Common errors in the use of to infinitives made by the students in grade eleven at bac kien xwowng high school

HANOI PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY No2 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FACULTY NGUYEN THI KIEU MIEN COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF TO-INFINITIVES MADE BY THE STUDENTS IN GRADE ELEVEN AT BAC KIEN XUONG HIGH SC

HANOI PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY No2 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FACULTY

NGUYEN THI KIEU MIEN

COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF TO-INFINITIVES MADE BY THE STUDENTS IN GRADE ELEVEN AT

BAC KIEN XUONG HIGH SCHOOL

(GRADUATION PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF

THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN ENGLISH)

Hanoi, 2014

Acknowledgement

I would like to take this chance to express my greatest gratitude to Mrs Phi Thi Tho, B.A., my supervisor for her invaluable support and careful guidance as well as encouragement, suggestions and advice throughout the process of writing this thesis

Besides, I would like to thank to the librarians of Hanoi Pedagogical University Number 2 who have helped me in the preparation and writing this thesis

I would like to express my thanks to my all beloved lectures who always motivated and suggested me to finish my thesis soon Furthermore, I would like

to thank all my friends who never stop encouraging me to finish my thesis

In addition, I want to express my special thank to students in class 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School because of their support in the survey

Last but not least, I own a debt of gratitude to my beloved family, for their whole – hearted encouragement and endless support

Abstract

It is a fact that to-infinitive is one of the essential parts to form a sentence

in English grammar As well known, to-infinitives are diversified in many forms, functions as well as usages It takes learners quite a long time to understand to-infinitives deeply

As a result, students of English often make errors when they use infinitives Therefore, this research is focused on investigating common errors in the uses of to-infinitives Actually, the most important purpose is to show how

to-to use the to-to-infinitives and to-to suggest some solutions to-to the problem

Based on material analysis and error analysis, the types of errors and causes have been found Solutions to the problems have been suggested

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP Title: Common errors in the use of to-infinitives made by the students in

grade eleven at Bac Kien Xuong High School

(Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for degree of Bachelor

of Arts in English)

I certify that no part in this thesis has been copied from any other person‟s work without acknowledgement and that the thesis is originally written by me under the instructions from my supervisor

Date submitted: May 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement i

Abstract ii

Statement of authorship iii

Table of contents iv

PART ONE INTRODUCTION I Rationale 1

II Research presupposition 1

III Research objectives 2

IV Research scope 2

V Research tasks 2

VI Research methods 2

VII Research significance 2

VIII Research design 3

PART TWO DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACGROUND I.1 Literature review in brief 4

I.2 To infinitive I.2.1 Definition 5

I.2.2 Form 5

I.2.3 Characteristics of to infinitive 6

I.2.3.1 Nominal characteristics 6

I.2.3.2 Adjectival characteristics 7

I.2.3.3 Adverbial characteristics 7

I.2.4 Functions 8

I.2.4.1 As a subject 8

I.2.4.2 As a direct object 8

I.2.4.3 As a subject complement 9

I.2.4.4 As an adverbial modifiers 9

I.2.4.5 As an adjective 9

I.2.4.6 As an adjectival complement 11

I.2.5 Uses of to infinitives 11

I.2.5.1 Cases where to infinitives are needed 11

I.2.5.1.1 After some verbs 11

I.2.5.1.2 After some question words 12

I.2.5.1.3 After verb “be” 13

I.2.5.1.4 After some adjectives 13

I.2.5.2 Misuse of to-infinitives in a place of gerunds 14

I.2.5.2.1 Some verbs can take either to-infinitives or gerunds with almost no difference in meaning 14

I.2.5.2.2 Some verbs can take either to-infinitives or gerunds with difference in meaning 15

