 Crystal (2008) describes error analysis in

language teaching and learning as a technique

for identifying, classifying and systematically
interpreting the unacceptable forms produced
by someone learning a foreign language,
using any of the principles and procedures
provided by linguistics.
 Errors are assumed to reflect, in a systematic way,
the level of competence achieved by a learner;
they are contrasted with ‘mistakes’, which are
performance limitations that a learner would be
able to correct.
 A distinction is often drawn between errors which
are noticed and corrected by the speaker, errors
which the speaker can correct if prompted to do
so, and errors which the speaker cannot correct
because of a lack of linguistic knowledge.
 Data needs to be collected.
 It may be oral or written, typically it is
written.
 This is because people tend to be more
cautious when writing rather than when
speaking.
 Samples could be massive (several samples
from many students), specific (limited
number of students) or incidental (only one
sample by a single student).
 State the methods of data collection.
 After data has been collected, the analyst
goes through it picking out the errors
 The analyst must distinguish between errors
and mistakes
 Secondly, the analyst must state the external
norms that governs the analysis (mostly used
is the standard variety)
 Thirdly, decision must be made regarding
overt and covert errors.
 Overt errors are clear deviations from the TL
and are easy to spot.
 Example
• *All the sheeps are dead.
• * I runned all the way.
 Covert errors are the ones that appear well
formed but which do not mean what the
learner had in mind.
E.g.,• *It was stopped – referring to the wind
 Finally, the analyst must decide whether
he/she is examining only deviations in
correctness or also deviations in
appropriateness.
 • In other words, language usage or language
use.
 • It is only after these four parameters have
been considered that the analyst can identify
the errors in the data collected.
 This involves a comparison of the learners
idiosyncratic utterances with a reconstruction
of those utterances in the TL
 This is often accompanied with the
classification of the errors identified.
 Researchers have come up with various
taxonomies.
 Dulay, Burt and Krashen (1982) for example
categorize the errors using the following
classes
 Corder distinguishes three types of errors
according to their systematicity:
 Pre-systematic errors occur when the learner is
unaware of the existence of a rule in the TL.
These are random.
 Systematic errors occur when the learner has
discovered a rule but it is the wrong one.
 Post-systematic errors occur when the learner
knows the correct target language rule but uses
it inconsistently (i.e.. makes a mistake)
 Having classified errors into
various categories, the analyst
may then go on to quantify them
so as to determine which errors
are most frequent and therefore
most in need of attention.
 Error Analysis maintains that there are two
main error types: interlingual and intralingual
 Interlingual: those errors that can be
attributed to the L1.
 They involve cross linguistic comparison
(errors accounted for by considering the
structure of L1)
 Interlingual errors also referred to as
interference errors.
 Errors may be intralingual when they are
due to the language being learnt.
 Such errors also referred to as
developmental errors and may occur in any
language learning situation irrespective of
whether the language being learnt is a L1,
L2, or FL.
 Example: *The children readed all books.
(over-generalization)
 Purpose: to help learners to learn an
L2.
 Global errors violate the overall
structure of a sentence.
 Local errors affect only a single
constituent in a sentence.
1. EA neglects correct sentences because it
mainly focuses on sentences with errors. To get
the complete and right picture of the learner‘s
competence, there is a need to make an
investigation into non-errors as well.
2. When FL/L2 learners face difficulty to use
certain grammatical or syntactic structures, they
try to avoid using such structures.
 Hence, these avoided structures cannot be studied
because the main focus of this approach is on
errors.
 3. EA only affords us a very static view of SLA
yet learners progressively develop their
linguistic knowledge, over a period of time:
most studies in EA are cross-sectional in nature,
rather than longitudinal.
 A study of how learner errors change from one
stage to another may be more revealing than a
cross-sectional one.
 Despite the limitations, EA still plays a fundamental
role in investigating, identifying and describing FL
learners' errors because EA, as a pedagogical
technique, is very effective in pinpointing the L2
learners' errors and their causes.
 It contributes to a very comprehensive knowledge
about the process of SLA.
 It remains an appropriate and valid research
method in helping EFL/ESL teachers and L2
researchers successfully handle students' errors in
the classroom.
 It can provide "a means to empower L2
teachers in that their error feedback can
be made more effective and more
beneficial to L2 learners
 EA can also enable EFL/ESL teachers to
find out different sources of L2 errors and
take some pedagogical precautions
towards them.