SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 57 ANALYSING THE STUDENTS’ GRAMMATICAL ERROR ON WRITING NARRATIVE TEXT Miftahul Janah English Department, STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Email: metha_krucie@yahoo.co.id Abstract This qualitative study described about grammatical error on students narrative writing. The participants were the second semester students of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung in academic year 2013/ 2014. In collecting data, this study uses forms with general, emerging questions to permit the participant to generate responses. Then, gathering word (text) from the participants, and collecting information from individual of participants. Data analysis tends to consist of text analysis, to involve developing a description and themes, then interpretation tends to sonsist of stating the larger meaning of the findings. After analysing the students writing, it was found that most of mistakes made by students were: missing subject, missing be in simple predicate, wrong simple predicate missing be, superfluous be, misinformation of passive form, the verb comes after the subject, pronoun form, agreement, and reference. Key Word: Grammar, Grammatical Error, Writing Skill, Narrative Text 1. INTRODUCTION Language is a means of communication. By using a language people can communicate with each other. Using a language is not as simply as we thought because there is a set of rules that must be followed, which is called Grammar. Actually grammar is used to mean the structure of a language. It is an essential part of the use of language process, both in spoken and written language. Huddleston (2005) states that although a knowledge of grammar will not on its own create writing skills, there is good reason to think that understanding the structure of sentences helps to increase sensitivity to some of the important factors that distinguish good writing from bad. It would be impossible to learn language effectively without knowing the grammar, because grammar helps learners to identify grammatical forms, which serve to enhance and sharpen the expression of meaning. Like all languages, English is a collection of dialects. Based on Altenberg (2010) explanation that is SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 58 while society views some of these dialects as having more social prestige than others, when we look at them objectively we find that all dialects are equal linguistically. That means that all dialects have grammatical rules, and the grammatical rules of one dialect are no more precise, pure, or logical than the grammatical rules of another dialect Knowing the grammar of our native language is an enormous help for anyone embarking on the study of another language, even if it has rather different grammatical principles; the contrasts as well as the parallels aid understanding (Huddleston, 2005). He adds that Some think the study of English grammar is as dry as dust, probably because they think it is virtually completed, in the sense that nothing important in the field remains to be discovered. Grammar for Writing Narrative Text Writing is one of four skills in language learning. Learning how to write in a second language is one of the most challenging aspects of second language learning (Richards, 2003). Then, Knapp & Watkins (2005) state that speech and writing are both forms of communication that use the medium of language, but they do so quite differently. It is usual to think that they are simply different aspects of the same thing; however, writing is far more than speech transcribed. Narrative does not have, for example, a singular generic purpose as do some of the other genres. According to Knapp & Watkins (2005), we cannot say that narrative is simply about entertaining a reading audience, although it generally always does so. Narrative also has a powerful social role beyond that of being a medium for entertainment. Narrative is also a powerful medium for changing social opinions and attitudes. Then, narrative is also a ‘big’ or macro genre in that it can easily accommodate one or more of the other genres and still remain dominant. One of the language features of narrative text is using action verbs in past form. About narrative, Knapp and Watkins (2005) adds that formally, narrative sequences people/characters in time and space. SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 59 In its most basic form, in text types such as recounting and retelling, the genre does little more than simply sequence. A key characteristic for all text types in the genre, however, is the requirement to orient or introduce the reader/listener to the people, time and place in the story. The structure of narrative is generally more complex than the orientation and sequencing typical of recounting. Common Error on Grammar for Writing Second language learner (students) are demanded to comprehend English well, including grammar in order to the target of teaching learning process has achieved. In fact, students often make a mistake or an error when they asked to make a sentence. It is like Bustami (2004) says that students often transfer the system of their mother tongue (L1) into the target language (L2). It was happen naturally because the strong of mother tongue by students. James in Darus (2009) stated that errors in writing such as tenses, prepositions and weak vocabulary are the most common and frequent type of errors that are committed by learners. Since grammar is seen only as a means to an end, some learners tend to re- emphasize its importance and in the process, they make many more errors. The learners usually face difficulties in learning the grammatical aspects of the Target Language (TL), such as in subject- verb agreement, the use of preposition, articles and the use of correct tense. Such errors can be seen clearly in the learners’ written performance (Nikamtus: 2014). The problems that the students are bound to encounter would be weak vocabulary, inappropriate use of grammar in sentences etc. Thus, rekindling interest in the area of learner errors can be considered a timely move. Teachers who can analyze and treat errors effectively are better equipped to help their students become more aware of their errors. An error is different from mistake, so we have to be careful to differentiate. According to Lengo in Yulianti (2007), a mistake is a performance error, which is either a random guess or a ‘slip’, i.e. a failure SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 60 to utilize a known system correctly. An error is a noticeable deviation from the adult grammar of a native speaker, reflecting the inter language competence of the learner. From those definitions above, it means that a mistake is just a slip that the learner forgets the right form. While, an error is a deviation which is made by the learner because he does not know the rule and he /she will make it repetitively. The sources of error occurrence according to Ancker (2000: 1): 1. Interference from the native language The learner may assume that the target language and his native language are similar. Then, he will over generalize the rules of his native language and the target language. 