Investigating EFL Students' Wrong Use of Pronouns and It's Effect on Writing: a Case Study of Holy Quran University Students, Gezira State, Sudan(2018)

Investigating EFL Students' Wrong Use of Pronouns and It's Effect on Writing: A Case Study of Holy Quran University Students, Gezira State, Sudan(2018)

Rabie Salih Hassan Gebriel

December /2017

Investigating EFL Students' Wrong Use of Pronouns and It's Effect on Writing: A Case Study of Holy Quran University Students, Gezira State, Sudan(2018)

Rabie Salih Hassan Gebriel

Supervision Committee

Name Position Signature Dr. Abdulgadir Mohammed Ali Main supervisor …………...

Dr. Ahmed Gasm Alseed Ahmed Co – supervisor …………...

January/ 2018

Investigating EFL Students' Wrong Use of Pronouns and It's Effect on Writing: A Case Study of Holy Quran University Students, Gezira State, Sudan(2018)

Rabie Salih Hassan Gebriel

Examination Committee:

Name Position Signature Dr. Abdul Gadir Mohmmed Ali Chairperson ……..….. Prof. Ibrahim Ahmed Alfaki External Examiner ……..….. Dr. Alhaj Ali Adam Internal Examiner ……..…..

Date of Examination 13 / 1 /2018

Dedication

To my beloved parents, brothers and sisters To my wife and my daughter To my teachers and my colleagues

Acknowledgments First of all, I want to thank Allah for guidaning me to the right bath in my life. I want to express my deeply thanks to my Supervisors. My gratitude is also extended to my Co- supervisor. My thanks are also extends to my family for their unlimited support, and my colleagues at UNESCO Institute for encouraging me.

Investigating EFL Students' Wrong Use of Pronouns and It's Effect on Writing: A Case Study of Holy Quran University Students, Gezira State, Sudan(2018) Rabie Salih Hassan Gebriel

Abstract Pronouns are considered one of the important part of speech Which are used instead of the nouns to avoid repetition in a sentence and understanding them helps students to develop their writing skills. This study Aims to investigate errors that committed by Students, the effects of these errors in written texts and identify the difficulties face them when they use English pronouns. It has been noticed that most of the students commit errors when they use English pronouns in written text. Identify the difficulties face EFL students when they use English pronouns. Also aims at Draw the attention of teachers and syllabus designers to focus on this area The study has assumed the following hypotheses: Complexity of system and the mother tongue interference due to cause errors in written texts. The sample of the study consists of (55) students male and female from the Holy Quran University. The Analytical Descriptive method has been adopted to investigate the erroneous pronouns and their effects on written texts. A test has been used to collect data from the sample of the study. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) has been used to analyze data. The results have shown that students commit errors when they use English pronouns in written texts and that as a result of the mother tongue interference. Some of the students make errors as a result of the complexity system of English pronouns and the ignorance and the limit experience of the students about English pronouns. The errors are committed in the personal pronouns and this due to the influence of their mother language, According to the results the study recommends: Teachers should use new techniques for teaching English pronouns. The text-book at the pre-University level should include sufficient exercises to give the students opportunities to practice and use pronouns and English pronouns should be presented in various ways to help students transform them according to their function in the sentence.

انكشف ػٍ أصثاب االصرؼًال انخاطئ نضًائز انهغح اإلَجهيزيح نطالب انجايؼاخ وذأثيزها في كراتح انُص: دراسة حالة طالب جامعة القران الكريم، والية الجزيرة، السودان )7102( رتيغ صانح حضٍ جثزيم

يخهص اندراصح ذؼد انضًائز واحددِ يدٍ أهدى أجدزا انكدالو انردي ذضدرخدو تددال ػدٍ األصدًا نرجُدة ذكزارهدا كًدا ذضاػد ػهي رتظ أجزا انجًهح وفهًهدا يضداػد انطدالب فدي ذطدىيز يهداراذهى فدي انكراتدح ذهدد هذِ اندراصح إني انرمصي وانكشف ػٍ أخطا طالب انجايؼداخ ػُدد اصدرخداو انضدًائز فدي انهغدح اإلَجهيزيح وانرؼز ػهي ذهك انصؼىتاخ انري ذىاجههى و يدي ذأثيزها فدي كراتدح اندُص وإيجدا انحهددىل نهددا كًددا ذهددد أيضددا إنددي ذىػيددح األصدداذذج ويصددًًي انًُدداه إنددي ذكثيددف االخرثدداراخ وانرزكيز ػهي اصرخداو انضًائز ألهًيرهدا فدي انجًهدح ولدد ندىح أٌ كثيدز يدٍ طدالب انجايؼداخ يزذكثدىٌ تؼدا األخطدا ػُدد اصدرؼًال انضدًائز فدي كراتدح اندُص ونهدذا افرزضدد اندراصدح إٌ صثة انًشكهح يزجغ إني صؼىتح و فهى و ذؼميد َظداو انضدًائز فدي انهغدح اإلَجهيزيدحي ذدأثيز انهغدح األو وػدو اإلنًاو انكدافي فدي يزحهدح انثداَىي نمىاػدد انهغدح االَجهيزيح اصدرخديد اندراصدح انًدُه انىصفي انرحهيهي نهرمصي وانكشف ػٍ ذهك األخطا ويؼزفدح أصدثاتها ذركدىٌ ػيُدح اندراصدح يدٍ )55( ارس و ارصح يٍ جايؼح انمزآٌ انكزيىيكهيح انرزتيح يزكدز انخثيدز و يددَي ولدد أتصدرخدو االخرثار كىصديهح نجًدغ انثياَداخ يدٍ ػيُدح اندراصدح كًدا اصدرخديد اندراصدح أيضدا تزَداي انحدزو اإلحصائيح نهؼهىو االجرًاػيح نرحهيم ذهك انثياَاخ و تؼد انرحهيم أوضحد انُرائ أٌ هُانك أخطا كثيزج ذزذكة تىاصطح طالب انجايؼاخ ػُد انرؼايم يغ انضًائز فدي انهغدح اإلَجهيزيدح وهدي اخ ذأثيز في كراتح انُص و نك كضؤ االخريدار انصدحيح نهضدًيز انًُاصدة يلهدح خثدزاخ انطدالب فدي انرؼايم يغ ضًائز انهغح االَجهيزيحي ػددو انرًييدز واإلنًداو انكدافي نمىاػدد اصدرخداو ضدًائز انهغدح االَجهيزيح و ذأثيز انهغح األو أ خ كم هذِ األصثاب إني انىلىع في هذِ األخطا أوصد اندراصدح األصاذذج ويصًًي انًُاه ترُىيغ طزق ذددريش انضدًائز وكيفيدح اصدرؼًانها وذزويدد يدُه انهغدح اإلَجهيزيدح تؼددد وافدز يددٍ انرًدداريٍ انردي ذرؼهددك تاصدرخداو انضددًائز ػُددد كراتدح انُصددى وػهددي انطالب انرزكيز في اصرخداو انضًائز في انهغح االَجهيزيح وطزق اصرخدايها

Table of Contents Subject page Supervision Committee i Examination Committee ii Dedication iii Acknowledgment iv Abstract (English) v Abstract (Arabic) v Table of Contents vi Table of Tables vii Tables of Charts CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1.0 Background of the Study 2 1.1 Statement of the Study 2 1.2 Objectives of the Study 2 1.3 Questions of the Study 2 1.4 Hypotheses of the Study 3 1.5 Significance of the Study 3 1.6 Methodology of the Study 3 1.7 Limits of the Study 3 1.8 Definition of Terms 3 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 Introduction 6 2.1 What is a pronoun ? 6 2.2 Definition of Errors Analysis and Contrastive Analysis 6 2.3Definition of errors and Mistakes 7