CHAPTER TWO COMMON ERRORS IN THE USES OF TO INFINITIVES II.1 Survey 19

II.1.1 Purposes of the survey 19

II.1.3.Type of the survey 20

II.1.4 Construction of the test 20

II.1.5 Preparation of the survey 21

II.1.5.1 Test items 21

II.1.5.2 Arrangement of the test items 21

II.1.6 Administration of the try out 22

II.1.6.1 Preparation of the try out 22

II.1.6.2 Try out 22

II.1.7 Method of data analysis 22

II.1.8 Results of the survey 23

II.2 Common errors and causes 25

II.2.1 Errors in the use of to-infinitive as a subject 25

II.2.2 Errors in the use of to-infinitive as a direct object 25

II.2.3 Errors in the use of to infinitive as a subject complement 26

II.2.4 Errors in the use of to infinitive as an adverbial modifiers 27

II.2.5 Errors in the use of to infinitive as an adjective 27

II.2.6 Errors in the use of to infinitive after question words 27

II.2.7 Errors in the use of to-infinitive as an adjectival complement 28

II.3 Suggested solutions and suggested exercises II.3.1 Suggested solutions 28

II.3.2 Suggested exercise 30

PART THREE CONCLUSION CONCLUSION 31

REFERENCES 33

APPENDICIES 35

TEST SURVEY 35

SUGGESTED EXERCISES 41

PART ONE INTRODUCTION

I Rationale

We know that, studying English nowadays has become an essential demand for everyone However, each language has its own origin, characteristics and values leading to Vietnamese learners have to face many difficulties when they learn this international language It is proved that English grammar is complex, so it often causes embarrassments to learners To-infinitive

is one of the essential parts to form a sentence in English grammar that students have to learn too much at schools Therefore, using to-infinitives correctly and effectively is rather complex Due to its various uses, many students think to infinitives is difficult and complicated to use, it is assumed that there are many errors which may be made

As a student in the Foreign Language Faculty, this thesis is accomplished with the hope of making a contribution to the process of teaching English especially in teaching to-infinitive for students in high schools For these reasons above, this study is conducted with the aim of focusing on error in using English among the students of English in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High school

II Research presupposition

Some questions are raised:

1 What kinds of errors in the use of to-infinitives are made by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School?

2 What are the causes of the errors in the use of to-infinitives by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School?

3 What are the effective ways to minimize the errors made by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School?

III Research objectives

The study is aimed at the following goals:

1 To find out the main errors in the use of to-infinitives made by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School

2 To find out the causes of the errors in the use of to-infinitives by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School

3 To offer some suggestions to minimize the errors made by the students

in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School

IV Research scope

The general research area of this study is grammar The phenomenon is focused on the errors in using to-infinitives made by the students in grade 11 at Bac Kien Xuong High School The population involved in the study is 90 students

V Research tasks

The study involves the following tasks:

1 Studying the definition, formation, characteristics and usage of infinitives in English

to-2 Studying the grammatical features of to-infinitives in English

3 Conducting a survey to find out error types and causes of the uses of to-infinitives in English

4 Suggesting some solutions to minimize the students‟ errors

VI Research methods

To achieve the objectives of the study, the following methods have been applied:

1 Synthesizing theoretical materials on English grammar and linguistics

2 Conducting test survey and analyzing the results

3 Offering suggestions and solutions to the problems

VII Research significance

It is hoped that the result will be helpful to provide:

1 Input for learners of English in order to have better understanding about to-infinitives in English, especially at high school level

2 Input for learners in order to minimize their errors in using infinitives

to-VIII Research design

The research work has three main parts: Introduction, Development and Conclusion The part Development has two chapters

Chapter one Theoretical Background consists of two sections Section one presents literature review in brief and section two deals with to-infinitives in English in definition, form, characteristics, function, and usage

Chapter two is Common errors in the use of to-infinitives It describes the research method It is composed of three sections Section one is devoted to the survey The second deals with error types and causes

The last one is solutions to the problems and suggested exercises on infinitives

to-PART TWO DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

I.1 Literature review in brief

To-infinitives have been described by many grammarians like Azaz (1999), Alexander (1990), Andrea Decapua (2008), Huges (2001), John Eastwood (1994), Kam Chuan Aik and Kam Kai Hui (1999), They each had their own ways to describe to-infinitives It is visible that their contributions are

so great Generally, they often focused on their attention on the definition, function and the uses of adjectives

In the book Oxford Guide To English Grammar, John Eastwood (1994)

gave quite understandable picture of the to-infinitive He referred to infinitive forms and infinitive clause Moreover, he paid much attention to functions and patterns with the to-infinitive and to-infinitive clause

Adrea Decapua (2008) in the book Grammar For Teachers also referred

to functions of infinitives and infinitive phrases including the most common position and function infinitives and infinitive phrases Besides, she gave other patterns with the to-infinitive and the way how to make infinitive negative and infinitive passive

