Name of Learner: Rodrigo
| Line # | Phrase with error | Type of Error | Type of Corrective Feedback/Why |
| 13 | I would like to study the master’s degree | Grammar | “The” must refer to a previously mentioned master’s degree, so we have to mention a specific master’s degree before using “the.” Otherwise, we use “a master’s degree” if we’re talking about getting one, in general. If we have an article like “the college,” that we haven’t mentioned before, this can be confusing for the listener because they may wonder if they missed some information. |
| 15 | The teacher he are, not interact… | Grammar | This is an error in verb conjugation. The pronoun teacher (or he) should be followed with does, whereas the used “are” is used with “They.” This is an important part of commonly used sentence structure and helps communication flow if done correctly. |
| 24 | The more the more the most important… | Vocabulary | The student realizes that “more important” is not the type of distinction he wants to make and changes the vocabulary choice to “most important.” |
| 31 | I can’t, eh, take, the food | Vocabulary | It’s very common for Hispanic speakers to say “take food.” For example, “Did you take lunch,” should be “Did you have/eat lunch?” The use of a different, more specific verb (bring, buy, eat, etc.) would be suggested here for language accuracy. |
| 34 | But now, in the fourth, s, s, s, week, is more easy… | Grammar | This is a repeated mistake, as the student previously made the distinction between “more” and “most,” and here, isn’t able to make the distinction between “more easy” and “easier” on his own. It’s worth reviewing verbs that use –ier endings, even though the student’s use of “more easy” does not impede his communicative ability. |
| 49 | In Mexico, maybe in high school I I I start learning English | Morpheme | In English, sentences are best organized for clarity using the SVO order. This sentence is organized as OSV. This kind of sentence order is okay for speaking, because we aren’t able to recognize our speech patterns as we speak, but if written, it would be worth correcting. |
Name of Learner: Xue
| Line # | Phrase with error | Type of Error | Type of Corrective Feedback/Why |
| 2 | Our school force us to learn English | Phonology/Grammar | The use of “force” could be a phonological or grammatical error. Either the student did not think to put the word into past tense (to describe a previous event) or did not know the rule of –ed pronunciation and avoided the sound altogether. I would go over both of these things to assess the student’s awareness of both issues. |
| 9 | English is the biggest language in the world | Vocabulary | “Biggest” is an adjective used to describe a tangible object. The student should be aware of this fact and be exposed to other adjectives that would suffice (i.e. widely used, most popular, etc.) |
| 21 | I just like to um adjust a language… | Vocabulary | The verb “adjust” is used improperly here, as the student probably didn’t mean to say that she changes a language to her liking. She probably meant that she likes learning a language that changes her way of thinking, or that she enjoys a new challenge. |
| 25 | Often in class teacher always stand | Grammar | There is no preceding article for teacher. The concept of an article should be mentioned to the student because it allows someone to reference something specific, or something general. |
| 26 | …teacher always stand in the um in front of the blackboard | Phonology | The student’s pronunciation sounds like “blackbore” – this is another instance where the student did not finish the end of a word. To further assess if this is a general place of articulation issue. |
| 27 | Chinese are always focus on grammars | Grammar | The student is not familiar with the idea that grammar is a non-count noun. This subject should be reviewed with the student, especially since she is a student and this type of error should not be repeated in academic papers. |
As mentioned in the lesson this week, the more chances we have to speak, the more errors we make, and the more we learn. Keeping that in mind, Xue made more mistakes than Rodrigo. However, she also has more communicative ability. When listening to Rodrigo, I had more of a focus on meaning, whereas with Xue, understanding meaning was no problem, and I was able to focus on form.
As previously mentioned, the number of errors does not equate to proficiency. A student can still have high communicative proficiency if they regularly make mistakes. The types of errors can make a difference. If the student is incomprehensible due to phonological factors, this would impede communicative proficiency. If the student had a very limited vocabulary, but high phonological awareness, communicative proficiency may be adequate.
For Rodrigo, it may be harder to suggest what kind of corrective feedback to give because there were so many habits that had been formed since high school. The kind of feedback that I gave Rodrigo might be simplified and employ activities that focus more on meaning than form. Rodrigo also has a confidence issue when it comes to English, so focusing on meaning and less on form will improve that attitude. Xue also had habits that needed to be corrected. With her, she has a higher communicative ability so we would have activities that focus more on form than meaning. Xue already believed that she was a great student at English, so she may be more apt to focus on difficult form concepts without losing confidence.
I learned that each learner’s background and motivations had a lot to do with their language ability. I took that into consideration in the last paragraph and feel that if they were my students, and I used the right materials that appealed to them, we would start to make progress quickly.