2.4The Significance of Errors Analysis 8 2.5Why Error Analysis 8 2.6The Importance of Errors 9 2.7 Types of Pronouns 9 2.7.1Subjective Pronouns 9 2.7.2Objective Pronouns 11 2.7.3 Interrogative Pronouns 11 2.7.3.1 Pronouns Function 11 2.7.3.2 Determinative Function 11 2.7.3.3 Relative Pronouns 11 2.7.3.4 Interrogative Function 12 2.7.3.5 Possessive Pronouns 12 2.7.4 Demonstrative Pronouns 13 2.7.5 Indefinite Pronouns 13 2.7.6 Reflexive Pronouns 14 2.7.7 Intensive Pronouns 15 2.7.8 Dummy Pronouns 16 2.8 Arabic Personal Pronouns 16 2.9 Separate Subject Pronouns in Arabic 16 2.10 Influence of the Mother tongue 17 2.11 The previous Experience of the Students 18 2.12 The Concept of Coherence 18 2.12.1 The Influence of Coherence in Written text 18 2.12.2 The Influence of Cohesion in Written text 19 2.13 Common Errors in Students' Writing 19 2.14 Sentence Unity and Coherence 19

2.14. 1 Text as Connected Discourse 23 2.15 Vocabulary 23 2.15.1 What's Vocabulary 24 2.15.2 The Importance of Vocabulary knowledge 24 2.15.3 Using Synonyms 24 2.15.4 Using Opposite 25 2.15.5 Using Affixes to Build Words 25 2.15.6 Using Phrasal Verbs 26 2.15.7 Using one Word for a group of Words 26 2.16 Strategies of Writing 27 2.17 The Previous Studies 28 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 3.0 Introduction 33 3.1 Population of the Study 33 3.2 The Sample 33 3.3 Tools of Data Collection 33 3.4 The Contents of the Test 33 3.5 Reliability of the Test 34 3.6Validity of the Test 34 CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATOIN, ANALSIS AND DISCUSSION OF DATA 4.0 Introduction 36 4.1 Data Analysis and Discussion 36 4.1.1 Part One 36 4.1.2 Part two 41

4.2 Discussion of Results in Relation to Hypotheses of the 44 Study

CHAPTER FIVE: FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS 5.0 Introduction 46 5.1 Conclusions 46 5.2 Findings 46 5.3 Recommendations 46 5.4 Suggestions for Further Studies 47 References 48 Appendix 50

List of tables Table page (2.1)classifications of Personal pronouns 7 (2.2)personal pronouns 9 (2.3)Demonstrative pronouns 10 (2.4)Relative pronouns 12 (2.5)Reflexive pronouns 12 (2.6)Arabic subject pronouns 14 (2.7)Separate subject Arabic pronouns 15 (4.1)Frequency of incorrect answer 24 (4.2) percentages of incorrect answer 25 (4.3) Frequency of correct answer part one 26 (4.4) percentages of correct answer 26 (4.5) percentages of incorrect and correct answer part one 27 (4.6)Descriptive statistics of incorrect and correct answer part one 28 (4.7) Frequency of correct answer part two 29 (4.8) percentages of incorrect answer part two 30 (4.9) percentages of incorrect and correct answer part two 31 (4.10) general percentages part two 32

Chapter one

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

1.0 Background The difficulties that face Students when they learn another language can be identified by how the two languages are related to each other and by comparing them. Contrastive is one of the branches of linguistic which helps us to compare and contrast between the two languages and to know the similarities and differences among them. In the other hand Errors Analysis also helps us to investigate and know why these Errors are committed. Rodney (1950:274) says: The traditional definition of a pronoun is that "it's a word used instead of a noun". A pronoun is a word that stands in the place of a noun or a noun phrase. We use pronouns a lot in English to keep from using the same noun over and over again , and to shorten sentences that include long noun phrase.

1.1 The Statement of the Problem This study tries to investigate University Students erroneous Pronouns in written text because the researcher has noticed that EFL students confused when they use English pronouns, so the researcher focus on this area for better investigations and possible solutions.

1.2 Objectives of the Study This Study aims to 1. Find a way to help students to develop their writing skill. 2. Identify the difficulties face EFL students when they use English pronouns. 3. Draw the attention of teachers and syllabus designers to focus on this area. 4. Investigate the difficulties encountered by EFL learners in written texts.

1.3 Questions of the Study This study aims at finding answers to the following questions:

1. Do the previous experience of the students about English sufficient to enable them use the pronouns in a correct way ? 2. Why do the Students feel confused at the area of the pronouns ? 3. Why do university students' make mistakes when they use English pronouns in written texts. 4. How does the erroneous use of the pronouns effect the Students Writing Skills ?

1.4 Hypotheses of the Study This study attempts to test the following hypotheses: 1. Students don't acquire sufficient experience and knowledge about the Pronouns' usage. 2. The complexity System of English Pronouns due to committe these errors. 3. mother tongue interference due to commit these errors. 4. Students feel confused in selecting which pronoun match with or suit the situation.

1.5 Significance of the Study The significance of the study is drawn from the following: 1. It tries to find a way to help students to develop their writing skills. 2. It tries to find the reasons that make students commit these errors. 3. Draw attention of the teachers and syllabus designers to find a new method and technique for teaching English Pronouns. 4. It attempts to investigate the problems that face EFL learners in writing texts.

1.6 Methodology of the Study

This study will adopt the descriptive and analytical method. The sample consists of 45 students selected randomly from Batch (15) semester one at the Department of English, Faculty of Education Wad Medani, Al Khabeer . A diagnostic test will be given to the subject on English Pronouns and their effect on written text.The data collected will be analyzed by (SPSS).

1.7The Limit of the Study This study is restricted in specific factors in the area investigated, these factors are: Errors of using pronouns and their effect on written text, grammatical factors.

This study will be limited to the students at Holy Quran University faculty of Education first level , male and female. 1.8 Definition of Terms 1.8.1 Errors According to James (1997:1)," Error is the process of determining the incidence, nature, causes and consequences of successful language". 1.8.2 Contrastive Analysis James (1997:1)said " the describing comparable features of MT e.g tense, cooking verbs, consonants clusters, the language of Apologizing, and then comparing the forms and resultant meanings across the two languages in order to spot the mismatches that would predictably give rise to interference and errors". 1.8.3 Mistakes ". Reindl, (2001:57) says ―is slip of the tongue. It occurs especially when the speaker is suffering from stress, lack of attention, fatigue and momentary lapse in the thought or random guess. Such mistakes can be labeled as "performance".

1.8.4 Coherence Coherence is defined in Oxford Advanced Dictionary, (1992: 239) as “Reasonable connection or relation between ideas, argument , statement, ……….etc . 1.8.5 Cohesion Halliday and Hassan (1976:4) express the concept of cohesion in a text as follow : ―Cohesion refers to relations of meaning that exist within the text ,and define a text. 1.8.6 Influence of the Mother tongue in English James(1998:179) metions: "Mother tongue has another name as the first language, which would be one of several languages that a person touches, learns and masters firstly. The application ability of mother tongue is crucial to further”

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 Introduction In this chapter the researcher reviews what has been written about pronouns, comparing English and Arabic pronouns and previous studies. A pronoun is that part of speech in English grammar that replaces the noun at certain places. These words take shape like he, she, it, they, someone, who, etc and used in the place of nouns. Huddleston (2002:90) says: "Traditional Grammar generally concerned about the classification of English language "Pronouns recognize formally parts of speech i.e various types of words which function with different purposes in sentences which are "nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, conjunctions, prepositions and interjections".

