Error Correction Theory and Practice in the ESL Classroom

Is it an error or a mistake? As teachers it is part of our job as the TESOL expert in the classroom to recognize and correct student errors. Our students look to us to guide them through the English learning process and they trust we will assist them in achieving their highest potential in English. Errors and mistakes are a natural part of the learning process. At first glance these two terms seem interchangeable, but in fact they are quite different from each other.

In everyday conversation people use the words "mistake" and "error" interchangeably. As TESOL professionals we know that these two words have different meanings. All native speakers make mistakes, or have a "performance lapse" (Brown) every once in a while. "A mistake refers to a performance error that is either a random guess or a "slip", in that it is a failure to utilize a known system correctly." (Brown) The key difference between a mistake and an error is that "mistakes, when attention is called to them, can be self-corrected". (Brown)

"An error...reflects the competence of the learner." (Brown) "While mistakes can be self-corrected" (Brown), "an error cannot be self-corrected." (Brown) Student errors are an inevitable part of their learning process and need to be treated as a teachable moment. There are many causes of errors including "interlingual errors...from the native language, intralingual errors within the target language, the sociolinguistic context of communication, psycholinguistic or cognitive strategies, and...affective variables." (Brown) The questions for TESOL professionals are: When should we make corrections? What is the most productive way to make corrections? And if there is a recurring pattern of the same errors in our classroom, how can we correct our lesson plan content and teaching strategies to eliminate them?

Where do errors come from? When learning a second language it is natural for students to at first apply their knowledge of their native language to the target language. Depending on the similar or contrasting characteristic of these languages this may or may not be a successful strategy for the student. "In the beginning stages of learning a second language... (negative) interlingual transfer is a significant source of errors...as the native language is the only previous linguistic system upon which the learner can draw." (Brown) An example of this would be students applying their L1 grammar structure to the target language.

Errors also stem from intralingual transfer, which is an indicator to the teacher that the student has moved out of the beginning stages of learning. "Once learners have begun to acquire parts of the new system, more and more intralingual transfer-generalization within the target language-is manifested". (Brown) The field of corpus linguistics had amassed copious amounts of data on this subject and provides a great resource to help teachers learn what errors to look out for.

A third significant source of student errors can be the result of inferior classroom materials or from the teachers themselves, these are called induced errors. "Students often make errors because of a misleading explanation from the teacher, faulty presentation of a structure of word in a textbook, or even because of a pattern that was rotely memorized in a drill but improperly contextualized". (Brown)

When and how to correct errors. "While it is important to accentuate the positive in learners' journeys to success" it's up to the teacher to discern when to correct or not correct the student. One of the criterions when deciding when to correct student errors is whether the error is global or local. A local error, at the discretion of the teacher, can often be overlooked for the greater good of the students learning process. This is because "Local errors do not prevent the message from being heard, usually because there is only a minor violation of one segment of a sentence, allowing the hearer/reader to make an accurate guess about the intended meaning." (Brown) On the other hand when a student makes a global error, this is probably an error that should be corrected. This is because "global errors hinder communication; they prevent the hearer from comprehending some aspect of the message" (Brown) the student is trying to convey.

There are many strategies and styles of error correction that teachers use, this choice usually coincides with the teaching method the TESOL professional is using. While early L2 teaching methods that focused on rote learning and emphasized students creating perfect output (for example the Audio-Lingual method) used error correction excessively, newer models based on a natural approach emphasize communicative competence and recognize that not correcting all student errors is more productive.

A useful tool for interpreting types of error correction is Vigil and Oller's affective and cognitive feedback model. "Vigil and Oller's (1976) communication feedback model offered one of the first models for approaching error in the language classroom". (Brown) They employ the simple concept of a traffic light and categorize teachers' styles of error correction as green light, yellow light and red light. "Green light (correction)...allows the sender to continue attempting to get a message across; a red light causes the sender to abort such attempts." (Brown p. 274) "A yellow light ... causing the learner to adjust, to alter, to recycle, to try again in some way". (Brown)

It is important to balance the types of error corrections. A consequence of the excessive use of green light strategies may result in fossilization of the students learning as the teacher has not provided a framework from which the student can build. Superfluous use of red light corrections "often leads learners to shut off their attempts at communication. They perceive that so much is wrong with their production that there is little hope to get anything right."

Conclusion. Student error is inevitable and a natural part of student learning. While the word "error" conjures up feelings of negativity, we must not look on it as such. Student errors are not a negative reflection on the student, but rather a critical pedagogical feedback tool. By correctly interpreting the source of student errors teachers can gain meaningful knowledge about the students learning process and L2 knowledge deficiencies. A true TESOL professional also realizes student errors can be a reflection of our own deficiencies in knowledge, lesson plans and teaching methods. Teachable moments are not just for students but also for ourselves.

Reference: Brown, H. D. (2007). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. (5th ed.). New York: Longman

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