2. An incomplete knowledge of the target language Because of the incomplete knowledge, the learner may make guesses. When he has something that he doesn’t know, he may guess what it should be there. Lengo cited in Yulianti (2007), added that foreign language learners commit errors largely because of the paucity of their knowledge of the target language whereas deviant forms produced by native speakers are dismissed as slips of the tongue or slips of the pen. 3. The complexity of the target language Certain aspects in English are difficult for some learners, it may be caused the rules of their native language are quite different from English and even more complex than their native language. 2. RESEARCH METHODS The design of this research is qualitative research. About this research, Creswell (2008) states that qualitative research is a type of educational research in which the researcher relies on the views of participants; asks broad, general questions; collects data consisting largely of words (or text) from participants; describes and analyzes these words for themes; and conducts the inquiry in a subjective, biased manner. SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 61 In collecting the data, this study uses forms with general, emerging questions to permit the participant to generate responses. Then, gathering word (text) from the participants, and collecting information from individual of participants. Data analysis tends to consist of text analysis, to involve developing a description and themes, then interpretation tends to sonsist of stating the larger meaning of the findings. 3. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION Grammatical Error There are many mistakes that made by the second semester students of English Department of STKIP-MPL, but most of mistakes that they made are: 1. Subject and verb In a sentence, there are at least one subject and one verb. The subject may be a noun, a pronoun, and the predicate may be a verb or to be. Some types of errors that appear in this category are: a. Missing Subject e.g., students made: from the text above, can be concluded that book is important. It should be: from the text above, it can conclude that book is important. b. Missing be in Simple predicate e.g., students made: The boat destructed by pirates. It should be: The boat is destructed important by pirates. c. Wrong simple predicate missing be e.g., students made: there are three dwarf in the forest. It should be: There were three dwarves in the forest . d. Superfluous be e.g. students made: Hendrick is express his feeling to Valeria. It should be: Hendrick expressed his feeling to Valeria. 2. Verb agreement, tense, and form. Every sentence has at least one verb. It indicates number of the subject, the tense, etc wherever it stands in a sentence. a. Misinformation of passive form SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 62 e.g., students made: The Troll was kill it two days ago. It shoul be: the troll was killed it two days ago. b. Passive order, but active form e.g., students made: the war will held tomorrow. It should be: the war will be held tomorrow. c. Active order, but passive form e.g., students made: the dragon is caught by the thief. It should be: the dragon caught the thief. d. Misinformation of the next verbal word e.g., students made: they will coming soon It should be: they will come soon. e. The verb comes after the subject e.g., students made: Bilbo Beggins look at hisself in a mirror. It should be: Bilbo Beggins looked at hisself in a mirror. f. A form of have/ has e.g., students made: She have a strange magic. It should be: She had a strange magic. g. A form of do / does e.g., students made: Bilbo do not know the rules It should be: Bilbo didn’t know the rules. h. Pronoun form, agreement, reference Pronoun is a word that used to replace noun in a sentence or a paragraph. So, there is no repetition for the noun that may bore the audience, that is, the reader or the listener. The example of the error that might appear in this area is: e.g., students made: Gandalf asks the dwarves come in the forest. Gandalf will be returned soon. It should be: Gandalf asked the dwarves come into the forest. He would return soon. From the data above, it can be seen that students made frequents errors of word/ idiom in their SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 63 sentence and some of them made occasional. They could not consistent in using past tense to develop their narrative text. 4. CONCLUSION A mistake is a performance error, which is either a random guess or a ‘slip’, i.e. a failure to utilize a known system correctly. An error is a noticeable deviation from the adult grammar of a native speaker, reflecting the inter language competence of the learner. In making narrative text, the second semester students of English Department of STKIP-MPL in academmic year 2013/ 2014 made frequents errors of word/ idiom in their sentence and some of them made occasional. They could not consistent in using past tense to develop their text. 5. REFERENCES Altenberg, E.P. & Vago R.M. (2010). English Grammar: Undersating the Basics. New York: Cambridge University Press. Ancker, William. (2000). Errors and Corrective Feedback: Updated Theory and Classroom Practice. Forum (online), Vol.38, No.4, (http//exchanges.states.gov//foru m/) Bustami, Subhan. (2004). Psycholinguistics, Sociolinguistics, and Semantics. Yogyakarta: Debut Press. Creswell, J. W. (2008). Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Darus, Saadiyah. (2009). Error Analysis of the Written English Essays of Secondary School Students in Malaysia (European journal of social sciences- volume 8, number 3) cited in www.eurojournals.com/ejss_8_3 _12.pdf Huddleston, R & Pullum, Geoffrey K. (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar. New York: Cambridge University Press. Knapp, Peter & Watkins, Megan. (2005). Genre, Text, Grammar: Technologies for Teaching and Assessing Writing. Australia: UNSW Press. Nikamtus, Sa’diah. (2014). Error Analysis on the Writing Tasks Produced by Students of “Azet Language Centre Malang. Journal Ilmiah Mahasiswa FIB. Volume 6, Number 1 2014) cited in http://jimbastrafidb.studentjourn al.ub.ac.id/ SMART Journal Volume 1 No. 2, August 2015 Hlm. 57-64 Published by: http://ejournal.stkipmpringsewu-lpg.ac.id/index.php/smart English Department of STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung 64 Richard, J. C. (2003). Second Language Writing. New York: Cambridge university press. Yulianty. (2007). A Descriptive Study of Grammatical Errors Made by the Students of Writing III Class at the English Department of FKIP UNLAM Academic Year 2007. Thesis. Banjarmasin: English Department of FKIP Unlam.