In the book Understanding and Using English, Azaz (1999) studied the

form of to-infinitive, listed some verbs followed by an object and to

Michael Swan (1984) stated in the book Basic English Usage that in the

reported speech, we can use a to-infinitive after some question words

Anthony Huges (2001) in the book The Online English Grammar gave

quite full picture about the infinitive He introduced negative infinitive, other forms of infinitive such as perfect infinitive, continuous infinitive, passive infinitive and perfect continuous infinitive Also, he mentioned the functions and usages of the infinitive and lists some verbs followed by to-infinitives

Kam Chuan Aik and Kam Kai Hui (1992) in the book Longman

Dictionary of Grammar and Usage discussed the definition as well as the

features of infinitives Moreover, they pointed out the functions of the infinitive which are as a subject, a direct object, a predicate after a linking verb,

to-an appositive They dealed with modifiers of to-infinitive in to-infinitive phrases

In short, much research has been done on the to-infinitives but none of them pointed out errors in the uses of to-infinitives In fact, there are far more errors that learners of English often make when they use the to-infinitives Therefore, it is essential to have a comprehensive study of common errors in the use of to-infinitives

I.2 To-infinitive

I.2.1 Definition of to-infinitive

To-infinitive is an infinitive with to Kam Chuan Aik and Kam Kai Hui (1992) define an infinitive is the base form of a verb used as a noun, an adjective

or an adverb For example:

To help you is my duty

My decision to leave was wise

I come here to learn

I.2.2 Form of to-infinitive

A to-infinitive is the „to‟ + base or simple verb Infinitive can combine with other words to the form infinitive phrase A to-infinitive is usually preceded by to (eg to read, to say ) but to is not a preposition when it is used with the base form of a verb It is merely a sign of the infinitive (eg to eat, to send) To make sure that an expression is an infinitive and not a preposition phrase, look at the word which follows to If it is a verb, then the expression is a to-infinitive

The negative of a infinitive is formed by adding “not” before the infinitive For example:

to-I decided not to go to London

Other forms of the to-infinitive

The perfect infinitive: to have + past participle

For example:

I would like to have seen the Taj Mahal when I was in India

The continuous infinitive: to be + present participle

For example:

I‟d really like to be swimming in a nice cool pool right now

The perfect continuous infinitive: to have been + present participle

For example:

The woman seemed to have been crying

The passive infinitive: to be + past participle

For example:

I am expecting to be given a pay-rise next month

I.2.3 Characteristics of to infinitive

According to Andrea Decapua (2008) in the book Grammar For

Teachers, to-infinitive can function as nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and

complement

I.2.3.1 Nominal characteristics

When to-infinitives function as nouns, they can be in subject or object position They can be subject, direct object, subject complement and adjectival complement For example:

To help you is my duty

→ To help is subject of the verb “is”

He agreed to see me after I wrote him a letter

→ To see is a direct object

His aim is to sing well

→ To sing is a subject complement

It is easy to do this work

→ To do is an adjectival complement

I.2.3.2 Adjectival characteristics

To-infinitive can function as adjectives when they modify a preceding noun

For example:

It is my need to do homework

The students have a lot of homework to do

In this sentence, the to-infinitive “to do” is modifying the noun homework, and thus functioning as an adjective

I.2.3.3 Adverbial characteristics

To-infinitive can function as adverbs when they modify a verb or an entire sentence When to-infinitives function as adverbs, they are expressing a purpose For example:

The students came to learn English

→ To learn English is modifying the verb “came”, and thus functioning as

an adverb The to-infinitive “to learn” is explaining “why” the students came

To learn English better, the students came to the US

→ To learn English better is modifying the entire sentence “the students came to the US.”, and thus functioning as an adverb

Crucial to deciding whether or not a to-infinitive is functioning as an adverb is to ask question “why?”

I.2.4 Functions of to-infinitive

I.2.4.1 As a subject

According to Andrea Decapua in the book Grammar For Teachers, we

can use a to-infinitive as subject :

To break your promise would be wrong

However, placing the to-infinitive at the beginning of the sentence is considered formal and generally not found in informal spoken or written English Therefore, this pattern is not very usual More often we use “it” as an

“empty subject” referring forward to the infinitive clause For example:

It takes ages to defrost this fridge

Would it seem rude to turn down the invitation?

