Analyzing Errors Made by Sudanese Secondary School Students in Writing Composition

Abstract

Every EFL teacher expects that students’ written composition is error -free and follows the inverted pyramid of writing. This paper aims to determine the grammar errors committed by selected secondary school students. Specifically, the study aims to answer: 1) what grammar errors are committed by the secondary school students in their written composition; and 2) what factors caused the students to commit these errors in writing as evident on their written composition. The respondents of this study consisted of secondary school students from all levels. Students’ final written compositions were selected at random as input of the study using the Sloven’s formula. Result showed that the common grammar errors committed by secondary school students are: subject- verb agreement, tenses of the verbs, sentence structure and word order, the use of articles and preposition, punctuation and capitalization, and spelling. Students’ grammar errors as reflected in their written composition.