How to Deal with Students' Errors in English writing

【Abstract】This paper analyses some errors from compositions by learner to gain some insights into the English language. Based on the analysis of composition， we can get some strategies for teachers.

【Key Words】interlanguage errors English language teaching

Errors， contrasted with mistakes， are systematic deviancy from the norm of the language. Language learning is fundamentally a process involving making errors. In second language learning， the learners' errors are inevitable， and no matter what painstaking effort we might make，

errors will always occur. The learner's errors are not a sign of non-learning or learning failure， but the evidence of the underlying system of the learner's interlanguage. While the learner's correct sentences do not necessarily give evidence of the rule the learner is using or the hypothesis he is testing， his errors suggest the strategies he employs to work out the rules of the new language development. So the learner's errors shall be viewed as the learning strategy rather than the enemy of learning. The study of these errors will provide insights into the language learning process.

The strategies could be summarized as follows：

（1）Strategies to be Adopted in Treating Linguistic Errors

Generally speaking， the teacher had better not always correct the mistakes made by students. But some errors， especially those can create misunderstanding， should be taken more seriously. Because they indicate that tile learner's concept of the systematic grammar rules of the target language is unstable. Therefore， while encouraging the Students in their attempt to use the target language， the teacher should give them chance on how to correct errors with detailed explanation.

（2） Strategies to be adopted in Treating Pragmatic Failures

No learner of a foreign language can avoid committing errors in his/her learning process， which indicates the great importance of both the appropriate attitude of the teacher toward learner errors and his/her ways of treating them. Different teachers may look at this problem differently and then resort to alternative strategies. But whatever strategies a teacher is to adopt， this common and unique principle should be followed： Successful strategies are those which will lead the learner to the real progress by taking advantages of his/her errors.

In short， error analysis for the learner's errors benefits the teachers， the learners and the researchers. Accordingly， a study of Chinese learners' errors in English will surely push forward the development of English teaching and learning in China.

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