2.1 What is A pronoun? Rodney (1950:274) says: The traditional definition of a pronoun is that "it's a word used instead of a noun". Also a pronoun can be define as: "A pronoun is a word that stands in the place of a noun or noun phrase. We use pronouns a lot in English to keep from using the same noun over and over again, and to shorten sentences that include long noun phrases". http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

For example: it would get very tiresome very quickly to have to use Omer‘s name every time we refer to Omer. Very soon, we would hate the sound of Omer‘s name, and we would resent Omer for even coming up in our conversation. Therefore, we replace ―Omer‖ with pronouns like ―he‖ and ―him.‖ Pronouns make written texts look short and crisp and also work towards making spoken language more interesting and organized. These parts of speech, when used effectively, do not only make the phrase ambiguous or out of place; but also add meaning and value to the expression.

It's tiresome to use a word several times and the use of these pronouns avoids such repetition of nouns.

2.2Definition of Error Analysis and Contrastive Analysis According to James (1997:1)," Error is the process of determining the incidence, nature, causes and consequences of successful language". According to Cambridge advanced learners' dictionary means: untrue; inaccurate; not correct; wrong; mistaken or inadequate use something (adjective) . Contrastive Analysis as: " the describing comparable features of MT e.g tense, cooking verbs, consonants clusters, the language of Apologizing, and then comparing the forms and resultant meanings across the two languages in order to spot the mismatches that would predictably give rise to interference and errors".

2.3 Definition of Errors and Mistakes There is a high fallibility expected from the part of learner who is going to learn language , which doesn't belong to his/her domain. What is required from them is to take courage and patience in this very challenging task. This section attempts to find out the most prominent source of errors opposed to make mistakes. Geoffrey (2005:112) mentions that: "Errors is a term used in psycholinguistics referring to mistakes in spontaneous speaking or writing attributable to a malfunctioning of the neuromuscular (i.e pertaining to muscles and nervous) command the brain".

In other words, an error as contrasted to a mistake is an inappropriate production, which happens as a result of authentic lack of knowledge about the language, which can be labeled as "competence". A mistake as contrasted to an error is slip of the tongue. It occurs especially when the speaker is suffering from stress, lack of attention, fatigue and momentary lapse in the thought or random guess. Such mistakes can be labeled as "performance". Reindl, (2001:57) says "all beginners learn by making mistakes ". That's to say, in order to learn well and properly, regardless of the learners' educational level, mistakes are likely to happen. Thatcher , (2008:91) maintains that, " Errors are part of learning and mistaken hypotheses and wrong connections are normal". In other words, since the learners are eager to learn the desired language, they have to test their hypotheses through making mistakes. Hernnandez (2001:196) points out that,

"We have come to regard errors in many instances as experiments, through which the learner tries to apply what he knows in expressing something which he isn't entirely sure how to say it". Haspelmath,.(2003:167) claims that, "errors are indispensible to the learner himself because we can regard the making of errors as device the learner uses in order to learn".

2.4 The Significance Contrastive Analysis Contrastive Analysis is a systematic comparison between two or more Languages. Contrastive analysis is important because of the following: 1. Providing insight into similarities and differences between languages and also attempts to establish linguistic Universal and language-specific characteristics of the language. 2. Explanation and prediction of the problems in second language learning. The comparison of any two languages and culture to discover and describe the problems that the speakers of one language will have in learning the other. 3. Developing course material for teaching and learning. The most effective material (for teaching L2) is those that are based upon a scientific description of the languages to be learned, carefully compared with a parallel description of the native language of the learner. 4. It helps teachers and students to know the relationship among languages and their families by using Grimm's law which help in this area. According to Corder (1974:125) the "father" of Error Analysis defined error as: "a deviation from what's regarded as selected norm". Burt et al (1982:250) defined error also as: a systematic deviation from the norm. Edge (1989:11) defined it as: wrong forms that the students couldn't correct even if their wrongness were to be pointed out. Error Analysis is the examination of those errors committed by students in both the spoken and written medium. Corder, who has contributed enormously to EA, writes this: The study of error is part of the process of language learning. It provides us with a picture of the linguistic development of the learners and may give us indications as to the learning process. (Corder: 1974, 125). Error Analysis is useful in second language learning because it reveal to us, teachers, syllabus designers and textbook writers – the problem areas. We could

21 design remedial exercises and focus more attention on the trouble areas. Error also helps the learners of the foreign languages to know the problems which caused by the interference of the mother tongue " interlingual " and the problems of the second language " intralingual " .

2. 5 Why Error Analysis?

According to Corder (1974:125) the "father" of Error Analysis defined error as: "a deviation from what's regarded as selected norm". Burt et al (1982:250) defined error also as: a systematic deviation from the norm. Edge (1989:11) defined it as: wrong forms that the students couldn't correct even if their wrongness were to be pointed out. Error Analysis is the examination of those errors committed by students in both the spoken and written medium. Corder, who has contributed enormously to EA, writes this: The study of error is part of the process of language learning. It provides us with a picture of the linguistic development of the learners and may give us indications as to the learning process. (Corder: 1974, 125) Error Analysis is useful in second language learning because it reveal to us, teachers, syllabus designers and textbook writers – the problem areas. We could design remedial exercises and focus more attention on the trouble areas. Error also helps the learners of the foreign languages to know the problems which caused by the interference of the mother tongue " interlingual " and the problems of the second language " intralingual " .

2.6The Importance of Error

Pit Corder was probably the first to point out and discuss the importance of errors learners make in course of their learning a second language. Soon after, the study and analysis of learners‘ errors took a prominent place in applied linguistics. Brown suggests that the process of second language learning is not very different from learning a first language, and the feedback a L2 learner gets upon making errors benefits him in developing the L2 knowledge .

2 .7 Types of Pronouns

There are many types of English pronouns as: Personal Pronouns, Interrogative Pronouns, Possessive Pronouns Demonstrative Pronouns, Reflexive Pronouns, Intensive Pronouns, Indefinite Pronouns, Relative Pronouns. Raja,

(1963:46) says: "The personal pronouns in English take various forms according to number, person, case and natural gender. Personal pronouns stand in place of names of people or things". They are straightforward forms of pronouns and can be further classified into

2.7.1. Subjective Pronouns These pronouns are used in place of the subject used in the clause. For example: 'She works in London'. 'I like to eat chips'. 'They bought a new car last month.' These subjective pronouns can be further classified as:

1. Second Person Formal and Informal Pronouns — These pronouns were common in the Shakespearean era. Here, words like ‗thou‘, ‗thy‘, etc. are used. Examples of these pronouns can be Oh thy bleeding piece of earth! O Wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn's being… 2. Inclusive and Exclusive Pronouns — These pronouns help us find whether the audience is included or not. Examples can be as follows: We have a party to attend this evening. They have not given a clear picture of what happened to us. 3. Intensive Pronouns — These pronouns are also known as emphatic pronouns since they re-emphasize a noun which is already referred to in the sentence. Examples can be as follows: You yourself are responsible for this mess! I did it myself .

