The Study Of Concord Errors In The Writing Of Students Of Koforidua Senior High Technical School

Abstract

Studies show that the main English writing problem area of students in the second cycle institutions in Ghana relates to violation of English concord rules. Concord rules are taught at all levels of education in Ghana, but unfortunately, most senior high school students have challenges making their sentences concordant. This situation is not different from what the researcher observed in the writing of students of Koforidua Senior High Technical School. The study sets forth to ascertain the specific concord problem areas students of Koforidua Sectech, to find out the possible factors that account for the errors, and to suggest ways by which they could make their sentences concordant. Data were collected from final year students of Koforidua Sectech by way of questionnaires, an in-class essay test, summary test and objective test. These were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) The findings reveal that the students of Koforidua Sectech make all kinds of concord errors, particularly subject-verb concord errors. The findings also point to the fact that the most challenging category of concord from the point of view the respondents is subject-verb concord. It also discloses that negative attitude of students towards their personal study of English Language affects their performance negatively. The way forward has been suggested in the concluding chapter and relates to the involvement of policy makers, syllabus designers, textbook writers, teachers of English, and students. It is the hope of the researcher that if the suggestions are implemented, students will eventually be able to make their sentences concordant.