Errors made in time and tense

Abstract

This study investigates verb errors in compositions written by 16-year-old learners of English in Sweden. The investigation consists of 44 essays which are randomly selected from the National Assessment Programme, National test in 2003 for year nine. The aims of the study are first, to investigate what types of errors the students make regarding time and tense and second, to compare the types of errors with the results found from 1995 in To Err Is Human (Köhlmyr, 2003). An analysis of the results shows that the students make the same types of errors as they made in 1995. From a pedagogical point of view, the most alarming results that were found in the study were first, the incorrect use of the progressive form and second, the incorrect use of gonna. As I see it, this study is highly interesting for all people who work in school, since conclusions drawn from the results indicate that there is a huge lack in students’ knowledge in how to express time and tense correctly. I mean that after having read this study, one will understand that the school must start to teach grammar explicitly so that the students will be given a chance to use the language in a correct way in their communication.