A STUDY OF ENGLISH ARTICLE USAGE AMONG CROATIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
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EFL learning, language transfer, English article usage, Croatian university students
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Abstract
The main focus of this study was to analyse article errors in the writing of first year Croatian psychology students studying English as a foreign language as part of their study programme. Article errors among learners with different proficiency levels were also analysed; moreover, errors made by students with different essay grades were compared. The results show that the category with the highest number of errors included the omission of the indefinite article. Furthermore, it was found that proficiency levels were not a significant factor concerning the average number of errors in any of the categories. Moreover, it was also shown that essay grades did not play a significant role in the number of article errors in student writing except in the category of omission of the definite article, which was found among students with lower essay grades.
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Martinović, A. K., & Balenović, K. M. A STUDY OF ENGLISH ARTICLE USAGE AMONG CROATIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. Methodical Perspectives, 10(10), 95–112. https://doi.org/10.19090/mv.2019.10.95-112
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НАСТАВА СТРАНИХ ЈЕЗИКА, КЊИЖЕВНОСТИ И КУЛТУРА
References
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Butler, G. Y. (2002). “Second Language Learners’ Theories on the Use of English Article: An Analysis of the Metalinguistic Knowledge Used by Japanese Students in Acquiring the English Article System”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 451-480.
Chaudron, C.& Parker, K. (1990). “Discourse Markedness and Structural Markedness: The Acquisition of English Noun Phrases”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 12: 43-63.
Chomsky, N. (1957). Syntactic Structures. The Hague: Mouton.
Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (1981). Lectures on Government and binding. Dordrech: Foris.
Chomsky, N. (1995). The Minimalist Program. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (2000). New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind. Cambridge: CUP
Corder, S. P. (1967). “The Significance of Learners’ Errors”. International Review of Applied Linguistics 5, 4: 161-170.
DeKeyser, M. R. (2000). “The robustness of critical period effects in second language acquisition”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 22: 499-533.
Dulay, H.& Burt, M. (1973). “Should We Teach Children Syntax?” Language Learning 24:245-58.
Ekiert, M. (2007). “The Acquisition of Grammatical Marking of Indefiniteness with the Indefinite Article a in L2 English”. Columbia University Working Papers in TESOL & Applied Linguistics Vol. 7 No. 1: 1-43.
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Fries, C. (1945). Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language. Ann Arbor, MI: Michigan Press.
Gass, M. S.& Selinker, L. (2007). Second Language Acquisition, An Introductory Course (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.
Hakuta, K. (1976). “A Case Study of a Japanese Child Second Language Acquisition”. Language Learning. 24: 37-53.
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Huebner, T. (1979). “Order-of-Acquisition vs. Dynamic Paradigm: A Comparison of Method in Interlanguage Research”. TESOL Quarterly 13: 21-28.
Huebner, T. (1983). A Longitudinal Analysis of the acquisition of English. Ann Arbor, MI: Karoma Press.
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Jarvis, S. (2002). “Topic Continuity in L2 English Article Use”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 387-418.
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Lardiere, D. (2004). “Knowledge of Definiteness Despite Variable Article Omission in Second Language Acquistion”, in Proceedings of the 28th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development, eds. A. Brugos, L. Micciulla & C. E. Smith, (Somerville MA: Cascadilla Press): 328-339.
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Liu, D. & Gleason, J. B. (2002). “Acquisition of the article the by non-native speakers of English”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 1-26.
Mackey, A. & Gass S. M. (2005). Second Language Research – Methodology and Design. Mahwah. NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Mitchell, R. & Myles, F. (2004). Second Language Learning Theories (2nd ed.). London: Hodder Arnold.
Olin, T. (2003). “Cross-linguistic influence” in The Handbook of Second Language Acquisition, eds. C. Doughty & M. Long (Malden, Mass.: Blackwell): 436-486.
Pranjković, I. (2000). “Izražavanje neodređenosti/određenosti imenica u hrvatskom jeziku”, in Riječki filološki dani, ed. D. Stolac (Rijeka: Filozofski fakultet): 343-349.
Prebeg-Vilke, M. (1977). Uvod u Glotodidaktiku. Zagreb: Školska Knjiga
Robertson, D. (2000). “Variability in the Use of the English Article System by Chinese Learners of English”. Second Language Research 16: 135-172.
Sarko, G. (2008). “Accounting for Indefinite Article a Drop in the Oral L2 English of L1 Syrian Arab Speakers”. Essex Graduate Student Papers in Language & Linguistics 10: 97-115.