Table (2.1)

personal pronouns

umber person Gender subject object

1st male/female I me

singular 2nd male/female You you

3rd Male He him

Female She Her

Neuter It It

1st male/female We Us

Plural 2nd male/female You You

3rd male/female/neuter They Them http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

2.7.2Objective Pronouns Gabal,(1985:24) mentions : Objective pronouns are used when a noun is used as an object in the sentence. Personal objective pronouns are: me, you, him, it, us, etc. For example: 'John likes me but not her.' 'She asked him to help with the work.' indirect pronouns are used to explain a sentence in the same form. For example:

i. Mary loves him - direct object; Mary sent him a letter - indirect object ii. Reflexive Pronouns — these pronouns are used when they refer back to another word in the sentence or when the thing acts on itself. Examples are: iii. Krish cut his hand himself. iv. I worked myself to the bone. v. Reciprocal Pronouns — these pronouns refer to an interchangeable relationship or action. Examples are: vi. Rita and John do not like each other. The two sisters have love on one another

2.7.3 Interrogative Pronouns Raja (1963:47) Adds: These interrogative pronouns are usually found in questions. They are used to ask questions or what the thing is meant. For example: 'Which jacket should I wear?', 'What are you staring for?'. These are formally identical with the WH – series of relative pronouns, but have a different function. They correspond closely to interrogative determines and we shall discuss types of interrogative word together, in the following items:

2.7.3.1 Pronouns Function Pronouns play different functions according to the structure of the sentences these functions are:

2.7.3.2 Determinative Function Who Whom Whose What Which Who, Whom and Whose are subjective, objective, and genitive case forms respectively and have personal gender – the other interrogative for case or gender . Not in particular that , un like relative which, interrogative which can be used not only with non personal but also with personal reference :

2.7.3.3 Relative Function The author [ who , which ] is my favorite is …….? 2.7.3.4 Interrogative Function [ which , who ] is your favorite In meaning , however , interrogative who and which differ, who being indefinite and which definite .. Interrogative Pronouns are one of the worst trouble areas for students. Interrogative Pronouns ask questions and include the following: what, who, whom, whose, which. The most common ones misused are who and whom. Who is used for the subjective case; whom, for the objective case. Examples follow. In Questions: Subjective

i. Incorrect: Whom frightened the mouse? ii. Correct: Who frightened the mouse?

In Questions: Objective

i. Incorrect: Who did the mouse scare? ii. Correct: Whom did the mouse scare?

In summary, use the pronoun who in a question when it takes the place of the subject, and use the pronoun whom when it takes the places of the object.

2.7.4 Possessive Pronouns

Eckersly and Margaret,( 1953:22), Mention: Possessive pronouns are those which help indicate ownership or belongingness of a thing to someone. These pronouns do not require apostrophes unless the word in question is a contraction of it is and it has, in this case the word becomes it's. For example: 'Those shoes are mine'. 'Look over there, those seats are yours.

Table (2.2)

Subject Object Possessive Singular first person I me mine second person you you yours

third person he/she/it him / her / it his / its

Plural first person we us our / ours second person you you your / s third they them their / their http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

2.7.5Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are normally used to point out things or to distinguish a particular object from the rest. For example: 'Mary will take these forms back home.', 'Bring me that cup'.

Table (2.3) (NEVER ) this ( student ) these ( students ) REFERENG

(DISTANT ) that ( student ) those ( students REFERENG http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

2.7.6IndefinitePronouns

Indefinite, in very simple and obvious terms, means something that is not definite. These pronouns refer to general categories of people and nothing specific or particular. For example: 'Someone can solve it if they know the right way'. 'Everyone looked at me.'

 Distributive pronouns — They are used to refer to groups of members separately rather than collectively.  To each his own.  Each boy was given a present.  Negative pronouns — These pronouns refer to the non-existence of a person or a thing. For example:  No one is thinking of attending that marriage.

Nobody wants to stay alone at home during festivals

2.7.7Relative Pronouns

Raja (1963:45) says: Relative pronouns help refer to previously mentioned things or people. These pronouns help in linking two clauses and begin with a subordinate clause. For example: 'He is a professor who works in Cambridge University.' 'I hate that tree which gives out sticky smells.' There are Three kinds of relative clauses :

Defining relative clauses: These describe the preceding noun in such a way to distinguish it to other nouns of the same class. A clause of this kind is essential to the clear understanding of noun. in the sentence: The man who told me this, refused to give me his name ‗‘ who told me this ‗‘ is relative clause . If we omit this , it is not clear what man we are talking about . Notice that there is no comma between a noun and a defining relative clause.

Defining relative clauses usually follow that noun , but they can also be used with an / a noun , plural nouns without the and pronouns all, none, anybody , some body , some body , etc.. and those. Clauses following a / an + noun , plural nouns without the and some body / some one / some thing some times define their noun / pronoun only indirectly. The noun / pronoun in these cases is usually the object of a verb or preposition: I met some one who said he knew you The book is about a girl who falls in love with …. Some times these clauses are separated from their noun / pronoun by word or phrase : The noise that he made woke everybody up. She was annoyed by some thing that I had said. The forms as follows :

Table (2.4) Subject Object Possessive

for person Who Whom / who Whose

That That

Which Which Whose / of which

That That

2.7.8 Reflexive Pronouns We use a reflexive pronoun when we want to refer back to the subject of the sentence or clause. Reflexive pronouns end in "-self" (singular) or "-selves" (plural). There are eight reflexive pronouns

Table (2.5)

reflexive pronouns

myself Singular yourself himself, herself, itself

ourselves Plural yourselves themselves http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

2.7.9 Intensive Pronouns

Notice that all the above reflexive pronouns can also act as intensive pronouns, but the function and usage are different. An intensive pronoun emphasizes its antecedent. Look at these examples:

1. I made it myself. OR I myself made it. 2. Have you yourself seen it? OR Have you seen it yourself? 3. The President himself promised to stop the war. 4. She spoke to me herself. OR She herself spoke to me. 5. The exam itself wasn't difficult, but exam room was horrible. 6. Never mind. We'll do it ourselves. 7. You yourselves asked us to do it.

2.7.10Dummy Pronouns

In some cases pronouns are used purely because they are required by the rules of syntax, even though they do not refer to anything; they are then called dummy pronouns. This can be seen in English with the pronoun it in such sentences as it is raining and it is nice to relax (This is less likely in pro-drop languages, since such pronouns would probably be omitted.)

2.8Arabic Personal Pronouns in Relation to English

Raja(1963:5) explains the Arabic personal pronouns as :

The Arabic language has a rich set of personal pronouns, in Arabic called Unlike English—which only contains 7 different forms of . َضم رار ر singular form , َّضمااِر ر subject pronouns—the Arabic language has 12 different pronouns. The reason for such a variety is that the Arabic language differentiates between male and female pronouns and is more precise about the number.

Table (2.6) Subject Pronouns

Singular Plural Dual

1st Person .

2nd Person

3rd Person

2.6Separate subject pronouns in Arabic Table (2.7)

S I 'anaa أََن اْ I You (masc.) 'ant(a) أَ ن َتْ N G You (fem.) 'anti أَ ن ِتْ U He huw(a) ُهَوْ L

A ِهيْ (She hiy(a َ R D You 'antumaa أَ نتَُم اْ U A They humaa ُه َم اْ L نحنْ (We (dual / plu.) nahn(u َ ُ P You (masc.) 'antum أَ نتُ مْ L U أَنت نْ (You (fem.) 'antunn(a ُ R A They (masc.) hum ُه مْ L They (fem.) hunn(a) ُه نْ http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronouns-personal.htm

2.9Influence of the Mother tongue in English James(1998:179) metions: "Mother tongue has another name as the first language, which would be one of several languages that a person touches, learns and masters firstly. The application ability of mother tongue is crucial to further study for a person, since thinking is mostly based on mother tongue; therefore, it plays a key role in education process".

Mother tongue would have two types of influence, i.e., the positive transfer and negative transfer. The positive transfer means a positive and promoting influence exerted by one kind of study and application of the knowledge skill to another study and application of the knowledge skill. on the other hand the negative transfer means a negative and interferential influence from one kind of study and application of the knowledge skill on another study and application of the knowledge skill.

2.10The Previous Experience of the Students We mean by the previous experience (Spine six). The book contains ten chapters, each chapter has four sections; reading, grammar, writing and entertainment, but Pronouns are mentioned only in one chapter. 7100The concept of Coherence Coherence is defined in Oxford Advanced Dictionary, (1992: 239) as “Reasonable connection or relation between ideas, argument , statement, ……….etc .” From this definition coherence can be thought of how meaning and sequences of ideas relate to each other.

