell, spell, spill, spoil. 1.2.1.3.2. Spelling of the regular past simple verbs L. G. Alexander (1988) also presented about spelling of the regular past simple verbs in the book named Longman English Grammar. In this book, the author showed that “the regular past always ends in “- d” Arrive/ arrived Verbs ending in “- e” are added “- d”. For example: phone/ phoned; smile/ smiled. This rule applies equally to agree, die, lie, etc. Wait/ waited Verbs not ending in “– e” are added “– ed” For example: Ask/ asked Clean/ cleaned Follow/ followed Video/ videoed Stop/ stopped For one-syllable verbs consisting of a single vowel letter followed by a single consonant letter in the end, the final consonant is doubled before adding “- ed”. For example: beg/ begged; rub/ rubbed 11