University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh IMPACT OF CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK ON THE WRITING OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION STUDENTS IN SELECTED TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN GHANA EDWARD OWUSU University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh IMPACT OF CORRECTIVE FEEDBACK ON THE WRITING OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION STUDENTS IN SELECTED TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN GHANA BY EDWARD OWUSU (10319474) THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON, IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF PHD TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE (TESL) DEGREE JULY, 2017 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DECLARATION I hereby declare that, this thesis is my own work produced from research under supervision and that no part of it has been submitted for another degree in this University or elsewhere. I also declare that sources of information used in this work have been duly acknowledged. CANDIDATE: EDWARD OWUSU ……..………………… ….……………… Signature Date SUPERVISORS: PROF. KOFI AGYEKUM ……………………….. ………………….. Signature Date DR. P. K. AGBEDOR ………………………. …………………… Signature Date DR. J. T. AGOR ………………………. ……………………. Signature Date University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ii ABSTRACT This research work examines the impact of corrective feedback (CF) on the writings of business communication students in selected tertiary institutions in Ghana. In Ghana, CF is one area in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) that has not received much attention. Both empirical and theoretical literature were reviewed. Noticing and Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypotheses were the two theoretical underpinnings the research adopted. The design of the research was sequential exploratory mixed methods approach. The field data (students’ texts and questionnaire items) were collected from Ho, Koforidua, Kumasi, and Sunyani Technical Universities. From each of the universities, the respondents were segmented into three groupings – Direct Feedback (DF), Indirect Feedback (IF), and No Feedback (NF) groups. One hundred (100) student-respondents were targeted from each of the 4 universities, but a 60 percent response rate each was attained. Each student-participant composed 4 texts before the questionnaires were administered. A total of 1280 sampled texts were used. After the pre-tests were conducted at each university sequentially, three interventions (DF, IF, and NF) were used on the pre-test texts of the various groups of the student-respondents before they took the post-tests. The result of the study showed that CF in general has positive impact on students’ texts. The research further revealed that DF and IF interventions correct memorandum and business letter errors better than the NF. However, the potency of the DF intervention was stronger than that of the IF. Therefore, the thesis recommends that teachers of Business Communication should use DF or IF interventions in assessing students’ texts; and NF should only be used as a prelude of DF or IF. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my son, Edgar Owusu. Nkunim, your birth put smiles on our faces again. We thank God for your life. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Oh Lord, my ‘hallelujah’ belongs to You. I offer thanks and praises to the Almighty God. The challenges that go with accomplishing this great feat are many. By the unwarranted favour of God, through Jesus Christ, I have been able to achieve one of my academic pursuits. I appreciate the tireless efforts that my supervisors, Prof. Kofi Agyekum, Dr. P. K. Agbedor, and Dr. J. T. Agor (all of Department of Linguistics, University of Ghana, Legon,) have offered to the success of this thesis. Sirs! I salute you. I appreciate all the teaching staff and graduate students in the Department of Linguistics. Their inputs during the various seminars were helpful. To my fellow PhD colleagues, Eben, Levina, and Helen, I say, may our bond last forever! I thank my respondents from Ho, Koforidua, Kumasi, and Sunyani Technical Universities. Specifically, I appreciate the assistance of Messrs Ebenezer Asinyor, Kwasi Sarfo Adu, Anthony Kligya, and Ahmed Kulega. I appreciate the support of Dr. Degraft Owusu-Manu, Dr. Nicholas Oppong Mensah, and Mr. Kwame Owusu Kwarteng (all of KNUST). I thank Dr. Jacob Donkor, and Mr. Lazarus Kwao (GBUC), their suggestions were insightful. I thank Mr. Nat Mensah Odum, Graduate Assistant-KNUST, for helping me with the SPSS software. I appreciate the efforts of the entire staff of the Department of Communication Studies, Sunyani Technical University, Sunyani, B/A. I appreciate the prayers of Rev. Dr. Ellen Hagan, Dr. Patrick Owusu, and the members of WordSprings City Church, Kumasi. Finally, I thank my beautiful wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Owusu; and our three lovely children, Ellen Owusu, Edward Owusu Jnr., and Edgar Owusu, for their prayer support. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh v TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ................................................................................................ i ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION ................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................. v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................ x LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................... xiii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................... xiv LIST OF APPENDICES ............................................................................... xvi CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................... 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION ........................................................................ 1 1.0. Introduction .................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background to the Study ................................................................................ 1 1.1.1 Basic Assumptions of Communication ......................................................... 1 1.1.2 Communication in the Corporate World ....................................................... 5 1.1.3 The Teaching and Learning of Business Communication at the Tertiary Level of Education ................................................................................................. 8 1.1.4 Language and Error Correction ................................................................... 12 1.2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................... 15 1.3 Objectives of the Study ...................................................................................... 16 1.4 Research Questions ............................................................................................ 17 1.5 Significance of the Study ................................................................................... 17 1.6 Scope of the Study.............................................................................................. 18 1.7 Organisation of the Thesis .................................................................................. 19 1.8 Summary ............................................................................................................ 20 CHAPTER TWO ............................................................................................ 21 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE .................................................... 21 2.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 21 2.1 Theoretical Frameworks ..................................................................................... 21 2.1.1 Noticing Hypothesis .................................................................................... 21 2.1.2. Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis ............................................. 25 2.2 Theoretical Review ............................................................................................ 29 2.2.1 Corrective Feedback (CF) Defined ............................................................. 29 2.2.2 Types of Corrective Feedback ..................................................................... 31 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vi 2.2.3 Business Communication Text Types ......................................................... 34 2.3 Language and formatting in Business Correspondence ..................................... 51 2.3.1 Grammar...................................................................................................... 51 2.3.2 Punctuation Marks ....................................................................................... 54 2.3.3 Mechanics .................................................................................................... 55 2.3.4 Correction Symbols and Proofreading Marks ............................................. 56 2.4 Review of Empirical Studies on Error/Grammar CFs ........................................ 57 2.4.1 Truscott (1996) ............................................................................................ 57 2.4.2 Lyster and Ranta (1997) .............................................................................. 59 2.4.3 Ferris (1999) ................................................................................................ 60 2.4.4 Truscott (1999) ............................................................................................ 62 2.4.5 Ferris and Roberts (2001) ............................................................................ 64 2.4.6 Chandler (2003) ........................................................................................... 66 2.4.7 Truscott (2004) ............................................................................................ 69 2.4.8 Chandler (2004) ........................................................................................... 71 2.4.9 Ferris (2004) ................................................................................................ 73 2.4.10 Bitchener, Young, and Cameron (2005).................................................... 76 2.4.11 Ellis (2009) ................................................................................................ 76 2.4.12 Beuningen (2010) ...................................................................................... 81 2.4.13 Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2011) ................................................................. 82 2.4.14 Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2012) ................................................................. 82 2.4.15 Mubarak (2013) ......................................................................................... 83 2.4.16 Pakbaz (2014) ............................................................................................ 84 2.4.17 Junqueira and Payant (2015) ..................................................................... 85 2.4.18 Kheradmand and Sayadiyan (2016) .......................................................... 86 2.5 Summary ............................................................................................................ 87 CHAPTER THREE ........................................................................................ 88 RESEARCH METHODS ............................................................................... 88 3.0 Introduction .................................................................................................. 88 3.1 Philosophical Assumptions of the Research ................................................ 88 3.2 Research Design and Approaches ................................................................ 89 3.2.1 Case Study ................................................................................................... 90 3.2.2 Experimental Study ..................................................................................... 91 3.2.3 Descriptive Study ........................................................................................ 92 3.2.4 Cross-Sectional Survey Design ................................................................... 92 3.3 Population, Sample and Sampling Techniques .................................................. 93 3.3.1 Population.................................................................................................... 93 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh vii 3.3.2 Sample Size and Sample Techniques .......................................................... 97 3.3.3 Sampling Methods ....................................................................................... 98 3.4 Data Collection Instruments and Data Analysis Procedures .............................. 99 3.4.1 Texts ............................................................................................................ 99 3.4.2 Questionnaire ............................................................................................ 100 3.4.3 Data Collection Procedures ....................................................................... 108 3.4.4 Data Analysis and Procedures ................................................................... 109 3.5 Pilot Study ........................................................................................................ 110 3.6 Ethical Considerations ...................................................................................... 111 3.6.1 Ethical Certificate and Introductory Letters .............................................. 111 3.6.2 Prior Assent ............................................................................................... 112 3.6.3 Privacy ....................................................................................................... 112 3.6.4 Integrity ..................................................................................................... 112 3.6.5 Validity and Reliability ............................................................................. 113 3.7 Summary .......................................................................................................... 114 CHAPTER FOUR ......................................................................................... 115 ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF CLASSROOM DATA .................... 115 4.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 115 4.1 Coding of the Texts .......................................................................................... 115 4.2 Analytical Framework for Memoranda ............................................................ 116 4.3 Analytical Framework for Business Letters ..................................................... 117 4.4 Analysis of STU Texts ..................................................................................... 118 4.4.1 Analysis of the Texts of the DF Group of STU......................................... 118 4.4.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of STU .......................................... 125 4.4.3 Analysis of the Texts of the NF Group of STU......................................... 131 4.5 Analysis of KTU Texts .................................................................................... 137 4.5.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of KTU ......................................... 137 4.5.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of KTU ......................................... 144 4.5.3 Analysis of the Texts of the NF Group of KTU ........................................ 150 4.6 Analysis of KsTU Texts ................................................................................... 156 4.6.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of KsTU ........................................ 157 4.6.2 Analysis of the Text of the IF Group of KsTU ......................................... 162 4.6.3 Analysis of the Text of the NF Group of KsTU ........................................ 168 4.7 Analysis of HTU Texts .................................................................................... 174 4.7.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of HTU ......................................... 174 4.7.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of HTU ......................................... 179 4.7.3 Analysis of the Text of the NF Group of HTU ......................................... 184 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh viii 4.8 Discussions of Results ...................................................................................... 190 4.8.1 Discussions of Results of the DF Groups .................................................. 190 4.8.2 Discussions of Results of the IF Groups ................................................... 192 4.8.3 Discussions of Results of NF/Control Groups .......................................... 194 4.9 Summary .......................................................................................................... 196 CHAPTER FIVE........................................................................................... 197 ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF BUSINESS WORLD DATA.......... 197 5.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 197 5.1 Memorandum Texts ......................................................................................... 198 5.1.1 Rubrical Issues .......................................................................................... 198 5.1.2 Language and Formatting (LF) Issues ....................................................... 199 5.2 Business Letter Texts ....................................................................................... 200 5.2.1 Rubrical Errors .......................................................................................... 200 5.2.2 Language and Formatting Errors ............................................................... 202 5.3 Discussions of the Memorandum and Business Letter Texts ........................... 204 5.3.1 Memorandum Texts .................................................................................. 204 5.3.2 Business Letter Texts ................................................................................ 206 5.4 Summary .......................................................................................................... 208 CHAPTER SIX ............................................................................................. 209 ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF QUESTIONNAIRE ITEMS .......... 209 6.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 209 6.1 Analysis of the Main Data Collected ............................................................... 209 6.1.1 Corrective Feedback (CF) Type that Business Communication Students Receive on their Texts ........................................................................................ 209 6.1.2 CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Punctuation, Mechanics, and Grammar (PMG). ................................................ 213 6.1.3 CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Rubrics in Writing Memoranda and Business Letters ......................................................... 216 6.2 Discussions ....................................................................................................... 219 6.3 Summary .......................................................................................................... 220 CHAPTER SEVEN ....................................................................................... 221 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION.............................................................................................. 221 7.0 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 221 7.1 Summary of Findings ....................................................................................... 221 7.1.1 CF Type that Business Communication Students Receive on their Texts 221 7.1.2 CF’s and their effect on the Business Communication Texts of students. 222 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ix 7.1.3 The CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Punctuation, Mechanics, and Grammar (PMG). ................................................ 223 7.1.4 Time and Accuracy in Writing .................................................................. 224 7.1.5 The CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Rubrics in Writing Memoranda and Business Letters (RoMeL). .................................... 225 7.1.6 Similarity and Differences of Corporate and Classroom Business Communication texts of Letters and Memoranda .............................................. 225 7.2 Summary of the Strengths and Weaknesses of my Research ........................... 227 7.2.1 Contribution to Knowledge ....................................................................... 227 7.2.2 Direction for Future Research ................................................................... 228 7.3 Recommendations ............................................................................................ 229 7.3.1 Recommendations for Teachers ................................................................ 229 7.3.2 Recommendations for Students ................................................................. 230 7.3.3 Recommendations for Corporate Entities ................................................. 231 7.4 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 232 REFERENCES .............................................................................................. 234 APPENDICES ……………….……………………………………………..247 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh x LIST OF TABLES TABLE HEADING PAGE NUMBER Table 3.1 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 1 101 Table 3.2 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 2 102 Table 3.3 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 3 102 Table 3.4 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 4 103 Table 3.5 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 5 103 Table 3.6 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 6 104 Table 3.7 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 7 104 Table 3.8 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 1 105 Table 3.9 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 2 106 Table 3.10 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 3 106 Table 3.11 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 4 106 Table 3.12 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 5 107 Table 3.13 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 6 108 Table 4.1 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of DF Group of.STU 121 Table 4.2 – Errors Corrected in the Pre-and Post- Test Letters of the DF Group of STU 123 Table 4.3 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of STU 124 Table 4.4 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of IF Group of STU 127 Table 4.5 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of IF Group of STU 129 Table 4.6 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of STU 130 Table 4.7 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of NF Group of STU 133 Table 4.8 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of NF Group of STU 135 Table 4.9 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xi Letter Results of NF Group of STU 136 Table 4.10 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of DF Group of KTU 140 Table 4.11 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of DF Group of KTU 142 Table 4.12– Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of KTU 143 Table 4.13 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of IF Group of KTU 146 Table 4.14 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of IF Group of KTU 148 Table 4.15– Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of KTU 150 Table 4.16 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of NF Group of KTU 152 Table 4.17 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of NF Group of KTU 155 Table 4.18– Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of KTU 156 Table 4.19 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of DF Group of KsTU 159 Table 4.20 – Errors Corrected in the Pre-and Post- Test Letters of the DF Group of KsTU 161 Table 4.21 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of KsTU 162 Table 4.22 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of IF Group of KsTU 164 Table 4.23 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of IF Group of KsTU 166 Table 4.24 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of KsTU 168 Table 4.25 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of NF Group of KsTU 170 Table 4.26 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of NF Group of KsTU 172 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xii Table 4.27 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of KsTU 173 Table 4.28 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of DF Group of HTU 175 Table 4.29 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of DF Group of HTU 177 Table 4.30 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of HTU 178 Table 4.31 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of IF Group of HTU 181 Table 4.32 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of IF Group of HTU 183 Table 4.33– Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of HTU 184 Table 4.34 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Memos of NF Group of HTU 187 Table 4.35 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post- Test Letters of NF Group of HTU 188 Table 4.36 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of HTU 189 Table 5.1 – LF Issues in the Memos collected from the Business World 201 Table 5.2 – LF Issues in the Letters collected from the Business World 203 Table 7.1 – Total Pre- and Post-test PMG errors of all the Groups 223 Table 7.2 – Total of Pre- and Post-test PMG errors of the NF Groups 224 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xiii LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE HEADING PAGE NUMBER Figure 4.1 – Memorandum Analytical Framework (MAF) 116 Figure 4.2 – Business Letter Analytical Framework (BLAF) 117 Figure 6.1 – Type of CF used on STU students’ Texts 210 Figure 6.2 – Type of CF used on KTU students’ Texts 211 Figure 6.3 – Type of CF used on KsTU students’ Texts 211 Figure 6.4 – Types of CF used on HTU Students’ Texts 212 Figure 6.5 – Types of CF used on Students’ Texts by Teachers 212 Figure 6.6 – CF that has the greatest Impact on STU students’ PMG errors 213 Figure 6.7– CF that has the greatest impact on KTU students’ PMG errors 214 Figure 6.8 – CF that has the greatest impact on KsTU students’ PMG errors 214 Figure 6.9 – CF that has the greatest impact on HTU 215 students’ PMG errors Figure 6.10 – Teachers’ views on CF that has the greatest 215 impact on students’ PMG errors Figure 6.11 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of STU respondents 216 Figure 6.12 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of KTU respondents 217 Figure 6.13 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of KsTU respondents 217 Figure 6.14 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of HTU Respondents 218 Figure 6.15 – Teachers’ views on the CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of students 218 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xiv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ASOWO – Addition, Substitution, Omission, and Wrong Ordering issues B/A – Brong Ahafo Region BAC – Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies BCERM – Business Consulting and Enterprise Risk Management BLAF – Business Letter Analytical Framework CF – Corrective Feedback CIH – Comprehensible Input Hypothesis COH – Comprehensible Output Hypothesis CSUC – Christian Service University College DF – Direct Feedback EFL – English as a Foreign Language ESL – English as a Second Language GBUC – Ghana Baptist University College HOD – Head of Department HRM – Human Resource Management HTU – Ho Technical University IDL – Institute of Distance Learning IF – Indirect Feedback IH – Input Hypothesis IL – Interlanguage IM – Instant Messaging KNUST – Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology KsTU – Kumasi Technical University KTU – Koforidua Technical University LF – Language and formatting MBC – Master of Business Consulting MAF – Memorandum Analytical Framework MSc. – Master of Science NF – No Feedback University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xv NH – Noticing Hypothesis PMG – Punctuation, Mechanics, and Grammar RoMeL – Rubrics in Memoranda and Letters SCT – Sociocultural Theory SEMM – Sequential Exploratory Mixed Methods SL – Second Language SLA – Second Language Acquisition SLL – Second Language Learners SSCTLCFC – Spelling, Spacing/word-division, Concord, Tense, Lexis, Capitalisation, and Comma STU – Sunyani Technical University TL – Target Language ZPD – Zone of Proximal Development University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh xvi LIST OF APPENDICES 1. Appendix 1A – Sample Questionnaire for HTU Teachers 2. Appendix 1B – Sample Questionnaire for KTU Teachers 3. Appendix 1C – Sample Questionnaire for KsTU Teachers 4. Appendix 1D – Sample Questionnaire for STU Teachers 5. Appendix 2A – Sample Questionnaire for HTU Student-Respondents 6. Appendix 2B – Sample Questionnaire for KTU Student-Respondents 7. Appendix 2C – Sample Questionnaire for KsTU Student-Respondents 8. Appendix 2D – Sample Questionnaire for STU Student-Respondents 9. Appendix 3 – Sample Texts from HTU 10. Appendix 4 – Sample Texts from KTU 11. Appendix 5 – Sample Texts from KsTU 12. Appendix 6 – Sample Texts from STU 13. Appendix 7 – Sample Business World Memorandum 14. Appendix 8 – Sample Business World Letter 15. Appendix 9 – Progression to PhD Candidature Letter 16. Appendix 10 – Thesis Approval Letter A – HOD 17. Appendix 11 – Thesis Approval Letter B – Principal Supervisor 18. Appendix 12 – Ethical Clearance Letter (The thesis title for which the certificate was given was modified in the course of the departmental seminars. But, the main issues are the same.) 19. Appendix 13 – Proofreading marks 20. Appendix 14 – Introductory letters (The thesis title for which the letters were given was modified.) 21. Appendix 15 – Sample Protocol Consent Form 22. Appendix 16 – Research Timelines 23. Appendix 17 – Turn-it-in Originality Report University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 1 CHAPTER ONE GENERAL INTRODUCTION 1.0. Introduction This thesis assesses the impact that Corrective Feedback (CF) has on the memoranda and letters of business communication students in selected tertiary institutions in Ghana. The thesis is segmented into seven chapters. This chapter is the gestalt of the entire work. It covers sub-topics such as: background to the study, objectives of the study, research questions, significance of the study, scope of the study, organisation of the thesis, and summary. 1.1 Background to the Study The background focuses on four thematic areas. These are: basic assumptions of communication, communication in the world of business, the teaching and learning of business communication at the tertiary level of education in Ghana, and language and error correction. 1.1.1 Basic Assumptions of Communication In the world of Homo sapiens, communication is practically inevitable as all species of different types engage in this obligatory activity. Without communication, people in a society would find it taxing to stay connected with one another; and animals would also find it challenging to associate with one another. The significance of communication is apparent in all areas of life: marriage, academia, business, religion, career development, and leisure pursuit. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 2 In marriage, it is said to be the key element to a successful relationship. In academia, it leads to efficacious academic life. In the business, it is the medium through which the business community makes its vision and mission statements as well as core values, objectives and goods/services known to its internal and external stakeholders. Thus, communication is the key element in organisational success. For example, in a study conducted by Katz Business School, University of Pittsburgh, it came to light that communication skills is the important factor in choosing managers (McPheat 2010:8). Thus, the cases studied rated written and oral communication as the most important element in selecting management staff. In religion, one cannot have a relationship with a deity without communication. In career development, it enables one to progress to one’s self- actualization level. Communication is a science as well as an art. It is a learned and an acquired activity. Most people are born with the natural ability to talk or write; others have to learn this skill. Communication traces its root to the Latin word – communicare – which means to share (Weekley 1967:338). It is, thus, ‘the process of understanding and sharing meaning’ (Pearson and Nelson 2000:6). It is the activity or way of articulating thoughts and feelings or of giving people information. In its widest sense, Beebe, Beebe and Ivy (2004:5) have defined communication as the ‘process of acting on information.’ So the question is, how do we act on information? There are myriad of ways through which one can act on information: clarifying, evaluating, interpreting, understanding and sharing the information. Therefore, it is obvious that this definition is a generic one as it includes all species of the Homo sapiens. For example, in the Ivan Pavlov dog University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3 experiment1, the dog was able to act on information by associating the sound of the turning fork to the serving of the food; and that is communication (McLeod 2013:1). Beebe et al. (2004:5) redefined communication from the human point of view as: ‘the process of making sense out of the world and sharing that sense with others by creating meaning through verbal and nonverbal messages.’ There are some key points in the definition that need expatiation. One, the initiator of the communication process first makes sense of the world by going through experiences. As (s)he goes through experiences, (s)he begins to get a fair comprehension of the entities of the world. (S)he then encrypts the experience into a meaning message. Two, the experiencer now shares his/her experience(s) with others (recipient/s) through a communication medium. When the recipient, receives the message, (s)he tries to decode it to comprehend the intended meaning. During the act of transmitting the message, two processes – the content and the context2 – are received. In all the activities, the initiator/sender could encounter some challenges known in communication as noise3. When the message is decoded, the receiver sends a feedback to the sender; and this completes the communication process (Beebe et al. 2004:11-15; Bovée and Thill 2008:46; Guffey 2007:9; Guffey and Loewy 2010:10; McClave 2008:4; Schermerhorn 2004:216; Thill and Bovée 2013:10; Turk and Kirkman 1989:9). Three, the message can be coded in a 1 In this classical experiment, Russian psychologist, Ivan Pavlov, trained a dog through repeated occurrences to the extent that the dog was able to make a conceptual connection between the sound of the turning fork and the act of salivation. The dog subsequently acquired a skill Pavlov referred to as a conditioned response (Brown 2000:80). It is on this basis that Watson (1913) coined the term behaviourism. 2 The content is the intended meaning of the message while the context is the circumstances surrounding the message. 3 This is the interference that prevents the message from being well understood. The noise mostly works on the selected channel/medium of the sender. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 4 verbal or non-verbal form. McPheat (2010:10) has also defined communication as ‘the art and process of generating and sharing ideas. Effective communication is dependent on the richness of those ideas.’ So, according to this definition, if one generates an idea and fails to share it, it cannot be termed as communication. This is contentious as we have intrapersonal4 communication. Again, what will constitute richness of ideas? Who determines the richness of ideas? Because there are individual differences, obtaining uniformed responses for these questions would always be problematic. According to Schermerhorn (2004:216), ‘communication is an interpersonal process of sending and receiving symbols with messages attached to them.’ This definition is skewed to one direction as we have intrapersonal, group and mass communications. There are three basic modes of linguistic communication – writing, oral communication, and signing (Finegan 2008:16). Apart from these three, communication can take place by using nonverbal codes (Beebe et al. 2004:82- 94; Krizan et al. 2008:408-411;McClave 2008:194-205). Writing or written communication, is the system of advancing and conveying one’s thoughts into a sequence of letters or symbols. It is communicating by using encrypted characters. ‘Written representation becomes linguistic when it relies on language for its organisation and communicative success’ (Finegan 2008:17). Oral communication is a method of expressing one’s thoughts and moods by using the speech organs. According to Finegan (2008:16), the voice is the commonest means of linguistic communication, and speech is accordingly a prime method of human language. Signing is the use of visible gestures to 4 This is the ‘inner conversation’ (McClave 2008:3) or ‘self talk’ (Wood 1997:22) that takes place within an individual. This may include dreams, thoughts, idea formation, dilemma, soliloquy and brainstorming. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 5 communicate (Finegan 2008:17). While signing is a language (for example, American Sign Language and British Sign Language), non-verbal communication may not be a homogeneous language. Non-verbal communication is the kind of communication that does not use words (Kreidler 1998:302; Beebe et al. 2004). Some codes for non-verbal communication are appearance, kinesics5 eye contact, facial expressions, touch, time and proxemics6 (Beebe et al. 2004:85-93; Krizan et al. 2008:408-412; McClave 2008:195-205). 1.1.2 Communication in the Corporate World Given the forces in the modern business world, companies are constantly searching for workers who can adjust to new dynamics in the business world, can subsist and flourish in fluid and tentative situations, and can continue to learn during their careers. Employers desire to have team players who possess strong work track records, leaders who are resourceful, and employees who have diversified skills and diverse work experience. (Bovée and Thill 2008:P-2). In some companies, it is the expectation of employers to have graduates who are sensitive to cultural differences, have sound understanding of international affairs, have pursued a course abroad, and have learned another language or can otherwise demonstrate an appreciation of other cultures (Bovée and Thill 2008:P-2). Thus, with the growing challenges in the business world, most business entities have become dynamic. Majority of the changes in the dynamic business world revolve around processing and communicating information. Because of this, the successful players in this dynamic world of work are those who have developed 5 This is a general term for human movements, gestures, and posture (Beebe et al. 2004:86). 