Using Learner Errors as an Effective Resource in EFL Teaching (in Chinese Classrooms)

Background knowledge: Errors are not only indicative of learners’ lack of proficiency in learning ESL/ EFL and gaps between knowledge and language competence, they more importantly reflect a learner’s second language acquisition process in an objective way, which is a combined product of intralingual and interlingual interference, inducement by language teachers or teaching materials, and learners’ ignorance of as well as low competence in commanding over the target language standard. Therefore, learner errors are a rich store of EFL teaching resources themselves. However, research findings based on literature review and empirical study consistently prove that correction as an exclusive and dominant means of error treatment is improper and ineffective, that pedagogical value of learner errors is largely neglected and that attention to errors as teaching resources is by no means adequate. Errors are not merely to be corrected; they should also be highly valued as something informative of the natural development of learners’ learning process, their characteristics and needs, and the problematic issues in teachers’ actual daily instruction, as well as basis for teachers to set up more realistic teaching objectives and provide needed scaffoldings to help learners, and ultimately to improve EFL teaching efficiency.

Key words: EFL teaching; learner errors; pedagogical value; teaching resource; error correction

Assignment requirements:

1. References should be more than 30 with harvard style.

2. Appendix : Survey questionnaire
Translate the following questionnaire into English and use it in the proposal as an appendix.

Questionnaire

Subject ( )Grade ( ) sex( )

Students Hello! This questionnaire is only used to collect student attitudes toward teaching and correcting the behavior of other information, such as the English learning process does not involve personal privacy, nor for any other purpose, please rest assured answer truthfully check, thank you!
Option Meaning: 1:a totally disagree:2:disagree 3:agree nor disagree 4:agree 5:strongly agree:

1, my teacher had talked a few times in the classroom while students are still on mistakes angry. … ? ? ? ? ?
2, my high school teacher had asked in doubt, try not to use complex sentences. ……… ? ? ? ? ?
3, both verbal and written when I discovered his mistake will be corrected immediately conscious. …… ? ? ? ? ?
4, I was afraid to make mistakes deduction, rather simple, secure, insurance expression. …… ? ? ? ? ?
5, I will take the initiative revised after teachers mark and try to avoid mistakes. ………………… ? ? ? ? ?
6. I believe that correcting the effect of teachers to students in general. ……………………………… ? ? ? ? ?
7, I think when you do not make mistakes, oral or written expression to explain the high level of English. ………… ? ? ? ? ?
8, I think teachers will restrict regular correcting my creativity and innovative thinking. …… ? ? ? ? ?
9, I do not know how to take advantage of mistakes, hope that teachers can effectively guide. ……………… ? ? ? ? ?
10, I was afraid to make mistakes, because I fear that they will be criticized teacher. ……………………… ? ? ? ? ?
11, I think the supplementary reading and writing teacher training than correcting the effect to be better. …… ? ? ? ? ?
12, I will still be guilty of similar vocabulary teacher repeatedly corrected grammatical errors. ………… ? ? ? ? ?
13, I think it is also necessary to make mistakes as normal, no error can not be improved. ……………… ? ? ? ? ?
14, my teacher asked the wrong question excerpt also help us analyze and classify let us memorize. …… ? ? ? ? ?
15, I do not want the teacher grabbed me wrong, much supplementary reading materials to improve the sense of language. …… ? ? ? ? ?