Another definition given by Oxford University Learners Dictionary, (2000:239) is ― Coherence is a situation in which all the parts of something fit together well” According to this definition , a text is said to have coherence when it‘s sentences follow into each other. If a text is coherent , the reader move easily from one sentences to the next without feeling that there are gap in thought, or a point not made clear . If a text lacks coherence , the reader will feel that the sentences , not the paragraph, is a unit of writing , and that he is reading a collection of separate statements rather than integrated discussion . McCarthy (1991:26 ) defines coherence as “ an interpretive process , created by the reader while reading the text ―Thus , a writer always needs to predict the readers response to his/her text. According to John (1989:17 ) ― Coherence can be generally viewed in two aspects text-based and reader-based coherence ―.The former refers to the features associated with the internal structure of the text itself while the later is associated with the meaningful aspect of writer-reader interaction. 7107The Influence of Coherence in Written Text In order to have coherence in writing the movement from one sentence to the next and from one paragraph to the next one must be logical and smooth , not sudden jump ; each sentence should flow smoothly into the next. Oshima and Hogue (1981:39) identify four ways to achieve coherence in a written text : repetition of the key nouns , using of consistent pronouns , transition signals and logical order . 7102The Influence of Cohesion on Written Text Halliday and Hassan (1976:4) express the concept of cohesion in a text as follow : ―Cohesion refers to relations of meaning that exist within the text ,and define a text. cohesion occurs where the ‗interpretation‘ of some element in the discourse is dependent on that of another .the one ‗presupposes ‗ the other , in the sense that it cannot be effectively decoded except by recourse to it. Crystal (1997:119) stated that ; ―A text plainly has to be coherent as well as cohesive , in that the concept and relationships expressed should be relevant to each other , thus enabling us to make plausible influences about the underling meaning‖

2.01 Common Errors in Student Writing

Given below are sentences illustrating the most common errors in student writing. The formal name for the problem is stated. In each case, samples of tutor descriptions of the error have been added; such descriptions can be more helpful for writers at times than formal names.

1. John felt badly when he received a low grade on the final examination.

Adjective/adverb confusion

-The statement means the mechanism that allows you to feel is broken. -feel, smell, taste—the word following these verbs describes the subject ( a noun or pronoun), not the verb. -―Badly‖ here refers to the verb ―felt,‖ which implies that John‘s ability to feel is impaired. Corrected version: John felt bad when he received a low grade on the final examination.

2. There are no secrets between Mary and I.

Pronoun case

-Mary and me—me is the object of the preposition between; prepositions are followed by the object form of pronouns -You should be able to take out the words ―Mary and‖ and still be able to read the sentence. -Cut out the name; would you use I or me?

Corrected version: There are no secrets between Mary and me.

3. One of the many students who come from the Scandinavian countries are enrolled in my composition class.

Subject-verb agreement

-One is singular; are is plural. -A singular subject (one) should be followed by a singular verb (is, not are) -Prepositional phrases (of the many students) are not an important part of the sentence 32 when looking at verb agreement; the main idea (S + V) is One is enrolled. Corrected version: One of the many students who come from the Scandinavian countries is enrolled in my composition class.

4. Trygve can‘t hardly get out of bed for his 8:00 class.

Double negative

-two negatives in a row—can‘t hardly -―Hardly‖ is already negative—either He can hardly or He can‘t. -The sentence literally (or mathematically) means that Trygve can easily get out of bed; two negatives = a positive

Corrected version: Trygve can hardly get out of bed for his 8:00 class. 5. Entering the bakery, the smell of fresh pastries and coffee overwhelmed her.

Dangling construction

-It sounds like ―the smell of fresh pastries and coffee‖ is ―entering the bakery.‖ -As a reader, I am unclear as to what was entering the bakery—a woman or a smell? -The actor of the sentence must be at the beginning of the independent clause.

Corrected version: Entering the bakery, she was overwhelmed by the smell of fresh pastries and coffee.

6. In Strindberg‘s Miss Julie an aristocratic woman pays a nighttime visit to the servants‘ quarters and slept with the family valet.

Verb tense shift

-Pick a verb tense and stick with it; present tense is the standard for writing about literature. -Avoid verb tense changes—The woman pays/ The woman sleeps. -Verb tenses should stay consistent within a sentence.

Corrected version: In Strindberg‘s Miss Julie an aristocratic woman pays a nighttime visit to the servants‘ quarters and sleeps with the family valet.

7. The Senator voted for the health care bill to the delight of the opposition. Although he had to admit that there were certain provisions with which he disagreed.

Sentence fragment

-Although indicates that the segment following should be joined to the main clause. -Things that sound like afterthoughts or additions are rarely complete sentences. -These two ideas can be combined to form one complex sentence; otherwise, the second clause is a fragment.

Corrected version: The Senator voted for the health care bill to the delight of the opposition although he had to admit there were certain provisions with which he disagreed. 8. Dairy farmers should of received a larger subsidy from the Federal government because of the increased cost of operation.

Wrong verb form

-This sentence should read ―should have‖ because ―of‖ is a phonetic way of saying ―have‖ in spoken English. -Should‘ve = should have -―Of‖ is a preposition while ―should have‖ is a helping or auxiliary verb.

Corrected version: Dairy farmers should have received a larger subsidy from the Federal government because of the increased cost of operation. 9. Anne rode her bicycle to the meeting in the -40 temperatures, everyone else either drove or stayed home.

Comma splice

-A comma doesn‘t correctly join two sentences (or two independent clauses). -You have two complete sentences here; use a semi-colon or a period rather than a comma. -There is no putting two sentences together with just a comma.

Corrected version: Anne rode her bicycle to the meting in the -40 temperatures; everyone else either drove or stayed home.

10. Warren and Alice spent at least $5000 on their Hawaiian vacation the trip could have been less expensive if they had stayed at hotels away from the beach.

Run-on sentence

-A new subject and a new verb after ―vacation‖ – a new sentence -There are two complete sentences here not separated by punctuation. -This sentence contains two complete thoughts without the necessary punctuation.

Corrected version: Warren and Alice spent at least $5000 on their Hawaiian vacation; the trip could have been less expensive if they had stayed at hotels away from the beach. 11. Ellen quit her job not only because of the long commute but also because she did not respect her supervisor.

-If you want to use not only … but also, the word group following each part (phrase or clause) must be parallel in construction. -Because + Prepositional phrase is grammatically different from because + S + V. -Match the form of items joined by coordinating conjunctions or phrases.

Corrected version: Ellen quit her job not only because she had a long commute but also because she did not respect her supervisor

from Rich Carr, Director, UAF Writing Center and Computer Laboratory 10 August 2016, Wednesday 17:28

2.15 Sentence Unity and Coherence

All sentences mean something; a sentence expresses an idea. The object of writing is to communicate thoughts as simply, as clearly, and as effectively as possible. Clear thinking produces clear writing. Structure in a sentence refers to a word order or grammatical relationships between words in a sentence. The principle of unity concerns the relation of the thought of a sentence and its expression. It

35 requires that a sentence express this one thing adequately. Good sentence are the result of much thought, planning, and actual practice in writing.