6 This is the use of space to communicate meaning or the study of the way humans use space to convey messages (McClave 2008:200). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 6 communication skills (Guffey and Loewy 2010:6). Apart from this personal advantage that the individual derives from communication, effective communication has proved to be the panacea to organisational success. Effective communication contributes to the success of business in diverse ways. For example, it provides: [c]loser ties with important communities in the market place; opportunities to influence conversations, perceptions, and trends; increased productivity and faster problem solving; better financial results and higher return for investors; earlier warnings of potential problems, from rising business costs to critical safety issues… (Bovée and Thill 2008:4; Thill and Bovée 2013:4). Guffey and Loewy (2010:6-7) have also noted the important role that excellent communication skills play in some business trends as: [f]lattened management hierarchies; more participatory management; increased emphasis on self-directed work groups and virtual teams; heightened global competition; innovative communication technologies; new work environments; focus on information and knowledge and corporate assets. (2010:6-7). For example, on flattened management hierarchies, effective written and oral communication skills enable all stakeholders to be aware of decisions made by the executive board of the organisation. Should pubic sensitization of the decision become imperative, effective communication once again, plays a leading role. Business communication is the label used in reference to the specialized communication that takes place in and around the business world. It is ‘the sharing of information between people within an enterprise that is performed for the commercial benefit of the organisation. In addition, business communication can also refer to how a company shares information to promote its product or University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 7 services to potential consumers.’ (www.businessdictionary.com). It is ‘any form of communication, verbal or nonverbal, that is used to relay a message, promote a product or service or share information (Papa and Media 2015:1). When Professor Emerita, Mirjaliisa Charles of Helsinki School of Economics, Finland, asked her International Business Communication students, what Business Communication was, the following were some of the responses her students gave:  interaction through messages,  knowledge sharing in organisations,  dialogue through which organisations reach their goals,  the glue that ties an organisation together, and  the corporate function that maintains business relations. (Charles 2009:9). Drawing on these and other definitions cited, I define Business Communication as a specified system of disseminating the vision, mission, core values, goals, objectives as well as goods/services of a business entity to its internal and external stakeholders. In the business world, written ideas are normally disseminated by using written communication forms such as reports, letters, memoranda, proposals, minutes of meeting, notices, the Internet, websites, faxes, emails, brochures, telegrams, advertisements, postcards, news releases/press releases, books, magazines, journals, periodicals, text messaging, social networking posts and fliers. According to Bovée and Thill (2008:4-5), communication in the organisational setting may be internal, external, formal, or informal. Internal communication takes place among people inside an organisation, whereas external communication occurs between an organisation and the outside world (Bovée and Thill 2008:4). Informal communication (also known as grapevine) is the unofficial means of circulating information within an organisation (Bovée University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 8 and Thill 2008:5; Krizan et al. 2008:7; McClave 2008:28). In formal communication, ideas and information flow along the lines of the hierarchical level in the company’s structure (Bovée and Thill 2008:4). Inside the organisation, formal information flows in four directions – horizontal (lateral), upward, downward, and diagonal7 communications (McClave 2008:25-26). 1.1.3 The Teaching and Learning of Business Communication at the Tertiary Level of Education Du-Babcock (2006:254), drawing on the works of Krapels and Arnold (1998), Locker (1998), and Roger (1996), has stated that the teaching of business communication as an official and distinctive field originated in the United States. Agarwal and Chakraborty (2010:381) have also stated that Business Communication, as a course of study, emanated from its parent branch, Human Resource Management (HRM). Since then, the teaching and learning of Business Communication has become a milestone in management education, though the challenges faced in the 21st century in terms of doing it right have become enormous (Agarwal and Chakraborty 2010:381). Business Communication has established itself as a vital course in most of the business schools or departments of universities across the world. For example, in America, the teaching objective of Business Communication in the early years was to educate American students on how to communicate effectively and efficiently in American business and commercial environments (Du-Babcock 2006:254). 7 Horizontal (lateral) communication takes place between individuals who are on the same level of the organisational structure. Upward communication is where information ascends from subordinate staff to superior staff. In downward communication, information descends from superior staff to subordinate staff. Diagonal communication takes place when information flows between two individuals who are not on direct reporting lines (McClave 2008:25-26). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 9 Therefore, the developmental era remained rooted in the study of rhetoric in the writing of letters and memos, with emphasis on the proper forms and correct use of English (Hagge 1989:33); and teaching students how to communicate in the professional genres of specialized domains was not the focus of business communication (Du-Babcock 2006:254). Textbooks and other teaching materials were mostly written by American authors (Du- Babcock 2006:254). Because the application and examples used in the teaching focused on teaching effective and efficient communication in the United States, teachers of business communication were not necessarily required to have specialized professional knowledge of business communication (Du-Babcock 2006:254). The early period in the American context, thus, provided limited scope on the teaching of business communication in terms of the target group, the course content, the teacher, and the teaching/learning materials. Presently, the teaching and learning of Business Communication has gone through tremendous changes ‘to better suit the realities of an ever evolving and more complex, globalized, and multidisciplinary communication and teaching environment8’ (Du-Babcock 2006:255). Thus, with the world becoming a global village, most communities are now multicultural, and communicators, especially in the world of business, are faced with the challenges of encrypting and decrypting complex and differentiated messages. Increasingly, individuals and corporate entities, use more multifarious and distinguishing professional genres in communicating in their write-ups. 8 In this environment, people continually share ideas directly and indirectly in interrelated global communication networks and create interconnected global value-added chains (Porter 1985) in their capacity as stakeholders of businesses. The sharing of field knowledge that is normally coded in specialised professional genres (such as budgets, financial reports, marketing research reports, and business plans), additionally complicates this process (Du-Babcock 2006:255). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 10 Consequently, the course contents of most Business Communication materials and curricula are increasingly becoming complex and wide in scope as topics on Business Management, English language, Information Communication Technology, Secretarial Management, Office Practice, Marketing Communications, Financial Reporting, and Cross-cultural Communication have been incorporated9. Thus, it has gradually digressed from the traditional study of rhetoric in the writing of letters, memos, and correct use of English to include various contemporary topics10 and roles played by other functional areas11 of business in terms of organisational communication. Again, Business Communication is no longer the preserve of students and corporate entities in America, but every entity who desires to operate in the world of business in an effective and efficient manner. At the moment, more business and non-business departments of tertiary institutions and research centres in Ghana, for example, have included Business Communication related course(s) in their programmes of study. Because of this, different but related labels (of the course, Business Communication) have been used in these diverse departments to suit their house style. Among some of them are: Language in Business, Business English, Business Correspondence, Organisational Communication, Management Communications, Strategic Business 9 For example, Locker and Kienzler (2010:xxv-xxxi) have the following contents in their book, Business and Administrative Communication: Succeeding in Business Communication, Adapting your message to your audience, building goodwill, navigating the Business Communication environment, communication across cultures, working and writing in teams. The rest are: planning composing and revising, designing documents, creating visuals and data displays, making oral presentations, building résumés, writing job application letters, interviewing for a job, sharing information and positive messages, delivering negative messages and crafting persuasive messages(Locker and Kienzler 2010:xxv:xxxi). 10 Some of the topics include: formality, employment letters, communication across cultures, and interviewing for jobs. 11 Some of these areas include: Human Resource Management, Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Procurement, Auditing, Production, Research and Development, and Information Technology departments. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 11 Communication Systems and Technical and Professional Communications. Teachers of Business Communication are now found in almost all parts of the world. These teachers are constantly researching on innovative pedagogic styles in teaching and learning Business Communication at different levels of education. For example, Du-Babcock (2006:257) used two styles in teaching Business Communication in Hong Kong. One, she adapted American simulation in a large-scale to fit the learning environment in Hong Kong. This skill-building exercise, gave the target group, Hong Kong students, experience and exposure in business administration professional genres in finance and accounting, strategic and general management, marketing, and human resource management. Two, she used teleconferencing as a means to teach intercultural communication and professionalism in business genres (Du-Babcock 2006:257). Many of the experimentations in business communication assessments have, to a large extent, involved peer assessment12 (Agarwal and Chakraborty 2006:383). Peer assessment is a tool that could be used in providing feedback to peers to help them improve on their performance (Agarwal and Chakraborty 2006:383). Peer assessment, on its own, is not an all-inclusive pedagogic method, as Du-Babcock (2006:261) has stated: … we need to introduce new theory and build new teaching approaches into our pedagogy while continuing to stress the fundamentals of effective business communication. This means continually taking into account advances in communication technologies, even more complex knowledge in the professional genres, and the need to adjust messages to the varying competency 12 Peer assessment is an interactive and dynamic process that involves learners in assessing, critiquing and making value judgment on the quality and standard of work of other learners (Juwah 2003) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 12 levels of interactants as messages are translated across national languages and professional genres. Corrective Feedback (CF) techniques and the role(s) they play in business communication texts could be an innovative pedagogic method in the teaching and learning of form, structure, and process of business communication. 1.1.4 Language and Error Correction Language is the very core of humanity. Without it, communication becomes challenging. It is therefore very imperative to our lives. If one wants to socialize and function effectively and efficiently in life, it depends on one’s command of language skills. Every language has four main skills – reading, listening, speaking and writing. Even though, these skills are equally important, the one that stands out in terms of formal assessment in most tertiary institutions in Ghana, is writing. The second language learner of Business Communication at the tertiary level of education in the Ghanaian context sometimes makes some rubrical13 and linguistic14 mistakes and errors15 in his or her written business communication texts. According to Brown (1994:51), “human learning is fundamentally a process that involves making of mistakes. Mistakes, misjudgements, miscalculations, and erroneous assumptions form an important aspect of learning 13 I refer to these as errors of improper format for writing business communication texts. Examples are: wrong salutation, improper subscription, wrong alignment, and wrong heading. 14 These are morphological, lexical, syntactic and mechanical errors. Examples are: concord, spelling, verbal, punctuation, sentential, prepositional, comprehension, pronunciation, and article errors. 15 To Brown (2000:217), “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. All people make mistakes, in both native and second language situations. … An error, a noticeable deviation from the adult grammar of a native speaker, reflects the competence of the learner. ” Simply put, an error cannot be self-corrected, according to James (1998:83), while mistakes can be self-corrected if the deviation is pointed out to the speaker. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 13 virtually any skill or acquiring information.” Second language learners normally have their business communication texts marked at the end of an assessment session. The marking of these texts by second language teachers primarily focuses on errors such as: concord, spelling, verbal, punctuation, sentential, prepositional, comprehension, pronunciation, and article errors. Correction of errors in Second Language Teaching and Learning has long been a contentious issue. Earlier, Fanselow (1977) had recommended the provision of effective CF – isolating the error and giving explicit information. Conversely, Méndez, Cruz, and Loyo (2010:241) stated that earlier studies by Allwright (1975), Chaudron (1977) Long (1977), and Zamel (1985) revealed that the provision of corrective feedback is always problematic. These problems had to do with ineffectuality of teachers’ corrections, ambiguity, and discrepancy regarding the written comments on students’ texts. Also, Allwright (1975) and Hendrickson (1978) had proposed that pushing students in their output, rather than providing them with explicit corrective feedback, could facilitate their interlanguage development. This stand, clearly negates the use of explicit CF in SLA environments. One therefore wonders whether the second language learner could be in the better position to point out his or her own errors when given the opportunity. Truscott (1996:327) had even advocated an abandonment of grammar correction in classroom interaction due to its limitations. According to him, (a) substantial research shows it to be ineffective and none shows it to be helpful in any interesting sense; (b) for both theoretical and practical reasons, one can expect it to be ineffective; and (c) it has harmful effects. Responding to Truscott’s (1996) aversion to grammar correction, Ferris (1999:8) had opposed Truscott’s view and made a claim about the efficacy of teacher error/grammar correction in second language writing classes in this way: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 14 [t]he issue of helping students to develop their written language skills and improve their accuracy in writing is too important to be ruled on hastily. As teachers, we can only hope that we will continue to find answers and discover ways to respond more thoughtfully and effectively to our student writers’ needs.’ (p. 8) In recent times (that is, the 2000’s), Lyster and Mori (2006) had also reported on ambiguous, random and unsystematic feedback on errors by teachers. Hernández and Murrieta (2009) saw very insignificant CF in the foreign language classroom which can be linked to acceptance of errors for fear of interrupting the communication. However, Ferris and Helt (2000) expressed some merits in the use of indirect feedback. Chandler (2003) also tilted in favour of explicit CF in writing skill of EFL learners. According to him, explicit feedback lessens the misperception of learners and they can easily review their errors; again, learners are provided with enough information to correct more intricate errors and explicit feedback is more immediate. Akbarzabeh, Saeidi, and Chehreh (2014), in their study on the effect of oral interactive feedback on the accuracy and complexity of EFL learners’ writing performance, decided to use elicitation and metalinguistic clues in giving CF. Their study revealed that learners who received CF outperformed those who did not receive any feedback. They reiterated that correction of learners’ errors should not be abandoned. Pakbaz (2014:12) conducted a study on the effect of written (explicit and implicit) corrective feedback on EFL learners’ writing performance. The study investigated whether there was any positive effect of giving explicit or implicit written CF on 20 intermediate L2 learners’ ability to write in English (Pakbaz 2014:12). Ten of the respondents received implicit CF; the other 10 received explicit CF on their writing tasks. Three different writing tasks – a pre-test, an University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 15 immediate post-test and a delayed post-test – were given. His study revealed that students’ writing ability in using past tense and article use on the immediate post- test outperformed that of the pre-test. The effect, according to the study, was long lasting since their performance on the delayed post-test showed an increase in the learners’ writing ability in the stated structures and this effect was retained in their memory for one month (Pakbaz 2014:12). Thus, there is a positive feedback effect of giving written CF. However, on implicit and explicit written CF, the study showed an equal effect (Pakbaz 2014:16). In the light of these arguments in CF, in general, one wonders whether it has a place in Business Communication. Therefore, the study examined the impact of CF on the Business Communication (e.g. memoranda, and business letters) texts of selected tertiary institutions in Ghana. 1.2 Statement of the Problem Corrective feedback (CF) is a thorny area in Second Language Studies. While some research works (for example, Truscott 1996, 1999, 2007) had called for its abandonment, others (for example, Ferris 1999, 2003, 2004) had justified its use in SLA. Ellis (2009:3) has pointed out that the controversies regarding how CF has been viewed in SLA and language pedagogy have primarily focused on these areas: (a) whether CF facilitates L2 acquisition, (b) which errors should be corrected, (c) who should do the correcting – the teacher or the learner (d) which type of CF is the most effective, and (e) what is the best timing – immediate or delayed – for CF. In some Ghanaian tertiary institutions, students in the Humanities are made to offer courses such as: Communication Skills, Business Communication, Business English, Academic Writing, Writing Skills, or Language in Business as required courses. Because these courses are obligatory, assessors always have University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 16 daunting tasks grading the scripts of plenty of students. The student-teacher ratio has typically been disproportional to the extent that treatment of errors is affected. It has been speculated that some assessors overlook some errors found in tertiary students’ scripts or underline them with the intention that ‘mature’ students, who are now pursuing various degree programmes in tertiary institutions, will be in a position to provide the correct forms when given another opportunity (especially in the case of assignments, homeworks, or mid-semester assessments). In some cases too, assessors provide the correct forms of ‘faulty’ structures students produce in their pre-test texts. Thus, most assessors choose their own style(s) in terms of provision of CF on business communication texts. Again, tertiary students are normally not given a second, let alone a third chance to respond to issues raised in pre-test items of memoranda, and business letters; especially, when it comes to forms of assessment such as: mid-semester examinations, take-home (homework) tests, assignments, and mini-project works. 1.3 Objectives of the Study The work seeks to: a) determine the CF type that Business Communication students receive on their texts. b) assess whether with time, CF’s have effect on the Business Communication texts of students. c) determine the type of CF that has the greatest impact on students’ texts in terms of the prescribed rubrics and punctuations, mechanics, and grammar. d) evaluate whether classroom and corporate Business Communication texts are analogous or disparate. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 17 1.4 Research Questions The following research questions have been formulated for the study: a) Which CF type(s) do business communication students receive on their texts? b) With time, do students who receive CF, produce more accurate texts than students who do not receive CF? If true, do CF techniques have effect on the texts of students in terms of accuracy in writing? c) Which CF has the greatest impact on students’ texts in terms of the use of punctuations, mechanics, grammar, and prescribed rubrics when the two tasks (pre-test and post-test) are done sequentially? d) How similar or different are classroom texts from corporate business communication texts of letters and memoranda? 1.5 Significance of the Study Over the last twenty years, extensive research works on corrective feedback strategies in SLA have been conducted by a number of non-Ghanaian researchers abroad (for example, Beuningen, 2010; Ellis 2009, 2008; Ellis, Loewen, and Erlam 2006; Bitchener, Young, and Cameron 2005; Chandler 2003; Ferris and Roberts 2001; Ferris and Helt 2000; Ferris 1999, 2003, 2004; Lyster and Ranta 1997; Mings 1993; and Truscott 1996, 1999, 2007). These works have covered issues on error correction in SLA such as: The case against grammar correction (For example, Truscott 1996,1999); the case for grammar correction (for example, Ferris 1999, 2004); corrective feedback and teacher development (for example, Ellis 2009); types of CF on second language learners’ writing (for example, Alimohammadi and Nejadansari 2014; Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2012) and the effects of CF on SLA/ESL students writing (for example, Beuningen, 2010, Bitchener et al. 2005, Chandler 2003, Rezaei et al. 2011). That University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 18 notwithstanding, none of these studies mentioned has focused on CF and business communication texts such as: memoranda, business letters and reports. This has created a gap in terms of the application of CF on business communication texts. In Ghana, the situation is different. Although a number of studies have been done on learners’ errors (for example, Agor 2003; Armah 2004; Asinyor 2012; and Hourani 2008) and composition/paragraph development (for example, Adika 1999, Amable 2004; Owusu 2012) not many studies have been conducted on error correction, let alone application of CF on business communication texts. In view of this, this research, in general, is one of such few works in the field of SLA to have been done on CF and Business Communication texts in Ghana. 1.6 Scope of the Study The thesis centres on the impact that corrective feedback techniques have on selected Business Communication texts of memoranda and letters of selected First Year (level 100) students of Sunyani Technical University (STU), Koforidua Technical University (KTU), Kumasi Technical University (KsTU), and Ho Technical University (HTU). The participants were chosen from level 100 (year one) because it is at this level that students in the selected tertiary institutions (of STU, KTU, KsTU, and HTU) pursue Communication Skills II Course which incorporates business communication topics of letters and memoranda. Again, the thesis focuses on errors emanating from wrong rubrics or format for writing the selected business communication texts. Other errors that constitute the focus of the thesis are mechanical, punctuation and grammatical errors. Also in terms of the interventions, the research focuses on direct, indirect and no feedback interventions/techniques. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 19 1.7 Organisation of the Thesis The work is organised into seven chapters. Chapter one, General Introduction, discusses general issues of the work. Specifically, issues such as: background, problem statement, research questions, objectives, scope, significance, and organisation of the research have been discussed. Chapter two, Review of Related Literature, focuses on a complete description of theoretical frameworks which underpin the research. Here, reviews on various corrective feedback techniques that authorities and writers in the field of second language learning have advocated, have been done. Furthermore, chapter two reviews issues on selected business communication write ups – memoranda, and business letters. The chapter also reviews some empirical studies done by various researchers across the globe on corrective feedback. Chapter three is Research Methods. Here, issues such as: research design and approaches, population, sample and sampling techniques, data/instrumentation, data analysis procedure, data collection procedure, profile of case study institutions, and ethical considerations have been discussed. Chapter four is dedicated to the analysis and discussion of classroom data (scripts) collected from the field – Sunyani, Koforidua, Kumasi, and Ho Technical Universities. This chapter also describes the two analytical frameworks I developed for the study. These frameworks are Memorandum Analytical Framework (MAF), and Business Letter Analytical Framework (BLAF). The functions of MAF and BLAF have been explained in chapter two. Furthermore, chapter five analyses and discusses sampled business world texts collected from the field. The chapter served as a benchmark for confirming or disconfirming the classroom data collected from the field. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 20 Chapter six is also devoted to the analysis and discussion. But here, the focus is on the structured questionnaire items collected from the student- and teacher-participants. Chapter seven is on Summary of findings, recommendation and conclusion. The sub-sections of this chapter are summary of preceding chapters, concluding remarks, significance/contribution to knowledge, recommendations and conclusion. 1.8 Summary This introductory chapter has highlighted the background to the study. Here, the basic assumptions underlying communication, communication in the world of business, the teaching and learning of business communication, and language and error correction have been looked at. The other thematic areas of the chapter include problem statement, objectives, research questions, significance, scope, and organisation of the thesis. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 21 CHAPTER TWO REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.0 Introduction This chapter focuses on the theoretical frameworks, theoretical review, and empirical review. The theoretical review includes reviews on corrective feedback, and business communication write-ups of memoranda, and business letters. The empirical review centres on critical reviews of some studies done on corrective feedback techniques. 2.1 Theoretical Frameworks The study has two theoretical underpinnings – Noticing Hypothesis (NH) and Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis. (COH) 2.1.1 Noticing Hypothesis Propounded by Schmidt (1990; 1993a), the Noticing Hypothesis (NH) holds that second language learners must consciously notice the grammatical form of their input in order to acquire grammar (Schmidt 1990, 2001, 2010; Truscott 1998). Thus, input does not become intake for language learning unless it is noticed; that is, intentionally registered (Schmidt 2010:1). This means that for one to obtain grammatical knowledge, one has to deliberately detect the grammatical structure of one’s input. In its easiest form, learners learn about the things that they attend to and do not learn much about the things they do not attend to (Schmidt 2010:2). Learners thus study the information that they have consciously registered in their minds already. The NH has two forms – the strong and the weak hypotheses. The strong University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 22 form of the hypothesis, which is supported by Schmidt (1990; 1993a; 1994; 1995b), states that ‘noticing is a necessary condition for learning.’ For a learner to study any learning material, the principle of noticing has to take place before the learning will be successful. For example, if someone wants to read a material written in a target language, he or she must first identify the grammatical form of his or her input before he or she can obtain the grammar of the language. The weak form simply says that ‘noticing is helpful but might not be necessary’ (Truscott 1998:104). Though this form recognizes the NH, it does not see it as an indispensable tool that must happen before learning will take place. The NH has generated several controversies. According to Truscott (1998:104), the foundations of the hypothesis in cognitive psychology are not firmly grounded. Most of the research works in this field do not support it; and no apparent explanation has been given to it either. While reviews by Brewer (1974), and Dawson and Schell (1987) have rejected claims of unconscious learning, others (for example, Maltzman 1987; and Martin and Levey 1987) in the field of SLA do not agree with the claim that conscious awareness of the information to be acquired is necessary or helpful. They have argued that the hypothesis has severe theoretical problems, which make its interpretation and testing complicated. For example, in vagueness and testability, it has been established (Truscott 1998:109) that the noticing hypothesis, as formulated by Schmidt, is a denunciation of subconscious learning. It is obvious and testable only to the degree that the two types of learning can be distinguished. This, in practice is difficult. According to Schmidt (2010:727), there are other objections that have been raised against NH. Four of such objections and responses have been summarized below. The first objection states that ‘the temporal granularity of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 23 diary studies is too coarse’ (Schmidt 2010:727). This protest was made earlier ‘in a critique of the Noticing Hypothesis that was sympathetic to the proposition that attention is essential for learning, but argued that diary studies encompass spans of time as long as weeks or months, while attentional processes take place in seconds or microseconds’ (Tomlin and Villa 1994). The response to this objection was that the criticism was valid at the time, however it is not any longer, since a wide range of methods have been brought to bear on these issues (Godfroid 2010; Godfroid et. al 2010). The second objection is that attention or awareness might be important for some kinds of learning but not all (Schmidt 2010:728). A claim had been made that attention is a necessary tool for all kinds of cognitive activities. But, Gass (1997:16) has strongly opposed this claim, stating that even some kinds of learning do not depend on input. Gass (1997) states instances where the construction of clauses by ESL learners such as relative clauses does not even need an input, let alone awareness. The response to this objection is that the NH should be carefully planned. For example, Schachter (1998:574) argues that the learning of specific words, sounds and writing systems must be done through awareness; but the learning of phonological, morphological and syntactic rules in general might not require this attention. The third objection says that there are three functional subsystems of attention – alertness, orientation, and detection (Schmidt 2010:728). Of the three, detection is crucial, but it does not require awareness (Tomlin and Villa 1994). This makes the NH a relative theory. The response to this objection is that even though there is factuality in the statement that registration of a stimulus can happen below the level of subjective awareness, this is generally the case only for already established representations, that is, while there is subliminal perception, there is no subliminal learning University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 24 (Schmidt 1995, 2001). The fourth objection, points out the difficulties connected with the idea that “input” for language learning is something objective and discernible (Carroll 2006a, 2006b). However, in reality, some issues of acquisition – phonemes, syllables, morphemes, word classes (nouns, verbs, etc) are made up of mental constructs that exist in the mind and not in the environment at all (Schmidt 2010:729). Therefore, attention to environmental stimuli does not play a direct role in acquisition since most of what constitute linguistic knowledge is not in the input. The response to this objection is that, generally, ideas about attention, noticing, and understanding are more compatible with instance-based, construction-based and usage-based theories than with generative theories (Schmidt 2010:729). In SLA learning, individual differences play a major role in noticing and awareness. In testing this, Schmidt (2010:731) asked these questions:  Do some SLA learners notice more than others?  If so, do individual differences in noticing ability correlate with rate of learning and/or ultimate attainment? After a case study research had been conducted on these questions, the findings suggested affirmative answers to both questions (Schmidt 2010:731). Noticing was seen as having a strong impact on second and foreign language studies and that individual differences are an important part of the matter. The claim that noticing, but not understanding, is required for learning implies that both explicit and implicit learning of generalizations are possible (Schmidt 2010:734). Accordingly, in spite of the criticisms raised, I think that the tenets of NH are sound and should be given the necessary attention in the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 25 teaching and learning of SLA in the Ghanaian context. Corrective Feedback (CF) could trigger learners’ noticing of gaps between target norms and their interlanguage (IL). Attention, in addition, controls access to conscious experience, which allows the acquisition of new items to take place (Schmidt 1990:176). 2.1.2. Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis Another theory for the study is Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis (COH). Swain (1985: 248-249) puts forward that: [s]imply getting one’s idea across can and does happen with grammatically deviant forms and sociolinguistically unsuitable language. Negotiating meaning needs to incorporate the notion of being pushed toward the delivery of a message that is not only conveyed, but that is conveyed precisely, coherently, and appropriately. Being ‘pushed’ in output, it seems to me, is a concept parallel to that of the i + 1 comprehensible input. Swain (1985) argues that it is natural for a learner to produce deviant forms grammatically and sociolinguistically. However, the learner is not doomed. He can do well if he is pushed toward producing the right forms. His output will then be conveyed precisely, coherently and appropriately. To her, comprehensible output means producing forms accurately and this can be achieved if the learner is pushed toward the delivery of coherent message. The COH holds that learning takes place when a learner encounters a gap in his or her linguistic knowledge of the second language. By noticing this gap, the learner becomes aware of it and may be able to modify his or her output so that he or she learns something new about the language (Swain 1985:236). Identification and correction of gaps in writing consequently leads to production of target language (TL) forms. The hypothesis suggests that acts of speaking and writing under certain conditions facilitate the process of second language learning and for the output to work effectively, three functions are needed: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 26  Noticing functions: the learners realise what they do not know or only know partly. They know what they want to say but are unable to communicate it. This is done through written or verbal practice in the SLA classroom.  Hypothesis-testing function: when learners make utterances there is always tacit hypothesis underlying their utterances of the structures used in the language. Learners test this hypothesis and receive feedback from an interlocutor. Corrective Feedback (CF) can assist learners to improve their grammatical structures.  Metalinguistic function: Learners reflect on the language they learn. Output, thus, enables them to control and internalise linguistic knowledge (Swain 1985). Liming (1990) is one of the living testimonies of Swain’s (1985) hypothesis16. Comparing Comprehensible Input Hypothesis (CIH) and COH, Liming hypothesizes: . . . intake involves a circular movement from input through the internal mechanism to output, then from output to input. Production of output has a direct bearing on the assimilation of input (Liming 1990: 23). Liming’s (1990) conclusion was echoed by Gregg (1984:88) who pointed out: [i]f output is available as input, and if Monitoring can increase the incidence of correct utterances of a given structure, then it would seem output is being used to further acquisition. 