Grammar Errors in Argumentative Writing of Junior High School ESL Students: An Analysis
Abstract
This paper investigated the grammar errors committed in argumentative writing by the Grade 10 ESL students in a secondary school in Pasig City using the descriptive qualitative method. Twenty argumentative essays which have 350 to 500 words were examined using content analysis by Parveen and Showkat (2017). The errors were categorized based on the Surface Structure Taxonomy framework by Dulay et al. (1982) and James (1998). The findings revealed that out of the 134 identified errors in the students’ argumentative writing, addition is the most prominent error committed by the students with 55 occurrences, misformation with 39 occurrences, omission with 31 occurrences, misordering with 5 occurrences, and blending with 4 occurrences. The other types of errors identified are capitalization errors with 39 occurrences, misspelling with 14 occurrences, punctuation, run-on sentences, and parallel construction with 3 occurrences, respectively. Errors help teachers to understand how ESL students learn a language. Through errors, students can gauge their progress in second language learning. These errors will help language teachers design activities and materials that are appropriate to the learners’ needs.
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