Saville-Troike, M. (2012). Introducing Second Language Acquisition (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Selinker, L. (1972). “Interlanguage”. International Review of Applied Linguistics 10: 209-31.
Silić, J. (2000). “Kategorija neodređenosti/određenosti i načini njezina izražavanja”, in Riječki filološki dani, ed. D. Stolac (Rijeka: Filozofski fakultet): 401-405.
Thomas, M. (1989). “The acquisition of English articles by first – and second – language learners”. Applied Psycholinguistics 10: 335-355.
Trenkić, D. (2002). “Form-meaning connections in the acquisition of English articles”. Second Language Research 23/3: 289-327.
White, L. (2003). “Fossilization in Steady State L2 Grammars: Persistent Problems with Inflectional Morphology”. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 6: 129-141.
Young, W. R. (1996). “Form-Function Relations in Articles in English Interlanguage”, in Second Language Acquisition and Linguistic Variation, eds. R. Bayley& D. R. Preston (Amsterdam: John Benjamins): 135-175.
Zdorenko, T., Paradis, J. (2008). “The acquisition of articles in child second language English: fluctuation, transfer of both?”. Second Language Research 24/2: 228-250.
Zergollern-Miletić., L. (2008). Kategorija određenosti i neodređenosti u engleskom i hrvatskom jeziku, doctoral dissertation, Zagreb: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Philosophy.
Zergollern-Miletić, L. (2015). “Acquisition of Markers of Definiteness and Indefiniteness in Early EFL”, in Early Learning and Teaching of English, eds. J. Mihaljević Djigunović & M. Medved Krajnović (Bristol: Multilingual Matters): 67-79.
Bailey, N. Madden, C., Krashen, S. (1974). “Is There a ‘Natural Sequence’ in Adult Second Language Learning?” Language Learning 24: 235-43.
Balenović, K., Medved Krajnović, M. (2013). “The and A in the Interlanguage of Croatian Primary School Children”, in UZRT 2012, Empirical Studies in English Applied Linguistics, eds. J. Mihaljević Djigunović & M. Medved Krajnović (Zagreb: FF Press): 36-44.
Balenović, K. (2014). “Acquisition of English Articles by Croatian Primary School Students in Early English Foreign Language Learning”. American Journal of Educational Research Vol.2. No.7: 436-440.
Balenović, K. (2015). “Classroom interaction in early EFL learning: An analysis of the learner’s interlanguage”, in Multidisciplinary Approaches to Multilingualism, Proceedings from the CALS conference 2014, eds. K. Cergol Kovačević & S.L. Udier (Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang): 17-29.
Butler, G. Y. (2002). “Second Language Learners’ Theories on the Use of English Article: An Analysis of the Metalinguistic Knowledge Used by Japanese Students in Acquiring the English Article System”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 451-480.
Chaudron, C.& Parker, K. (1990). “Discourse Markedness and Structural Markedness: The Acquisition of English Noun Phrases”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 12: 43-63.
Chomsky, N. (1957). Syntactic Structures. The Hague: Mouton.
Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (1981). Lectures on Government and binding. Dordrech: Foris.
Chomsky, N. (1995). The Minimalist Program. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chomsky, N. (2000). New Horizons in the Study of Language and Mind. Cambridge: CUP
Corder, S. P. (1967). “The Significance of Learners’ Errors”. International Review of Applied Linguistics 5, 4: 161-170.
DeKeyser, M. R. (2000). “The robustness of critical period effects in second language acquisition”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 22: 499-533.
Dulay, H.& Burt, M. (1973). “Should We Teach Children Syntax?” Language Learning 24:245-58.
Ekiert, M. (2007). “The Acquisition of Grammatical Marking of Indefiniteness with the Indefinite Article a in L2 English”. Columbia University Working Papers in TESOL & Applied Linguistics Vol. 7 No. 1: 1-43.
Ellis, C. N.& Larsen-Freeman, D. (2006). “Language emergence: implication for applied linguistics”. Applied Linguistics 27: 558-589.
Ellis, R. (1994). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R. (2008). The Study of Second Language Acquisition, 2nd Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Filipović, R. (1972). “A compromise system”, in B Studies, ed. R. Filipović (Zagreb: Institute of Linguistics): 19-29.
Fries, C. (1945). Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language. Ann Arbor, MI: Michigan Press.
Gass, M. S.& Selinker, L. (2007). Second Language Acquisition, An Introductory Course (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.
Hakuta, K. (1976). “A Case Study of a Japanese Child Second Language Acquisition”. Language Learning. 24: 37-53.