16 Liming, a Chinese, started learning English at age 15. After high school, he had his B. A. and M. A. in English and taught English as a foreign language afterwards. He kept record of his interactions with native speakers of English. Any time he fumbled, whether linguistically or socially, he noticed his deviant usages and pushed for corrections. His native-speaker counterparts always helped him to arrive at appropriate forms of expressions which helped him to become communicatively competent. With these experiences, he explained that the learners comprehensible output is relatively less comprehensible; therefore, when they push for comprehensible output, they are helped to eliminate incomprehensible output University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 27 We notice that CIH and COH are complementary. Learners’ output, based on the input from different angles of contact, can become clear input when meaning negotiations and interactions follow, which will then engineer comprehensible output and subsequent intake in learners. The complementary nature of the two hypotheses is the thesis in Long’s (1980) Input Hypothesis (IH). Long’s (1980) IH comprises two forms: one, that comprehensible input is necessary for L2 acquisition and two, that modifications in the interaction during the process of meaning negotiations help to make input comprehensible. Long (1980) came to this conclusion when he made a report on the interactional and input features of native speakers engaging non-native speakers in interviews. The input consisted of the linguistic aspects of foreigner talk while the interactional features consisted of the communicative aspects of foreigner talk. Long noticed that foreigner talk involved few input modifications; however, the interactional adjustments were many. This discovery made Long adopt Krashen’s CIH and argued that comprehensible input is necessary for acquisition, at least, for the beginner and that meaning negotiations in the interactional structures of conversations are crucial for input to be comprehensible. Long’s (1980) conclusion indicates a combination of the tenets of Krashen’s (1977) CIH and Swain’s (1985) COH. The aspect of meaning negotiations in the interactional structures of conversations indicates output which, according to Long, is crucial for input to be comprehensible. So to Long, negotiated output can lead to input. Further, new evidence from empirical studies has substantiated the conclusion that IH combines the tenets of CIH and COH. Long himself has contributed to the change in the IH. In a study involving tasks which required information exchange, Long (1980) found a higher frequency of interactional University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 28 features between native speakers and non-native speakers than he found in native speaker-native-speaker task performance. He did not find such higher frequency of interactional features in tasks which did not require any information exchange; the discovery has prompted a modification in the hypothesis: Tasks in which there is a need for the participants to exchange information with each other promote more interactional reconstruction (as cited in Ellis 1991:7). Here, the exchange of information constitutes an input-output process and the engagement of interactional reconstruction is an output process. Another researcher who has engineered a change in the hypothesis is Pica (1987). In an experimental design to test the claims of the IH, Pica (1987) stressed the importance of the participants’ social relationship as a determining factor of interactional modifications. The IH is further reformulated as: A situation in which the conversational partners share a symmetrical role relationship affords more opportunities for interactional restructuring. We notice in these pieces of empirical evidence that input modifications and meaning negotiations always lead to interactional reconstruction. The process of interactional reconstruction will lead to comprehensible output which will then lead to intake, thus substantiating the hypothesis that the IH is underpinned by CIH and COH. After about nine years of the formulation of the hypothesis, Long (1980) finally clarified the relationship between input and output by stating that though comprehensible input is necessary for acquisition, it may not be sufficient. He infused the idea of output in the hypothesis by relating that interaction facilitates acquisition when the learner is supplied with comprehensible input and given the opportunity to produce language. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 29 Teachers’ knowledge of Long’s (1980) IH can greatly enhance their teaching in the L2 classroom. It is not enough for L2 teachers to give comprehensive input, in spite of how copious that is. The environment of teacher-student and student-teacher interactions based on the input should be created and encouraged. Meaning negotiations and corrective feedback techniques should take place in the L2 classroom. These creations will promote the development of communicative competence in learners. To facilitate these negotiations, the teacher should also be knowledgeable in both pragmatics and social aspects of language, relevant to the L2 environment, so that learners’ output will demonstrate knowledge of these aspects. 2.2 Theoretical Review The review of theoretical literature looks at theories, concepts, models and ideas which have been propounded by authors in the fields of SLA and business communication. Here, sub-topics such as: definition of CF, types of CF, and business communication write-ups have been put forward and discussed. 2.2.1 Corrective Feedback (CF) Defined One of the earliest definitions on CF was given by Chaudron (1977:31) who considered it as “any reaction of the teacher which clearly transforms, disapprovingly refers to, or demands improvement of the learner utterance.” Synonyms of CF which have been used by other authors include: error correction, negative evidence, and negative feedback (Méndez et al., 2010:241). Chaudron (1988:150) has indicated that the term CF incorporates different layers of meaning. In his opinion, the term “treatment of error” may simply refer to “any teacher behaviour following an error that minimally attempts to inform the learner of the fact of error”. The treatment may not be University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 30 evident to the student in terms of the response it elicits, or it may make a significant effort “to elicit a revised student response.” Nevertheless, Han (2008) as cited in Méndez et al., (2010:241) proposes that error correction implies an evident and direct correction, whereas CF is a generic way of providing some clues, or eliciting some correction, besides the direct correction made by the teacher. Han (2008) has, thus, conceptualised the term error correction as an immediate and a palpable way of correcting errors and CF as a broad term of offering feedback on students’ errors. Lightbown and Spada (1999:171-172), on their part, define corrective feedback as: …any indication to the learners that their use of the target language is incorrect. This includes various responses that the learners receive. When a language learner says, ‘He go to school every day’, corrective feedback can be explicit, for example, ‘no, you should say goes, not go’ or implicit ‘yes he goes to school every day’, and may or may not include metalinguistic information, for example, ‘Don’t forget to make the verb agree with the subject’. (1999:171-172). This indication, according to Lightbown and Spada (1999), could take the form of both explicit and implicit responses geared towards helping the learner attain correct usage of the target language. Ellis, Loewen, and Erlam (2006:340) define CF as: … the form of responses to learner utterances that contain error. The responses can consist of (a) an indication that an error has been committed, (b) provision of the correct target language form, or (c) metalinguistic information about the nature of the error, or any combination of these. (2006:340). Ferris (2003) has drawn a line between explicit or direct CF and implicit or indirect CF and has defined the direct or explicit one as a CF providing the correct linguistic form or structure by the teacher to the student by scripting it above the linguistic error. This may comprise the crossing out of an unnecessary University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 31 structure (for example: morpheme, word, phrase, clause, or sentence); the insertion of a missing structure; or writing the correct form or structure. She has accordingly defined the indirect or implicit CF as indicating that an error has been made without clearly mentioning the type of error or writing the correct form (Ferris 2003). This may take the form of underlining or circling the error, recording in the margin of the script the number of errors made in a given line, or using a code to show where the error has been made and what type of error it is (Ferris and Roberts 2001). Here, students are left to reread and subsequently edit the errors in their scripts rather than the teacher indicating it clearly. I define CF as teacher’s response to students’ written or verbal structures that seeks to critique the structures. With this definition, I argue that CF is not always applied on students’ faulty structures only. There are times the teacher may use a CF with the idea of encouraging the student for doing the right thing. This is where the teacher’s commendation role comes in. The modification role is where the teacher uses a particular type of CF with the idea of drawing the student’s attention to a faulty structure that needs to be changed. 2.2.2 Types of Corrective Feedback Methodologists and SLA researchers have identified quite a few different means by which errors can be corrected (Ellis 2009:8). Ellis (2008:102) has mentioned focused and unfocused CFs. The focused-unfocused contrast refers to the comprehensiveness of correction methodologies (Beuningen 2010:11). Ellis (2008:102) has indicated that “[t]eachers can elect to correct all of the students’ errors, in which case the CF is unfocused.” As an alternative, teachers can select particular types of error for correction; this is focused (Ellis 2008:102). Lyster and Ranta (1997:46) have identified six different types of corrective feedback: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 32 explicit correction, recasts, clarification requests, metalinguistic, elicitation, and repetition. Explicit CF refers to the direct provision of the correct form. With this type of CF, the teacher indicates that a learner has made a mistake; and in addition to that he or she provides the correct form of the structure. With recasts the teacher paraphrases all or part of the learner’s incorrect structures. (Doughty 1994a, 1994b; Lyster and Ranta 1997). With clarification requests, the teacher indicates to the learner that his or her utterance has not been understood or that the utterance is ill-formed and that a repetition is required (Lyster and Ranta 1997; Spada and Fröhlich 1995). Metalinguistic feedback contains either comments, information, or questions related to the well-formedness of the student’s utterance, without clearly providing the correct form. This CF generally indicates that there is an error somewhere. It provides either some grammatical metalanguage that refers to the nature of the error (Lyster and Ranta 1997:47). With the use of repetition, the teacher repeats the learner’s erroneous utterance in isolation by adjusting his or her (the teacher’s) intonation so as to highlight the error (Lyster and Ranta 1997:47). In elicitation, the teacher strategically pauses so as to enable the learner to complete the teacher’s utterance. Again, the teacher uses questions to solicit correct forms; and sporadically, he or she (the teacher) tells students to reformulate their utterances (Lyster and Ranta 1997:48). There are other types of CFs mentioned in the literature of typology of CF. One is prompt, which includes a range of CF moves – elicitation, metalinguistic clue, clarification request, and repetition (Lyster and Mori 2006). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 33 Another one is paralinguistic signal (Ellis 2009:9) where the corrector uses kinesics to indicate that the learner has made an error, for example: L: Yesterday, I go cinema. T: (gestures with right forefinger over left shoulder to indicate past) (Ellis 2009:9) Ellis (2008:98) has also identified electronic feedback, where the teacher indicates an error and provides a hyperlink to a concordance file that provides examples to correct usage. Another one is reformulation, which consists of a native speaker’s reworking of the student’s entire text to make the language seem as native-like as possible while keeping the content of the original intact. Electronic feedback seems modern and current but it has several drawbacks. One, it can only work in an environment where both the teacher and the learner are computer literates and have access to computers. Two, for this CF to work effectively and efficiently, there should be constant and effective access to the Internet. This is so because the teacher may have to provide a hyperlink to an Internet source which provides information about the error. Three, in an environment like Ghana, where there is frequently power outage, this type of CF might not be successful in terms of providing speedy CFs. Four, providing electronic feedback on the soft copies of scripts of large numbers of students could be a Herculean task. Indirect CF is another type that has been proposed by Ellis (2008:98). With this type, the teacher indicates that an error or mistake has been made but does not provide the correction (Ellis 2008:98). This can take the form of underlining the mistake and using cursors to indicate omissions in the student’s text (Ellis 2008:98). It can also take the form of an indication in the margin that an error or errors have been made in a line of text (Ellis 2008:98). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 34 2.2.3 Business Communication Text Types In the world of business, several written means of communication are used in transmitting information both within the organisation and between the organisation and the outside world. Examples include: business plans, proposals, reports, strategic plans, minutes of meeting, notices, marketing plans, communication strategies, and e-mails. This sub-section of the study reviews theoretical issues on business communication texts of memoranda, and business letters. The basis for the selection of these two text types is that while letters are widely seen as externally written communication tools, memoranda are perceived as internally written communication tools. This is to say that one internal written medium and one external written medium were selected. 2.2.3.1 Memorandum A memorandum is the main method used in transferring written messages within an organisation (McClave 2008:171). It is one of the popular traditional means used for regular exchange of written information in organisations (Thill and Bovée 2013:102). It is normally used for inter-office or inter-staff correspondence. Previously, internal written communication generally, took the form of hard-copy memoranda; however, in today’s work environment e-mails have increasingly become the communication channel for most internal and external messages (Guffey 2007:98). In most organisations, social networking17, IM (instant messaging), blogs18, and other electronic media have largely replaced paper memoranda (Thill and Bovée 2013:102). Since memoranda are less private 17 Examples of these social networking are: WhatsApp, Imo, Twitter, Skype, WeChat, Viber, Tango, Facebook, and Telegram. 18 This is a regular updated website or web page, which is normally run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style (www.google.com) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 35 and less formal than most other message formats, they are used to send general messages (Thill and Bovée 2013:170). Such issues include reminders, meetings, requisitions, reminders, and other matters that concern every staff in the organisation (Owusu 2015:58). In the organisation, matters19 which tend to place emphasis on individuals’ goals and aspirations are ordinarily communicated through formal letters, instead of memoranda. However, to Guffey and Loewy (2010:99) most employees primarily use memoranda to convey confidential information. Most formal memoranda are typed in standard A4 format, and it is common for a copy of the message to be retained by the sender (McClave 2008:171). Memoranda have several uses. One, when you want a written record that will clearly explain policies, discuss procedures, or collect information within an organisation, memoranda are used (Guffey and Loewy 2010:36). Two, they are used to instruct, to direct, or to make enquiries. In this case, the body of the memorandum can be as short as one or two sentences (McClave 2008:171). Three, they are used in putting forward proposals, and giving notices (McClave 2008:172). Elements of Memorandum The elements are the distinctive format or rubrics for writing memoranda. Four of the elements are basic and conventional. They, thus, appear on every memorandum. These are: to, from, date, and subject. These rubrics do not have constant positions on memoranda. For example, the rubrics or elements of a memorandum could begin with from, followed by date, to, and subject. The content of the elements of memoranda are discussed below: 19 Some of these matters are: appointment, promotion, leave, transfer, resignation, dismissal, query, response to query, and reinstatement. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 36 Memorandum: This is a word that is usually printed or typed at the top of the sheet that contains the memorandum. It is usually centred (McClave 2008:171). Most memoranda also begin with the title Internal Memorandum or Interoffice Correspondence (Bovée and Thill 2008:169). To: This is a space provided for the recipients’ name, position, and sometimes their department (McClave 2008:171; Thill and Bovée 2013:170). From: This is a space designated for sender’s name, or position. In most companies, it is a standard practice for the signature to be appended against the sender’s name or below the content of the memorandum (McClave 2008:171; Thill and Bovée 2013:170). The initial of the writer could also be provided after printed name and title (Guffey 2007:108). Date: For most formal memoranda, the date is usually written in full. Examples of different formats for full dates are: 20th January, 2016; January 20, 2016 or 20 January, 2016. Short dates such as: 20/01/16; 20-01-16 and 20:01:16 are normally used in informal correspondence (McClave 2008:171; Thill and Bovée 2013:170). Subject: This is a space left for a brief statement of the topic (McClave 2008:171). The subject is either written in a word, a phrase, or clause; but not in a sentence form. It is normally highlighted and can be done by bolding, underlining, or capitalising the text. Sometimes, all or two of the highlighting styles are used. The prefix re: (short form for regarding, is sometimes used instead of the Subject) (Thill and Bovée 2013:170). Message: The message is given under the subject heading. It is either presented in thematic paragraphs or just single paragraph or in a more schematic form with subheads and numbers. This, however, depends on the demands of the topic (McClave 2008:171). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 37 References: Most memoranda have reference number (Ref:) or reference numbers (Our Ref: and Your Ref :). The reference number is a special number organisations generate manually or electronically (Owusu 2015:65). It helps in the filing of memoranda and other business correspondence such as letters and reports. Company name and logo: Many organisations print their name and logo on memorandum stationery; though this might not be strictly necessary, it aids in establishing a corporate identity among staff (McClave 2008:172). The name and the logo are normally set on top of the sheet that contains the memorandum. They usually appear before the word memorandum is typed. Copy to or cc (carbon copy): The notion of carbon copy was obtained from the traditional practice, where carbon paper was used in generating copies of business correspondence. In recent times, though most contemporary organisations do not practise this anymore, the abbreviation, cc, is still used in business correspondence. So, whether copy to or cc is used, this section contains names and positions of entities who have been served with or expected to receive copies of the memorandum (McClave 2008:172). Enclosure(s) or Encl.(s): As with any business correspondence, this is used to indicate that other material is enclosed (McClave 2008:172). Signed: McClave (2008:172) indicates that memorandum may provide a space for the writer’s signature. However, Thill and Bovée (2013:170) state that memoranda usually do not use a signature. Therefore, the issue of signature or no signature is normally dependent on the practice of the organisation. Business entities that practice the use of signature usually keep the signature beneath the content of the memorandum; others sign it against the name of the sender which is ordinarily written at the from section of the rubrics or elements. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 38 Memoranda usually do not use a salutation and a complimentary close (McClave 2008:172; Locker and Kienzler 2010:647; Thill and Bovée’s 2013:170). This practice is familiar with business letter. It will therefore be erroneous for one to start one’s memorandum with salutations such as ‘Dear Sir’, ‘Dear Madam’, and ‘Dear Sir/Madam’ or end with complimentary closes such as ‘Yours faithfully’, ‘Yours sincerely’, ‘Yours truly’, ‘Sincerely yours’, ‘Sincerely’ and ‘Yours ever’. Types/Layouts/formats of Memoranda Memoranda come in different formats, layouts, and types. In the business world, companies adopt memorandum style that suits the house style, and culture of their companies. For example, McClave (2008:176-177) has mentioned memorandum with a schematic layout and memorandum without a schematic layout. The schematic layout is used when the message is concerned with giving instructions, directions, or complex information. An exhibit is illustrated below: MEMORANDUM To: All staff Date: 3 November 20– From: M. Desmond (Administrative Officer) Subject: Direction for using Internal Telephone System 1. To make an internal call Lift handset and dial internal extension number required. 2. To make external call to a local number Lift handset and dial 0. If you hear busy tone (series of rapid single pips) replace handset and try again. If you hear dialling tone dial the external number required. 3. To make a call via the operator Lift handset, dial 9 and wait for a reply. Etc. Adapted from (McClave 2008:177) The subject line of the schematic layout has a phrase which is directive. The content has been numbered or bulleted. According to McClave (2008:176) the schematic memorandum is more effective and should be used when one is University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 39 writing a long memorandum. Memoranda without schematic on the other hand normally have an introduction and a one-paragraph content. An exhibit is illustrated below: MEMORANDUM To: All staff Date: 3 November 20– From: M. Desmond (Administrative Officer) Subject: Internal Telephone System I hope you will find the following instructions for use of the telephone system helpful. If you want to make an internal call lift the handset and dial the internal extension number required. To make an external call lift the handset and dial 0. If the busy tone is heard (series of rapid single pips) replace the handset and try again. If the dialling tone is heard dial the external number required. To make a call via the operator dial 9 and wait for a reply. Adapted from (McClave 2008:176) Memoranda can also be classified into informal and formal memoranda. The informal is normally not comprehensive. In most work places, workers use memo pads in sending informal memoranda to their acquaintances. The informal memorandum is usually presented in handwritten form. The language of the informal memorandum is informal and the content is brief and straight to the point. The formal memorandum is also referred to as the policy memorandum. A policy memorandum is a comprehensive memorandum that is basically concerned with policies and directives (Owusu 2015:62). It is usually written by superiors (for example: Heads of Departments, General Managers, and Functional Managers) because of its voluminous nature. Since this type of memorandum comes in a form of official directive, the language is formal and simple. The policy memorandum is normally typed on an official letterhead. The exhibit below is an example of a policy memorandum: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 40 KUTRUKAMPE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES20 Accra Our Ref. FLA 55 MEMORANDUM From: Collins Manu, Chairman Research Committee To: Chairperson, Journal Committee Date: 4th October, 2010 Subject: CONVENING OF MEETING – JOURNAL COMMITTEE In line with the National Accreditation Board’s requirement for Research Programmes to be conducted in Institutions of higher learning; and the Institute’s policy on promotion of Research, Training and Development; I humbly write to you, mandating you to convene a meeting in November, 2010; at the Sub Committee Level – Journal Committee. Please, do well to document the proceedings of the meeting. I suggest you incorporate the following in your agenda:  Establishment of modalities for the publication and launch of the first ever Journal for the Institute.  Arranging for Research Fellows from both KIMS and our affiliated Universities for peer review of papers received.  Drawing of budget Proposal for the publication of the Journal; and the posters/handbills to inform other researchers from recognized Institutions of higher learning and research.  Nomination of a Faculty member to replace Dr. F. K. Appiah I am counting on your cooperation. Thank you. A. M Cc: The Director, KIMS, Accra The President, KIMS, Accra The Registrar, KIMS, Accra The Vice President, IMS, Accra Owusu (2015:63) 2.2.3.2 Business Letters ‘When people think of business communications, many think of e-mails, letters, and paper memos’ (Locker and Kienzler 2010:403). Letters have over the years, played an important role in business communication. In the traditional setting, 20 The name of the school and the information the memorandum presents are fictitious. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 41 getting the message across without using a printed matter, is a nonstarter. Business letters are brief written messages normally sent to people outside the organisation (Locker and Kienzler 2010:403; Thill and Bovée 2013:102). A business letter is ordinarily used to transmit information on the company’s vision, mission, core values, goals, objectives, products, and services to the company’s external stakeholders who include but not limited to customers, suppliers, competitors, regulatory agencies, governments, communities, opinion leaders, financial institutions, and agents. Although, business letters are used for external business correspondence, ‘there are many special once-off cases that arise in business…, where a letter will be the most effective response’ (McClave 2008:128). Examples are: appointment letters, acceptance letters, resignation letters, dismissal letters, transfer letters, request for sponsorship (McClave 2008:128) and promotional letters. The business letter is said to act as an ambassador for the institution or person who sends it. It is therefore imperative for business letters to be carefully composed and well-presented so that the sender/company’s reputation will be enhanced. For example, if a business letter contains mistakes or looks untidy or has wrong format, it will have the opposite effect. Business executives normally scrutinise the first letters sent by a customer or a supplier. In analysing business letters, some of the questions executives ask are: is the letterhead well designed? Is there a fax number or e-mail address? Is the stationery of good quality? Accordingly, letter writers need to be circumspect of the letter’s content and appearance if they want to build a good image (McClave 2008:128). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 42 Elements of Business Letter The business letter has a format. It is a correspondence that is not done in a disorganised manner. Certain conventions are observed. The elements of most business letters include: letterhead, references, date, sender’s address (for non- printed letterhead letters) recipient’s address, salutation, subject, message, complimentary close, signature block, sender’s full name and position, reference initials (this is mostly optional), enclosure notation and copy notation (Guffey 2007:134-152; Guffey and Loewy 2010:141; Locker and Kienzler 2010:637- 646; McClave 2008:129-132). The various items in the elements are discussed below: Letterhead: The letterhead is a printed stationery with the company’s name, logo, address, e-mail address, fax number, postal address, telephone number(s), website address, registration number, bank name(s) and account number(s) (Bovée and Thill 2008:169; Locker and Kienzler 2010:638; McClave 2008:130; Owusu 2015:65; Thill and Bovée 2013:169-170). In addition to giving useful information, the letterhead could be a marketing piece. A well- designed and attractive letterhead helps to carry a positive image of the organisation to its stakeholders (McClave 2008:130). References: The aim of references is to enable the letter to be easily routed through to the person or department dealing with the letter. The meaning and the types of references have been treated under memoranda (see elements of memoranda). The date: The date is a separate item and should be distanced from the recipient’s address by one clear line of space. The date has been treated under memoranda (see elements of memoranda). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 43 Sender’s address: Since business letters usually use letterheads which already contain the address of the company, the sender’s address as a separate component, is not usually needed in business letters. However, where a business letter is typed or written on a non-printed letterhead, the sender’s address becomes imperative. When this happens, it is placed on the top right-hand corner of the page. Recipient’s address: In business letters, the name and the address of the intended recipient should always be stated (McClave 2008:131). It is important to observe the person’s title as well; which is normally placed before the person’s name or in brackets after the person’s name. Attention line: Most business letters do not use attention lines. However, when used, an attention line allows the sender to send the message officially to an organisation but direct it to a specific individual, officer, or department (Guffey 2007:A-2). Salutation: This is also known as Greetings in business letters. It varies according to some circumstances. One, Dear Sir, is used for male recipients whose names are not known; and Dear Madam for female recipients. In some highly formal letters, sometimes this salutation is still used though the name of the recipient might be known to the sender. In cases where the gender of the recipient is not known to the sender, Dear Sir/Madam is commonly used. Dear Sirs is used when one is writing to a company (McClave 2008:131). Sometimes, the recipient’s title and surname or full names are used. This situation normally happens when the sender already knows the recipient either through prior business contact or personal relationship. Examples are: Dear Mr. Owusu, Dear Mrs. Abban, Dear Prof. Clark, and Dear Dr. Brain Authur. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 44 The Subject: The subject line is also known as the title/heading. Some business entities do not use the subject line in their business correspondence. Entities that use it normally place it between the salutation and the first paragraph (McClave 2008:131). (For further information on subject style, see elements of memoranda). The message: The message (also known as the body) is the content of the letter. The body of the letter is divided into three parts – the introduction, the main body and the conclusion. The introduction identifies the topic, gives background or contextual information, indicates the writer’s purpose for writing, and states the thesis statement21 (Kirzner and Mandell 2007). It is therefore important for a writer to write the introduction with the sole purpose of capturing and sustaining the interest of the reader. The body develops the main ideas of the letter. It is important for the body to be divided into paragraphs so that each paragraph will handle one main idea. The topic sentence (the most important sentence of a paragraph), is the sentence that captures the main idea of each paragraph. Each topic sentence is expected to be developed by supporting sentences. The supporting sentences are sentences that corroborate or confirm the topic sentence. Most paragraphs have concluding sentences. A concluding sentence is the sentence that summarises the entire paragraph. The conclusion of a letter reviews the main points by way of recapitulation, and discusses the significance of those points. Most writers normally use the concluding part of informal letters for issues on pleasantry. 21 ‘This is a single declarative sentence that states what you want your readers to know, believe, or understand after having read your essay’ (Tagg 2004). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 45 The complimentary close: In the Ghanaian context, this is also known as subscription. According to McClave (2008:132) only two complimentary closes are found in business letters. Yours faithfully (which is more formal) and Yours sincerely (which is less formal). If one uses Dear Sir(s) or Dear Madam as the salutation of one’s business letter, the complimentary close should be Yours faithfully. But, if one addresses the recipient by name in the salutation section, one has to use Yours sincerely as the complimentary close (McClave 2008:132). Locker and Kienzler (2010:637), however, believe that Sincerely and Yours truly are standard complimentary closes. When one is writing to people in special groups or to a friend or even to a business acquaintance, a less formal close such as Cordially, Thank you, or even Ciao can be used. ‘In mixed punctuation, writers ensure that a colon follows the salutation and a comma follows the close’ (Locker and Kienzler 2010:637). Guffey (2007:A-5) states that the complimentary close is typed after leaving one blank line below the last line of the letter. The complimentary close, to Guffey (2007:A-5) may be Very truly yours (for formal letters) and Sincerely or Cordially (for informal letters). The simplified letter however, omits complimentary close (Guffey 2007:A-5). The signature block: Business letters are supposed to be signed. The signature is used to indicate the authenticity of the sender of the letter. Three blank spaces are expected to be created for a written signature below the complimentary close (Thill and Bovée 2013:A-5). It is standard practice to type the signer’s name and position in the company beneath the signature (McClave 2008:132; Thill and Bovée 2013:A-5). An exhibit is illustrated below: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 46 Yours faithfully, (Signature) Edgar Nkunim. Reference initials: This is mostly optional in business letters. However, if it is used, the initials of the typist and writer are typed one blank line below the writer’s name and title. Normally, the writer’s initials are capitalised and the typist’s are written in lower case (Guffey 2007:A-6). Reference initials are optional in business letters and vary in terms of the format. Enclosure notation: If an enclosure or attachment accompanies a document, a notification to that effect is done. The full word: Enclosure(s) or Attachment(s) is typed (one blank line below the reference initials) to indicate such attachment (Guffey 2007:A-6; McClave 2008:132). This may also be abbreviated as Encl.(s), or Enc., or Att. The enclosure notation has some uses. One, it reminds the typist to include the attached document(s) to the parcel/envelope that contains the business letter. Two, it also reminds the recipients to look for such attachment(s) (Guffey 2007:A-6). The enclosure notation may be specific by indicating the number of attachments done or by stating clearly the type of document(s) that has/have been attached (Guffey 2007:A-6). Copy notation: This notation is used to indicate the name(s) of individual(s) who has/have received copies of the business letter. This is usually done by typing the name of such a person after cc: (for carbon copy), (Guffey 2007:A-6; Locker and Kienzler 2010:643; McClave 2008:132) or cc: (for courtesy copy) (Thill and Bovée 2013:A-9), or cc: (for computer copy) (Locker and Kienzler 2010:643) or pc: (for photocopy) (Guffey 2007:A-6; Locker and Kienzler 2010:643), or just a c: (for any kind of copy) (Guffey 2007:A-6; Locker University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 47 and Kienzler 2010:643). According to Guffey (2007:A-6), the colon after the initial (c/cc/pc) is optional. In an event where the recipients of the cc/c/pc are many, the typing of names is done in alphabetical order (McClave 2008:132). In some business environments, the typing of names is done in order of seniority. Layouts (formats) and Types of Business Letters Generally, business letters are prepared in three layouts (formats) – fully blocked (block layout), modified block, and simplified formats (Guffey 2007:A-8; Locker and Kienzler 2010:637). In the block layout, all lines in the business letter begin at the left-hand margin and paragraph divisions are marked by line spaces instead of indentations (McClave 2008:133). This format has become popular in business correspondence to the extent that most typists and business people see it as a convention (McClave 2008:133). According to Guffey (2007:A-8), the block layout ‘…is easy to format.’ It is mostly combined with open punctuation, where punctuation marks are omitted in all sections of the letter, except in the body or the message of the letter (McClave 2008:133). The block format could also be combined with mixed punctuation, where there is a colon after the salutation and a comma after the complimentary close (Guffey 2007:A-3). An exhibit of the block layout is illustrated below: KUTRUKAMPE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES Accra KIMS/FLA/45 Mr. Edwin Ampah The SRC President KIMS ACCRA 13th July 2011 Dear Mr. Ampah: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 48 INCLUSION OF A STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE ON DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE In the past committees investigating examination malpractices have not included student membership. In the audit report of the Quality Assurance Committee of the National Accreditation Board on KIMS admissions and examinations, attention has been drawn to this omission. We are therefore writing officially, to inform you that henceforth committees investigating examination malpractices will include student representative. Currently, an ad hoc committee has been constituted to investigate examination malpractices on Friday, the 22nd July, 2011 at 10:00am at the Conference Hall. We are by a copy of this letter informing the Chairman of the Committee of your inclusion. Yours sincerely, (signed) KOFI ANDOH (ASSISTANT REGISTRAR) Cc: The President The Registrar The Dean of Students’ Affairs The Chairman, Examination Disciplinary Committee Owusu (2015:68). The modified format has almost the same characteristics as the block format. However, one difference between these formats is that the date, the complimentary close, the signature block, and the full name and position (if any) of the sender in the modified format appear in the centre of the paper (Guffey 2007:A-8; Locker and Kienzler 2010:640). Again, the first lines of paragraphs of the modified format are usually indented five or ten spaces (Guffey 2007:A- 8; Locker and Kienzler 2010:640). For example, the exhibit on the block layout will be modified as: KUTRUKAMPE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES Accra University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 49 KIMS/FLA/45 Mr. Edwin Ampah The SRC President KIMS ACCRA 13th July 2011 Dear Mr. Ampah: INCLUSION OF A STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE ON DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE In the past committees investigating examination malpractices have not included student membership. In the audit report of the Quality Assurance Committee of the National Accreditation Board on KIMS admissions and examinations, attention has been drawn to this omission. We are therefore writing officially, to inform you that henceforth committees investigating examination malpractices will include student representative. Currently, an ad hoc committee has been constituted to investigate examination malpractices on Friday, the 22nd July, 2011 at 10:00am at the Conference Hall. We are by a copy of this letter informing the Chairman of the Committee of your inclusion. Yours sincerely, (signed) KOFI ANDOH (ASSISTANT REGISTRAR) Cc: The President The Registrar The Dean of Students’ Affairs The Chairman, Examination Disciplinary Committee. Adapted from Owusu (2015:68) and modified. Guffey (2007:A-8) has stated that the simplified format was introduced by the Administrative Management Society22. Like the block format, all lines of the paragraphs in the simplified format begin at the left margin. Conversely, the simplified format omits the salutation and complimentary close; and the sender’s 22 This is an organisation that is based in Washington, D. C, USA, which promotes efficiency in management and participates in research for the purpose of lowering costs, increasing the quality of products, and improving relations between their employers and employees (www.businessdictionary.com). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 50 signature, name, and identification appear in all capital letters four black lines below the last paragraph (Guffey 2007:A-8; Locker and Kienzler 2010:641). One advantage of the simplified format is that it avoids the problems of appropriate salutations, complimentary close, and courtesy titles (Guffey 2007:A-8). The exhibit on the fully block format will be simplified as: KUTRUKAMPE INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES Accra KIMS/FLA/45 Mr. Edwin Ampah The SRC President KIMS ACCRA 13th July 2011 INCLUSION OF A STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE ON DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE In the past committees investigating examination malpractices have not included student membership. In the audit report of the Quality Assurance Committee of the National Accreditation Board on KIMS admissions and examinations, attention has been drawn to this omission. We are therefore writing officially, to inform you that henceforth committees investigating examination malpractices will include student representative. Currently, an ad hoc committee has been constituted to investigate examination malpractices on Friday, the 22nd July, 2011 at 10:00am at the Conference Hall. We are by a copy of this letter informing the Chairman of the Committee of your inclusion. (signed) KOFI ANDOH (ASSISTANT REGISTRAR) Cc: The President The Registrar The Dean of Students’ Affairs The Chairman, Examination Disciplinary Committee Adapted from Owusu (2015:68) and modified. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 51 Whether fully blocked format, modified block format, or simplified format, business letters come in different types. McClave (2008:134-144) has identified the following as types of business letters: letters of introduction, referrals, letters of enquiry, letters of reply, query letters, letters of estimates, letters of orders, letters of complaint, letters of adjustment, collection letters, and goodwill letters. We also have rejection follow-up letter, application or résumé follow-up letter, job acceptance and rejection letters, and resignation letters (Guffey 2007:439-441). Other notable business communication letters are: promotional letters, transfer letters, leave letters, appointment letters, termination of appointment letters, and reinstatement letters. 2.3 Language and formatting in Business Correspondence Whether memoranda or business letters, language and issues about formatting are imperative in business correspondence. Accordingly, most business communication writers (for example, Guffey 2007; McClave 2008; Locker and Kienzler 2010, Thill and Bovée 2013) have dedicated some sections of their write-ups on business correspondence to language and formatting issues. Examples are grammar, punctuation marks, mechanics and proofreading marks. 2.3.1 Grammar Basically, grammar is the study of how words are put together to form meaningful sentences (Thill and Bovée 2013:H-3). ‘The grammar of a language is the set of rules that governs the way it is used’ (McClave 2008:349). Biber, Conrad, and Leech (2005:13) categorise grammatical units as sentence, clauses, phrases, words, and morphemes. English recognises eight word classes (parts of speech). These are: verb, noun, adjective, adverb, preposition, determiner, pronoun, conjunction, and interjection (Eastwood 2002:3; Quirk and University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 52 Greenbaum 2012:30). In business communication, word classes and their uses are vital. According to Quirk and Greenbaum (2012:31), these word classes can be categorised into two broad groups of closed-system items and open-class items. The items in the closed-system (determiners, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections) cannot usually be extended by the creation of additional members. However, the members in the open-class items (nouns, adjectives, adverbs, and verbs) are ‘indefinitely extendable’ (Quick and Greenbaum 2012:31). By this, the open-class items, always welcome new members. The data collected from the field show that some second language business communication students make word-class grammatical errors in their business correspondence. Some of these probable errors are: Incorrect: Kofi and myself were at the programme. Correct: Kofi and I were at the programme. Incorrect: The manager gave the documents to Osei and myself. Correct: The manager gave the documents to Osei and me. (Fieldwork 2016) In the structures cited above, the wrong word class (reflexive pronoun) has been underlined. Another grammatical unit worthy of mentioning in business communication is the sentence. Some of the sentence-related errors that business communication students commit are: sentence fragments, dangling modifier, misplaced modifier, parallel structure and concord. Examples of such sentential errors have been cited below: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 53 A. Not parallel: We use these principles in processing our foods: 1. Conducting hazard analysis. 2. Determining critical control points . 3. Establish critical limit. 4. Establish corrective activities. B. Parallel: We use these principles in processing our foods: 1. Conducting hazard analysis. 2. Determining critical control points . 3. Establishing critical limit. 4. Establishing corrective activities. (Fieldwork 2016) In the structures A and B, the sentences under category A (not parallel) are not analogous. They have therefore been corrected in category B (parallel). Thus, items in a series should possess the same grammatical structure (Locker and Kienzler 2010:658). Second language business communication students also commit dangling modifier errors: A. Incorrect: I saw the lion in the valley standing on top of the hill. B. Correct: Standing on top of the hill, I saw the lion in the valley. In structure A, the participial phrase, standing on top of the hill, is dangling. This has been corrected in structure B, where we see the phrase, standing on top of the hill, modifying the pronoun, I. Concord errors may also abound in the write-ups of business communication students: A. Incorrect: It is I who is to blame. B. Correct: It is I who am to blame. (Fieldwork 2016) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 54 In structure A, the antecedent23 of the relative pronoun, who, is assumed to be the subject, it, hence the wrong verb has been selected. This has been corrected in structure B, where the antecedent of the relative pronoun, who, is seen as I, which agrees with its true verb, am. 2.3.2 Punctuation Marks Anytime we speak, we use pauses, intonation, and stress to convey meaning. However, these are missing in writing; instead punctuation marks are used to indicate these pauses, intonation, and stress (McClave 2008:336). According to Quirk and Greenbaum (2012:470) punctuation marks serve two main functions: (a) separation of successive units (such as sentences by full stops, or items in series separated by commas), and separation of included units (such as brackets used to interpolate structures); (b) specification of function of language (such as using an apostrophe to indicate genitive items). In business communication, ‘the proper use of punctuation keeps readers from losing track of meaning’ (Boveé and Thill 2008:H-14). To McClave (2008:336) English recognises twelve punctuation marks. However, in most books (for example: Boveé 2013:H-15-19; and Guffey 2007:GM-3-4; Thill), about fourteen are found. These are periods (full stops), question marks, exclamation points, semicolons, colons, commas, dashes, hyphens, apostrophes, quotation marks, parentheses and brackets, ellipses, capitalization, and underscore. Some of the punctuating errors that are likely to be found in structures of business communication texts include: comma splices, omission, and placement of wrong punctuation. Examples are indicated below: 23 This is a pronoun (such as he, she, who, and, they) which often refers back to an item (a noun, a noun phrase, or even another pronoun) occurring earlier in the same clause, utterance, or text (Biber et al. 2005:455). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 55 A. Incorrect: Where are the files. B. Correct: Where are the files? A. Incorrect: Today sales will be higher than yesterday B. Correct: Today’s sales will be higher than yesterday’s (Fieldwork 2016) 2.3.3 Mechanics Mechanics is also crucial in business communication write-ups. Mechanics refers to ‘the appearance of words, and how they are spelled or arranged on paper’ (Kane 2000:15). For example, in the structures below, the underlined words in structures A, have been spelt wrongly. Therefore, a violation of rules on mechanics has been committed: A. Incorrect: I have recieved the documents. B. Correct: I have received the documents. A. Incorrect: I write to acknowlege receipt of your letter. B. Incorrect: I write to acknowledge receipt of your letter. (Fieldwork 2016) Mechanics are rules which exhibit a writer’s writing refinement and which reflect on the organisation’s professionalism (Thill and Bovée 2013:H-19). For example, if a writer decides to spell out a currency attached to a figure (for example: 2,000 dollars), this style should run through the writer’s document. It will therefore be mechanically wrong to have some figures attached with the dollar sign ($). This situation creates inconsistencies in business communication. Mechanics also deals with abbreviations, capitalisation, italics, numbers, and word-division (Thill and Bovée 2013:H-19-21). For example, it is a convention in word-division that monosyllabic words are not divided; but University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 56 disyllabic words can be divided24. A mistake on mechanics will therefore be committed if a writer divides monosyllabic words in business communication texts. In abbreviation, full-stops are supposed to be used. Examples are: Mr., Ms., Jr., a.m., p.m., B.C., and A.D., but full-stops are not supposed to be used in some abbreviations such as CEO, DOS, and CD-ROM (Thill and Bovée 2013:H- 20). Mechanics also encompasses other typewriting issues such as spacing, font size, font style, pagination, referencing style, and paragraphing styles. Most organisations have their own style sheet that specifies preferred style on mechanics. It is therefore prudent for writers to contact style sheets for preferred styles of organisations. 2.3.4 Correction Symbols and Proofreading Marks Proofreading marks, which are also called proof-readers’ marks, are symbols or marks or representations that are used for correcting typeset pages (www.biomedicaleditor.com). In the teaching and learning of business communication, these marks are needed when it comes to assessment. They are used to indicate a deletion of an item or a transposition of an element or an indication of a missing punctuation such as comma, period, exclamation mark or colon in a text. In assessment of modern business communication texts, these marks play an important role. They were therefore used in assessing the scripts of the student-participants. (Please see the appendices for a list of the symbols). 24 Monosyllabic words are words with only one syllable or a person who uses short and abrupt words in conversation (www.yourdictionary.com). For example the word come is monosyllabic. It will therefore be wrong for a person to divide such a word when writing. Disyllabic words are words consisting of or pertaining to two syllables (www.dictionary.com). Such words could sometimes be divided. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 57 2.4 Review of Empirical Studies on Error/Grammar CFs This section reviews some key studies on grammar correction and corrective feedback. Most of these studies included some human subjects, research methods, data, and instruments. Again, such studies have findings and recommendations. This critical review is centred on works done in the field of CF over the last two decades. Some of these studies from the earliest to the latest are: Truscott (1996), Lyster and Ranta (1997), Truscott (1999), Ferris (1999), Ferris (2004), Bitchener et al. (2005), Ellis (2009), Beuningen (2010), Rezaei et al. (2011), Mubarak (2013), Pakbaz (2014), Junqueira and Payant (2015), and Kheradmand and Sayadiyan (2016). The bases for selecting these works are: (1) recentness [for example, Mubarak (2013), Pakbaz (2014), Junqueira and Payant (2015), and Kheradmand and Sayadiyan (2016)]; (2) major argument on grammar correction [for example, Truscott (1996, 1999) and Ferris (1999, 2004)]; (3) experimental method used (for example, Bitchener et al. 2005); and (4) relevancy to my study (for example, Beuningen 2010). 2.4.1 Truscott (1996) Truscott’s (1996) paper which reviews works done on corrective feedback, marks the onset of the debate on corrective feedback. He draws on a number of research works done on grammar correction, and error correction, and argues strongly that grammar correction in L2 writing classes should be abandoned. The main reason for the abandonment are: (1) extensive research works show it to be unsuccessful; (2) for both theoretical and practical reasons, it is expected to be ineffectual; and (3) it has detrimental consequences. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 58 On data, the paper draws extensively on secondary sources of data. According to Truscott (1996), there are significant number of studies which had proved that grammar correction had little or no effect on students’ writing ability. Some of the works include: Cohen and Bobbins (1976), Hendrickson (1978); Semke (1984); VanPatten (1986a 1986b); Robb, Ross, and Shortreed (1986); Frantzen and Rissel (1987); Leki (1990); Kepner (1991); Krashen (1992); and Sheppard (1992). For example, Cohen and Bobbins (1976) examined the written corrections on the compositions of 3 advanced ESL students and concluded that corrections did not seem to have any meaningful effect on the errors of the students. Grammar correction’s ineffectiveness again showed in Robb et al.’s (1986) study. In Robb et al.’s (1986) study, students were to rewrite their compositions by making the correct changes. Robb et al. (1986) used four different types of feedback: (a) explicit correction, which included the errors and the correct forms; (b) the use of a correction code to point out type and location of errors; (c) the use of highlighting to indicate the locations of errors, which did not include any explanation; and (d) a marginal tally of the number of errors in each line, with no indication of what the errors were or where in the line they were located. At the end of the study, the researchers did not see any vital changes in students’ writing. The strength of the paper lies in the explicit focus or scope provided by the researcher: first, Truscott (1996:329) has made it clear that he does not deny the significance of accuracy in L2 writing. The issue is whether or not grammar correction has the proclivity of developing accuracy. Second, he does not reject feedback as a teaching method entirely. For example, he has little to say on feedback provided to the content, organisation, or clarity of a composition University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 59 (Truscott 1996:329). However, Truscott’s (1996) paper is skewed to one direction though works in support of grammar correction (for example, Bates, Lane, and Lange 1993; Ferris 1995a; and Ferris 1995c) have been done earlier; and this forms one of the bases of Ferris’ (1999) rebuttal of Truscott (1996) and her (Ferris) subsequent support for grammar correction. 2.4.2 Lyster and Ranta (1997) Lyster and Ranta (1997) investigated corrective feedback and learner uptake in four immersion classrooms at the primary level. Six different CFs of recasts, elicitation, metalinguistic feedback, clarification requests, explicit correction, and repetition were used. Three research questions were used. These are: (1) What are the different types of CF and their distribution in communicatively oriented classroom? (2) What is the distribution of uptake following different types of CF? (3) What combinations of CF and learner uptake constitute the negotiation of form? (Lyster and Ranta 1997:42). The observational study had its participants drawn from six French immersion classroom in the Montreal area. In this observational study, 100 hours of audio-recordings of a variety of lessons in four Grade 4 classrooms and two Grade 6 classrooms were used (Lyster and Ranta 1997:42). The emphasis of the audio-recordings was on teacher-student interaction. Four teachers were selected for the study on the basis of their preparedness to have their lessons observed and tape-recorded (Lyster and Ranta 1997:43). The recorded activities were coded, using Part A of the Communicative Orientation to Language Teaching (COLT) coding scheme (Spada and Fröhlich 1995). The data were then analysed, using Part B coding scheme (Doughty’s 1994a, 1994b and Spada and University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 60 Fröhlich 1995;) analysis of fine-tuning feedback. The results of the study indicated that recasts25 accounted for the largest number of CFs used for error repairs; and subsequently led to learners’ uptake (Lyster and Ranta 1997:57). The results also revealed that teachers in the study used different CFs: recasts (55%), elicitation (14%), clarification requests (11%), metalinguistic feedback (8%), explicit correction (7%), and repetition of error (5%) (Lyster and Ranta 1997:56). There was a considerable inclination for teachers to use recasts in giving oral CF. In terms of the number of oral CFs used, the research is comprehensive. Even though the teachers knew that the researchers were interested in recording classroom interaction, the teachers were not aware of the focus of the researchers in terms of the CFs (Lyster and Ranta 1997:43). This action is highly unethical in research studies. Human subjects in research works should be made aware of the focus of research studies. 2.4.3 Ferris (1999) Ferris’ (1999) study is a direct rebuttal to Truscott (1996). The paper is segmented into 6 parts or headings: introduction, summary of Truscott’s argument, disagreements with Truscott’s argument, areas of agreement with Truscott, why error correction should be continued in L2 writing classes, and conclusion. The paper opens with a summary of Truscott’s (1996) main argument about the inefficacy of grammar correction. Ferris (1999) then moves to refute Truscott’s (1996) argument by pointing out and elaborating some of Truscott’s (1996) flaws. The first flaw is that Truscott (1996) defines correction of 25 See section 2.2.2, Types of Corrective Feedback, for information on recast. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 61 grammatical errors vaguely to mean correction ‘for the purpose of improving a student’s ability to write accurately.’ The second serious flaw in Truscott’s (1996) paper, according to Ferris (1999) can be found in his review of previous studies of error correction in L2 writing. There are three of such flaws: (a) incomparability of the subjects in the studies reviewed; (b) variation of the research paradigms and teaching strategies; and (c) disregarding research results that contradict his thesis while focusing on the negative evidence only. Another strong aversion of Ferris’ (1999) to Truscott’s (1996) study, is Truscott’s inability or refusal to acknowledge works done in support of grammar correction. Thus, Truscott (1996) exaggerates research findings that corroborate his thesis and dismisses those that contradict him. This, according to Ferris (1999), is a serious flaw. Ferris (1999) concludes her paper by reiterating the fact that Truscott’s (1996) review paper is premature and flawed since the evidence and the conclusion presented are sweeping, limited, incomplete, and inconclusive. Because of this, he (Truscott) has argued strongly for an abolishment of a pedagogical practice that is valued by both students and teachers in terms of accuracy of writing. Ferris (1999:9) has indicated that Truscott (1996) could have done better by using his (Truscott) work to ask rhetorical and probing questions about error correction and to identify some of the problems raised by the available research. Ferris (1999:9), thus, ends her rebuttal of Truscott (1996) by asking some questions for further research. These are:  Do teachers respond accurately to students’ errors?  Are students able to make progress in monitoring certain types of errors than others? University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 62  Which individual student variables affect learners’ willingness and ability to benefit from error correction?  Which methods, techniques, or approaches to error correction lead to short- or long-term student improvement? In critiquing Ferris (1999), mention should be made of the balanced nature of her rebuttal. She points out clearly her areas of agreement and disagreement with Truscott (1996). For example, she agrees with Truscott (1996) on the ‘theoretical’, and ‘practical problems’ of grammar correction Truscott (1996) has identified (Ferris 1999:5-7); and has problems with Truscott’s (1996) review paper in terms of the subjects, the research paradigms and teaching strategies, and Truscott’s (1996) overdependence on the negative evidence while disregarding the positive evidence of grammar correction (Ferris 1999:3-5). On these and other issues, Ferris (1999) has been objective. However, some drawbacks have been identified in Ferris (1999). She has mentioned that Truscott (1996) used some studies that covered an entire quarter or semester; and others consisted of a ‘one-shot’ experiment. But, she (Ferris) did not state in her rebuttal, the specific studies or examples of such ‘one-shot’ experiment found in Truscott (1996). This could mislead readers as her basis of her rebuttal on these issues could not be substantiated. Again, she indicates that ‘… as noted by Truscott, several of the studies lacked control groups’ (Ferris 1999:5). But again, Ferris (1999) could not even point out a single of such studies mentioned in Truscott (1996). 2.4.4 Truscott (1999) Truscott (1999) is a rebuttal of Ferris’ (1999) criticisms on Truscott (1996). The paper (that is Truscott 1999) argues that the criticisms from Ferris (1999) are University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 63 ‘unfounded and highly selective.’ Because of this, large portions of his case (Truscott 1996) have been left unchallenged and in some cases they have even been strengthened. Truscott (1999) begins by reiterating his decision of writing ‘the case against grammar correction in L2 writing classes’ (Truscott 1996). The first one was his resolution that grammar correction is an erroneous concept. The second one was about the current state of the field of second-language writing, which perceived grammar correction as the norm, which consequently, created a picture of non-existence of ‘dissenting voices’ in the field of second language teaching and learning (Truscott 1999:111). Third, that Truscott (1999), was an attempt to inform teachers and other stakeholders in the field of second language teaching and learning that there was a substitute to consider. Ferris (1999) welcomes a thorough discussion on the subject matter (that is whether grammar should be corrected or not). Truscott (1999) is segmented into seven (7) key thematic areas. These are: alleged problems of ‘definition’, alleged problems of reviews of studies on correction, Ferris’ reasons for continuing to correct, the state of the case against grammar correction, the burden of proof bias, prospects for the future, and the issue of choice (conclusion). The strength of Truscott (1999) lies in Truscott’s ability of responding to most, if not all the issues raised by Ferris (1999). For example, Ferris (1999) accuses Truscott (1996) of problems of definition of the term error correction. Truscott (1999:112) clearly points out that he never used the term error correction in Truscott (1996), but the term he used, was grammar correction. Truscott’s (1999) rebuttal is so strong that it even points out vividly, divergent areas where Ferris (1999) should have challenged Truscott (1999), but she failed University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 64 to do so. Nonetheless, Truscott (1999) could have validated his study well by citing his personal empirical findings that support his proposition. When Truscott (1999) decided to give a rebuttal to Ferris (1999), it was incumbent on him to have first, conducted an experimental empirical study26 to buttress his argument. Such an empirical study by Truscott, could have been a credible basis for his advocacy against grammar correction. This gap identified, does not suggest that Truscott (1999) does not have any personal experience of Truscott with students on grammar correction. It does and I quote: My own experience is with students who come to my classes firmly convinced that grammar correction is an essential part of language learning in no small part because their teachers have been giving them that message for as long as they can remember. But my correction-free approach neither produces student rebellions nor leads to signs of frustration or lack of motivation or confidence in learners (Truscott 1999:116). Even though, this quotation suggests that Truscott has had a personal experience on the subject matter (argument for or against grammar correction), one can infer from the quotation that his experience lacks empirical grounding. For a universal acclamation (abandonment of grammar correction) of such nature, a personal empirical study from him (Truscott) could have been a solid foundation that backs his assertion. 2.4.5 Ferris and Roberts (2001) Ferris and Roberts (2001) is a study on error feedback in L2 writing classes: How explicit does it need to be? The method used was experimental classroom study. 72 students and 8 teachers were the participants of the study. The student subjects were ESL students at the Learning Skills Centre at California State 26 I stand to be corrected, though. My argument is based on Truscott’s publications done within 1996 and 1999 which do not give us any substantial information that Truscott himself has conducted any empirical study to validate his assertion of abandonment of grammar. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 65 University, Sacramento. The participants were taught by Roberts (the second author) and another independent instructor. The main argument of the study is that the question regarding how explicit error feedback should be, in order to facilitate self-editing of students’ own texts, has not been addressed. The objectives for the study were: (1) Does error feedback help student writers to edit their texts successfully? (2) What are the effects of differing teacher feedback strategies? (3) How do different error categories respond to treatment? (4) What are students’ preference regarding error feedback? And (5) How does students’ formal knowledge of grammar terms and rules affect the feedback and revision process? The student subjects were randomly assigned to three treatment groups. Those in experimental Group A (‘codes’ group) had their errors underlined and coded; those in experimental Group B (‘no codes’ group) had all errors underlined but not coded; and those in control Group C had no feedback on their scripts (thus papers were returned to students without error markings) (Ferris and Roberts 2001:168). The results of the study reviewed that the participants in experimental Groups A and B outperformed their contemporaries in control Group C, who received no feedback on the self-editing task (Ferris and Roberts 2001:176). However, there were insignificant differences in the self-editing of scripts by the participants in the two experimental groups of A and B (Ferris and Roberts 2001:176). Ferris and Roberts (2001) thus conclude that less explicit feedback enables students to self-edit ‘just as well as corrections coded by error type’ (p.161). Though the findings of Ferris and Robert (2001) are sound, we are not University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 66 told of the essay type the student participants wrote. Therefore, the researchers failed to comment on the rubrics and requirements of the essay type. My thesis addresses this gap by using two business communication texts of letters and memoranda. 2.4.6 Chandler (2003) Chandler (2003) used two studies to investigate the efficacy of various kinds of error feedback for improvement in the accuracy and fluency of L2 student writing. Literature was mainly drawn from Truscott (1996), Ferris (1999), and other influential works (for example, Ashwell 2000; Cardelle and Corno 1981; Ferris and Roberts 2001; Kepner 1991; Lyster and Ranta 1997; Polio, Fleck, and Leder 1998; Robb et al 1986; Semke 1984; Sheppard 1992) on CF. The objective of the first study was to determine whether error correction improves accuracy in student writing? (Chandler 2003:270). The participants for study one were thirty-one (31) first and second year undergraduate music major students from an American conservatory. They are nationals of Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan. They had either scored between 540 and 575 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or had completed a one year intermediate English as a Second Language (ESL) course the previous year, and had registered grade B- or better, after they had scored at least 500 on the TOEFL (Chandler 2003:270-271). The method used for study one was experimental. Two groups (control and experimental) were constituted. The control group consisted of sixteen (16) participants; while the experimental group consisted of 15 participants. Each group had one male participant, with the rest being female participants. The participants were not randomly assigned to the classes. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 67 The results of the first study showed that accuracy of writing of the experimental group improved more significantly over the 10-week period than that of the control group. Again, both the experimental and control groups in study 1 showed a significant increase in fluency over the semester. This is in consonance with Robb et al’s (1986) research. The objective of the second study was to assess the effects of various kinds of error correction. In this second study, different participants from the same ESL writing programme were used. The total number of participants were 36 students. They were also divided into two main groups and each group was taught by the same person, using the same method. The first group had 18 female and 3 male participants. The tasks given to the participants in the second study were many and different since the objective was to assess the effects of various kinds of error correction. The results of the second study proved that students’ writing improved significantly (during the semester) both in accuracy and in fluency. Participants in this study, like those in the study one experimental group, had the opportunity of correcting their errors before writing the next assignment in the second study (Chandler 2003:284). Again, in the second study, Chandler (2003:285) had wanted to examine whether participants who wrote complex and voluminous tasks make more errors than those who take few complex tasks. The results of the second study revealed that there was no significant change in holistic ratings over the semester (Chandler 2003:285). Moreover, the second study showed that when four (4) different CFs were used, the CF that enabled participants to produce few errors, was correction (direct CF). This was followed by underlining and description, description, and underlining only in that order. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 68 Apart from the two studies which used some participants and texts, twenty-one (21) participants filled out questionnaire items which compared the four different teacher response CF methods of correction, underlining and description, description, and underlining only in terms of simplicity, efficacy, accuracy, preference, and teacher’s time required. The results showed that ‘more than two-thirds of the students considered the correction response to be the easiest to correct…’ (Chandler 2003:287). Again, half had the opinion that ‘underlining with description was the easiest way to see what kind of errors they had made…’ (Chandler 2003:287). Thus, the study proved that both correction and underlining were more effective in the reduction of errors in subsequent write-ups than underlining with description was (Chandler 2003:287). The study also revealed that the fastest way for teachers to respond to students’ errors is to underline the errors (Chandler 2003:289). One of Chandler’s (2003) strengths of the studies is the comprehensive nature of the research in terms of methods used in each of the two studies, the different CFs used and the time frame (a period of one semester) within the studies were done. Nevertheless, some gaps were identified. One, we are told that “… students were given extensive practice in reading and writing in a genre and about content they are were familiar with in order to focus on improving both their reading and writing fluency…” (Chandler 2003:272). However, Chandler (2003) has not provided us literature about the genre and the content of such write-ups. Maybe, if we had been told, it would have served as a framework for measuring other write-ups. Two, Chandler’s (2003:271) study one is made up of two conspicuous classes (experimental and control groups); but in the case of the design of the second study, we are not clearly told whether the two classes formed are also experimental and control groups (Chandler University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 69 2003:281). My work used three classes – experimental group A, experimental group B, and control group. 