2.15.1 Text as Connected Discourse

1. Discourse - an extended expression of thoughts or ideas - utterance, talk, speech, discussion, and conversation . The ideas in discourse are not connected or do not have a particular structure. 2. Text - a large unit of written language - a group of ideas put together to make a point or one central idea - has a structure which requires the ideas in the discourse to be relevant to each other - an actually connected discourse 3. Properties of a Well-written Text 1. Organization - refers to the arrangement of ideas in a text . Creating an outline of ideas before you start writing can help your work become organized. 4. Outline - provides a format in which ideas can be arranged in a hierarchy- that is, it distinguishes the general ideas from the specific or subordinating ideas 5. Coherence and Cohesion - refer to the connection of ideas and connection between sentences and between paragraphs * In order for you to assure coherence and cohesion, you need to use transitional or cohesive devices. 6. Appropriate Language Use - refers to the acceptable style of language for a particular form of text

2.15.0 Vocabulary Being a good English speaker requires obtaining many things. Rich vocabulary is one of these required things. It is accepted that the knowledge of vocabulary is one of the main keys for successful communication in a language. 2.15.1 What is Vocabulary? Many authors have similar definitions about vocabulary. According to Hubbard (1983),"vocabulary can be defined as a powerful carrier of meaning". This means that without establishing a strong vocabulary first, comprehension and use of a language will not be achieved. In addition, the student should be able to recognize words and know their meanings as well. Thus, when a student is effectively able to recognize and use a word in different contexts, speak, write, pronounce it well, he/ she has the knowledge and meaning of that word. 2.15.2 The Importance of Vocabulary Knowledge

The knowledge of word meanings and the ability to access that knowledge efficiently are recognized as important factors. Importance in reading and listening comprehension, speaking and writing fluency. In addition, vocabulary helps students with language predictions. Hubbard, (1983) states that "the more words a student knows the more precisely that student can express the exact meaning he / she wants to". This is to say that vocabulary is an essential component to determine how much a student is able to communicate successfully. Vocabulary and grammar should go together. Wilkins, (1976) as cited in Carter and McCarthy (1995) states that: "Without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed". Here, again the role of the teachers comes in increasing their students' vocabulary. New words should be studied within contexts not separately. 2.15.3 Using Group Family Words This means whenever students come across or learn a new word, they should think about its group family. Its form as a verb, a noun, an adjective or an adverb. Ostrowska, (2012: 21) justifies that: “This is because a word (in sentences) may take different forms (structurally and grammatically) with these parts of speech. Then, the teacher helps them to build up different sentences”. This means it is very important for the learners to know the parts of speech. That is because a word may have different form and meaning when it is used as a verb, noun, adjective or an adverb. 2.15.4 Using Synonym The word synonym means a word that has the same or equivalent meaning to other word. Ostrowska, (2012: 57) reports: "We often use synonyms when we are speaking. We do this to avoid repeating the same word again and again". Ostrowska means that using synonyms is a feature or a sign of knowledge. It helps in avoid repetition. Table 2.30.4 Shows Some Synonyms: Word Synonym Army Soldiers Discovered Found King Ruler Early age Young

A lot Plenty

Tawfeeg, (2012: 13) defines synonym as: “They are two or more forms with very closely related meaning which are often but not always inter substitutable in sentences”. Tawfeeg wants to say that, Synonym means that a word having more than one form and closely related meaning. The speaker should determine which one he/ she would like to use. 2.15.5 Using Opposite According to Ostrowska, (2012): it is much recommended to use the opposite of the words when building sentences in order to avoid repetition. Notice: using synonym and opposite of words can give the students a chance to vary their sentences. It helps them to avoid repetition and it is a sign of understanding. Besides, rich vocabulary is very necessary when speaking as well as when writing, listening or reading. 2.15.6 Using Affixes to Build up New Words Ostrowska, (2012: 39) mentions: using affixes ( suffixes and prefixes) is one of the techniques by which the speaker can build up new words. Here is a table to show some of these affixes.

Table 2.30.6.1 Shows the Use of Some Affixes Affix Word Example 1. al Tradition Traditional 2. ize Modern Modernize 3. en Deep Deepen 4. able Accept Acceptable 5. ment Develop Development 6. full Care Careful

2.15.7 Using Phrasal Verbs According to Ostrowska, (2012:111) defines “Phrasal verbs consist of a verb and a particle. It is not always easy to understand what the phrasal verb means if we focus only on the verb or the particle separately”. Gangal, (2012:203) defines phrasal verbs as: " A combination of two or more words having a specific meaning of its own. It is quite different from the meaning of the words forming that phrasal

verb separately". This means learners must not think of the meaning of the words in a phrasal verb separately. Table 2.30.7.1 Shows Some Phrasal Verbs: Phrasal verb Meaning 1. work out Do exercises 2. brought up Grew up 3. take over Control 4. give up Stop doing something 5. get over Recover 6. went on Continued

1. Worth mentioning that, there are also, some phrasal verbs that consist of more than two words e.g. look forward to = anticipate something, go back on = fail to keep a promise …etc. 2.15.8 Using One Word for a Group of Words Gangal, (2012:218-219): It is very important to know how to use one word or phrase instead of some words. This will greatly help the speaker to acquire more effective language ability. It is a sign of covering a wide area of vocabulary. Gangal, gives these examples in the following table: Table 2.30.8.1 Shows Some Words/ Phrases that Can be used for Group of Words:

A Group of Words Word / Phrase 1. Beyond correction Incorrigible 2. A person who constantly talks about himself/ herself Egoist 3. The decision that one's can't take back Irrevocable 4. A state of a long deep unconsciousness Coma 5. A list of books on a subject Bibliography 6. To identify strongly with the feelings of others Empathize 7. A complete victory Clean sweep 8. Leaving a meeting as an expression of disapproval Walk out 9. A book that sells in a very large numbers Best- seller

2.16 Strategies of Writing

Writers draw on various strategies to assess the rhetorical situation and respond to it by developing written text . those strategies are often internalized , some writers may have acquired them so naturally through practice that they may not even be aware of some of the strategies they use. For most Writers especially less experienced ones it is often helpful to have an explicit understanding of some of the strategies that can be internalized through practice. Understanding the strategic aspect of writing is important for writing teachers because it enables them of teach 'writing ' rather than teach about writing '. In order for the process of writing to being ; the writer has to assess the rhetorical situation and identify the primary purpose or aim of writing ;with an emphasis on one of the elements of writing. (kinneavy, 1971 ) said "The aim of writing may be 'expressive ' (emphasis on the writer) 'persuasive' (emphasis on the reader), referential, (emphasis on reality) or 'literary'(emphasis on the" text) ". The writer may also identify and develop identify and develop ideas for writing by focusing on one or more of the elements ,such as: - exploring or discovering what the writer already knows, feels or believes though techniques such as clustering , listening and free writing (focus on the writer). - Looking for dissonance or conflict (focus on the reader). - Examining reality reading or observation (focus on reality). - Choosing a form of writing such Assonet ,personal narrative or conference proposal (focus on the text). (halliday, 1973) said : "It the through written text that the writer constructs, represents and negotiates his or her conceptions o the writer , the reader, the text and reality . writings do not simply encode 'ideational meaning' (the meaning of their ideas); they also create 'textual meaning ' (the meaning that helps the readers navigate through the text) as well as 'interpersonal meaning ' (the meaning about the relationship between the writer and the reader)

The knowledge of how these meanings can be constructed through the use of particular written discourse features is therefore an important part of the writer's competence." Although the ability to write presupposes some level of morphological , lexical and syntactic as well as idiomatic knowledge . (halliday, 1973) said " such knowledge a lone dose not guarantee the ability to write well because writing involves much more than constructing grammatical sentences need to be 'cohesive' ,

41 that is they have to be connected by cohesive devices in ways that can be followed by readers". The whole text also needs to be 'coherent', that is various parts of the text have to work together conceptually in the particular rhetorical context .(carrel,1982) said "although cohesion and coherence are related concepts , cohesive text is not necessarily coherent". Furthermore ,coherence is not universal; rather, what considered coherent differs from one shown , for example, that the standard of coherence may vary across languages and cultures (connor and johns, 1990; leki,1991,connor,1996), although the differences cannot simply be attributed to language or culture alone (mohan and lo,1985;Kubota,1997;matsuda,1997). For the reason ,the assessment of the quality of writing requires an understanding of the context in which it was written and especially the audience for which it was intended.

