Grammatical Errors in the Business Correspondence Corpora of Sophomore BSBA Students
Author: Flora, Rhegina Mangrobang
Date: 2019-05-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Grammar,Computational Linguistics,Business Communication,Error Analysis (Language),Verbs,Morphemes,Profiles,Writing (Composition),Tagalog,Malayo Polynesian Languages,Native Language,Gender Differences,Student Attitudes,Positive Attitudes,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Language Teachers,Undergraduate Students,Business Administration Education,Foreign Countries

This study draws from the tradition of Corpus Linguistics and attempted to determine the extent grammatical errors manifest in the business correspondence corpora composed by Sophomore BS Business Administration students of Pangasinan State University-San Carlos City Campus, located in San Carlos City, Pangasinan. The study was conducted within the academic year 2017-2018. Error analysis was delimited to types of errors pertaining to verb tense (VT) and subject-verb agreement (SGA). A specialized assessment tool was employed to gauge students' extent of susceptibility to commit grammatical errors that range from &quot;Low&quot; (minimum), &quot;Average&quot;, to &quot;High&quot; (maximum). Moreover, a balanced population of male and female students were purposively taken as participants of the study. The students were initially profiled in terms of their socio-demographic information (sex and first language) and their language learning characteristics (exposure to authentic business correspondence materials; extent of writing opportunities in business correspondence; and attitude toward business correspondence composition). Furthermore, the study attempted to determine factors potentially associated to students' susceptibility to commit grammatical errors in their business correspondence composition. Inferential statistics was employed, such as MANOVA and correlational statistical tool. Accordingly, the students' extent of grammar errors was differentiated on the basis of their sex and first language, while their language learning characteristics were statistically correlated to their extent of grammar errors. On account of the research findings, the male and female respondents have either &quot;Tagalog, Pangasinan, or Ilokano&quot; as their first language. Moreover, they have a moderate to high frequency of exposure to authentic business correspondence materials within the school and outside the school. Students' self-report revealed that they encounter certain authentic business correspondence materials more frequently than the others. The students were also found to have a moderate to high extent of writing opportunities in business correspondence within the &quot;school setting&quot; and &quot;outside the school setting&quot;. Depending on the setting, students' opportunities to write certain types of business correspondence occur more frequently than the others. Furthermore, the students exhibit a &quot;strongly positive&quot; attitude towards business correspondence composition. The students vary in their extent of errors along verb tense and subject verb agreement in their composition of certain types of business correspondence. Sex and first language do not differentiate students' extent of grammatical errors in business correspondence composition. Exposure to authentic business correspondence materials and extent of writing opportunities in business correspondence are not significantly related to students' extent of &quot;verb tense&quot; and &quot;subject-verb agreement&quot; errors in business correspondence composition. However, exposure to authentic business correspondence materials is significantly related to students' extent of subject-verb agreement errors in composing order letters. On the merits of the research findings, the study offered a practical output, i.e. a prototype of learning activities that can alleviate students' grammar difficulties in their composition of business correspondence. The study highly recommends the use of this material as an instructional supplement, along with a set of other recommendations that presuppose actions to be taken by school administrators and English language teachers. Recommendations are also addressed to future researchers to deal on certain gaps left by the study; or otherwise an improvement of its methodology and choice of variables.