Thus, it is inevitable that in learning English as a foreign language Vietnamese students usually have problems on account of the differences between Vietnamese and the target language..
Trang 1PART ONE INTRODUCTION
I RATIONALE
Language is a very important means of communication in daily human life Human beings use language, both in written and spoken form, to express their ideas
In a wider scope, language functions as a means of international communication by at least two persons In a smaller group whose members share the same language, for example, there are likely no difficulties in using the language since the persons involved in the process of communication are used to speaking their own native language On the other hand, if the people taking part in the conversation speak different language, they must have difficulties or obstacles in getting along with each other One of the problems causing the difficulties is the language used Accordingly, they need a language which is understood by both sides, the speaker and his or her counterpart This will occur when the speakers are from different backgrounds: nationality, race, and language In this case, an international language is very badly needed, especially the one that is the most widely spoken in the world One of the languages is the English language
In Vietnam as well as in other countries, there is a greater and greater need to learn English, from young to old, and from male to female No one can deny the importance of English in Vietnam at present Therefore, English is being taught at every educational level
However, learning a language is difficult, because each language has its own system which is different from that in the learner’s native language The differences in the system of language may bring about learning problems for foreign language
Trang 2learners Thus, it is inevitable that in learning English as a foreign language Vietnamese students usually have problems on account of the differences between Vietnamese and the target language It is proved that English grammar is complex and
often causes embarrassment to students The pronoun “it” is one of the language
categories that students in high schools have to learn much Due to its various uses, it
is assumed that there are many errors which may be made In fact, many students
think that the pronoun “it” is easy to learn, so they do not pay much attention on this category and they often make errors in the use of “it” For instance:
I hate that you can swim so well and I can not
It was unexpected their success
I can not remember it when I last saw her
Futhermore, as a prospective teacher, I would like to make contribution to the English teaching in Vietnam For the reasons above, this study is conducted, which
focuses on errors in the use of “it” among the students in grade 12 at Vu Tien High
School
II RESEARCH PRESUPPOSITION
With regard to the errors quoted above, the problem is with grammatical structures The correct versions could be:
I hate it that you can swim so well and I can not
Their success was unexpected
I can not remember when I last saw her
Some questions are raised:
1) What kinds of errors are made by the students in grade 12 at Vu Tien High School in the academic year 2010/2011 ?
Trang 32) What kind of error in the use of “it” is the most often made by the
twelfth-grade students at Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011 ?
3) What are the causes of the errors in the use of “it” made by the students in
grade 12 at Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011 ?
Based on the questions above, I am eager to learn about the problems and make
an error analysis in the pronoun “it” so that the major errors in the use of “it” may be
found
III RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The study is aimed at the following goals:
1) To find out the kinds of errors made by the twelfth-grade students at Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011
2) To find out the main error in the use of “it” most often made by the students in
grade 12 at Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011
3) To find out the causes of the errors in the use of “it” made by the twelfth-grade
students at Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011
IV RESEARCH SCOPE
The general area of this study is grammar
The phenomenon is errors in the use of “it” made by the students in grade 12 at
Vu Tien High School in the academic year of 2010/2011 Others relating to the
pronoun “it” are also briefly mentioned.
The population involved in the study is hundred twelfth-grade students at Vu Tien High School
Trang 4V.RESEARCH TASKS
The study involves fulfilling the following tasks:
1) To research into the functions and uses of the pronoun “it”.
2) To compare the use of “it”, “one” and “there”.
3) To conduct a survey to find out error types and causes On the basis of the findings, possible solutions to the problems are sought to minimize the students’ errors
VI RESEARCH METHODS
To achieve the objectives of the study, the following methods have been applied:
1) Collecting documents from books listed in the references
2) Consulting the supervisor, experienced teachers and friends
3) Synthesizing theoretical documents on English grammar
4) Conducting a survey and analyzing the results
VII SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROPOSED RESEARCH
Errors in any language teaching and learning, particularly in English as a foreign language, are sometimes predictable and sometimes unpredictable It is, therefore, essential for teachers to have better treatment to anticipate errors After the research, it is hoped that the result will helpful to provide:
1) Imput for learners of English in order to minimize their errors in the use of “it”
2) Imput for teachers of English with information on error types and solutions to
Trang 5This study is also benificial to anyone who is interested in the pronoun “it” in
English
VIII DESIGN OF THE RESEARCH WORK
The research work has three main parts, namely: introduction, development, and conclusion The part “Development” consists two chapters Chapter one is entitled
“Theoretical Background” It consists two sections Section one reviews literature in
brief The second one deals with things related to the pronoun “it” such as definition, functions and uses of “it” Moreover, the difference between “it” and “there” is also
mentioned.Section one is devoted to the survey The second deals with error types and causes The last one is on solutions to the problems and suggested exercises on the
pronoun “it”.
Trang 6PART TWO DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER ONE THEORETICAL BACKGROUND I.1 LITERATURE REVIEW IN BRIEF