2.4.7 Truscott (2004) Truscott (2004) is a rebuttal to Chandler (2003). Thus, Truscott (2004) reviews Chandler (2003); and based on the gaps found, Truscott (2004) concludes that Chandler’s (2003) claims are “…conjectures, not research findings” (Truscott 2004:337). Truscott (2004), being a review and a rebuttal, does not include participants, methods, data collection and data analysis. The paper has two main thematic areas: the findings and the conjectures, and the big picture (that states that correction does not work). Concerning the findings and the conjectures, three main issues of accuracy, overall writing quality, and fluency have been challenged. On accuracy, Truscott (2004) points it out that Chandler’s (2003) study one found that the experimental group (which received feedback and revision) outperformed a control group that received feedback but did not receive revision on their works (Truscott 2004:338). According to Truscott (2004:338), this does not suggest supremacy of a particular CF over another; “other likely factors cannot be excluded” (Truscott 2004:338). With this as a background, Truscott (2004:338) considers two possible explanations for Chandler’s (2003) findings on accuracy. Claim one, correction with revision was helpful and that correction by itself was relatively neutral and the roles that other factors play remain unclear. Claim two, correction was unproductive or injurious in both situations and apparent developments were due to other unrestrained factors (Truscott 2004:338). According to Truscott (2004:338), previous research works (for example, Polio et al. 1998; Robb et al. 1986; Semke 1984; Sheppard 1992; Truscott 1996) offer no support for claim University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 70 one. Claim two, however, adapts earlier research works well (for example, Sheppard 1992; Polio et al. 1998) which have viewed correction as ineffective or harmful and have also revealed absolute gains in the absence of correction. Truscott (2004:340) also queries Chandler’s (2003) two definitions on fluency and the results of the studies on fluency and, concludes that they are mere conjecture. Truscott (2004) concludes this thematic area by reiterating the fact that both Chandler (2003) and Truscott (2004) are conjectures. However, the conjectures of Truscott (2004) are credible since they are in consonance with previous findings (Truscott 2004:340). On the big picture (that is, correction does not work), Truscott (2004:340) challenges the literature that refutes the case against correction from two angles: The lack of evidence in favour of correction and evidence against correction. Truscott (2004:340) reports that Chandler (2003) points out that evidence that has been presented in favour of correction are not strong. This is because they are mostly descriptive research rather than experimental research which includes control groups and experimental groups. Truscott (2004:341) categorically agrees with Chandler’s (2003) on this assertion and indicates that he has little to say about this part of the review. Truscott (2004) concludes that Chandler (2003:267) accuses Truscott (1996) of rejecting ‘all forms of error correction’ (Truscott 2004:342). Truscott (2004:342) rebuts Chandler’s (2003) claim by indicating that the debate in Truscott (1996) is on grammar correction and not about error correction in general. This point, according to Truscott (2004), has been well stated in Truscott (1999). Again, he concludes that Truscott (2004), just like Chandler (2003), are assumptions; but Truscott (2004) presents a better conjecture. Finally, he concludes by reiterating the fact that ‘[c]orrection is a bad idea’ (Truscott University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 71 2004:342). Truscott (2004) has some strengths. He does this rebuttal in a categorical manner by responding to issues one after the other. Another area where he should be commended, is his definite admission to Chandler’s (2003) claim that most of the evidence presented in favour of correction are weak since they are mostly based on descriptive studies rather than experimental studies (Truscott 2004:340). I give credit to him for admitting the flaws categorically. This makes Truscott a critical thinker. One would have expected him to search further for some experimental studies that endorse his argument; but he did not. On the weakness of Truscott (2004), I agree with Chandler (2003) that experimental studies rather than descriptive (review works) studies have the greatest propensity of commenting on the efficacy or uselessness of CFs. Thus, Truscott (2004) could have done a simple experimental study and used it as a basis for his rebuttal of Chandler (2003). My work, thus, seeks to address this gap. Again, Truscott (2004) indicates that Chandler’s (2003) claims are hypotheses which are not acceptable in research work: ‘Claims of this sort are conjectures, not research findings’ (Truscott 2004:337). Yet, he blatantly goes ahead to say that Truscott (2004) is also a hypothesis; and that his conjectures are better than Chandler’s (2003) (Truscott 2004:337). My argument is a conjecture is not based on research findings. I disagree that Chandler (2003) which used two studies (with study one having experimental and control groups) is a conjecture. 2.4.8 Chandler (2004) Chandler (2004) is a short dialogue which gives some responses to issues raised by Truscott (2004). Since the paper is just a rebuttal, some points in Truscott University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 72 (2004); clear-cut research activities such as human subjects (participants), methods, data collection, data analysis, and discussion of results were not used. However, literature has been reviewed to address some issues. In the introductory section of the dialogue, Chandler (2004) agrees with Truscott (2004) that “the efficacy of error correction is a central issue for the theory and practice of writing instruction” (Chandler 2004:345); and reiterates the fact that her students see error feedback as an integral part of language learning; and on the basis of that it is challenging for teachers to provide no feedback to students (Chandler 2004:345), a point Truscott (1996, 1999, 2004) disagrees with vehemently. Chandler (2004) reviews and challenges some literature that form strong bases for Truscott’s (1996, 1999, 2004) argument and concludes as follows: One, since the groups in her study (Chandler 2003) did the same number of new writing, she could conclude that writing practice alone had no effect on accuracy, a situation which is different from Semke (1984), and Polio et al. (1998). Two, Truscott (1996, 1999, 2004) had argued that all grammar corrections were harmful and the ill effects might be equipoised by writing practice or exposure to English or avoidance of longer writing (Chandler 2004:346). Chandler (2003) disproves this by giving longer and complex writing tasks to participants in the studies; yet the results revealed that they improved in Chandler’s measure of fluency (Chandler 2004:346). Moreover, to Chandler (2004), Sheppard (1992) focused on some errors, so Truscott’s (1996, 1999, 2004) avoidance of correction theory could work in such situations. In her (Chandler 2003) studies, all grammatical and lexical errors (unfocused) were counted; but the results showed an increase in accuracy. Chandler (2004:346) also indicates that Robb et al.’s (1986) study does not have any control group which does not receive no CF. Therefore, it does not show University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 73 ‘that it was the error feedback that produced the positive changes for all groups in accuracy, fluency, and syntactic complexity’ (Chandler 2004:346). How then can Truscott use the results of such a study (Robb et al. 1986) to make a case that correction was unnecessary and harmful? Chandler (2004:348) ends by stressing the need for teachers to correct the errors of students since it facilitates the discovery of functions and restrictions of the syntactical and lexical structures of the target language. However, she admits some methodological flaws in Chandler (2003) and calls for well-made research studies in terms of the methodology: I accept the argument that the efficacy of error correction for accuracy of subsequent writing will only be demonstrated by studies containing a control which receives no correction and experimental groups which … correct their errors after either receiving direct correction or having the location of their errors pointed out. So I hope someone will do such a well- designed study (Chandler 2004:348). This gap is addressed in my study in the sense that the participants in the control groups did not receive any form of CF; but a general comment was written beneath each of the two write-ups and the participants were required to find the areas in the scripts that contained the errors and corrected them accordingly. 2.4.9 Ferris (2004) Ferris (2004), the “Grammar Correction” debate in L2 writing: Where are we, and where do we go from here? (and what do we do in the meantime…?), reviews literature on CF under three main thematic areas – the status quo of CF, direction for future research, and suggested pedagogic implications for L2 composition writing. The thesis statement of the paper is that although many debates on CF have gone on over the decade, researchers and other stakeholders of CF have University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 74 still not made progress. The paper does not use participants but draws on the works of other researchers. On the status quo, Ferris (2004:50) reviews a significant number of works on CF (for example, Ferris and Roberts 2001; Ferris 2002, 2003), and points out three major observations: (1) research works (for example, Semke 1984; Kepner 1991; Polio et al.1998; Ashwell 2000; Chandler 2003) on the issue of whether or not error feedback facilitates L2 students’ write-ups is not sufficient; (2) that because of inconsistences in research design, previous studies (for example, Ferris 1999; Ferris, 2002, 2003; Kepner 1991; Lalande 1982; Robb et al. 1986; Semke 1984; Truscott 1999) on error correction differ and are therefore not comparable; and (3) though most existing research works (for example, Lyster and Ranta 1997; Ellis 1998; James 1998; Chandler 2003;) envisage affirmative effects for written error correction, they do not convincingly verify it (Ferris 2004:50). Ferris (2004:54), accordingly, summarises the responses to the question of where are we?: (1) the evidence about the question ‘does error feedback work?’ is rare owing to lack of controlled and longitudinal studies; (2) over the past two decades, researchers have been functioning in nothingness, in spite of the numerous studies on CF; and (3) previous works permit us to (Ferris 2004:55). The second issue (where do we go from here?) gives direction for future research. According to Ferris (2004:56), there is the need for ‘controlled longitudinal studies’ that will help address the ‘big question’ of whether CF helps learners to improve in the area of written accuracy over time. Ferris (2004:57) has also indicated that future research works should: (1) report contextual characteristics and also on the learners; (2) clearly define University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 75 operational errors that are being examined; (3) provide consistent CFs schemes; and (4) describe how errors were counted and edited (Ferris 2004:57). Again, future studies, in assessing whether CF works or not should consider and investigate a number of questions (Ferris 2004:57-58). These are: (1) Do students produce accurate texts after they are asked to self-edit their papers after receiving CFs? (2) Does extra grammar instruction given to students, affect their progress? (3) Does recording of written errors enable students to have ideas of error analysis and subsequently aid long-term development? (4) Are some types of errors (for example, lexical, morphological, and syntactic errors) more responsive to treatment than others? (5) Does the relative clear and detailed CF (for example, direct, indirect, location, and labelling) of the teacher have an effect on the learners’ long- term progress? (Ferris 2004:58). The last thematic area of Ferris (2004) (what do we do in the meantime?), offers some pedagogic approaches for teachers in the field of SLA. One, teachers must be prepared fully to offer CF on students’ written texts. Two, the effective treatment of students’ written errors should have a diversity of carefully combined parts. Three, CF is not the sole approach for treatment of errors. Other strategies such as consciousness-raising, and public lectures on the importance of linguistic accuracy and editing skills could be employed (Ferris 2004:59). Ferris (2004), thus concludes by summarising the three generic pedagogic approaches of CF into six practical suggestions. One of the suggestions, for example, is that ‘the maintenance of error charts ideally by the students themselves with guidance from the instructor, can heighten student awareness of their weaknesses and of their improvement’ (Ferris 2004:60). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 76 2.4.10 Bitchener, Young, and Cameron (2005) Bitchener et al. (2005) investigated the effect of different types of corrective feedback on ESL student writing. The participants comprised 53 post- intermediate ESOL migrant learners. The main research question for the study was to what extent does the type of corrective feedback on linguistic errors determine accuracy performance in new pieces of writing? The participants were divided into three groups with each group receiving a different intervention. In terms of the use of past tense and the definite article, the study revealed that a combination of direct oral feedback and direct written feedback had a greater effect on the writings of the participants than direct written feedback only. The study, thus, argues that L2 teachers should provide their learners with both oral and written corrective feedback on errors that are likely to be treated (for example, past tense and definite articles). The strength of the study dwells on the cluster of one-on-one oral conference and direct written feedback that were given to the participants. However, the literature reviewed is skewed to corrective feedback only as against the rubrics of the texts used. 2.4.11 Ellis (2009) In the midst of the controversies about how CF has been seen in SLA and language pedagogy, Ellis (2009) published corrective feedback on teacher development. The paper, which seeks to streamline the debatable issues on CF, has three thematic areas. These are an overview of the controversies regarding CF, sociocultural theory and CF, and guidelines for CF. Ellis (2009:4-11) presents the polemics in five (5) issues: (1), the usefulness of CF; (2), the choice of errors to correct; (3), the choice of corrector; (4), the choice of CF strategy; and (5), the timing of CF. Drawing on a number University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 77 of secondary research works (for example, Bitchener, et al. 2005; Ellis, et al. 2006; VanPatten 2003), Ellis (2009) admits that CF can facilitate learning. Concerning the choice of errors to correct, Ellis (2009:6), reviews a number of proposals on the issue and argues that focused rather than unfocused written errors is effective in supporting acquisition. While focused is selective CF, unfocused is the comprehensive approach that involves correction of all errors in a learner’s text (Beuningen 2010:11). I disagree with Ellis (2009) on this occasion. Just as focused CF has its merits, so is unfocused. My argument is: if you want to correct, correct all; if you do not want to correct, do not correct at all. Thus, Vann, Meyer, and Lorenz (1984) as cited in Ellis (2009:6) found that some teachers view all errors as equally serious – ‘an error is an error.’ Again, unfocused approach of vetting written business text will give the assessor the opportunity of assessing both errors emanating from business text formats and mechanics and grammar, spelling, sentence, and paragraph. Additionally, Corder (1967) distinguishes between errors and mistakes27. Burt (1975) suggests that teachers should concentrate on global errors rather than concentrate on local errors28. On the contrary, I suggest business communication teachers should consider the two error types (global and local) if comprehensiveness of textual errors and accuracy are their focus. On the issue of choice of corrector, Ellis (2009:7) reviews several works (for example, Hedge 2000; Lyster 2004; Ferris 2006) on self-correction and concludes that teachers should first, encourage self-correction; but if it fails, they 27 An error represents a gap in competence; but a mistake is a performance phenomenon that reflects processing failures that come about as a result of competing plans, memory limitation, and lack of automaticity (Corder 1967 as cited in Ellis 2009:6). 28 Global errors are errors (like wrong word order, missing or wrongly placed sentence connectors, and syntactic overgeneralisations) that affect overall sentence organisation (Burt 1975, as cited in Ellis 2009:6). Local errors are errors (such as morphology or grammatical functions) that affect single elements in a sentence (Burt 1975, as cited in Ellis 2009:6). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 78 should do the correction on their own. Thus, Ellis proposes that both the learner and the teacher are responsible for correction of errors. This argument is sound. However, while learners should be encouraged to correct mistakes; teachers should endeavour to correct errors. Mostly mistakes are pointed out to learners by underlying the mistakes (this is indirect CF); but errors are sometimes showcased by applying some proofreading symbols at the portion of the text that contains the errors, and providing the amended form in addition (this is direct CF)29. There are many strategies for CF and Ellis (2009:8) has reviewed quite a number of them and concluded that “[t]he teacher has to select both the particular strategy to use in response to a learner error and the specific linguistic devices for realizing that strategy. This calls for considerable pragmatic and pragmalinguistic competence… ” The choice of these taxonomies of strategies depends on whether the CF is written or oral. For example, Ellis (2008:99-103) has identified direct, indirect, metalinguistic, focused versus unfocused, and electronic forms of correction as the key taxonomies of written CF (see Section 2.2.2). Oral CFs have two main categories of explicit versus implicit (Carrol and Swain 1993; Aljaafreh and Lantolf 1994) and input-providing versus output- prompting (Lyster 2004; Ellis 2006). The timing of CF is another issue Ellis (2009:11) has addressed. According to him, written CF is always delayed and this enables teachers to collect written texts and respond to them accordingly (Ellis 2009:11). Though, there is validity in this assertion, Ellis (2009) does not describe this delay or provide us with a time frame. Business communication teachers who teach large 29 A study that seeks to assess the effectiveness of direct and indirect CFs (such as my PhD work), could reveal which is stronger. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 79 classes are sometimes faced with challenges concerning the time frame within which to provide written CF on students’ texts; hence a proposal from Ellis (2009) could have served as yardstick. Ceteris paribus, I argue for a time frame of not more than seven (7) days for provision of written CF on texts of classes with class size of fifty (50) and below30. Conversely, variability exists in the case of oral CFs as teachers are faced with the choice of either correcting instantaneously or postponing the correction until later (Ellis 2009:11). Hedge (2000), for example, debates that teachers should defer oral CF until the end of fluency activities; but Doughty (2001); and Ellis, Basturkmen, and Loewen (2001) argue that immediate oral CF does not disrupt fluency (Ellis 2009:11). However, concerning oral CF and accuracy, Ellis (2009:11) says there is a general consensus in the field of SLA that CF should be provided immediately. Ellis (2009:12) makes a strong case that CF should be based on sociocultural theory (SCT). He sees language learning as ‘dialogically based’, in that, acquisition happens in communication rather than as a result of communication. Dialogic interaction helps the teacher to create a scenario for beginners to take active part in their own learning; and through this, teachers can modify the support that beginners are given (Anton 1999). Discourse in a dialogue form, thus exhibits the learners’ strengths and weaknesses when the teacher offers him or her guidance (Ellis 2009:12). SCT is dependent on the second level of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) (Ellis 2009:12)31. 30 In the Ghanaian context, I will propose an ideal class size of 50. However, for classes with membership of between 51 and 100 learners, a maximum of 14 days will be suitable ceteris paribus. For those with membership of between 101 and 150, 21 days will be appropriate with all other things remaining equal. For those of 151 and above a maximum of two (2) months should be used in providing written CF ceteris paribus. 31 Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) distinguishes three levels of development: the actual developmental level of the child’s mind; the level of potential development, which is seen in problem solving done with the guidance of an adult; and the level that is above the learner University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 80 However, SCT which is powered by the second level of ZPD, functions better when CF is oral. Hence, for studies which focus on clear-cut written CFs, SCT has no place. Since CFs are multifarious phenomena, Ellis (2009:14) concludes his work by proposing ten (10) guidelines for providing CF. These guidelines have been summarised as follows: 1. Teachers understand students’ attitudes about CF before coming out with agreed goals for CF with the students. 2. CFs (both written and oral) have a place in both accuracy and fluency works; therefore, teachers should not hesitate to correct students’ errors. 3. For different lessons, teachers should recognise precise linguistic targets for correction and apply focused CF on the errors. 4. Teachers should do everything possible for learners to conspicuously know that they are being corrected. 5. Teachers need to use a variety of CFs before adapting the specific strategies they think can best correct the errors of particular students. 6. Written CF is invariably delayed; but oral can be both immediate and delayed. Therefore, teachers need to experiment with the timing of CFs. 7. The appropriateness on CF should be left to the learner. Therefore, teachers have to guide learners in selecting the suitable ones. 8. Teachers should vary their CFs. They should thus not use specific CFs for all students at all times. 9. Teachers should be ready to correct specific errors for a period of time so as to help the learner to attain full self-regulation stage. (Vygotsky 1978:85). To Ellis (2009:12) SCT lies in the domain of the second level – the level of probable development. Thus, CF scenarios can be seen ‘as an arena for studying how interaction mediates learning through the construction of ZPDs’ (Ellis 2009:12). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 81 10. Teachers should monitor the anxiety levels of students in the use of specific CFs. This will check the effect that anxiety has on learning. 2.4.12 Beuningen (2010) Beuningen’s (2010) corrective feedback in L2 writing: theoretical perspectives, empirical insights, and future directions, is a secondary research that reviews a number of papers on corrective feedback. The paper draws on several theoretical underpinnings. For instance, Ellis (2005) on CF as a focus-on-form intervention, has indicated that error correction is one of the pedagogical methods that help learners to focus-on-form. Schmidt (1994) on noticing, has also indicated that CF helps learners to ‘notice the gaps between their own interlanguage output and the target language input’ (Beuningen 2010:6). Beuningen (2010:7-13) has also reviewed some controversial issues. Some are the major objections against the use of CF in L2 instruction (for example, Krashen 1985; Schwartz 1993; Truscott 1996). Others are some controversies concerning the use of CF in L2 instruction (for example, which CF method to use, focused and unfocused CFs, direct and indirect CF, and which errors to correct). The paper also provides a summary of the findings of some empirical studies on CF. Among some of these studies are (1) research on the effectiveness of written CF (for example, Polio et al. 1998; Ashwell 2000; Ferris and Roberts 2001; Chandler 2003); and (2) research on the value of CF for different error types (for example, Truscott 1996; Ferris 1999). Based on the empirical evidence available to Beuningen (2010), she concludes that when learners are given opportunities to notice the gaps in their evolving L2 systems, test interlanguage hypotheses, and involve themselves in metalinguistic reflection, written CF has the propensity of fostering second University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 82 language acquisition, and can subsequently lead to accuracy development (Beuningen 2010:21). Though the work is limited in terms of scope, the researcher should be commended for her decision to put forward several ideas on direction for future research. For example, she has suggested that future studies should address CF’s responsiveness of diverse errors. It is on this basis that this current research seeks to assess the type of CF that has the greatest effect on students’ punctuation, agreement, word class, and rubrics errors. 2.4.13 Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2011) Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2011) investigated the effects of focused and unfocused written corrective feedback on grammatical accuracy of Iranian EFL learners; and concluded that unfocused CF is of limited pedagogical importance, while focused CF facilitates learners’ grammatical accuracy in L2 writing (Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2011:1797). Their review of literature is mainly grouped under two thematic areas of research evidence for and against written CF (for example, Truscott 1996, and Ferris 1999); and research evidence on the efficacy of different types of written CF (for example, Chandler 2003; and Robb et al. 1986). The participants for the study were 120 Iranian EFL learners. The male participants were 50 while the female participants were 70.The instruments used were the TOEFL test (which was initially used to segment the participants into LP and HP); ten written narrative fable tasks; and two different picture composition tasks (Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2011:1799). 2.4.14 Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2012) Farrokhi and Sattarpour (2012) studied the effects of direct written corrective feedback on improvement of grammatical accuracy of high-proficient L2 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 83 learners. The objectives were (1) to assess whether direct written CF can help high-proficient L2 learners improve in the accurate use of functions of English articles; and (2) to assess whether there are any differential effects in providing two direct written CFs of focused and unfocused. The review of literature was mainly centred on studies comparing different types of corrective feedback such as Semke (1984), Robb et al. (1986), Ferris and Robert (2001), Ferris (2003), Chandler (2003), and Bitchener et al. (2005). The participants were 60 high-proficient Iranian EFL learners; 26 of whom were male participants, with 34 being female participants. (Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2012:52). The study showed differences in the results of pre- and post-tests items (Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2012:53); which generally means that corrective feedback works as the participants in the experimental groups outperformed those in the control group. The study again emphasised that ‘focused written CF is more effective than the unfocused written CF’ (Farrokhi and Sattarpour 2012:54). 2.4.15 Mubarak (2013) Mubarak’s (2013) work, Corrective feedback in L2 writing: A study of practices and effectiveness in the Bahrain context, is a PhD dissertation submitted to the University of Sheffield. The objectives of the study were (1) to examine whether or not CF leads to increased accuracy and complexity of L2 students’ writing at the University of Bahrain; (2) to investigate the effectiveness of direct and indirect written CFs32; and (3) to investigate the beliefs of teachers and students 32 The direct written corrective feedback used, took the form of identification of errors in the scripts of the participants and provision of the correct form of the error above the original, the participants made. The indirect corrective feedback on the other hand, took the form of error underlining only. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 84 on feedback through interviews and questionnaires (Mubarak 2013:17). Forty- six (46) participants constituted the student-subjects. The findings of the quasi-experiment revealed that direct and indirect CFs have no substantial effect on accuracy and complexity (grammatical and lexical) of students’ scripts, though they improved in the course of the experiment. The results of the interviews and questionnaires demonstrated the preference of students for direct feedback instead of the indirect one. Also, the study revealed the beliefs of students and teachers about CF. They valued CF and believed it was beneficial, though the results of the quasi-experimental proved otherwise. Classroom observations showed some challenges in the teaching and learning of L2 writing and also in CF methods used at the University of Bahrain in general. For example, it was observed that students were not allowed to submit a second draft of their composition after the first draft has been marked (Mubarak 2013:165). Mubarak (2013:212-214) recommended that (1) errors should be corrected using the direct CF. (2), teachers should experiment with peer feedback. (3) teachers could use a variety of styles (for example, praise, criticism, and suggestion) to give their comments about students’ oral and written discourse. 2.4.16 Pakbaz (2014) Pakbaz (2014) investigated the effect of written corrective feedback on EFL learners’ writing performance, by using explicit and implicit techniques. The participants for the study were 20 intermediate learners of English language from Adib Language Institute, Iran (Pakbaz 2014:14). The thesis statement of the study was in spite of the large body of research, there seems to be no unified University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 85 agreement on the effectiveness of written corrective feedback on L2 learners’ written performance (Pakbaz 2014:12). The research questions for the study were: (1) Does giving written corrective feedback have any effect on the writing performance of Iranian EFL learners? (2) Is there any significant difference between giving implicit versus explicit written feedback on the writing performance of Iranian EFL learners? (3) Is there any significant difference between the use of past tense in three tasks of pre-test, immediate post-test and the delayed post-test? (4) Is there any significant difference between the use of definite/indefinite articles in three tasks of pre-test, immediate post-test and the delayed post-test? (Pakbaz 2014:14). The instrument used was a Standardized Placement Test in English designed by Allan (1992).The results of the study revealed that there was no difference between the two groups (implicit and explicit) on their correct use of the specified structures. Learners thus found their own way of responding to errors irrespective of the feedback style (that is whether implicit or explicit) the teacher used. This finding is in consonance with Semke (1994). Pakbaz (2014) is a contribution to research in terms of implicit and explicit feedback techniques. In terms of the instruments used, the study is detailed. The participants responded to three essay-based questions in addition to answering questions on a Standardized Placement Test in three styles of pre- test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test. However, we are not told of the total population of the case, and Pakbaz’s (2014) bases for selecting only 20 respondents for this longitudinal study. 2.4.17 Junqueira and Payant (2015) Junqueira and Payant (2015) investigated teacher feedback views and procedures of an L2 writing teacher for a period of one semester. The main University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 86 participant was an MA TESOL student-teacher who taught English to ESL students at the university level. The sources of data were four sets of commented-on students’ essays, a reflective journal, two structured interviews, and member checking with the teacher. Four forms of written corrective feedback were used on the students’ coded essays. These were: direct, direct with explanation, indirect, and indirect with explanation. The CFs used on the essays were compared to Kim’s beliefs, as discussed in her journals and interviews. The findings of the study showed that Kim had an intricate set of beliefs in terms of what should be addressed and how it should be carried out. The study also revealed that although CF was time-consuming, and ‘intimidating’ task, Kim supported the idea that giving CF was fundamental for students’ success in improving their writing skills. This belief corroborates the findings of my study. 2.4.18 Kheradmand and Sayadiyan (2016) Kheradmand and Sayadiyan (2016) conducted a study on the topic: comparative investigation of the effects of immediate and delayed error correction on the achievement of male and female Iranian EFL learners’ writing skill[s] and concluded that direct CF is more effective and helpful in improving accuracy of target forms than indirect CF does (Kheradmand and Sayadiyan 2016:38). The objectives of the study were (1) ‘to explore whether Iranian EFL learners’ writing skill is affected by immediate and delayed error correction; (2) to explore whether selected error correction type, will improve student’s writing skill over time; and (3) to find out the effects of gender in using immediate and delayed error correction on writing skill among Iranian male and female EFL learners’ (Kheradmand and Sayadiyan 2016:32). Literature was mainly reviewed on feedback in teaching of EFL writing (for example, Reichelt 1999; University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 87 Paltridge 2004); and the effectiveness of written CF (for example, Ferris 1997, 2006; Ferris and Helt 2000). The participants for the study were 60 EFL learners. The results of the study, generally, revealed that all the 6 groups made improvements in their writings from the pre-test to the post-test. However, the groups that received immediate CF outperformed all the other groups; the participants in the delayed groups also outperformed the participants in the control groups. Teacher immediate feedback was thus more helpful than the delayed feedback and no feedback (Kheradmand and Sayadiyan 2016:31). 2.5 Summary Chapter two of the study has focused on the review of related literature. This was mainly done from two perspectives – theoretical and empirical reviews. The theoretical review concentrated on key thematic issues of definition of corrective feedback, types of corrective feedback, and business communication write-ups of letters and memoranda. The empirical review focused on critical review of significant papers or studies done in the area of corrective feedback, and published in the last two decades (that is from 1996 - 2016). The chapter also provided us with information about the theoretical frameworks of the study. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 88 CHAPTER THREE RESEARCH METHODS 3.0 Introduction This chapter of the research discusses the philosophical assumptions, research design, approach, population, sample, and sampling techniques. Other issues in the methodology include: data, instrumentation, data collection procedure, data analysis procedure, and ethical consideration of the research. 3.1 Philosophical Assumptions of the Research Philosophically, researchers make claims concerning what knowledge is (ontology), how it is known (epistemology), what values are included in it (axiology), how it has been written about (rhetoric), how it is processed for studying (methodology) (Creswell 1994 as cited in Creswell 2003:6). On claims of knowledge, several schools of thought – postpositivism, constructivism, advocacy/participatory, and pragmatism – exist (Creswell 2003:6). This current research is based on pragmatism33 philosophy, which states that our notion of an entity is framed in its whole by the conception we have of the possible practical bearings the entity could probably have (Peirce 1992:132 as cited in Halton 2004:1). For many pragmatists, knowledge claims arise out of actions, circumstances and consequences; and instead of methods being vital elements, the problem is rather more important (Creswell 2003:11). This 33 Pragmatism is the unique contribution of American idea to philosophy. It was coined by Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914) and made popular by William James (1859-1952) and George Herbert Mead (1863-1931) (Halton 2004:1). It is a movement that attracted a lot of recognition in the early part of the twentieth-century, went into decline, and re-emerged in the last part of the century. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 89 philosophy, accordingly, enables a researcher to deal with a problem in a reasonable, logical and practical manner instead of grounding it on ideas and theories only. Some of the tenets of pragmatic research are: (1) pragmatism is not committed to any one system of philosophy and reality, (2) individual researchers have a freedom of choice in terms of the methods used for the study, and (3) pragmatist researchers look to the ‘what’ and ‘how’ to research based on its intended consequences – where they want to go with it (Creswell 2003:12). My bases for embracing this philosophical assumption in my study are: (1) it fits my research design – mixed methods – adopted for the study, (2) I have freedom of choice in terms of methods, techniques, and procedures of research that best suit my needs and purposes (Creswell 2003); and (3) research questions were the driving force of the study. This is a view that pragmatists firmly hold34. 3.2 Research Design and Approaches The research adopted a mixed methods research approach. In mixed methods research in general, the researcher tends to ground knowledge claims on pragmatic grounds (for example; consequence-oriented, problem-centred, and pluralistic). It also uses strategies of inquiry that involve collecting data either concurrently or sequentially to best understand research problems (Creswell 2003:18)35. The data collection in mixed methods involves collecting both numeric information as well as text information. 34 Pragmatism reasons that the most important factor of the research philosophy adopted is the research question – one approach may be better than the other for answering particular questions (Saunders et al. 2007:110). 35 The types of the concurrent designs are triangulation, nested, and transformative. The types of sequential designs are sequential explanatory, sequential exploratory, and sequential transformative (Creswell et al. 2003). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 90 Therefore, the final database represents both quantitative and qualitative information (Creswell 2003:20). The bases for the selection of this method are: (1) the study includes a number of data (and data collection tools) from the classroom, a situation which is permissible in mixed methods research36; and (2) the analyses of the work include both quantitative and qualitative procedures37, which provide the best understanding of the research problem (Creswell 2003). Mixed methods hence allows a researcher to use various research strategies. Specifically, my research adopted the Sequential Exploratory Mixed Methods approach (SEMM), which involves the process of first, collecting qualitative data to explain a situation, and then soliciting quantitative data with the view of providing explanations to the relationships established in the qualitative data (Creswell et al. 2003:211). The aim of such designs is to explore a phenomenon. With this specific method, I first collected classroom data in the form of texts at both pre- and post-test levels. After that, I used questionnaire items in collecting data. Some of these specific strategies that I used in this study, are explained below: 3.2.1 Case Study Multiple case study strategy was employed in carrying out this research. First year business communication students of Ho Technical University, Koforidua Technical University, Kumasi Technical University, and Sunyani Technical 36 According to Creswell (2003), mixed methods opens the door for multiple methods, different worldviews, and different assumptions, as well as different forms of data collection and analysis. 