It‟s a great mistake not to take a holiday now and then

I.2.4.2 As a direct object

In the book Grammar For Teachers, Andrea Decapua (2008) states that

to-infinitives can function as direct objects of verbs

The most common sentence position of to-infinitive and to-infinitive phrase is after a main verb When to-infinitives follow verbs, they are functioning as objects

For example:

I expect to be free tomorrow evening

I don‟t want to see you again

I decide to build an apartment

I.2.4.3 As a subject complement

In the book Oxford Guide to English Grammar, John Eastwood (1994)

states that a to-infinitive can be a complement after verb “be” In grammar, the word “complement” is often used to mean subject complement A subject complement is a word or group of words which is used after linking verbs such

as be, look, feel, get, become, sound, smell, appear, seem, approve, taste, come, fall, go, grow, keep, remain, and turn They can be either nouns or adjectives To-infinitive may be used as subject complement and function as a predicate when to-infinitive is normally used after the verb “be”

For example:

The house is to let

Her favorite hobby is to sing

To decide is to act

I.2.4.4 As an adverbial modifiers

The to-infinitive can be an adverbial modifier of purpose:

I come here to learn

To get a good seat, you need to arrive early

In informal British English we use the forms “go and come and ” rather than “go to/ come to”

For example: come and have a look at this

After coming or going we use a to-infinitive

For example: Mark is coming to look at the photos

I.2.4.5 As an adjective

To infinitive can function as adjectives when they modify a preceding noun or noun phrase

In the book Grammar Practice For Intermediate Students, Steve Elsworth

(1988) said that the to-infinitive can be used after certain nouns and pronouns, to show what is to be done with them or how they are to be used

For example:

I have got some homework to do

Is there anyone else to see?

John Eastwood (1994) said that we can use a to-infinitive clause after some verbs and adjectives Also, we can use it after a related noun

For example:

I need to write a letter

→ It‟s my need to write a letter

We are determined to succeed

→ We shall never lose our determination to succeed

Some nouns can be followed by the to-infinitives:

Promise Proposal Refusal Reluctance Request Willingness Wish

Some other nouns with similar meanings can take to-infinitive: chance, effort, opportunity, scheme, time

For example: there will be an opportunity to inspect the plans

I.2.4.6 As an adjectival complement

When the to-infinitives follow be + certain adjectives, they are functioning as adjectival complement These adjectives generally express mental states or emotion:

She was eager to hear the news

I am glad to see you again

Perhaps he is ready to start

I.2.5 Uses of to-infinitives

I.2.5.1 Cases where to infinitives are needed

I.2.5.1.1 After some verbs

Some verbs are followed immediately by a to-infinitive and it is obligatory

For example:

I hope to see you again soon

I promise to be here by ten

Some verbs require an indirect object between the main verb and the to-infinitive The indirect object may be either pronoun or noun

For example:

Mr.Lee told me to be here at ten o‟clock

Here is a list of verbs that are followed by to-infinitives

Decide Deserve Determine Fail

Forget Happen Hope Learn

Seem Struggle Tend Threaten Volunteer

Want Wait Wish

I.2.5.1.2.After some question words

Michael Swan (1984) states in the book Oxford Basic English Usage that

in the reported speech, we can use a to-infinitive after the question words who, what, where etc (but not why) to talk about questions and the answers to questions

For example:

I just don‟t know what to say

Alice wasn‟t sure how much to tip the porter

No one tell us where to meet

This pattern expresses an indirect question about what the best action is

“what to say” means “what I should say”

After “what, which, whose, how many and how much” we can use a noun For example:

The driver wasn‟t sure which way to go

Here are some verbs that we can use before the question word:

Know Learn Remember Show someone Teach someone

Tell someone Think

Understand Wonder

We can use “have an idea, make up your mind” and the adjectives “clear, obvious” and “sure”

We can use this pattern after a preposition

For example:

I was worried about what to wear

There is the problem of how much luggage to take

To report instructions about how something should be done, we use tell/show someone how to or teach someone how to

Maureen told me how to turn on the heating I didn‟t know how to do it

I.2.5.1.3 After verb “be”

We can use to-infinitive as subject complement after verb “be” It can function as a predicate

