A Study of the Spelling Errors committed by Students of English in Saudi Arabia: Exploration and Remedial Measures

The craziness of English spelling has undeniably perplexed learners, especially in an EFL context as in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In these situations, among other obstacles, learners also have to tackle the perpetual and unavoidable problem of MT interference. Sadly, this perplexity takes the sha...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Advances in language and literary studies 2016-02, Vol.7 (1), p.203
Main Author: Hameed, Paikar Fatima Mazhar
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
College Second Language Programs
English (Second Language)
English as a second language instruction
English teachers
Error Analysis (Language)
Error Patterns
Foreign Countries
Grapheme phoneme correspondence
Hypothesis Testing
Interference (Language)
Language Skills
Language Tests
Learning transfer
Second language teachers
Spelling
Spelling errors
Spelling Instruction
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Summary:The craziness of English spelling has undeniably perplexed learners, especially in an EFL context as in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In these situations, among other obstacles, learners also have to tackle the perpetual and unavoidable problem of MT interference. Sadly, this perplexity takes the shape of a real problem in the language classroom where the English teacher has a tough time rationalizing with the learners why ‘cough’ is not spelt as /kuf/ or ‘knee’ has to do with a silent /k/. It is observed that students of English as second/foreign language in Saudi Arabia commit spelling errors that cause not only a lot of confusion to the teachers but also lower the self-esteem of the students concerned. The current study aims to identify the key problem areas as far as English spelling ability of Saudi EFL learners is concerned. It aims to also suggest remedial and pedagogical measures to improve the learners’ competence in this crucial, though hitherto, nascent skill area in the Saudi education system.
ISSN:2203-4714
2203-4714