2.17The Previous Studies Writing is one of the important skills , in English many current studies have been concerned with teaching and learning writing skills in order to Improve E F L students writing products . The following is a number of previous studies relevant to the topic of the study under investigation: No (1) by:

Fawzia Eltayeb Yusuf (2010) PhD The title : - Analysis of Pertinacious Common Error in the Writing Performance of EFL Learners in Sudan " The study aims to indentifying and analyzing these error , explaining the probable causes of these errors and suggesting suitable solutions to help in improving student's competence in writing . However , the study hypothesizes that Sudanese EFL university students commit errors in their writing performance : these errors are pertinacious from second year to fourth year . It also hypothesizes that the interference of culture and mother tongue contribute to most of their writing errors , Moreover , it hypothesizes that the origins of some errors could be found within the structure of university curriculum of English language . The result of study shows that most students had problems with the format of composition writing . Also the way which they grapes the basic rules of grammar , spelling , lexis , punctuation of English language .

No (2) by :

Mohammed Ilyas (2010) PhD : The title : " Evaluation of Writing Performance of Second Year Language Students in Kordufan University " The research tries to find out how can Kordufan university students produce well organized pieces of writing with appropriate language , good sentence and paragraph construction , suitable use of punctuation marks , correct spelling and clear hand writing . The researcher used the descriptive method of research . The tool which the researcher used was an interview and a test .

Results : a. Students were to extent good in the use of appropriate language , spelling and hand writing . b. Students were weak in sentence and paragraph construction and the use of punctuation marks . c. Students weak in writing performance are due to a number of reasons such as : student's weak writing performance in basic and secondary school .

No (3) by :

1)” Coherence in Written Text” University of Gezira, by Maria . M. ElBashir, September, 2006. This study is intended to investigate the problems of coherence in written texts at University level. The study focuses on investigating student‘s writing performance in term of coherence. The main objectives of this study are to find out the actual problem of coherence, try to identify the causes of the problem and help the student‘s to improve their writing skills. The main findings of the study are that the third year University student‘s writing do not follow a coherent logical order and the study has encountered difficulties in using reference, conjunctions and lexis; which affect their writing of the text. The main recommendations are that, the student‘s should be aware of the cohesive devices. The teacher should help students to improve their writing by showing them models of different writing topics.

No (4) by :

AbdelGani (2004) " An investigation in the students' performance in paragraph writing at university level " M.A Thesis Faculty of education . Hantoub , Gazira University . The study aims to review new techniques for teaching writing through vocabulary and investigate the difficulties in teaching writing The researcher has come to the following findings : 1. Students have weak performance in writing the paragraph . 2. Students have shown a weak regarding the structure , topic sentence , coherence and punctuation of paragraph . The study recommended that teaching writing should be accompanied with some techniques in order to motivate the students such as workshop activities , group work , and providing the students with model paragraph .

No (5) by :

Sana Mutwakil Mustafa Nuag ( December 2007) M.A Dissertation Faculty of Education-Hasahisa , University of Gezira . " Writing skills : a problematic Area for learners of English Language at Secondary level " The study aims to find out factors which affect secondary school students writing skills and tries problems students standard by finding solutions to the problems . she has recommended that the early stages of writing skills begin at the basic school teachers should be well trained and specialized in English language , designers of syllabus should be aware of the following : a. Student's age , needs and interests . b. Time needed to master writing skills . c. Activates should start from easy to difficult ones . d. Motivation of both teachers and students .

No (5) by :

Ahmed , K , and Y (2010) Hantoub , Gazira University . " problems confronting E F L university in Academic Essay writing "M.A" Thesis . He concluded that most of the problems as spelling , grammar choice of words , punctuation and so on . He has recommended the special attention should be given to teaching grammar and punctuation . The above studies described the most essential problems that confronting E F L students in writing skills at university level .

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER THREE METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY

3.0 Introduction This chapter deals with the procedures which are used in conducting the study. It illustrates the study population, sample, the tools of the data collection and the statistical procedures implemented for the analysis.

3.1 The Population of the Study The EFL students of University-Holy Quran- in Gezira State- Sudan were the subject of the study. The study focuses on first year male and female students.

3.2 Sampling The sample of the study contains the ELT students at Universities of Gezira. The purposive sample consists of (55) students (40) males and (15) females. The sample was chosen from Holy Quran University.

3.3 the tools of data collection The tools which is used in collecting data in this study is a test distributed to the sample of the study.

3.4 the contents of the test the students test (See appendix) the test is consists of two parts so as to measure and to investigate the erroneous use of the pronouns that students committed when they use English pronouns. Part one is multiple choice test, was used in the study with purpose of revealing the errors that made by the students in the area of the English pronouns and investigate their causes. It was given to (55) students. The questions in this part covered all the of the pronouns. Part two is to get a sample of the students spontaneous production, free-writing test as a means for conducting incorrect usage of pronouns in contexts, was used. The aim is to discover the problems posed by English pronouns at University of Holy Quran, Gezira EFL students. English work: Valette, (1977:77) states that: The language samples produced by students, would be spontaneous and would reveal which language components the subjects could use to communicate. The researcher proposed five free-writing text topics carefully, and they are presented in simple language and a few words to help understanding, the topics were also consists of different forms to avoid boredom. The students were assigned to choose a text to write on. The data collected by means of the test was organized, tabulated and analyzed by computer. The programme used was (SPSS). The statistical devices followed in analyzing the data were standard deviation and mean.

A- Mean = ∑ × f N

For the standard deviation: S.D = √ ∑ d 2 N For the testing significance:

X 1 _ X 2

t. Value =

√ n n

3.5 Reliability of the Test There is a correlation between reliability and validity that is checked and proved by the teachers at the Department of English Language Hassahaisa. The test distributed for the students twice and gave strong relation between the first and the second result. the test comes to be reliable. The reliability of the test is calculated by the use of ranks: Reliability = 1 _ 6 ∑ D = 0.93 N (N - 1) 2

3.6 Validity of the Test The test was checked and judged by the teachers at the Faculty of Education, Department English Language Hassahaisa. What they suggested was considerably taken into account.

CHAPTER FOUR

DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSOIN 4.0 Introduction This chapter intended to present analysis and discussion of the data that has been collected by means of a test. It also aims to test the research hypotheses against the results that has been reached. In this test each item was analyzed by means of tabulation chart, because the chart gives full and quick information about the items analysis. The test is divided into two parts multiple choice because it takes short time from the respondents to answer the questions, and part two is free-writing to spot the spontaneous mistakes committed by the respondents. 4.1 Data Analysis and Discussion In this section data collected will be divided into two parts. 4.1.1 Part one Table (4.1)The Frequency of Incorrect answer in part one of male and female

Items Male Female Total

Subjective Pronouns 11 31 42

Objective Pronouns 9 25 34

Relative Pronouns 10 29 39

Possessive Pronouns 10 33 43

Reflexive Pronouns 12 35 47

Table( 4.2) Percentage of incorrect answer in part one of male and female 49

Items Male Female Total

Subjective pronouns 26% 74% 100%

Objectives pronouns 26% 74% 100%

Relatives pronouns 26% 74% 100%

Possessive pronouns 23% 77% 100%

Reflexives pronouns 26% 74% 100%

Figure (4.1)

Male Female 90 77 80 74 74 74 74 70

50 40

Percentgae % Percentgae 30 26 26 26 26 23 20

0 Subjunctives Objectives Relatives Possessive Reflexives Items

From the above tables (4.1),(4.2) and the figure (4.1), (42) of the sample made mistakes in subjective pronouns ,(34) in objective ,(39) in relative ,(43) in possessive and (47)in reflexive, from the total number of the sample (55). It shows a problem of the pronouns usages among the Students .

