- 學位論文
華語母語者使用英文動詞之研究：以中級及中高級寫作為例
A Study on the Use of English Verbs by Chinese Intermediate EFL Learners
摘要
Schmitt (2000)指出語言學習和溝通的核心是詞彙。動詞在當中起著至關重要的作用，因為動詞是描述句子的核心要素(Sakamoto & Walenski, 1998)。本研究以中文為母語的英語學習者(Chinese EFL learners)經常碰到的一種錯誤為重點—英語動詞在句子結構中的誤用。舉例來說，在例句“*Jimmy has disposed the garbage”中，不及物動詞“disposed”被錯誤地用作及物動詞，省略了介詞“of”。另一錯誤範例展現在S-V-O-OC結構，例如，學習者傾向於使用“*Jack punched my face”，而不是“Jack punched me on my face”。在此範例中，動詞錯誤地搭配了S-V-O結構。基於觀察到的錯誤，本研究旨在調查(1)不同語言程度的中文為母語的英語學習者對英語動詞的使用，以及(2)英語動詞使用中的常見錯誤和來源。語料來源是基於英語學習者語料庫(LTTC-ELC)。搜索的關鍵字包括五類的動詞：及物動詞、不完全及物動詞、授與動詞、不及物動詞、以及不完全不及物動詞，總共挑出50個動詞。語料分析中，同時使用了量化和質化方法。本研究之量化分析顯示，學習者在使用英語動詞的整體正確率高。質化分析顯示了學習者的三種主要錯誤類型，包括(1)過度使用V-O結構，(2)在授與動詞和帶補語的結構中錯誤地插入介詞，以及(3)錯誤地使用動詞作為補語。本研究同時討論了錯誤的可能來源，並根據這些發現提供教學上的建議。
並列摘要
Wilkins (1972) states in his famous saying that “without grammar, very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.” Schmitt (2000) also indicates that the center of language learning and communication is vocabulary. Among the categories of words in a language, verbs play a crucial role in the understanding of sentences, given their status as clausal heads, that is, the core element that describes the action of a sentence (Sakamoto & Walenski, 1998). Among all the parts of speech, however, the acquisition of verbs is the most difficult in almost every language (Huddleston, 1984). In particular, the acquisition of verbs of a second language is a challenge for EFL learners. The present study focuses on one commonly seen error of Chinese EFL learners—the misuse of English verbs in English sentence structures. A sentence written by a Chinese student best illustrates the case, “*Jimmy has disposed the garbage.” In the sentence, the preposition of the intransitive verb “of” is omitted. The intransitive verb “disposed” is mistakenly used as a transitive verb. Another type of errors lies in the S-V-O-OC sentence structure. For example, Chinese EFL learners tend to use “*Jack punched my face,” instead of “Jack punched me on my face.” In the example, the verb punch requires the S-V-O-OC structure, while the S-V-O structure is mistakenly used. Based on the observed errors, the present study aims to investigate (1) the use of English verbs by Chinese EFL learners at different language proficiency levels, and (2) the common errors in the use of English verbs. The data bank is based on the English Learners Corpus (LTTC-ELC) from the LTTC, since this study targets at Chinese EFL learners and their actual use of verbs. LTTC-ELC contains language data from High-intermediate (HI) and Intermediate level (INT) test-takers in GEPT. The keywords for searching include a total of 50 target verbs across the five verb types: transitive, complex transitive, ditransitive, intransitive, and complex intransitive verbs. In the data analysis, both qualitative and quantitative methods are utilized. The qualitative method discovers the number of correct and incorrect cases of English verb use by the Chinese EFL learners. The qualitative analysis identifies the error types and the sources of errors. The quantitative findings show that the Chinese EFL learners generally demonstrate quite good performance in the use of English verbs. The qualitative findings indicate three major types of errors in English sentences by the Chinese EFL learners. The error types include (1) the overuse of the V-O construction, (2) the unnecessary insertion of prepositions in verb constructions with dative verbs and with complements, and (3) the wrong use of VPs as complements. The possible sources of the errors are discussed in the present study. Based on the findings, pedagogical implications are given to provide possible solutions for English verb learning and teaching.