Error Correction Techniques
Brahim KOUKOU
Error correction bears a tremendous importance to the learners’ progression.
However, it’s, unfortunately, often ignored in the everyday classroom practice.
Teachers tend to, though indeliberately, disregard it due to many reasons;
among which there is an insufficient understanding of the criticalness of error
correction and a rather unjustified fear that it may be hurtful to learners’
feelings. Some teachers, on the other hand, intentionally avoid it because they
believe it slows down the pace of the lesson. Bearing this in mind, I believe that
teachers should approach error correction in a systematic way meaning that
they need to know WHEN to correct and HOW to do it.
Below are a few tips on how to effectively deal with error correction.
I have learned that we have to be eclectic about the errors we correct in our
classrooms. Not all errors are worth the same amount of focus. Some errors can
be ignored. At least if they do not necessarily impede understanding. In other
words, if the focus of the activity I am working on is fluency then I should not lay
too much emphasis on correcting every single mistakes that the learners
produce. Otherwise, the whole objective of the activity may be compromised.
Productive error correction strictly depends on the situation in which it is
carried out, so before you start, you need to answer a few questions:
● Am I going to correct to a group or to an individual?
● What is the mode of correction? Learner to learner or teacher to learner.
● Is it going to be prompt or delayed?
● Is it going to be written or oral?
● What type of activity are the learners working on? writing, speaking,
grammar…
I often prefer to address my learners’ errors as a group by making it sound like if
it is coming from me rather than one of their classmates to alleviate the
psychological pressure that the situation might yield. I also like to invite them to
try to correct it by themselves; a fact that boosts learners self confidence and
gives them a sense of achievement. Error correction is also more effective if it is
done promptly. Teachers need to isolate the error, calculate its frequency and
deliver prompt and efficient feedback all on the spot.
Delayed error correction is equally important if properly carried out. The most
common way I personally do it is after a writing assignment. I try to list all the
errors that my students tend to make in their writing pieces then classify them
according to four different categories: spelling, capitalization, grammar and
punctuation. I, subsequently, design a checklist with all the aforementioned
categories and provide examples for each category.
I have observed a number of colleagues while teaching and, along the way, I
could see that error correction can sometimes be counterproductive. A few
things that render error correction counterproductive can be summed up as
follows:
● Excessive and explicit focus on error correction.
● Excessive focus one correcting one type of errors e.g: grammar or spelling.
● Individual error correction can be extremely intimidating if not delicately
carried out.
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Error correction
Bouzerda Hamid
There has been a
large body of research about error
analysis in the field of TEFL/ TESL as the error is an inseperable part of learning .The error is thought to be a process if not a
crucial part which learners go through to acquire something new. What is more important in this
area of research is how erros should be treated ,tackled and corrected by teachers.
First of
all, Error correction requires certain things to be taken into account. The
most important one is to know the source of this error. Is it a transfer from the first language ? is it
intralanguage ? is it a teacher or a textbook- induced error ? is it
over-generalisation ? or it is just a mistake. When the teacher gets aware
of the source of the error, he/she may use the appropriate way of correction depending on
the type of the learner, the type of the error, the context where the error is committed and its frequency, of course.
Taking all
things mentioned above into consideration, a
teacher should make it clear in his learner’s mind that an error can
never hinder learning, and it is of paramount importance, instead. By doing so,
an anxiety free learning can be
created, and self-confidence can be
easily built is student’s spirit.
Furthermore, when self-confidence is built
and the error is praised, teacher may choose the appropriate way of correction,
the most practical of which is self-correction. This way of correction works
better with all levels. It makes the learner feel some kind of responsibility
in learning . In addition to this ,
it encourages learner-centeredness and autonomy . still there
are other undeniable forms of correction
like student-student correction and teacher –student correction.
As far as I am concerned , these two
forms come after self correction in terms of importance. to elucidate more,
when a learner fails to correct himself/ herself, student’s correction should be raised to keep them in the center
of the learning process and to make learning as cooperative as possible. When
students , peers or pairs fail to correct, teacher’s correction comes a
matter of necessity. Yet , a relevant question whcih may come to one’s mind is :
‘ should all errors be corrected’ ?
Assumptions
about this question have waxed and waned, yet some experts in the field have fairly confirmed
that not any error need to be corrected. For example, in a structure-oriented
lesson, it becomes needless to correct a pronunciation error or a speaking
mistake , or in a speaking -oriented activity , it is not necessary correct a spelling error. However, they should
be noted by a teacher to be corrected later on when the context allows to make
the same error committed before.
In a
nutshell, error correction should be wisely practised in EFL classroom. We, the
teachers , should instill in our students
that making an error is a giant step towards learning , and correction
should be varied so that it can suit any situation and the context where the error is made.
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Error correction
Ahmed ELHARRAK
No
one can deny the fact that errors are part and parcel of the language learning
process. If students do not make errors i, t means that they are not exposed to
difficult and challenging tasks. Hence, learning is hardly ever taking place.
When I think about error correction, many questions pop up. Shall I correct all
students’ mistakes or just some? Shall I intervene too much or just a little? How
should I deal with their errors? Should I give explicit feedback or implicit
one?
From my humble experience,
the nature of the activity and my objective of the lesson determine whether I
should intervene excessively or just a little. For example, if my lesson is to encourage
fluency (speaking activity) , I do not correct students’ errors too much .If I
do so , some students will feel shy and
get embarrassed and might not get engaged again. Even worse, I might destroy
the flow of the activity or the lesson. So to avoid frustrating students or
intimidating them, teachers should be aware of their students’ personality and
must select the appropriate time to correct their errors. By the same token, if
my main objective of the activity or the lesson is accuracy, I do too much
intervention and error correction can’t be ignored. However, when my student
says “Last year I visit Rabat” and he hasn’t yet learnt simple past, I avoid
correcting him/her.
There are a number of
strategies or techniques that I adopt while dealing with students’ errors. The
first one is direct correction. I ask my student to repeat what he /she said
and I give him/her the chance for self-correction .If he/she doesn’t know the
answer, I do encourage peer-correction. This usually takes place when students had
already seen the item and they just forgot it. In fact, it is an opportunity to
remind them of what we did before. The second technique is repetition. That is ,
repeating students’ answers but using the correct form. From my point of view,
paraphrasing students’ answers is a subtle way of correcting errors and
students are less likely to get embarrassed or demotivated. Last but not least,
using gestures to indicate that an error has been made is also an effective way
of giving feedback to students.
Along with the above
techniques or strategies, I think I should from time to time use a piece of
paper and write students’ names on it. If they make mistakes I write them on
the paper and give them to the students at the end of lesson so that they
correct them themselves at home.
To conclude, an effective
feedback or error correction can significantly reduce the number of errors and
prevent their fossilization. However, excessive error correction could
frustrate learners and even reduce their motivation of language learning.