My duty is to learn

To decide is to act

The house is to let

I.2.5.1.4 After some adjectives

To-infinitives or infinitive phrases can follow be + certain adjectives These adjectives generally express mental states or emotion

For example:

She was eager to hear the news

Here is the list of common adjectives followed by to-infinitives:

Amazed

Angry

Anxious

Astonished Careful Certain

Difficult Delighted Determined

Disturbed Eager Eligible

Relieved Sad Shocked Reluctant

Sorry Surprised Upset Wrong Many of the –ed participial adjectives in this chart have –ing participial adjective counterparts that can also be followed by a to-infinitive or an infinitive phrase When the –ing participial adjective is used, “it” is used as empty subject

For example:

It was surprising to see how quickly he recovered after the accident

I.2.5.2 Misuse of to-infinitives in a place of gerunds

I.2.5.2.1 Some verbs can take either to-infinitives or gerunds with almost

I hate to leave/ leaving every thing to the last minutes

When the President appeared, the crowd began to cheer/ cheering

We intend to take/ taking immediate action

However, with the verbs of liking or hating, sometimes the gerund gives a sense of the action really happening, while the to-infinitive often points to a possible action

I hate doing the same thing all the time It gets really boring sometimes I‟d hate to do the same thing all the time Luckily, my job is so

Like, love and hate usually take a gerund, but would like, would love and would hate normally take a to-infinitive

For example:

I love swimming I swim nearly every day

I‟d love to go for a swim It‟s such a lovely day

Like takes a to-infinitive when it means that something is a good idea, rather than a pleasure

For example:

I didn‟t like to complain (= I didn‟t complain because it wasn‟t a good idea.)

I didn‟t like complaining (= I complained, but I didn‟t enjoy it.)

I.2.5.2.2 Some verbs can take either to-infinitives or gerunds with difference in meaning

The to-infinitive and gerund have different meaning after remember, forget, regret, dread, try, stop, mean, go on, want and deserve

Remember and forget

Remember +gerund = remember (recall) something that happened in the past

Remember/forget + to-infinitive = remember/ forget to perform responsibility, duty or task

We use remember and forget with a to-infinitive to talk about necessary actions and whether we do them or not

We remember or forget to do things which we have to do, as in examples: Did you remember to turn off the electricity?

She often forgets to lock the door

We use remember and forget with a gerund to talk about memories in the past

We remember doing things that we did in the past

Forget + gerund is used especially in the structure I will never forget… For example: I will never forget meeting the Queen

Regret

Regret + to-infinitive = regret to say/ to tell someone, to inform someone

of some bed news

Regret + gerund = regret something that happened in the past

We use regret + to-infinitive for a present action, especially when giving bad news, as in example:

We regret to inform you that your application has been unsuccessful The expression I regret to say/tell/announce… means I‟m sorry that I have

to say… It often occurs in formal statements of this kind

We use a gerund to express regret about the past, as in example:

I regret wasting so much time last year

Dread

We use dread + to-infinitive mainly in the expression I dread to think/imagine…

I dread to think what might happen to you all alone in a big city

We use a gerund for something that causes fear

I always dreaded being kissed by my aunt

Try

Try + to-infinitive = make an effort Try with to this refers to something attempted, which might fail or succeed

Try + gerund = experiment with a new or different approach to see if it works

For example:

I‟m trying to learn English

The room was hot I tried opening the window, but that didn‟t help So I tried turning on the fan, but I was still hot

Stop

After stop, we use the to-infinitive of purpose But stop + gerund means to end an action, you don’t do it any more

For example:

At the next services he stopped to buy a newspaper

You‟d better stop dreaming and get on with some work

Mean

Mean + to-infinitive has the sense of ‘intend’ But mean + gerund expresses result, what is involved in something

I‟m sorry, I didn‟t mean to step on your foot

I have to be at the airport by nine It means getting up early

Go on

Go on + to-infinitive means to do something different, to do the next thing

Go on + gerund means to continue doing something

After receiving the award, the actor went on to thank all the people who had helped him in his career

The band went on playing even after everyone had left

Want, deserve

We usually use want, deserve with a to-infinitive

Tony wants to borrow your typewriter

A gerund after these verbs has a passive meaning

The typewriter needs/wants cleaning