Hawkins, A. J. & Garcia Mayo, M.P. (2009). Second language acquisition of articles: Empirical findings and theoretical implication. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Huebner, T. (1979). “Order-of-Acquisition vs. Dynamic Paradigm: A Comparison of Method in Interlanguage Research”. TESOL Quarterly 13: 21-28.
Huebner, T. (1983). A Longitudinal Analysis of the acquisition of English. Ann Arbor, MI: Karoma Press.
Ionin, T. (2003). “The Interpretation of “the”: A New Look at Articles in L2 English”, in Proceedings of the 27th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development, eds. B. Beachely, A. Brown & F. Conlin (Somerville MA: Cascadilla Press): 346-357.
Ionin, T. (2007). “This is definitely specific: specificity and definiteness in article systems”. Natural Language Semantics 14: 175-234.
Ionin, T., Ko, H., Wexler, K. (2004). “Article Semantics in L2 Acquisition: The Role of Specificity”. Language Acquisition 12: 3-69.
Ionin, T., Zubizarreta,M.L., & Maldonado, S.B. (2008). “Sources of linguistic knowledge in the second language acquisition of English articles”. Lingua 118: 554-576.
Jarvis, S. (2002). “Topic Continuity in L2 English Article Use”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 387-418.
Lado, R. (1957). Linguistics Across Cultures. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
Lardiere, D. (2004). “Knowledge of Definiteness Despite Variable Article Omission in Second Language Acquistion”, in Proceedings of the 28th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development, eds. A. Brugos, L. Micciulla & C. E. Smith, (Somerville MA: Cascadilla Press): 328-339.
Lightbown, P. & Spada, N. (2006). How Languages are Learned. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Liu, D. & Gleason, J. B. (2002). “Acquisition of the article the by non-native speakers of English”. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 24: 1-26.
Mackey, A. & Gass S. M. (2005). Second Language Research – Methodology and Design. Mahwah. NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Mitchell, R. & Myles, F. (2004). Second Language Learning Theories (2nd ed.). London: Hodder Arnold.
Olin, T. (2003). “Cross-linguistic influence” in The Handbook of Second Language Acquisition, eds. C. Doughty & M. Long (Malden, Mass.: Blackwell): 436-486.
Pranjković, I. (2000). “Izražavanje neodređenosti/određenosti imenica u hrvatskom jeziku”, in Riječki filološki dani, ed. D. Stolac (Rijeka: Filozofski fakultet): 343-349.
Prebeg-Vilke, M. (1977). Uvod u Glotodidaktiku. Zagreb: Školska Knjiga
Robertson, D. (2000). “Variability in the Use of the English Article System by Chinese Learners of English”. Second Language Research 16: 135-172.
Sarko, G. (2008). “Accounting for Indefinite Article a Drop in the Oral L2 English of L1 Syrian Arab Speakers”. Essex Graduate Student Papers in Language & Linguistics 10: 97-115.
Saville-Troike, M. (2012). Introducing Second Language Acquisition (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Selinker, L. (1972). “Interlanguage”. International Review of Applied Linguistics 10: 209-31.
Silić, J. (2000). “Kategorija neodređenosti/određenosti i načini njezina izražavanja”, in Riječki filološki dani, ed. D. Stolac (Rijeka: Filozofski fakultet): 401-405.
Thomas, M. (1989). “The acquisition of English articles by first – and second – language learners”. Applied Psycholinguistics 10: 335-355.
Trenkić, D. (2002). “Form-meaning connections in the acquisition of English articles”. Second Language Research 23/3: 289-327.
White, L. (2003). “Fossilization in Steady State L2 Grammars: Persistent Problems with Inflectional Morphology”. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 6: 129-141.
Young, W. R. (1996). “Form-Function Relations in Articles in English Interlanguage”, in Second Language Acquisition and Linguistic Variation, eds. R. Bayley& D. R. Preston (Amsterdam: John Benjamins): 135-175.
Zdorenko, T., Paradis, J. (2008). “The acquisition of articles in child second language English: fluctuation, transfer of both?”. Second Language Research 24/2: 228-250.
Zergollern-Miletić., L. (2008). Kategorija određenosti i neodređenosti u engleskom i hrvatskom jeziku, doctoral dissertation, Zagreb: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Philosophy.
Zergollern-Miletić, L. (2015). “Acquisition of Markers of Definiteness and Indefiniteness in Early EFL”, in Early Learning and Teaching of English, eds. J. Mihaljević Djigunović & M. Medved Krajnović (Bristol: Multilingual Matters): 67-79.