Table (4.3) Frequency of correct answer in part one of male and female

Items Male Female Total

Subjective Pronouns 4 9 13

Objective Pronouns 6 15 21

Relative Pronouns 5 11 16

Possessive Pronouns 5 7 12

Reflexive Pronouns 3 5 8

Table(4. 4) Percentage of correct answer in part one of male and female

Items Male Female

Subjective Pronouns 31 69

Objective Pronouns 29 71

Relative Pronouns 31 69

Possessive Pronouns 42 58

Reflexive Pronouns 38 63

Male Female

80 69 71 69 70 63 58 60

50 42 38 40 31 29 31 30

Percentage% 20 10 0 Subjunctives Objectives Relatives Possessive Reflexives Items

Figure (4.2) Percentage of correct answer in part one of male and female The tables(4.3) ,(4.4) and the figure (4.2) show that the low number of the correct answer in the usage of the pronouns in different places in a sentence which indicate there is a real problem in transforming of the pronouns .

Table(4.5) Percentage of incorrect and correct answers in part one

Items Incorrect Correct

Subjective Pronouns 76 24

Objective Pronouns 62 38

Relative Pronouns 71 29

Possessive Pronouns 78 22

Reflexive Pronouns 85 15

Table(4.6) Descriptive statistics of wrong and correct answers of male and female in part one

Incorrect Correct

Statistics

Male Female Male Female

Mean 10.40 30.60 4.60 9.40

Std. Deviation 1.140 3.847 1.140 3.847

Std. Error Mean 0.510 1.720 0.510 1.720

Incorrect Correct 90 85 76 78 80 71 70 62 60 50 38 40 29

30 24 22 Percentage % Percentage 20 15 10 0 Subjunctives Objectives Relatives Possessive Reflexives Items

Figure (4.3) Percentage of Incorrect and correct answers in part one.

From the tables (4.5),(4.6) and the figure (4.3) there is a large differences between correct and Incorrect answers and this means that students have a weak background and knowledge about the use of the pronouns.

4.1.2 Part Two This part is free-writing .The items that would be checked are "Personal pronouns , Adjective pronouns, Possessive Pronouns, Relative pronouns and reflexive pronouns", because free-writing test help to spot the spontaneous mistakes committed by the students .

Table (4.7) Frequency of incorrect answer in part two of male and female

Items Male Female Total

Subjective Pronouns 10 27 37

Objective Pronouns 10 23 33

Adjective Pronouns 11 31 42

Relative Pronouns 8 25 33

Possessive Pronouns 9 22 31

Reflexive Pronouns 8 27 35

Table (4.8) Percentage of incorrect answer in part two of male and female

Items Male Female

Subjective Pronouns 27 73

Objective Pronouns 30 70

Adjective Pronouns 26 74

Relative Pronouns 24 76

Possessive Pronouns 29 71

Reflexive Pronouns 23 77

Male Female

90 77 80 73 74 76 70 71 70 60 50 40 30 27 26 29 Percentgae % Percentgae 30 24 23 20 10 0 Subjunctives Objectives Adjectives Relatives Possessive Reflexives Items

Figure (4.4) Percentage of wrong answer in part two of male and female

According to tables (4.7), (4.8) and the figure(4.4) , it's clear that the erroneous pronouns effect students on written text as in the result that shown in the above tables.

Table (4.9) Percentage of incorrect and correct answer in part two Items Incorrect Correct

Subjective Pronouns 67 33

Objective Pronouns 60 40

Adjective Pronouns 76 24

Relative Pronouns 60 40

Possessive Pronouns 56 44

Reflexive Pronouns 64 36

Incoreet Coreet

90 76 80 67 64 70 60 60 60 56 50 40 40 44 40 33 36 30 24

Percentage % Percentage 20 10 0

Relatives Objectives Adjectives Reflexives Subjunctives Possessive Items

Figure (4.5)Percentage of incorrect and correct answer in part two.

As shown in table (4.9)and the figure (5.5) ,students are suffering a lot at the area of pronouns, more specifically the area of the objective pronouns. Table (4.10) general percentages of part one and part two.

Items Incorrect Correct

Part one 75 25

part two 64 36

Total 70 30

Figure (4.6) percentage of Part one and Two

Figure (4.7) the general percentage of correct and Incorrect in the test. (75)of the students made mistake in part one and (25) choose the right answer . Whereas (64) of the sample made mistake in part two and (36) choose the right answer . This confirmed there is a problem in using various types of pronouns .

4.2 Discussion of Results In Relation to Hypotheses of the Study

In this area the results of the test are discussed in relation to the hypotheses of the study. a. Students don't have sufficient Knowledge and experience about the Pronouns' usag. According to the statistical results from table (4.1) to (4.5) , Students made mistakes in all types of pronouns .That prove that students lack to basic information about pronouns usages. This hypothesis is proved. b. The complexity System of English Pronouns make the problems area. As in table (4.1) and (4.6), Students confused in choosing the pronoun that match with the situation. This hypothesis proved. c. The mother tongue interference attribute to commit these errors . The table (4.1) shows that (42) of the students are confused in using the subjective pronouns in comparing them to Arabic .According to the result this hypothesis accepted. d. Students confused in selecting which pronouns match with or suit the situation In table (4.10) (70%) of the sample chose Incorrect answer . This implies that there is no enough distinctions in the usage of the pronouns. In light to the results this hypothesis is proved.

CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION, FINDING AND RECOMMENDATIONS 5.1 Conclusion The study investigates the area of the Erroneous pronouns among Students at University, first level when they deal with English Pronouns. The objective of the study is to recognize the problems posed by English pronouns and their effect on written texts. It also tries to find a way to solve these problems so as to help Students develop their writing skills in English language. The data was collected by a test which was given to fifty five Students "fourty girls and fifteen boys" from many Universities in Gezira. The data was organized tabulated by Computer. The results was calculated statistically and showed in the form of frequency, tables and graphs. 5.2 Findings With the analysis of data the study reach to: a. There are high numbers of errors in the test by choosing wrong pronouns and this is a great problem that students face. b. The errors are committed in the personal pronouns and due to the influence of their mother language. c. Most of the errors are committed as a result of the ignorance and the limit experience of the students about English pronouns. d. Some of the students make errors as a result of the complexity system of English pronouns.

5.3 Recommendations Based on the findings the researcher would like to recommend the following: a. Teachers should focus on the area of the pronouns by explaining the meaning and the use comparing to the Arabic language to solve this problem. b. English pronouns should be presented in various ways to help students transform them according to their function in the sentence. c. The books at the previous stage should include exercises to give the students opportunity to practice using pronouns. d. Students should concentrate on the area of the pronouns so as to solve their weaknesses by practicing more and more.

5.4 Suggestions for Further Studies a. The effective ways of teaching pronouns. b. To what extend erroneous pronouns affect developing the other skills.

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Appendix

University of Gezira Faculty of Education- Hasahisa Post-Graduate Studies Test for students Time:30 minutes first level year:2013

Dear students, This test is undertaken with the intention of collecting essential data on the erroneous use of the English pronouns among students at university levels. * Part One Read the following carefully then draw a circle a round the best answer a, b, c or d :

1-My brother and ------are playing tennis. a) My b) me c) mine d) I 2------father is a teacher. a) He b) Him c) His 3- Please, stay with ------. a) We b) ours c) us d) our 4-What is ----- is mine. a) I b) me c) my d) mine 5-This is the house ------I live. a) What b) Which c) Whom d) Where 6-I did the work ------. a) In myself b) by myself c) myself d) at myself 7-That teacher teaches ------. a) We b) our c) us d) ours 8- You ------are responsible for this mess. a) You b) you self c) yourself 9- I hate that tree ---- gives out sticky smells. a) Who b) What c) Which d) Where 10- Marry sent ---- a letter.

63 a) He b) his d) him  Part two Write about one of the following topics: 1- Your father and his job. 2- Your brothers and their sports. 3- Your best friend and his hobbies. 4- Your English teacher and his way of teaching. 5- Your family. No. ( ) ------