Measuring learner (mis)use: Tense and aspect errors in the Bulgarian and German components of ICLE
Measuring learner (mis)use: Tense and aspect errors in the Bulgarian and German components of ICLE

Author(s): Svetla Rogatcheva
Subject(s): Foreign languages learning, Syntax, Language acquisition, Pragmatics, Comparative Linguistics
Published by: Masarykova univerzita nakladatelství
Keywords: target-like use analysis; learner corpora; tense; aspect;
Summary/Abstract: The English tense-aspect system has been identified as notoriously difficult for EFL learners from a variety of mother-tongue backgrounds and proficiency levels. This is due to such factors as inadequate descriptions of tense and aspect in teaching materials or differences between the English tense-aspect system and the tense-aspect systems of the learners’ native languages. This paper examines learner use of tense-aspect forms on the basis of the Bulgarian and German components of the International Corpus of Learner English. The focus of the study is on learner misuse of tense-aspect forms and the methods to measure it. The results show that both learner groups have problems with the sequence of tenses, although their accuracy rates for the individual tense-aspect forms differ.

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