37 These procedures have been explained under data and data analysis procedures. Some statistical and text analysis tools were employed. For example, SPSS was used to explain some quantitative data, while two analytical frameworks (MAF and BLAF) were used in analysing the data (texts) collected from the field. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 91 University, constitute the selected population from which the student participants for the study were drawn38. 3.2.2 Experimental Study In this research, one control group and two experimental groups were composed for each of the institutions selected. The reason is that two planned interventions – direct-unfocused and indirect-unfocused feedbacks – were studied against no- feedback or no-planned intervention group. This classification is in line with classical experimental study research. In classical experimental study, two groups – experimental group and control group – are established against some form of planned intervention(s) (Saunders et al. 2007:136). The participants in the experiment group(s) receive some planned interventions while those in the control group did not. Again, this categorisation is based on the work of Ferris (2004). In her study, Ferris (2004:56) had indicated that over the years, researchers (for example, Fathman and Whalley 1990, Ferris and Roberts 2001) in their bid to respond to this issue of whether CF has an effect on students’ writing, find themselves in a methodological predicament. Fathman and Whalley (1990), Ferris and Roberts (2001) have been criticised on the grounds that their study had not been controlled and longitudinal enough. Ferris (2004:56), hence, proposes that clear-cut controlled, longitudinal study should have some features: (1) two intact classes, taught by the same instructor, may be compared over a term; (2) in one of the classes (the control class), the instructor may ‘provide summary or end notes about students’ grammar 38 Multiple case studies involve two or more cases for the research instead of focusing on only one case. As a working definition, business communication students in this context does not only refer to students from the Business Schools; but rather any student who has been taught business communication topics of memoranda and letters and will subsequently pursue any profession or work on completion of his or her programme. The justification for the selection of these cases (4 technical universities in Ghana) can be found under section 3.3. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 92 problems but no in-text correction (Ferris 2004:56). Consequently, participants in the control groups of this current study did not receive any CF on their texts. However, at the bottom or in the margin of the pre-test scripts of participants, the assessor wrote only a general comment about the rubrics of the texts and errors found. Then, the assessor expected the students to correct the errors on their own by determining the sections that contained the errors and correcting them accordingly in the post-test scripts. However, those in the experimental groups received two planned interventions. Participants in experimental group A were exposed to direct feedback (DF), and those in experimental group B were given indirect feedback (IF). 3.2.3 Descriptive Study The research also used descriptive study. Robson (2002:59) sees this study as a study that portrays an accurate profile of entities – persons, events and situations. ‘This may be an extension of, or a forerunner to, a piece of exploratory research or a piece of explanatory research’ (Saunders et al. 2007:134). In this current research, the data (texts) collected from the field were descriptively analysed using two analytical frameworks – MAF and BLAF. 3.2.4 Cross-Sectional Survey Design In a cross-sectional survey design, the researcher solicits data at one point in time (Creswell 2008:377). Here, I define the one point in time as a period of two weeks. Specifically, group comparisons cross-sectional design which compares two or more educational groups in terms of attitudes, beliefs, opinions, or practices was used (Creswell 2008:378). The majority (2/3) of the participants from each of the four selected institutions were part of the experimental groups of A and B. Each of the two (2) experimental groups were studied by using a separate intervention (CF). The University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 93 participants in the control groups did not receive any intervention. First, all the participants did 2 pre-tests (1 memorandum, and 1 letter). After that, the selected intervention for each group was applied. After the pre-tests and the application of the interventions, they were given another opportunity to work on the comments of the assessor by producing another 2 scripts at the post-test stage. 3.3 Population, Sample and Sampling Techniques This section discusses how the population, sample size, and sampling methods were determined. 3.3.1 Population The research focused on the 4 Technical Universities in Central Ghana. For the purpose of this study, Ghana was segmented into three (3) parts: Central (Middle), Coastal, and Northern. Central Ghana had four (4) regions made up of Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Eastern, and Volta. Coastal Ghana had three (3) regions made up of Central, Greater Accra, and Western; and Northern Ghana also had three (3) regions made up of Northern, Upper East, and Upper West. Under the Ghana Technical University Act 2016 (Act 922), six (6) Polytechnics39 were initially converted into Technical Universities. These are: Accra Polytechnic (now Accra Technical University), Ho Polytechnic (now Ho Technical University), Koforidua Polytechnic (now Koforidua Technical University), Kumasi Polytechnic (now Kumasi Technical University), Sunyani Polytechnic (now Sunyani Technical University), and Takoradi Polytechnic (Takoradi Technical University) (Act 922, Technical University Act 2016:29). 39 Following the re-assessment report submitted on Cape Coast and Tamale Polytechnics, the government of Ghana, on the 26th of September, 2016, gave an executive approval for the two Polytechnics to be included in the upgrading process. This brings to 8 (eight) the number of Technical Universities in Ghana. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 94 Central Ghana has majority (50%) of the Technical Universities in Ghana. Thus, each of the regions in Central Ghana has a Technical University. These are Ho Technical University, Volta region; Koforidua Technical University, Eastern region; Kumasi Technical University, Ashanti region; and Sunyani Technical University, Brong-Ahafo region. The study drew participants from different Schools of all the four (4) Technical Universities in Central Ghana. The bases to focus on only Central Ghana are that Central Ghana has 50% majority of the entire population of technical universities in Ghana. Again, it is based on the purposive sampling method. This method enables a researcher to use his or her judgement to select cases that will best help him or her to answer his or her research questions(s) and to meet his or her objectives (Saunders et al. 2007:230). 3.3.1.1 Brief Profile of Ho Technical University Ho Polytechnic (now Ho Technical University) was established in 1968 as a Technical Institute for providing pre-technical education. In 1972, the Institute had progressed in upgrading the courses offered; therefore, the pre-technical courses gave way to courses in Basic Engineering, Agricultural, Mechanical Engineering, Building Technology, and Business Education. The vision of the Ho Technical University (HTU) is to become a respectable technological institution contributing keenly to national development. The mission statement of HTU is ‘to train highly competent human resource to the highest level possible through career-focused education, skill training and research in partnership with stakeholders’. HTU has five Faculties of Applied Science and Technology, Business and Management Studies, Engineering, Art and Design, and Social Sciences. In University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 95 addition, HTU has a School of Graduate Studies. This year (2016/2017 Academic Year), HTU has been given the licence to run Masters in Agricultural Engineering and Mechanical Engineering (www.hopoly.edu.gh). 3.3.1.2 Brief Profile of Koforidua Technical University In 1997, Koforidua Polytechnic (now Koforidua Technical University) was established with the aim of creating advanced, career-focused and experienced manpower to augment Ghana’s industrial growth. From 1999 to date, Koforidua Technical University (KTU) has been graduating students with Higher National Diploma (HND) in Accountancy, Marketing, Purchasing and Supply Statistics and Computer Science. At the moment, KTU has 4 Schools: School of Applied Science and Technology, School of Business and Management Studies, School of Built and Natural Environment, and School of Engineering. In addition to the Schools, the University has the Institute of Open and Distance Learning (IODL) which provides opportunity for applicants to access various programmes through the distance mode. At the commencement of KTU, 2 programmes were offered. Currently, KTU runs about 10 Bachelor of Technology (B. Tech) programmes, and 15 HND programmes). KTU is devoted to swift staff advancement to meet the aspirations of students. Therefore, through partnerships, most of the teaching and non-teaching staff are pursuing various additional studies in Ghana and outside Ghana (www.koforiduapoly.edu.gh. 3.3.1.3 Brief Profile of Kumasi Technical University Kumasi Polytechnic (now Kumasi Technical University), was initially known as Kumasi Technical Institute. Though established in 1954, actual teaching and University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 96 learning in craft courses started in 1955. On October 30, 1963, it became a Polytechnic. At the onset, their concentration was Technician courses, a few Diploma programmes and some Professional courses. But, following the enactment of the Polytechnic Law in 1992 (PNDC Law 321), Kumasi Polytechnic became a tertiary institution. Kumasi Technical University (KsTU) has Faculties of Engineering, Built and Natural Environment, Medicine and Health Sciences, Applied Sciences, Creative Arts and Technology, Business and Management Studies; Institutes of Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development, and Distance and Continuing Education. Again, KsTU has a School of Graduate Studies, Research and Innovation. KsTU has more than 27 departments in these Faculties and Schools which are offering both full-time and part-time programmes at the tertiary and non-tertiary levels. The vision of KsTU is ‘to be a Centre of Excellence for tertiary level training of technical and professional human resource with entrepreneurial skills.’ The mission is to provide a positive atmosphere for teaching, research, skills and entrepreneurship training in science, technology, applied social sciences and applied arts for the business world and community development. This is to entice learners and academics from indigenous and intercontinental communities and also to offer consultancy services (www.kpoly.edu.gh). 3.3.1.4 Brief Profile of Sunyani Technical University Sunyani Polytechnic (now Sunyani Technical University) is the premier tertiary institution in the Brong-Ahafo region of Ghana. In 1997, Sunyani Technical Institute was upgraded to Polytechnic by the Polytechnic Law of 1992 (PNDC Law 321). It was mandated to provide tertiary education courses in the areas of Manufacturing, Commerce, Science, Technology, Applied Science, and Applied University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 97 Arts. At the moment, Sunyani Technical University (STU) has 3 Schools: School of Applied Science and Technology, School of Engineering, and School of Business and Management Studies. The vision of the STU is ‘to become a centre of excellence for the provision of career-focused practically-oriented middle level manpower training for the socio-economic development of the region and the nation in general.’ The mission of STU is to provide ‘career-focused education and training at the tertiary level with hands on experience and entrepreneurship development to fill the middle level manpower needs of the country’. The core values of STU are: excellence, competence, competitiveness, responsiveness, and professionalism. (www.spoly.edu.gh) 3.3.2 Sample Size and Sample Techniques Series of sampling techniques were used in arriving at the sample size for the study. In each of the 4 Schools in the 4 selected technical universities, multi- stage sampling was first used in selecting the departments from which the participants for the study was drawn. The student-participants targeted for the study from each of the departments selected was 100 students apiece. However, a response rate of about 60 students from each department was attained. Because this is a research study, some students pulled out even after their initial acceptance to join. Others did not answer the questions at all. Therefore, 240 student-participants were used for the study. This brings to 960 the total number of scripts used. The 960 scripts agree with Labovian sociolinguistics quantitative study. To Labov (1975:31), we can trust native speakers’ judgments; but in cases where native speakers’ judgment cannot be trusted, then as many different methods as possible should be used before a case is made out of the issue (Labov 1972). Again, this number of 240 participants or University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 98 960 texts – is based on the convenience sampling method40. Additionally, 40 lecturers in the institutions who teach language-related courses were purposively sampled to fill questionnaire items designed for their category. Also, convenience sampling method was used in sampling 40 texts from the business world. In effect, a total sample size of about 1280 field data were collected and analysed. These comprise 960 classroom texts, 40 texts from the business world, 240 questionnaire items from student-participants, and 40 questionnaires from sampled language lecturers from the 4 selected technical universities. 3.3.3 Sampling Methods In each department, the 60 participants were divided into 3 groups (with 20 members in each of the groups) namely: Experimental Group A, Experimental Group B, and Control Group. Each member in each of the groups produced 4 texts in all (2 at the pre-test stage and 2 at the post-test stage). This is to say that each participant developed 2 memoranda, and 2 business letters (1 apiece) at the pre- and post-test stages. The selection of the 240 participants and the composition of members in the 3 groups were not done in a haphazard manner, sampling methods were used. I collected a sampling frame (class list) from the Heads of Departments (HODs). Stratified sampling method was used in categorising the list into two major strata of male and female students. The rationale behind this course of action was to ensure that about 50% male participants and 50% female participants were used for the research. This, made my work gender-balanced. In each of the strata, a 40 The convenience sampling method involves selecting those cases that are easiest to obtain and to work with (Saunders et al. 2007:234). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 99 systematic sampling technique41 (on a fraction of 1/6) was employed in selecting 30 male participants and 30 female participants from each of the four selected departments from the technical universities. 3.4 Data Collection Instruments and Data Analysis Procedures Texts and questionnaire items were the main instruments used in collecting primary data from the field. 3.4.1 Texts The texts used were from two main sources – classroom and business world. 3.4.1.1 Classroom Texts At the field (various classrooms), student-participants were asked to compose two business communication texts of memorandum and business letter: Test 1 – Memorandum: You are an Administrative Assistant of XYZ Company Limited. You have been asked to remind members of staff of your Annual General Meeting. Using a memo format, communicate this information to all staff. Your memo should include an agenda for the meeting. Test 2 – Business letter: You are the manager of ABC Company Limited. Write a letter to the Director of Food and Drugs Authority explaining how foods are processed in your company. The texts provided opportunity for student-participants to respond to the same tasks. The selection of these two texts is in line with the ‘traditional model’ of business communication which sees memoranda and business letters as two vital internal and external write ups in the world of business respectively (Hagge 1989:33). 41 This technique involves you selecting the sample at regular intervals from the sampling frame. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 100 3.4.1.2 Texts from the Business World Apart from classroom texts, 40 already-composed business communication texts (which comprises 20 letters and 20 memoranda) were randomly sampled from the various business communities in Ghana. At the pilot study (please see section 3.5), students were asked to come to class with a sample each of business communication texts of memoranda and business letters for analysis and discussion. After the exercise, I grouped the texts into two strata of memoranda and business. I then used sample random sampling technique to select 20 business letters and 20 memoranda. 3.4.2 Questionnaire Two different types of self-administered questionnaire items were developed for the two categories of respondents. The use of questionnaires made all the participants ‘respond to the same set of questions in a predetermined order’ (Saunders et al. 2007:608). The design of the two questionnaires was mainly guided by the specific objectives and research questions of this study. Thus, themes developed were based on variables from the specific objectives and research questions. The majority of the questions were close-ended. This gave the participants the opportunity to select their preferred option(s). 3.4.2.1 Questionnaire for Students Four separate but similar questionnaires were developed for student-respondents from the four technical universities. The questionnaires are segmented into three preliminary sections. The introduction introduces the researcher and his topic to the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 101 respondents, and announces his intention of soliciting the data. The demographical section allows the respondents to provide data such as: age range, gender, languages spoken at home, nationality, and highest educational qualification. The academic section allows students to enter information such as: name of institution, student’s ID, department, major area of specialization, and academic level. The general information on feedback section of the questionnaire, which seeks to assess respondents’ knowledge of feedback, has 5 sub-questions. Since the numbering on the entire questionnaire is done continuously, the questions in this sub-section start from number 12: 12. Does your language teacher return your marked business communication scripts after each internal (class work) assessment? 13. After each internal assessment, when do you get your text back from your teacher(s)? 14. Does your language teacher return your marked business communication scripts after each external (homework/assignment) assessment? 15. After each external assessment, when do you get your text back from your teacher(s)? 16. I understand my language teachers’ handwritten comments anytime they write on my business communication texts. For each of the questions, options were provided. The options provided for questions 12, 14, and 16 above are: A. B. C. Always Sometimes Never Table 3.1 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 1 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 102 The options provided on questions 13, and 15 of the questionnaire are: A. B. C. D. E. F. Immediately The next The After a At the Never after class day/period following week end of the week or two semester Table 3.2 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 2 In all the cases, the respondents were to put a tick (√) under the response that best answered the question asked. The section B of the questionnaire examines feedback types students receive from their teachers and the effect they (feedback types) have on students’ texts. Here, the questions are: 17. How does your teacher mark the errors in your business communication texts? 18. Which of these feedback types has the greatest effect on your business communication texts in terms of accuracy in grammar, parts of speech, punctuation marks, and agreement relations? 19. Which of these feedback types has the greatest effect on your business communication texts in terms of rubrics or format or element of the text? 20. After your text is returned, does your teacher discuss the errors on one- on-one basis? 21. Anytime you get an opportunity to rewrite a text, does your teacher reassess it? 22. How often does your teacher ask you to rewrite your business communication text for reassessment? The options provided for question 17 are: A. B. C. D. The errors The errors are A general comment The errors in the are underlined and the is passed about the texts are not underlined correct structures are text. marked at all. only. provided. Table 3.3 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 3 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 103 The options provided for question 18 are: A. B. C. D. E. The The errors are A general The I am given the grammatical underlined comment is grammatical opportunity to errors are and the correct passed errors in the do self-editing underlined structures are about the texts are not though the only. provided. grammar of marked at all. errors are not the text. pointed to me. Table 3.4 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 4 The options provided for question 19 are: A. B. C. D. E. The The rubrics A general The format I am given the format or errors are comment is errors in the opportunity to rubrics underlined passed about the texts are not do self-editing errors are and the rubrics/elements marked at though the underlined correct /format of the all. errors on only. formats are text. rubrics are not provided. pointed to me at all. Table 3.5 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 5 The options provided for questions 20, 21, and 22 are the same as those in Table 3.1 (Please see Table 3.1). The section C of the questionnaire assesses time and its implication on corrective feedback. Here, there are 8 sub-questions: 23. Does your teacher give you ample time to complete in-class sit-in composition tasks? 24. What time does your teacher give you to complete a business communication task that requires that you write about 250 words in class? 25. Does your teacher give you ample time to finish your take-home composition tasks? 26. What time does your teacher give you to complete a business communication task that requires that you write about 450 words on take-home basis? University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 104 27. Do you believe that your performance in business communication tasks is dependent on the time given? 28. Anytime you get the opportunity to rewrite a text, are you able to produce accurate business communication texts in terms of the rubrics or format? 29. Anytime you get an opportunity to rewrite a text, are you able to produce accurate texts in terms of grammar, punctuations, spelling, and parts of speech? 30. Please use the spaces below to state any other comments: The options provided for questions 23, 25, 27, 28, and 29 are the same as those in Table 3.1 (Please see Table 3.1). The options for question 24 are: A. B. C. D. Below 30 30 minutes to 1 1 to 2 hours 2 hours and minutes hour above Table 3.6 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 6 The options for question 26 are: A. B. C. D. E. 24 hours Between 2 1 week Between 2 4 weeks and 6 days and 3 week Table 3.7 – Students’ Questionnaire Options 7 But for question 30 which is open-ended, all the respondents were to put a tick (√) under the response that best answered questions in this sub-section. 3.4.2.2 Questionnaire for Language Teachers Just like the questionnaires for student-participants, the questionnaires for teachers are divided into three auxiliary sections of introduction, demographical information, and academic information. The main sections are three – general information on feedback, feedback types and their effect on texts, and time and its implication on corrective feedback. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 105 The auxiliary section has a cover letter, which states the intention of the researcher and other fields such as: age range, gender, languages spoken with students, nationality, name of institution, department, language-related course(s) taught and academic level(s) taught. The general information on feedback section has five sub-questions which start with number 9: 9. Do you return your marked business communication scripts to your students after each internal (class work) assessment? 10. After each internal assessment, when do you return your students’ marked scripts? 11. Do you return your marked business communication scripts to your students after each external (homework/assignment) assessment? 12. After each external assessment, when do you return your students’ marked scripts to them? 13. To the best of your knowledge do you write legibly anytime you provide handwritten corrective feedback on your students’ texts? While the options for questions 9, 11, and 13 are the same as those in Table 3.1 (Please see Table 3.1), the options for questions 10, 12 are: A. B. C. D. E. F. Immediately The next The After a At the end Never after class day/period following week of the week or two semester Table 3.8 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 1 Section B, feedback types and their effect on texts, has 6 sub-questions: 14. How do you mark the errors in your students’ business communication texts? 15. In your opinion, which of these feedback types has the greatest effect on students’ business communication texts in terms of accuracy in grammar, parts of speech, punctuation marks, and agreement relations? University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 106 16. Which of these feedback types has the greatest effect on students’ business communication texts in terms of rubrics or format or element of the text? 17. How often do you discuss students’ errors on one-on-one basis? 18. Do you re-assess a text, anytime students re-write it? 19. How often do you ask your students to rewrite their text for reassessment? The alternatives for questions 17, 18, and 19 are the same as those in Table 3.1. The alternatives for question 14 are: A. B. C. D. The errors The errors are A general comment The errors in the texts are underlined and the is passed about the are not marked at all. underlined correct structures are text. only. provided. Table 3.9 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 2 The alternatives for question 15 are: A. B. C. D. E. The The errors are A general The I give students the grammatical underlined comment is grammatical opportunity to do errors are and the correct passed errors in the self-editing though underlined structures are about the texts are not the errors are not only. provided. grammar of marked at all. pointed out to them. the text. Table 3.10 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 3 The alternatives for question 16 are: A. B. C. D. E. The The rubrics A general The format I give students the format or errors are comment is errors in the opportunity to do rubrics underlined passed about the texts are not self-editing though errors are and the rubrics/elements marked at the errors on underlined correct /format of the all. rubrics are not only. formats are text. pointed out. provided. Table 3.11 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 4 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 107 Section C, time and its implication on corrective feedback, has 8 sub-questions: 20. In your opinion, do you give your students ample time to complete their in-class sit-in business communication tasks? 21. What time do you give to your students to complete a business communication task that requires that they write about 250 words in class? 22. Do you give your students ample time to finish their take-home business communication tasks? 23. What time do you give to your students to complete a business communication task that requires that students write about 450 words on take-home basis? 24. Do you believe that your students’ performance on business communication tasks is dependent on the time given? 25. Anytime your students get an opportunity to rewrite a text, are they able to reproduce accurate business communication texts in terms of the rubrics or format? 26. Anytime your students get an opportunity to rewrite a text, are they able to reproduce accurate texts in terms of grammar, punctuations, spelling, and parts of speech? 27. Please use the spaces below to state any other comments: Apart from question 27, which is open-ended, and therefore require written response from teachers, all sub-questions in this section have options and respondents were to put a tick (√) under the response that best answered questions in this sub-section. The alternatives for questions 20, 22, 24, 25, and 26 are the same as those in Table 3.1. However, the options for question 21 are: A. B. C. D. Below 30 30 minutes to 1 1 to 2 hours 2 hours and minutes hour above Table 3.12 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 5 The options for question 23 are: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 108 A. B. C. D. E. 24 hours Between 2 1 week Between 2 4 weeks and 6 days and 3 week Table 3.13 – Teachers’ Questionnaire Options 6 3.4.3 Data Collection Procedures I first schooled the participants on the rudiments of the two texts – business letters and memoranda. A total of 3 credit hours was devoted in teaching these texts. On the first day of the tuition and interactive session, the participants were informed of the sit-in assessment in the subsequent lecture. At the onset of the next lecture, they were tasked to answer the two tests (please see section 3.4.1.1). A total duration of 2 hours was given to each participant to respond to the two exercises. After the pre-test scripts were submitted, they were sorted and coded into three groups of Experimental Group A, Experimental Group B, and Control Group. I used 3 days in grading the scripts. The intervention used in grading depended on the group of the participant. It was around this period that the questionnaire items for teachers were distributed. After the pre-test items were graded, a day was used to distribute photocopies of the scripts to the participants; that same day marked the onset of the post-test exercises. At the post-test sit-in exercise stage, the participants were asked to re-produce a new text by responding to the various comments in the pre-test scripts. After this stage, I again used 3 days in re-grading the scripts. At the end of the re-assessment stage, photocopies of the various scripts were given to the participants, after which they were asked to fill the questionnaire items. The questionnaire items were filled in class so that I could respond to issues that the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 109 participants did not comprehend. It was around this same period that the questionnaire items for teachers were collected. In effect, a total of 14 days (two weeks) was used in collecting primary data from each of the 4 selected institutions. 3.4.4 Data Analysis and Procedures On analysis procedure, I developed two (2) analytical frameworks (see 4.2 and 4.3) for the analyses of the texts. For each of the texts, the analysis was done in two folds – rubrical errors, and language and formatting (LF) errors. The rubrical errors centred on the consistency or inconsistency of the memorandum and business letter rubrics of the various scripts. The variables in the 2 frameworks were graded on the basis of content (3 marks), organisation (2 marks), expression (8 marks), and mechanical accuracy (7 marks). Overall, all the scripts were graded over 20 marks. ‘Language and formatting’ (LF) is the generic term that was used to represent all errors found in the content of the various scripts I collected from the field. In linguistics and language study, several nomenclatures for categorising errors abound. Errors can be categorised in terms of their processes of addition, substitution, omission, and wrong ordering (ASOWO issues) (Corder 1973:277; Els et. al 1987:66; Keshavarz 2008:98). The discussion of LF errors of the study focused on ASOWO issues in punctuation, mechanics, grammar (PMG). These variables were drawn from the analytical frameworks. Majority of the errors corrected centred on grammar- related issues of syntax, concord, tense, semantics, and lexis42. 42 For the purpose of this study, syntactic errors are errors emanating from formation of structures such as: phrases, clauses and sentences. Examples are: omission of subjects, sentence fragments, run-on sentences, and omission of determiners. Concord errors focus on grammatical, notional, proximity, and pronoun concord. Tense errors are those that emanate University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 110 The questionnaire items collected were analysed, using Version 16.0 of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) tool. The analysis was descriptive, where frequencies of variables were generated. 3.5 Pilot Study In research work, one cannot dispute the imperativeness of pilot study. It helps to discover flaws in one’s research design and instrumentation (Cooper and Schindler 2003:86). Two separate pilot studies were undertaken in the first and second semesters of the 2015/2016 Academic Year (August 2015 – December 2015) of the two selected institutions. The participants for the pilot study were drawn from third-year Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies (BAC) students of Christian Service University College (CSUC), Kumasi; and first-year Master of Science in Business Consulting and Enterprise Risk Management (MSc. BCERM) students of the Institute of Distance Learning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (IDL-KNUST), Kwabenya Campus, Accra. Participants from the BAC and MSc. BCERM classes were asked to bring to class, business communication write-ups of memoranda and letters for discussion and analysis. Consequently, during SCOM 309 – Business Communication (in the first semester of 2015/2016 Academic Year) lecture (in the case of the BAC class); and MBC 554 – Strategic Business Communication Systems (in the second semester 2015/2016 Academic Year) lecture (in the case of the MSc. BCERM class), students responded accordingly. After the analysis, I told the participants about my intention of using the texts for research purposes. The majority obliged. Therefore, I made photocopies of the texts. from wrong verb forms, sequence of tenses, and misuse of tense. Semantic errors are errors of meaning such as ambiguity, and dangling modifier errors. Lexical errors are word class errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 111 The pilot study aided the current research study in so many ways. One, it helped fine-tune the questionnaire items. Two, it facilitated in soliciting the business-world texts needed for analysis and discussion. Three, the flaws identified in the administration of the text items were corrected in the actual field work. For example, when the BAC students were asked to compose two texts in the form of take-home assessment, majority of them copied from one another. This situation affected, objectivity and validity of the pilot study. Therefore, in the actual field work, sit-in rather than take-home assessment was used. 3.6 Ethical Considerations Ethics, in the context of research, refers to the suitability of one’s behaviour in relation to the rights of those who become the subject of one’s work, or are affected by it (Saunders et al. 2007:178). This suitable behaviour should start from day one of the research to the very final day. In order to avoid unethical behaviour on my part, a number of measures were instituted: 3.6.1 Ethical Certificate and Introductory Letters As human subjects were used in my study, it would have been ethically wrong for the study to be done without any approval from any ethics board. Consequently, on 18th February, 2016, my study was presented to the University of Ghana’s Ethics Committee for the Humanities, for a full board review. After series of reviews on the study, an approval was given on 24th March, 2016. (Please see the appendices). In research, one needs the consent of institutions or participants who provide data for a study. As a result, I applied for introductory letters from the Department of Linguistics, to the Schools of the 4 Technical Universities where data from human subjects were taken. (Please see the appendices). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 112 3.6.2 Prior Assent According to Robson (2002) and Sekaran (2003), one should not attempt to apply any pressure on intended participants to grant access (Saunders et al. 2007:182). Hence, the participants were given prior information about the purpose of the research. This information was given to them before they composed the pre- and post-test items. Again, the introductory section of the two questionnaire items had information about the motive behind the collection of the data. 3.6.3 Privacy Individuals have a right to privacy and should not be coerced into participating in any form of research. Because of this, I accepted refusals of participants to be part of the research (Blumberg et al. 2005; Robson 2002). Again, the data collected from the participants were kept confidential. Furthermore, the students were asked to write their index numbers (instead of their names). Subsequently, their scripts were coded. This action also ensured privacy. 3.6.4 Integrity Personal integrity was maintained in the entire research process which includes my dealings with the human subjects. One, I used the sampled data for the purpose of this current research only. For example, since some of the sampled letters and memoranda from the business world contained some private issues, I made sure these letters and memoranda were used for research purposes only. Again, on the field, I managed to solicit the assistance of 4 teachers from the 4 selected cases. These research assistants helped me to ensure that the student participants did independent work. Neither my assistants nor I composed the scripts for the participants, though they were guided in a friendly manner. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 113 The research took place in 4 regions in Ghana which have diverse cultural practices and political affiliations. Consequently, I refrained from cultural sensitivity, and political apathy. On grading, integrity was also guaranteed. Participants’ scripts were graded on the basis of their performance only. Accordingly, I ensured fairness in the grading of scripts by using the analytical framework (marking scheme) conscientiously. 3.6.5 Validity and Reliability Since the main data were collected from 4 different institutions, it was imperative to ensure that the study was valid and reliable. As reliability is related to consistency of a measuring tool, validity is linked to correctness (Joseph et al. 2003:169). Reliability is the degree to which one’s data collection methods or analysis processes will produce consistent results (Saunders et al. 2007:149). Validity has some methods: face, expert, construct, and criterion-based validities (Du Plooy 2002:125). Welman et al. (2008:142) argue that the instrument employed in assessing a variable must measure that which it is estimated to measure. This is known as construct validity. I used some measures to ensure that my study had construct validity. For instance, key issues in the research questions and literature were used in constructing the questionnaire items and the two classroom text items. Again, to ensure that my study could be done by another independent researcher, I developed timelines for the entire study (please see Appendix 16). This ensured reliability. Moreover, the use of the same teacher who taught all the classes, and the same assessor who graded all the scripts ensured reliability. The data collection procedures used were also unambiguous. Again, the identification of flaws in University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 114 the pilot study, and the treatment of those flaws at the pre- and post-test levels of the actual work ensured validity. 3.7 Summary Chapter three has centred on the methods adopted in the research. Here, the main focus was the philosophy underpinning the research, research design and approaches, population, data collection instruments, data analysis procedure, data collection procedure, pilot study, ethical consideration. All these topics have sub-issues which have been explained in detail. For instance, on data collection instruments, I have described the two main instruments – texts and questionnaire items. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 115 CHAPTER FOUR ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF CLASSROOM DATA 4.0 Introduction Chapter Four of the work focuses on the analysis and discussion of data (pre- and post-test items) collected from the 4 selected technical universities. The Chapter begins with a discussion of how the entire texts of the study were coded. Chapter Four also presents and discusses the two Analytical Frameworks I developed as benchmarks for assessing all the classroom and business world texts collected43. The analyses are done in terms of the major problematic issues identified in the pre- and post-test items of the student-participants’ texts. 4.1 Coding of the Texts For the purpose of easy identification and reference, all the texts were coded. The manual coding was done, taking into consideration the name of the participant’s university, the group (intervention used), the type of business correspondence (whether memorandum or business letter), the type of test (whether pre- or post-test), and the serial number generated for the participant. The symbols of texts with code numbers SDMA1, and KILB2, for example, mean STU (S), Direct (D), Memo (M), Pre-test (A), Serial Number (1); and KTU (K), Indirect (I), Letter (L), Post-test (B), Serial Number (2) respectively. 43 These frameworks are: Memorandum Analytical Framework (MAF), and Business Letter Analytical Framework (BLAF). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 116 4.2 Analytical Framework for Memoranda From : Nonexistence of salutation To : and subscription D ate : Subject : Cc : Ref : . Spelling . Word-Division Syntactic Errors . Capitali sation . Para graph Style 1. Rubrics Of Memoranda Concord Errors ( S t r u c t u r e ) Mechanics Grammar Tense Errors 2. Language and Punctuation marks Formatting Semantic Errors 3. GRADING: (Content, Expression, Organisation, and Mechanical Lexical Errors Accuracy) Figure 4.1: Memorandum Analytical Framework (MAF) This self-formulated framework has three independent variables of rubrics, language and formatting, and grading. The dependent variables generated from language and formatting are mechanics, grammar, and punctuation marks. Mechanics discusses issues of spelling, word-division, capitalization, and paragraph style. Grammar focuses on syntactic, concord, tense, semantic, and lexical errors. The grading of each memorandum was done by examining the content, expression, organisation, and mechanical accuracy of the text. The content looks at whether the topic in question has been well-developed. The expression assesses adequacy of ideas developed in the various paragraphs. The organisation aspect focuses on consistency of styles used; and mechanical accuracy focuses on grammar, and punctuation errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 117 The framework suggests that grading of memorandum should be done in a systematic order. Thus, the assessor should first look at the rubrics of the text. In doing that, it is imperative to check for the non-existence of salutation and complimentary close; this is because, memoranda should not possess these features (McClave 2008:172; Locker 2010:647; Thill and Bovée 2013:170). After assessing the rubrics, language and formatting errors should be the next step in the grading exercise. 4.3 Analytical Framework for Business Letters . Letterhead or Sender’s address . R eference Number . Recipient’s address . Date . S alutation Alignment of salutation . Title/Heading and subscription . Body . Subscription . Signature . Full name and Position (if any) . Copy Notation (CC:) (if any) Syntactic Errors 1. Layout - . Blocked, . Modified, Concord Errors . S i m p l i f i e d . Grammar Punctuation marks T ense Errors 2.Rubrics of Business L e t t e r s . Mechanics Semantic Errors . Spelling . Word-Division 3. Language . Capitalisation and . Paragraph Style Lexical Errors Formatting. 4. GRADING: (Content, Expression, Organisation, and Mechanical Accuracy) Figure 4.2: Business Letter Analytical Framework (BLAF) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 118 Figure 4.2, unlike Figure 4.1, has four independent variables of layout, rubrics, language and formatting, and grading. The dependent variables generated from language and formatting are the same as those discussed under Section 4.2. The elements of grading and how business letters were graded are the same as those of memorandum scripts (please see Section 4.2). The framework suggests that the grading of business letters should be done in an orderly manner. The examiner should first look at the consistency (in any of the three layouts of blocked, modified, and simplified44) used. After the layout, the next item in the grading process should be the rubrics of business letters. In scrutinizing the rubrics, it is vital to check for the alignment of salutation and complimentary close (McClave 2008:132). After the rubrics are assessed, the examiner can proceed to the grading of language and formatting errors emanating from grammar, punctuation marks, and mechanics. 4.4 Analysis of STU Texts The analysis is presented under the three main interventions of Direct Feedback (DF), Indirect Feedback (IF), and No/Control Feedback (NF) applied on the texts of student-participants from the field. Each sub-section showcases the problematic areas identified in the various pre-test items and whether the intervention applied was useful at the post-test stage. 4.4.1 Analysis of the Texts of the DF Group of STU This section analyses and discusses issues in the pre- and post-tests of the DF Group of STU. The section is segmented into three parts – memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 44 Each of these layouts has its own prescriptions. These prescriptions have been discussed at Section 2.2.3.2 – Layouts (formats) and Types of Business Letters. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 119 4.4.1.1 Memorandum Texts of the DF Group of STU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, the DF student-participants of STU did not commit any significant rubrical errors45. However, 7 (35%) out of the 20 DF participants did not append signatures after names of senders. This includes participants with text serial numbers: SDMA3, SDMA5, SDMA8, SDMA10, SDMA11, SDMA12, and SDMA18. Again, 10 (50%) participants in this category made alignment error. This error was found in SDMA2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, and 1846. For example, in the illustration below, one realizes that the rubrics have not been properly aligned: From: Administrative Assistant To: Members of Staff Date: 13th June, 2016 Subject: NOTICE OF OUR ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (Fieldwork (SDMA3) 2016) At the post-test level, when the DF intervention was applied, all participants who had various rubrical errors at the pre-test level, were able to notice the gaps or the errors and subsequently, corrected them. This outcome corroborates Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis (COH). Thus, the learners became aware of their gaps when DF was employed; and since this gap was corrected at the post-test stage, learning has taken place (Swain 1985:236). An example of such learning is indicated below: From: Administrative Assistant To: Members of Staff Date: 13th June, 2016 Subject: NOTICE OF OUR ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (Fieldwork (SDMB3) 2016) 45 Some examples of rubrical errors are: wrong alignment, wrong date format, repetition of sender’s name at the bottom of the memo, wrong subject, lack of proper memo heading, and the presence of subscription. 46 From this point of the thesis to the end, codes numbers which are in the same category, and are in series, will be represented by the number only, though the first code would be written in full. This measure is to avoid repetition of the code letters in the write up. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 120 Conversely, in SDMB4, the participant could not notice the gap, as the same error of wrong alignment of rubrics was committed in the post-test script. Though one may see this as an oversight, it is an indication that learning has not taken place since the participant could not notice the gap. Furthermore, the text with serial number SDMA11 did not have any information at the recipient (To:) section. However, at the post test level, after the DF intervention was applied, the participant was able to correct this error. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At the pre-test stage, various language and formatting errors of mechanics, grammar, and punctuation marks were found in the memoranda of the DF student-participants from STU. These issues found have been presented in Table 4.1. From Table 4.1, it is obvious that 89 mechanical, 73 grammatical, and 45 punctuation errors were found. All put together, a total of 207 were corrected in the pre-test memo scripts of the DF Group of STU participants. Table 4.1 also highlights the post-test memorandum errors of the DF participants of STU. From Table 4.1, it is obvious that 32 mechanical, 23 grammatical, and 16 punctuation errors were seen. In effect, a total of 71 errors were found in the post test memo scripts of the DF Group of STU participants. 4.4.1.2 Business Letter Texts of the DF Group of STU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, I found a number of rubrical errors in the business letters of the DF Group. For example, 5 (25%) of the 20 business letters did not have signatures. This includes texts with serial numbers SDLA5, 11, 4, 10, and 8. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 121 Table 4.1 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of DF Group of STU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling . Comfrence, confrence (conference), Jun (June), 30 . Spelling . confrence (conference), recieved (received), couse (cause), 10 remaind (remind), conferance (conference), premess incereament (increment), coperate (corporate), . Spacing/ . Conferen ce (Conference), 2. Here by (Hereby), 10 . Spacing/ here by (hereby) 5 Word-Division Word-Division .Capitalisation . annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), 42 .Capitalisation . annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), I 14 may (May), Anita hotel, (Anita Hotel), june (June), Encourage… (I encourage…), june (June), I Hope (I hope) friday (Friday), sunyani (Sunyani), . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 7 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 89 Sub-Total 32 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic I wish to bring to note that (I wish to bring to your 16 . Syntactic I wish to bring to note that (I wish to bring to your notice 5 notice that…), I am counting for your… (I am that…), to discuss about… (to discuss…), counting on your…), . Concord The meeting which come of … (The meeting which 11 . Concord Their names is… (Their names are…), 4 comes off) . Tense All supervisors are request to… (All supervisors are 16 . Tense How foods are processing (how foods are processed), 3 requested to…) .… look forward to seeing you (… looking forward to seeing you.) . Semantic 1. Ambiguous structures, 2. Dangling modifiers 13 . Semantic 4 . Lexical comes of (comes off), …Conference Hall 7:00 17 . Lexical Incereament at staff salaries (increment of staff salaries), 7 O’clock Am (Conference Hall at 7:00 O’clock Am), lunching (launching), will meat your… (will meet your), Sub-Total 73 Sub-Total 23 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma 11 . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma 5 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 17 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 6 . Colon and Agenda; (Agenda :), As follows; (As follows :) 9 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon and semi-colon: 5 semi-colon semi-colon listed below; (listed below:) . Apostrophe Administrater Office (Administrator’s Office) 8 . Apostrophe - Sub-Total 45 Sub-Total 16 TOTAL 207 TOTAL 71 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 122 Also, 4 (20%) texts did not have sender’s address (SDLA1, 18, 15, and 9); 4 (20%) did not have recipient’s address (SDLA2, 14, 12, and 11); and 4 (20%) scripts lacked full name of sender after the subscription (SDLA11, 4, 10, 8). Additionally, 1 (5%) participant (SDLA5) placed the salutation of the letter on the same line as the heading. 2 (10%) texts (SDLA4, and 8) lacked subscription; 2 (10%) participants could not properly align the salutation with the subscription. For example, in text SDLA14, the participant matched Dear Sir against Yours truly, and in text SDLA13 the participant aligned Dear Sir with Yours sincerely. These permutations are not standard in business letters (see McClave 2008:132 and Locker and Kienzler 2010:637). At the post-test level, the application of the DF intervention resulted in significant reduction of these rubrical errors as participants were able to correct these errors. However, participant with text number SDLB17 committed a fresh rubrical error of wrong alignment of salutation and subscription. This error was absent in the pre-test script of the participant. Again, SDLB18 was not well developed as the main body, subscription, signature and full name were absent. In spite of the minor errors found at the post-test level, it was realized that the DF Group was able to notice the rubrical gaps when the DF intervention was applied at the pre-test level. This is an indication of the efficacy of the DF intervention. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.2 projects the errors corrected in the pre-test business letters of the DF Group of STU. The major categories of errors of mechanics found include: mechanics 93, grammar 103, and punctuation 49. In all, a total of 245 errors were seen and corrected in the pre-test business letters of the DF Group of STU. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 123 Table 4.2 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of DF Group of STU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling equiped (equipped), morden (modern), throug 41 . Spelling saperated (separated), past (paste), limted (limited), furture 11 (through), noticified (notified), manafacture (future), okro (okra), mazi (maize), conclussion (conclusion), (manufacture), . Spacing/ can not (cannot), compan y (company), proces sed 8 . Spacing/ can not (cannot) 1 Word-Division (pro-cessed), Word-Division .Capitalisation food and drugs authority (Food and Drugs 40 .Capitalisation Director of food and drugs authority (Director of Food and 17 Authority), june (June), Drugs Authority), An Addition to… (An addition to…), . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 4 . Paragraph - inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 93 Sub-Total 29 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic First and foremost, freezing. (The first one is 12 . Syntactic ), Examples of okro, beans, mazi … (Examples of such foods 8 freezing.), To start…, (To start with…), are okra, beans, maize..), In much view… (In my view…), . Concord Our company produce and process… (Our company 11 . Concord some chemical (some chemicals), Food are (Food is/Foods 11 produces and processes…) are), Salting help (salting helps), . Tense food is been process… (food is being processed…), 43 . Tense To processed… (To process…) to be process… (to be 14 Canning is the processed of… (Canning is the processed), to be keep (to be kept), are process… (are process of …), processed), . Semantic Ambiguous structures, 2. Dangling modifiers 12 . Semantic - . Lexical First all… (First of all…), food from it raw state, 25 . Lexical … the place which the … (… the place where the…), will 6 (food from its raw state), meat (will meet), … how intend to… (… how I intend to…), Sub-Total 103 Sub-Total 39 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Omission and wrong placement of comma 20 . Comma Omission and wrong placement of comma 6 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 17 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 4 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or 10 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or semicolon 4 semi-colon semicolon semi-colon . Apostrophe Im (I’m/I am), cant (can’t) 2 . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully (Yours faithfully), 1 Sub-Total 49 Sub-Total 15 TOTAL 245 TOTAL 83 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 124 At the post-test level of Table 4.2, it is clear that the application of the DF intervention resulted in a significant reduction of the pre-test errors found in the business letters of the DF Group of STU. Therefore, 29 mechanical, 39 grammatical, and 15 punctuation errors were found and corrected. Overall, a total of 83 errors were seen and corrected in the post-test business letters of the DF Group from STU. 4.4.1.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the DF Group of STU Table 4.3 showcases results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the DF Group from STU. The total number of the pre-and post-test items is 80. Each of the texts was graded over 20marks. The results show that for 72 texts, the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated marginally. For 6 of the texts, the score of the pre- and post-test items did not change. These texts are SDMA1, SDMB1 (score, 10/20 apiece); SDLA2, SDLB2 (score, 11/20 apiece); and SDLA17, SDLB17 (score, 8/20 apiece). For the remaining two texts (SDLA18 and SDLB18), the post-test score rather depreciated from a pre-test score of 8/20 to a post-test score of 5/20. The implication is that 90% of the DF Group of STU benefited from DF intervention. This further shows the potency of the direct corrective feedback. Table 4.3 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of STU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score SDMA1 10 Score SDLA1 8 Score SDMB1 10 maintained SDLB1 12 appreciated SDMA2 9 Score SDLA2 11 Score SDMB2 10 appreciated SDLB2 11 maintained SDMA3 11 Score SDLA3 9 Score SDMB3 13 appreciated SDLB3 11 appreciated University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 125 SDMA4 10 Score SDLA4 12 Score SDMB4 14 appreciated SDLB4 14 appreciated SDMA5 7 Score SDLA5 8 Score SDMB5 9 appreciated SDLB5 11 appreciated SDMA6 7 Score SDLA6 7 Score SDMB6 12 appreciated SDLB6 12 appreciated SDMA7 6 Score SDLA7 9 Score SDMB7 11 appreciated SDLB7 12 appreciated SDMA8 7 Score SDLA8 8 Score SDMB8 11 appreciated SDLB8 13 appreciated SDMA9 9 Score SDLA9 10 Score SDMB9 10 appreciated SDLB9 12 appreciated SDMA10 6 Score SDLA10 7 Score SDMB10 9 appreciated SDLB10 10 appreciated SDMA11 8 Score SDLA11 6 Score SDMB11 13 appreciated SDLB11 13 appreciated SDMA12 8 Score SDLA12 7 Score SDMB12 11 appreciated SDLB12 12 appreciated SDMA13 6 Score SDLA13 7 Score SDMB13 12 appreciated SDLB13 10 appreciated SDMA14 8 Score SDLA14 9 Score SDMB14 10 appreciated SDLB14 12 appreciated SDMA15 7 Score SDLA15 12 Score SDMB15 11 appreciated SDLB15 14 appreciated SDMA16 7 Score SDLA16 8 Score SDMB16 10 appreciated SDLB16 11 appreciated SDMA17 6 Score SDLA17 8 Score SDMB17 9 appreciated SDLB17 8 maintained SDMA18 6 Score SDLA18 8 Score SDMB18 8 appreciated SDLB18 5 Depreciated SDMA19 9 Score SDLA19 9 Score SDMB19 10 appreciated SDLB19 11 appreciated SDMA20 9 Score SDLA20 8 Score SDMB20 10 appreciated SDLB20 12 appreciated 4.4.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of STU This subdivision explores matters in the pre- and post-tests of the IF Group from STU. The section is divided into three parts of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.4.2.1 Memorandum Texts of the IF Group of STU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, I corrected a number of rubrical errors. 15 of the 20 IF Group participants (75%) made alignment errors. This includes participants with text serial numbers SIMA1, 2, 4, 6 – 12, 14 – 16, 19, and 20. At the post-test University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 126 stage, 13 of the 15 participants who made wrong alignment error at the pre-test level, were able to correct this error. Samples of the pre-test alignment error (A) and post-test corrected alignment sample (B) are illustrated below: (A) (B) Ref No: SP/04/05/16/XY Ref No: : FLA55 FROM: Human Resource Manager FROM : Administrative Assistant To: The Secretary To: : Staff DATE: June 16, 2016 Date : June 22, 2016 SUBJECT: MEETING Subject : MEETING (Fieldwork (SIMA9) 2016) (Fieldwork (SIMB9) 2016) Though, the intervention used was indirect, at the rubrical level, it was strong as the participants were able to interpret the error symbols used and corrected the errors accordingly at the post-test level. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.4 highlights the language and formatting errors corrected at the pre- and post-test level of memo scripts of the IF Group of STU. From the Table, 101 mechanical, 59 grammatical, and 30 punctuation errors were corrected. Overall, a total of 190 errors were found and corrected in the pre-test memos of the IF Group of STU. At the post-test level, 99 mechanical, 46 grammatical, and 42 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. All put together, a total of 187 errors were spotted and corrected in the post-test memos of the IF Group of STU. 4.4.2.1 Business Letter Texts of the IF Group of STU The errors have been grouped into rubrical and language and formatting errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 127 Table 4.4 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of the IF Group of STU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number Errors of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling atend (attend), saftt, staffs, staaf (staff), belding 43 . Spelling Anneal Meeting (Annual Meeting), Lectururer (Lecturer), anual 42 (building), sacondly (secondly), thiredly (thirdly), (annual), adMisions (admissions), speach (speech) . Spacing/ achie ve (achieve), Hallon (Hall on) 3 . Spacing/ - Word-Division Word-Division .Capitalisation general manager (General Manager), the head 55 .Capitalisation I Write (I write), yours Directives… (your directives), june 57 waiter (The Head Waiter), I Wish (I wish), (June) Sub-Total 101 Sub-Total 99 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic … be held 10 to inform to all … (be informed that 4 . Syntactic In general adminitrative performed well (In general, the 4 the meeting will be held at 10am), Administrative Staff performed well) . Concord To learn how food and beverage service are done 13 . Concord One of the leading company (One of the leading companies), 10 (To learn how food and beverage services are done), . Tense be remind (be reminded), is been processed (is being 21 . Tense All members are invite… (All members are invited…) … to be 10 processed), to informed (to inform), discuss … (to be discussed…), to processed (to process) . Semantic All saftt Should come without full (All staff should 2 . Semantic Make sure your usual lateness goes sleeping this time around 7 make it a point to attend) (On this occasion, do not come late) . Lexical Without fell, without full (without fail) this meet… 19 . Lexical Secondary (Secondly), we going to draw… (we are going to 15 (this meeting), thiscars (discuss) draw…), discuss about (discuss), yoursuall (your usual) Sub-Total 59 Sub-Total 46 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma In line with the Administrative Board. (In line with 9 . Comma Fourthly the incoming staff… (Fourth, the incoming staff…) 13 the Administrative Board’s decision, …) . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop. E.g. 12 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 19 Thank you (Thank you.) . Colon and … will be the following. (… will be the following:), 7 . Colon and The following are agenda for the meeting; (The following are 8 semi-colon The agenda is to discuss (The agenda is to discuss:) semi-colon the agenda for the meeting :) . Apostrophe The companies conference hall (The Company’s 1 . Apostrophe companies uniform (company’s uniform) 1 Conference Hall) . Hyphen send off (send-off) 1 . Hyphen co.operation (co-operation) 1 Sub-Total 30 Sub-Total 42 TOTAL 190 TOTAL 187 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 128 (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, I corrected some rubrical errors in the business letters of the IF Group of STU. For instance, 8 (40%) of the letters did not have recipients’ address. These texts are: SILA3, 5, 7, 11, 12, 14, 17, and 19. Again, 4 (20%) of the texts (SILA1, 3, 5, and 12) did not have subscription, signature, and full name. At the post-test section, the IF Group of STU were able to correct all the rubrical errors identified in the pre-test stage. However, SIL B14 repeated the same error of lack of recipient’s address. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.5 showcases language and formatting errors corrected in the pre- and post-test letters of the IF Group of STU. From the pre-test section of Table 4.5 97 mechanical, 73 grammatical, and 38 punctuation errors were identified and corrected. Generally, a total of 208 pre-test errors were seen and corrected. At the post-test level, 70 mechanical, 63 grammatical, and 32 punctuation errors were found and corrected. In total, the overall post-test language and formatting errors found and corrected were 165. If you subtract 165 from 208, you get 43. This means that the IF intervention corrected 43 business letter errors in the texts of the IF Group of STU at the post-test stage. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 129 Table 4.5 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of the IF Group of STU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling recieved (received), compay (company), 66 . Spelling Explaination (explanation), procedured (procedure), receved 41 procedured (procedure), seperated (separated), (received), morter (mortar), pistle (pestle), cos (cost), . Spacing/ highquality (high quality), advance ment 3 .Spacing/ Liq uids (liquids ), person al (personal), further more 3 Word-Division (advancement), Word-Division (furthermore) .Capitalisation I Wish to… (I wish to…), yours faithfully (Yours 28 .Capitalisation may (May), yours faithful… (Yours faithfully) 26 faithfully) Sub-Total 97 Sub-Total 70 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic ABC Company in Sunyani. (ABC Company is in 10 . Syntactic In response to your letter which was receved on 20th May 9 Sunyani.) 2016. (In response to your letter which was received on 29th May, 2016, I wish to …) . Concord How food are … (How foods are/How a food is.. ), 15 . Concord These cage (These cages), one of the best company (one of 13 the investment that have been … (the investment the best companies…), ABC Company have (ABC Company that has been…) has…), How food are … (How foods are/How a food is.. ) . Tense On how food is processing… (On how food is 27 . Tense Food is now process… (Food is now processed), was 21 processed…), was processe (was processed) establish (was established), . Semantic 3 . Semantic 4 . Lexical This how… (This is how…), As food is import to 18 . Lexical may company (my company), I wish to inform you about 16 human… (As food is important to human), now we … (I wish to inform you about how we…), Sub-Total 73 Sub-Total 63 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma After this process they are … (After this process, 25 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 18 they are…), Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) . Full stop I thank you very much (I thank you very much.) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 11 . Apostrophe factorys (factory’s), fake one’s (fake ones) 5 . Apostrophe factorys (factory’s), Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully), 3 Sub-Total 38 Sub-Total 32 TOTAL 208 TOTAL 165 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 130 4.4.2.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Letter of the IF Group of STU Table 4.6 portrays results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the IF Group of STU. The total number of the pre-and post-test memorandum scripts is 80. Each of the texts was marked over 20. The results indicate that for 58 scripts, the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated slightly. For 16 of the texts, the score of the pre- and post-test items did not go through any modification. These texts are SIMA2, SIMB2 (score, 8/20 apiece); SIMA3, SIMB3 (6/10 apiece); SIMA7, SIMB2 (score, 11/20 apiece); SIMA19, SIMB19 (score, 9/20 apiece); SIMA20, SIMB20 (6/20 apiece); SILA7, SILB7 (7/20 each); SILA11, SILB11 (9/20 each); SILA17, and SILB17 (8/20 each). For the remaining 6 texts (SIMA4, SIMB4, SIMA17, SIMB17, SILA3, AND SILB3), all the post-test scores rather depreciated. The implication is that 73% of the DF Group of STU benefited from the IF intervention. This demonstrates that IF is also a strong corrective feedback though its potency cannot be compared with DF. Table 4.6 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of STU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score SIMA1 8 Score SILA1 10 Score SIMB1 11 appreciated SILB1 14 appreciated SIMA2 8 Score SILA2 10 Score SIMB2 8 maintained SILB2 12 appreciated SIMA3 6 Score SILA3 8 Score SIMB3 6 maintained SILB3 7 depreciated SIMA4 9 Score SILA4 7 Score SIMB4 8 depreciated SILB4 7 maintained SIMA5 10 Score SILA5 7 Score SIMB5 12 appreciated SILB5 14 appreciated SIMA6 7 SILA6 7 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 131 SIMB6 10 Score SILB6 8 Score appreciated appreciated SIMA7 11 Score SILA7 7 Score SIMB7 11 maintained SILB7 10 appreciated SIMA8 8 Score SILA8 9 Score SIMB8 12 appreciated SILB8 12 appreciated SIMA9 8 Score SILA9 11 Score SIMB9 12 appreciated SILB9 13 appreciated SIMA10 7 Score SILA10 9 Score SIMB10 13 appreciated SILB10 11 appreciated SIMA11 9 Score SILA11 9 Score SIMB11 13 appreciated SILB11 9 maintained SIMA12 8 Score SILA12 6 Score SIMB12 13 appreciated SILB12 12 appreciated SIMA13 8 Score SILA13 9 Score SIMB13 12 appreciated SILB13 15 appreciated SIMA14 11 Score SILA14 10 Score SIMB14 14 appreciated SILB14 13 appreciated SIMA15 10 Score SILA15 11 Score SIMB15 14 appreciated SILB15 13 appreciated SIMA16 7 Score SILA16 10 Score SIMB16 13 appreciated SILB16 13 appreciated SIMA17 9 Score SILA17 8 Score SIMB17 8 depreciated SILB17 8 maintained SIMA18 8 Score SILA18 10 Score SIMB18 11 appreciated SILB18 14 appreciated SIMA19 9 Score SILA19 9 Score SIMB19 9 maintained SILB19 11 appreciated SIMA20 6 Score SILA20 8 Score SIMB20 6 maintained SILB20 10 appreciated 4.4.3 Analysis of the Texts of the NF Group of STU This part of the thesis analyses and discusses issues in the pre- and post-tests of the NF Group of STU. The section, like the two other sections, is divided into three parts of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.4.3.1 Memorandum Texts of the NF Group of STU (a) Rubrical Errors Some rubrical errors were made by the No/Control Feedback (NF) Group of STU. One (1) participant, SNMA1, did not append a signature against the sender’s name. 11 (55%) made alignment errors. At the post-test level, alignment errors were reduced. This is to say that five (5) participants committed the errors again. They are participants with text University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 132 codes: SNMB2, 3, 5, 12, and 15. Again, the participant who committed the signature error at the pre-test level, could not correct this error as it was repeated at the post-test level. (a) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.7 highlights language and formatting issues in the pre- and post-test memoranda of the NF Group of STU. At the pre-test subdivision of the Table, 85 mechanical, 65 grammatical, and 26 punctuation errors were found and corrected. Overall, a total of 179 errors were seen and corrected. At the post-test section of Table 4.7, these errors were recognized and corrected: mechanics 95, grammar 74, and punctuation 17. In all, a total of 186 errors were found and corrected. This means that the number of post-test errors were heavier than those of the pre-test errors. This is an indication of the ineffectiveness of the NF method used. 4.4.3.2 Business Letter Texts of the NF Group of STU This part discusses the rubrical, and language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors The pre-test level of the NF Group produced some letter rubrical errors. For instance, SNLA8 wrote the salutation and the heading on the same line: Dear Sir, HOW FOOD ARE PROCESS IN ABC COMPANY (Fieldwork (SNLA8) 2016). This style is uncommon in business letters. One would have expected this: Dear Sir, HOW FOODS ARE PROCESSED AT ABC COMPANY LIMITED University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 133 Table 4.7 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test memos of the NF Group of STU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling assistan (assistant), abscent (absent), chairpenso 46 . Spelling notic (notice), discusion (discussion), agender (agenda), 44 (chairperson), notic (notice), agender (agenda), Jun pregnoncy (pregnancy), proverty (poverty), plece (place), (June), salare (salary) remimd (remind), holl (hall), remaind (remind), . Spacing/ canbe (can be), tobe (to be), memora ndum 14 . Spacing/ dis cuss (discuss), 15thJune (15th June) 15 Word-Division (memorandum), Word-Division .Capitalisation I Want (I want), annual general meeting (Annual 25 .Capitalisation I Wish (I wish), general meeting (General Meeting), june 36 General Meeting), I Therefore, (I therefore,) (June), t, his Month (this month), I Thank you (I thank you), Sub-Total 85 Sub-Total 95 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Transitional and Null-Subject clause errors 9 . Syntactic Null-subject clauses. Wrong sequence of tense errors 14 . Concord All member (All members), The meeting include… 12 . Concord All member (All members) 11 (The meeting includes…) . Tense tobe serve… (to be served), … be please… (… be 17 . Tense Be welcome (Be welcomed), to reminded (to remind) 13 pleased… ) . Semantic The meeting should been the Staff member the 9 . Semantic With the decision made on the 10th May 2016 on the annual 8 company (The meeting is for staff members of the general meeting. (With the decision we made on the 10th company) May, 2016 on the Annual General Meeting, I write to invite ..) . Lexical I want remind you… (I want to remind you…), The 18 . Lexical I Wish to you Count on your Co-operation (I wish to count on 28 meeting is very importance to very one… (The your co-operation), Please write down all the includings of meeting is very important to everyone…) the meeting (Please write all the proceedings of the meeting), Sub-Total 65 Sub-Total 74 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma 8 . Comma 10th May 2016 (10th May, 7 2016) . Full stop Declarative structures without full stops. 11 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 5 . Colon and Lack of colon after the rubrics 4 . Colon and The agenda is to dis cuss (The agenda is to discuss:), as 3 semi-colon semi-colon follows (as follows:) . Apostrophe The meeting go’s …(The meeting goes…) 3 . Apostrophe our Queens Conference Hall (our Queen’s Conference Hall) 2 Sub-Total 26 Sub-Total 17 TOTAL 176 TOTAL 186 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 134 Furthermore, SNLA15 misaligned the salutation, Dear Sir, with the subscription, Yours sincerely. This is not in consonance with McClave (2008:132) and Locker and Kienzler (2010:637). At the post-test level, SNLB8 was able to correct the heading error; but, SMLB15 repeated the error of wrong alignment. For SNLB15 to have repeated this error and for fresh cases of rubrical errors to have been recorded is a signal that NF is inefficacious. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.8 showcases language and formatting issues in the pre- and post-test letters of the NF Group of STU. At the pre-test section of Table 4.8, 97 mechanical, 73 grammatical, and 38 punctuation errors were identified and corrected. In all, a total of 208 pre-test errors were identified and corrected. At the post-test section, 90 mechanical 70 grammatical, and 37 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. All put together, 197 errors were identified and corrected through the NF intervention. 4.4.3.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Letter of the NF Group of STU Table 4.9 highlights results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the NF Group of STU. The total number of the pre-and post-test items is 80. All the texts were scored over 20 marks. The Table (4.9) depicts that for 40 of the texts, the marks of the post-test items appreciated. This represents 50%. For 18 of the scripts, the score of the pre- and post-test maintained. This represents 22.5%. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 135 Table 4.8 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test letters of the NF Group of STU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling recieved (received), compay (company), 66 . Spelling Explaination (explanation), procedured (procedure), receved 61 procedured (procedure), seperated (separated), (received), morter (mortar), pistle (pestle), cos (cost), . Spacing/ highquality (high quality), advance ment 3 . Spacing/ Liq uids (liquids ), person al (personal), further more 3 Word-Division (advancement), Word-Division (furthermore) .Capitalisation I Wish to… (I wish to…), yours faithfully (Yours 28 .Capitalisation may (May), yours faithful… (Yours faithfully) 26 faithfully) Sub-Total 97 Sub-Total 90 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic ABC Company in Sunyani. (ABC Company is in 10 . Syntactic In response to your letter which was receved on 20th May 9 Sunyani.) 2016. (In response to your letter which was received on 29th May, 2016, I wish to …) . Concord How food are … (How foods are/How a food is.. ), 15 . Concord These cage (These cages), one of the best company (one of 16 the investment that have been … (the investment the best companies…), ABC Company have (ABC Company that has been…) has…) . Tense On how food is processing… (On how food is 27 . Tense Food is now process… (Food is now processed), was 25 processed…), was processe (was processed) establish (was established), . Semantic Dangling modifiers 3 . Semantic Dangling modifiers 4 . Lexical This how… (This is how…), As food is import to 18 . Lexical may company (my company), I wish to inform you about 16 human… (As food is important to human) now we … (I wish to inform you about how we…) Sub-Total 73 Sub-Total 70 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma After this process they are … (After this process, 25 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 23 they are…), Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) . Full stop I thank you very much (I thank you very much.) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 11 . Apostrophe factorys (factory’s), fake one’s (fake ones) 5 . Apostrophe factorys (factory’s), Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully), 3 Sub-Total 38 Sub-Total 37 TOTAL 208 TOTAL 197 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 136 The texts that did not see any change at both the pre- and post-test levels are SNMA4, SNMB4 (score, 10/20 apiece); SNMA10, SNMB10 (score, 11/20 apiece); SNMA16, SNMB16 (score, 9/20 apiece); SNMA20, SNMB20 (10/20 marks each); SNLA2, SNLB2 (10/20 each); SNLA3, SNLB3 (9/20 each); SNLA14, SNLB14 (7/20 apiece); SNLA17, SNLB17 (8/20 each); and SNLA18, SNLB18 (10/20 each). For the remaining 22 texts, the post-test scores rather depreciated. This represents 27.5%. A comparative study of Tables 4.3, 4.6, and 4.9 indicates that though the NF intervention has ability of correcting errors; its effectiveness cannot be compared to that of DF and IF. Table 4.9 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of STU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score SNMA1 9 Score SNLA1 9 Score SNMB1 10 appreciated SNLB1 4 depreciated SNMA2 12 Score SNLA2 10 Score SNMB2 11 depreciated SNLB2 10 maintained SNMA3 8 Score SNLA3 9 Score SNMB3 7 depreciated SNLB3 9 maintained SNMA4 10 Score SNLA4 12 Score SNMB4 10 maintained SNLB4 13 appreciated SNMA5 8 Score SNLA5 6 Score SNMB5 9 appreciated SNLB5 11 appreciated SNMA6 13 Score SNLA6 12 Score SNMB6 12 depreciated SNLB6 11 depreciated SNMA7 13 Score SNLA7 14 Score SNMB7 14 appreciated SNLB7 15 appreciated SNMA8 9 Score SNLA8 8 Score SNMB8 8 depreciated SNLB8 9 appreciated SNMA9 7 Score SNLA9 11 Score SNMB9 11 appreciated SNLB9 12 appreciated SNMA10 11 Score SNLA10 13 Score SNMB10 11 maintained SNLB10 11 depreciated SNMA11 11 Score SNLA11 12 Score SNMB11 14 appreciated SNLB11 11 depreciated SNMA12 13 Score SNLA12 10 Score SNMB12 14 appreciated SNLB12 13 appreciated SNMA13 8 Score SNLA13 9 Score SNMB13 11 appreciated SNLB13 10 appreciated SNMA14 9 Score SNLA14 7 Score SNMB14 7 depreciated SNLB14 7 maintained University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 137 SNMA15 7 Score SNLA15 9 Score SNMB15 8 appreciated SNLB15 7 depreciated SNMA16 9 Score SNLA16 10 Score SNMB16 9 maintained SNLB16 13 appreciated SNMA17 7 Score SNLA17 8 Score SNMB17 8 appreciated SNLB17 8 maintained SNMA18 11 Score SNLA18 10 Score SNMB18 10 depreciated SNLB18 10 maintained SNMA19 10 Score SNLA19 11 Score SNMB19 11 appreciated SNLB19 14 appreciated SNMA20 10 Score SNLA20 12 Score SNMB20 10 maintained SNLB20 13 appreciated 4.5 Analysis of KTU Texts The analysis is presented under the three key interventions of Direct Feedback (DF), Indirect Feedback (IF), and No (Control) Feedback (NF) used on the texts of KTU student-participants. The sub-sections highlight the gaps identified in the various pre-test texts and whether the intervention applied was helpful at the post-test level. 4.5.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of KTU This part of the thesis analyzes and discusses issues in the pre- and post-tests of the DF Group from KTU. The section, like the two other sections, is divided into three parts of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.5.1.1 Memorandum Texts of the DF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, the DF student-participants of KTU made some rubrical errors. 10 (50%) of them made wrong alignment error. 2 (KDMA2and 12) wrote informal date formats – 29/09/2016. 1 participant (KDMA4) repeated the writer’s name at the base of the text. 1 participant (KDMA6) wrote a whole sentence as a subject. 5 of them (25%) failed to append signature against senders’ names. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 138 Although memoranda are not supposed to have subscription, 5 (25%) participants introduced subscriptions in their write ups. For example, KDMA used the subscription, Your member, with a signature and a full name. KDMA15 and 18 used Yours faithfully, KDMA19 used Yours sincerely, and KDMA1 used Best plus a signature and a full name. 2 participants (KDMA5, and 18) did not include any heading segment (rubrics) at all. This made the memoranda look like business letters. At the post-test level, when the DF intervention was applied, all participants who committed different forms of rubrical errors at the pre-test level were able to notice the gaps and consequently corrected them. This situation substantiates Swain’s Comprehensible Output Hypothesis (COH). This means that the learners were able to identify their gaps when the DF intervention was employed; and since these gaps were corrected at the post-test stage, learning has taken place (Swain 1985:236). Nevertheless, KDMA11, and 15 repeated the no signature against name error, though KDMA8, 17, and 20 were able to correct it. This means that the 2 participants did not notice the gap although the DF intervention was applied. This however, does not negate the efficacy of the DF intervention as displayed here. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At the pre-test section of Table 4.10, 73 mechanical, 45 grammatical, and 27 punctuation errors were found and corrected. In all, a total of 145 errors were identified and corrected with DF intervention. Table 4.10 also shows the post- test memo errors of the DF participants of KTU. At the post-test section, 27 mechanical, 22 grammatical, and 16 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 139 All put together, a total of 65 errors were recognised and corrected through the DF intervention. 4.5.1.2 Business Letter Texts of the DF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, I found some rubrical errors in the business letters of the DF Group of KTU. 4 (20%) could not properly align the salutation with the subscription. As KDLA1 wrongly aligned Dear Sir with Yours ever; KDLA12, 13, and 19 wrongly aligned Dear Sir with Yours sincerely. This is not in consonance with McClave (2008:132)47. KDL18 did not include a date, and KDLA2 used wrong date format of 19/09/2016. Additionally, I noticed that KDLA8 failed to include a subscription. KDLA15 did not have a signature, and KDLA3, and 4 could not write subscriptions, signature, and full names at the complimentary close section of the letter. Also, KDLA9 wrote only first name at the subscription section. This is not in conformity with the usual practice of full names (first name and surname). Some spacing errors were also made. For example, KDLA3, 14, 15, 16, and 17 did not space the senders’ addresses and the dates. KDLA3, 15, 16, and 17 did not space the recipients’ addresses and the salutations. KDLA19 also set the salutation beneath the heading. This is an unusual practice in business letters. 47 See section 2.2.3.2 Business Letters. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 140 Table 4.10 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test memos of the DF Group of KTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling Onece (Once), promt (prompt), wellfare (welfare), 32 . Spelling . center (centre), program (programme), fansy (fancy), unda 11 authertoruim (auditorium), recieve (receive), (under), situasion (situation), clossing (closing), abult (about), . Spacing/ 24 th November (24th November), 3 . Spacing/ Infact (In fact); here by (hereby), hin der (hinder) 3 Word-Division Word-Division .Capitalisation annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), 36 .Capitalisation . annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), I 12 accounting system (Accounting System Know… (I know…), july (July), I Am (I am) . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 2 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 1 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 73 Sub-Total 27 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Am honoured to write… (I am honoured to write…) 3 . Syntactic . Will expect all of you (I/We will expect all of you.); to 4 discuss about… (to discuss…), . Concord All member (All members), the company have … 10 . Concord She have… (She has…); All staff is invited… (All staff are 5 (the company has…), food are … (foods are …) invited…) . Tense It has being observed… (It has been observed…), 12 . Tense …before it is process… (…before it is processed); …have 5 their hands are clean… (their hands are cleaned…) taking…(…have taken…) . Semantic - . Semantic Dangling modifier 1 . Lexical Stuff (Staff) …from October 22, 2016 and continue 20 . Lexical Stuff (staff) lunching (launching), well meat you… (will meet 7 monthly (… from October 22, 2016 and will you…), discuss about (discuss) continue every month.), … has chocked success… (has chalked success…) Sub-Total 45 Sub-Total 22 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma. E.g. 11 . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma 6 29th September 2016 (29th September, 2016) . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 8 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 5 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon and semi- 3 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon and semi-colon: 3 semi-colon colon. E.g. which include (which includes:) semi-colon listed below; (listed below:) . Apostrophe the companies financial…(the company’s 5 . Apostrophe Companies funds (Company’s funds) 2 financial…), Lets all… (Let’s all…) Sub-Total 27 Sub-Total 16 TOTAL 145 TOTAL 65 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 141 At the post-test level, all the participants in the DF Group of KTU were able to notice the gaps and correct the various rubrical errors created at the pre- test level. Nevertheless, KDLB 14, 15, and 17 repeated the same error of wrong spacing between senders’ addresses and the dates. This, however, does not negate the efficacy of the DF intervention in eradicating rubrical errors. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.11 projects the pre- and post-test letter errors of the DF Group of KTU. At the pre-test section of the Table, 104 mechanical, 132 grammatical, and 42 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. All put together, a total of 278 pre- test language and formatting errors were identified and corrected. At the post- test section, 35 mechanical, 47 grammatical, and 17 punctuation errors were found and corrected. A grand total of 99 language and formatting errors were found and corrected in the post –test scripts of the DF Group of KTU. The margin between the total pre-test and post-test language and formatting errors (278-99=179), clearly gives an impression that majority of the participants in the DF Group of KTU were able to notice the gaps indicated in their pre-test items and corrected these gaps. This situation was possible because of the correcting style (DF) used. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 142 Table 4.11 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test letters of the DF Group of KTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling consummer (consumer), graet (great), writting 59 . Spelling problam (problem), staffs (staff), increasment (increment), 12 (writing), colostrol (cholesterol), equipments furture (future), standadisation (standardisation), atitude (equipment), certisfied (certified), opperate (attitude), personels (personnel), proceedere (procedure), (operate), proccess (process), firt (first) presavatives (preservatives) . Spacing/ Food stuff (Foodstuff), some times (sometimes), 7 . Spacing/ Infact (In fact), fore most (foremost), wel fare (wefare) 4 Word-Division custom ers (customers) Word-Division .Capitalisation Thirdly, Our processing… (Thirdly, our 35 .Capitalisation administrative assistant (Administrative Assistant), yours 17 processing…), ABC company limited (ABC sincerely (Yours sincerely), Abc company limited (ABC Company Limited), Company Limited) . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 2 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 104 Sub-Total 35 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic All employees are medical checked (…All 19 . Syntactic Counting on your usual cooperation (We are/I am counting on 10 employees have been medically checked), I am very your usual cooperation), In the first place, Salting. (The first delight to explain… (I am very delighted to explain) methods is salting) . Concord … one food substances (…one food substance), … 42 . Concord some day (some days), the process are.. (the process are..) 12 tin are …(tins are/tin is), it consist… (it consists…) Salting enable … (salting enable…), . Tense …for future used (…for future use), … officers who 39 . Tense To finished … (To finish…) to be process… (to be processed), 15 has giving us… (… officers who have given us…), It’s been processed (It’s being processed), the company … to informed (to inform), … are use (…are used) have…(the company has…) . Lexical Fish processing my company (Fish processing in my 32 . Lexical Last but not the list… (Last but not the least), will now… (will 10 company), finish goods (finished goods) know…), … according from… (according to…) Sub-Total 132 Sub-Total 47 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Sir. (Dear Sir,), Dear Madam (Dear Madam,) 16 . Comma Omission and wrong placement. E.g. Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 7 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 17 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 6 . Colon and Some are listed below. (Some are listed below:) 5 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or semicolon 2 semi-colon semi-colon . Apostrophe …company goods (company’s goods) 4 . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully (Yours faithfully), 2 Sub-Total 42 Sub-Total 17 TOTAL 278 TOTAL 99 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 143 4.5.1.3 Results of Pre-and Post-Test Memo and Business letter Scripts of the DF Group of KTU Table 4.12 displays results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the DF Group from KTU. The results indicate that for 64 texts (80%), the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated marginally. For 16 of the texts (20%), the score between the pre- and post-test items did not change. The implication is that 80% of the DF Group of KTU gained from DF intervention. That is they were able to reproduce better texts than they did before. This shows that DF intervention aided the DF Group of KTU to notice the gaps in their write ups. Table 4.12 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of the DF Group of KTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KDMA1 8 Score KDLA1 10 Score KDMB1 10 appreciated KDLB1 12 appreciated KDMA2 7 Score KDLA2 10 Score KDMB2 9 appreciated KDLB2 11 appreciated KDMA3 8 Score KDLA3 9 Score KDMB3 8 maintained KDLB3 9 maintained KDMA4 13 Score KDLA4 14 Score KDMB4 14 appreciated KDLB4 15 appreciated KDMA5 7 Score KDLA5 11 Score KDMB5 7 maintained KDLB5 11 maintained KDMA6 12 Score KDLA6 10 Score KDMB6 12 maintained KDLB6 12 appreciated KDMA7 11 Score KDLA7 10 Score KDMB7 11 maintained KDLB7 13 appreciated KDMA8 7 Score KDLA8 11 Score KDMB8 9 appreciated KDLB8 11 maintained KDMA9 10 Score KDLA9 11 Score KDMB9 12 appreciated KDLB9 13 appreciated KDMA10 11 Score KDLA10 10 Score KDMB10 12 appreciated KDLB10 13 appreciated KDMA11 10 Score KDLA11 11 Score KDMB11 12 appreciated KDLB11 13 appreciated KDMA12 10 Score KDLA12 11 Score KDMB12 12 appreciated KDLB12 12 appreciated KDMA13 8 Score KDLA13 9 Score KDMB13 10 appreciated KDLB13 10 appreciated KDMA14 10 Score KDLA14 11 Score KDMB14 12 appreciated KDLB14 13 appreciated KDMA15 8 Score KDLA15 14 Score KDMB15 10 appreciated KDLB15 15 appreciated KDMA16 13 KDLA16 14 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 144 KDMB16 14 Score KDLB16 15 Score appreciated appreciated KDMA17 12 Score KDLA17 15 Score KDMB17 14 appreciated KDLB17 17 appreciated KDMA18 7 Score KDLA18 12 Score KDMB18 9 appreciated KDLB18 13 Appreciated KDMA19 11 Score KDLA19 9 Score KDMB19 12 appreciated KDLB19 13 appreciated KDMA20 14 Score KDLA20 14 Score KDMB20 16 appreciated KDLB20 15 appreciated 4.5.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of KTU This section discusses matters in the pre- and post-tests of the IF Group of KTU. It is divided into 3 parts of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.5.2.1 Memorandum Texts of the IF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors A number of rubrical errors were made in the pre-test memo scripts the IF Group of KTU. Writers of memoranda are not expected to include subscriptions, addresses, and salutations. However, 4 (20%) participants (KIMA1, 6, 18, and 19) wrote Yours faithfully at the base of the memorandum; KIMA4 wrote Yours sincerely. Again, while KIMA2 wrote a sender’s address, KIMA4 included both sender’s and recipient’s addresses. Furthermore, 13 (65%) of the participants made wrong alignment errors. These include: KIMA5-14, and 18-20. (KIMA6, 12, and 18) wrote wrong date formats. As KIMA6, and 12 wrote 29/09/16, KIMA18 wrote 21 August 14. All these date formats are informal styles and do not have a place in formal discourses. Other rubrical errors are: one, lack of signature against senders’ names (KIMA14, 17, and 20); two, lack of an agenda (KIMA14); and three, lack of a subject (KIMA15). At the post-test level, most of the participants were able to identify and correct these rubrical errors. However, KIMB9, 11, and 18 repeated the error of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 145 wrong alignment. A fresh wrong date format (06-10-16) error was made by KIMB5. KIMB9, 12, and 16 also failed to include agenda in their memoranda. In spite of these rubrical errors made at the post-test level, one cannot deny the fact that IF is a strong variable in eradicating rubrical errors. (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.13 portrays language and formatting errors in the pre- and post-test memos of the IF group of KTU. At the pre-test section of Table 4.13, 138 mechanical, 65 grammatical, 18 punctuation errors were identified and corrected. In all, a total of 221 errors were identified and corrected in the pre- test memo scripts of the IF Group of KTU. At the post-test level, 109 mechanical, 52 grammatical, and 24 punctuation errors were found and corrected. A total of 185 post-test errors were seen and corrected in the memoranda of the IF Group of KTU. A comparative analysis of the pre- and post-test stages shows that the IF Group of KTU benefited from the IF intervention slightly. If you deduct the 185 from 221, you get 36. This is an indication that IF has the propensity of facilitating error correction; but its potency cannot be compared with DF. 4.5.2.2 Business Letter Texts of the IF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-stage level, the IF Group of KTU made some rubrical errors in their letters. For example, KIMA2, 4, and 15 wrongly aligned the salutation, Dear Sir, with the subscription, Yours sincerely. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 146 Table 4.13 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test memos of the IF Group of KTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling Finace (Finance), Septembe (September), instrested 62 . Spelling Meting (Meeting), octorber (October), Infrom (Inform) 45 (interested), febuary (February), staffs (staff), Inculusion (Inclusion) duty rusta (duty roster) campuse commance (commence), Admmistrative (campus) excucative (executive) inculusion (inclusion) (Administrative), sept (September), frome (from) (usual), comeing (coming), programe (programme) . Spacing/ …meetingand… (…meeting and…), compa ny 15 .Spacing/ sp oilage (spoilage), proc essing (processing), infact (in fact), 13 Word-Division (company), can not (cannot), competit ive Word-Division inspite (in spite), prep are (prepare), (competitive), here by (hereby) .Capitalisation board of directors (Board of Directors), Annual 61 .Capitalisation Thank You. (Thank you), managing director (Managing 51 general meeting (Annual General Meeting), october Director), This Issue… (This issue), Also, The machine… (October), Golden tulip hotel (Golden Tulip Hotel) (Also, the machine…), Sub-Total 138 Sub-Total 109 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Am grateful to have this opportunity… (I am grateful 10 . Syntactic Scholarship for all members (The first issue is scholarship for 5 to have this opportunity…) all members) . Concord We knows… (We know) All member (All members) 16 . Concord The police is… (The police are…/A police officer is…) 15 . Tense were disburse …(were disbursed…), … The tea is 18 . Tense It is base on… (It is based on…) to held … (to hold) to assists 19 produce… (The tea is produced…) (to assist), Water is not add to … (Water is not added to…) . Semantic 4 . Semantic 2 . Lexical I am pleased to remind that… (I am pleased to 17 . Lexical Will held at…(Will be held at..), …as followers… (…as 11 remind you that…), In the 2015… (In 2015), ..We follows:) distinguish guests (distinguished guests), moíuses organising… (We are organising..) (mice) Sub-Total 65 Sub-Total 52 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma 29th September 2016 (29th September, 2016) 7 . Comma Fortunately we have … (Fortunately, we have…) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 8 . Full stop Thank you, (Thank you.), 11 . Colon and The agenda is as follows (The agenda are as follows 2 . Colon and These are, …(These are:...) 3 semi-colon :) semi-colon . Apostrophe This year AGM (This year’s AGM), …It’s AGM … 1 . Apostrophe The organisations resources (The organisation’s resources) 2 (…Its AGM…) Sub-Total 18 Sub-Total 24 TOTAL 221 TOTAL 185 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 147 Besides, as KIMA1, and 12 used informal date of 29/09/2016, KIMA13 did not include a date at all. KIMA11 also wrote the same informal date (22/01/2016) at the end of both the sender’s and the recipient’s addresses. Moreover, as KIMA6 set the salutation beneath the heading of the letter, KIMA20 failed to include a heading. These practices are rare in fully blocked and modified block letters (McClave 2008:133)48. The complimentary close-related rubrical errors made were: lack of subscription (KIMA5), lack of full names (KIMA4, and 7), lack of first name (KIMA11), lack of signature (KIMA1, 7, and 20), and full name appearing before signature (KIMA19). The spacing-related rubrical errors included: lack of space between the sender’s address and the date (KIMA5, 12, 16, 19, and 20); and lack of space between the recipient’s address and salutation (KIMA1, 5, and 19). At the post-level stage, most of the participants in this category, correctly interpreted the IF intervention and subsequently worked on their rubrical errors. However, KIMB1, and 19 repeated the error of lack of space between the recipient’s address and the salutation. Also, KIMB13 used informal date format although he/she had earlier used a formal date format. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At the pre-test level of Table 4.14, 118 mechanical, 116 grammatical, and 48 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. Therefore, a total of 282 pre-test language and formatting errors were seen and corrected in the business letters of the IF Group of KTU. At the post-test stage, 90 mechanical, 72 grammatical, and 48 These were the formats that I taught the participants, and they were expected to use these and not any other formats. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 148 Table 4.14 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test letters of the IF Group of KTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling explaination (explanation), hygeinic (hygienic), 60 . Spelling Ford and Drugs authourities (Food and Drugs Authority) 45 caterrers (caterers), creat (create), proccessing (processing), proccessed (processed), . Spacing/ food stuff (foodstuff), import ant (important), 20 . Spacing/ here by (hereby), inspite of (in spite of), standa rds 15 Word-Division Inconclusion (In conclusion,), a cross (across) Word-Division (standards) .Capitalisation Director of foods and Drugs… (Director of Foods 35 .Capitalisation Thank You. (Thank you.), administrative assistant 28 and Drugs), managing director (Managing (Administrative Assistant), Director), Yours Faithfully (Yours faithfully) . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 2 Inconsistencies Sub-Total 118 Sub-Total 90 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Hope you continue doing the good job… (I/We 17 . Syntactic First of all, how we extract our raw materials (The first 10 hope you continue to do the good job point is how we extract our raw materials). . Concord Food are (Food is/Foods are), Our chefs and 35 . Concord The company manufacture... (The company 18 caterers has… (Our chefs and caterers have…), a manufactures…), ABC is one of the biggest company in… nice packs (a nice park/nice parks) (ABC is one of the biggest companies in…) . Tense has equip (has equipped), are neatly represent … 46 . Tense …which does processes… (…which does process…), The 29 (are neatly represented…), will allowed (will workers are well train… (The workers are well-trained…) allow..), base on how… (based on how…) how foods prepared… (how foods are prepared…) . Semantic 3 . Semantic 2 . Lexical discuss about (discuss), to emphasize on (to 15 . Lexical The company doesn’t produce it no more (The company 13 emphasize), Yours faithful (Yours faithfully) doesn’t produce it anymore/any longer) brining (bringing), stress on… (stress…) Sub-Total 116 Sub-Total 72 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Mr Appiah (Dear Mr. Appiah,) 24 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 15 . Full stop Dear Mr Appiah (Dear Mr. Appiah,) 22 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 13 . Apostrophe Our companies machines (Our company’s 2 . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully), How food’s are 3 machines…) prepared… (How foods are prepared…) Sub-Total 48 Sub-Total 31 TOTAL 282 TOTAL 193 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 149 31 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. In all, a total of 193 post-test errors on language and formatting were seen and corrected. In comparing and contrasting the pre- and post-test language and formatting errors found in the business letters of the IF Group of KTU, it is obvious that the IF intervention has the propensity of eradicating some errors. This is to say that, on business letters, the IF Group of KTU benefitted from the IF intervention, since at the post-test stage, a difference of 89 less errors were found and corrected. The implication is that IF intervention has the ability of correcting errors; but in juxtaposing the business-letter language and formatting errors found and corrected in the scripts of the DF and IF Groups of KTU, it is obvious that lesser errors were corrected at the post-test level of the DF Group than they were corrected at the post-test level of the IF Group. 4.5.2.3 Results of Pre-and Post-Test Memo and Business letter Scripts of the IF Group of KTU Table 4.15 demonstrates results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the IF Group of KTU. The results show that for 54 texts (67.5%), the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated slightly. For 14 of the texts (17.5%), the scores of the pre- and post-test items did not change. For 12 (15%) of the texts, the scores of the post-tests rather depreciated. This indicates that the IF intervention aided majority (67 .5%) of the IF Group of KTU to notice the gaps in their memoranda and business letters. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 150 Table 4.15 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of the IF Group of KTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KIMA1 8 Score KILA1 9 Score KIMB1 9 appreciated KILB1 10 appreciated KIMA2 8 Score KILA2 9 Score KIMB2 8 maintained KILB2 8 depreciated KIMA3 9 Score KILA3 11 Score KIMB3 8 depreciated KILB3 11 maintained KIMA4 8 Score KILA4 7 Score KIMB4 10 appreciated KILB4 10 appreciated KIMA5 12 Score KILA5 10 Score KIMB5 11 depreciated KILB5 10 maintained KIMA6 8 Score KILA6 8 Score KIMB6 10 appreciated KILB6 11 appreciated KIMA7 9 Score KILA7 8 Score KIMB7 10 appreciated KILB7 10 appreciated KIMA8 14 Score KILA8 12 Score KIMB8 15 appreciated KILB8 14 appreciated KIMA9 6 Score KILA9 13 Score KIMB9 8 appreciated KILB9 12 depreciated KIMA10 7 Score KILA10 11 Score KIMB10 12 appreciated KILB10 13 appreciated KIMA11 7 Score KILA11 10 Score KIMB11 11 appreciated KILB11 11 appreciated KIMA12 9 Score KILA12 10 Score KIMB12 10 appreciated KILB12 10 maintained KIMA13 9 Score KILA13 10 Score KIMB13 12 appreciated KILB13 11 appreciated KIMA14 7 Score KILA14 11 Score KIMB14 10 appreciated KILB14 13 appreciated KIMA15 9 Score KILA15 11 Score KIMB15 12 appreciated KILB15 13 appreciated KIMA16 8 Score KILA16 8 Score KIMB16 8 appreciated KILB16 10 appreciated KIMA17 10 Score KILA17 10 Score KIMB17 12 appreciated KILB17 13 appreciated KIMA18 10 Score KILA18 11 Score KIMB18 9 depreciated KILB18 11 maintained KIMA19 12 Score KILA19 10 Score KIMB19 9 depreciated KILB19 12 appreciated KIMA20 8 Score KILA20 11 Score KIMB20 10 appreciated KILB20 11 maintained 4.5.3 Analysis of the Texts of the NF Group of KTU This part discusses issues in the pre- and post-tests of the NF Group of KTU. It has three sub-divisions of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 151 4.5.3.1 Memorandum Texts of the NF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, 9 participants (45%) made rubrics alignment errors, another 9 did not append signatures against their names. Although subscription is not a feature of memoranda, 4 (20%) participants included, Yours faithfully. Also, KNMA6 wrote Kind regards. KNMA6 included the salutation, Dear Sir, and 4 participants failed to include agenda in their memoranda. Additionally, 3 participants wrote informal date – 29/09/16. At the post-test level, the participants were able to correct most of these errors. However, 4 of the participants (KNMB3, 6, 10, and 16) repeated the error of wrong alignment. Also, 5 participants did not append signatures against senders’ names. KNMB7 repeated the error of wrong date format. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At the pre-test level of Table 4.16, 87 mechanical, 48 grammatical, and 18 punctuation errors were found and corrected. All put together, a total of 153 errors were identified and corrected in the pre-test memo scripts of the NF Group of KTU. At the post-test level, 65 mechanical, 41 grammatical, and 17 punctuation errors were found and corrected. A total of 123 post-test errors were identified and corrected in the memoranda of the NF Group of KTU. A comparison of the total errors at the pre- and post-test stages portrays that the NF intervention enabled the Group to correct some errors. However, this difference between errors corrected at the pre-test and the post-test levels is not minimal. That is, if you subtract 123 (total post-test errors corrected), from 153 (total pre-test errors corrected), you get 30. The implication is the potency of NF intervention, come nowhere near those of DF and IF. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 152 Table 4.16 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test memoranda of the NF Group of KTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling .staffs (staff), finicial (financial), secuirity 39 . Spelling . dem (deem), maneger (manager), sinccerly (sincerely), 25 (security), thier (their) recieve (receive), atended recieve (receive), conferent room (conference room), an naul (attended), inconvinient (inconvenient) (annual), sweteners (sweeteners), . Spacing/ adm inistrative (administrative) incase (in case), 7 . Spacing/ adinfinitum (ad infinitum), here by (hereby), hin der (hinder) 5 Word-Division infact (in fact) Word-Division .Capitalisation … to Improve (…to improve), … the Impending… 41 .Capitalisation . Again, Before we… (Again, before we…), annual general 35 (the impending…), controller and accountant meeting (Annual General Meeting), i am obliged to… (I am general (Controller and Accountant General ), obliged to…), september (September), Sub-Total 87 Sub-Total 65 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic am very happy… (I’m very happy), Failure to attend 5 . Syntactic . Hope to see you anytime soon. (I/We hope to see you 5 the Meeting will attract a fine… (Any staff who fails anytime soon.) to attend the meeting will be made to pay a fine…) . Concord The Secretary have…(The Secretary has…) 12 . Concord Foods is … (Foods are/Food is…), It then call for… (It then 10 calls for…), These fruit juice… (These fruit juices…), . Tense Will be base… (will be based..), the date and time 14 . Tense All these process… (All these processes…), to required… (to 12 includes…(the date and time include) require…), have taking…(…have taken…) . Semantic With high esteem this memo must be read to staff 3 . Semantic This is how is how our products are processed (This is how 1 due to the inevitable existence of our company. our products are processed). . Lexical The aid of the meeting… (The aid of the meeting…), 14 . Lexical It is an honour write to you… (It is an honour to write to 13 Thanks (Thank you), … till further noticed (…till you…), Thank you for your co-operate.(Thank you for your further notice), … co-operation.) Sub-Total 48 Sub-Total 41 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Finally the… (Finally, the…) 7 . Comma Moreover we will… (Moreover, we will…) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 6 . Colon and Details are set below. (Details are set below :) 2 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon and semi-colon: the 3 semi-colon semi-colon agenda are listed below; (the agenda are listed below:) . Quotation We voted yes (We voted ‘Yes’) 1 . Quotation - Sub-Total 18 Sub-Total 17 TOTAL 153 TOTAL 123 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 153 4.5.3.2 Business Letter Texts of the NF Group of KTU (a) Rubrical Errors A number of rubrical errors were found and corrected in the pre-test business letters of the NF Group of KTU. Apart from KNLA9, 13, 15, and 20, the rest (80%) of the participants in the NF Group made an error of lack of space between the sender’s address and the date. Again, 11 (55%) of them made an error of lack of space between the recipient’s address and the salutation. As KNLA20 failed to include a date in his or her letter, KNL1, and 15 failed to append their signatures against the senders’ names. 3 participants (KNLA4, 7, and 13) included informal date of 29/09/16 in their letters. KNLA3 did not write a sender’s name at the complimentary close section of the letter. KNLA8, and 16 wrote senders’ names before appending the signatures. This is unusual in business letters. Furthermore, some errors of wrong alignment of salutation and subscription were made. For example, as KNLA18, and 19 wrongly aligned Dear Sir and Yours sincerely; KNLA13 aligned Dear Sir and Sincerely, and KNLA17 used Dear Sir and Sincerely yours. All these arrangements are erroneous in business letters (McClave 2008:131). At the post-test level, the participants were able to correct some of these errors through the NF intervention. For example, KNLB4, 7, and 13 were able to include formal dates in their post-test scripts. Again, 5 of the participants who earlier made errors of lack of space between the sender’s address and the date, were able to correct this error. However, the NF intervention did not work in terms of correction of errors of wrong alignment as KNLB13, 18, and 19 repeated the error of wrong alignment of salutation and subscription. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 154 (b) Language and Formatting Errors From Table 4.17, 149 mechanical, 63 grammatical, and 34 punctuation errors were found and corrected. In effect, a total of 246 pre-test language and formatting errors were seen and corrected in the business letters of the NF Group of KTU. At the post-test stage, 138 mechanical, 46 grammatical, and 29 punctuation errors were identified and corrected. A total of 213 post-test errors on language and formatting were seen and corrected. In comparing and contrasting the pre- and post-test language and formatting errors found in the business letters of the NF Group of KTU, it is noticeable that the NF method corrected some errors in this category. Thus, a difference of 33 errors less were corrected at the post-test stage. This means that the NF intervention corrected insignificant errors as compared with the significant errors corrected with the DF and IF interventions in the business scripts of KTU participants. 4.5.3.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the NF Group of KTU Table 4.18 shows results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the NF of KTU. For 42 of the texts, the marks of the post-test items appreciated. This represents 52.5%. For 24 of the scripts, the score of the pre- and post-test sustained, and this represents 22.5%. For the remaining 14 texts, the post-test scores relatively depreciated, and this represents 17.5%. The implication of the results is that the NF intervention has the propensity of correcting errors as 52.5% of the scripts in this category appreciated. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 155 Table 4.17 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test letters of the NF Group of KTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling .necesity (necessity), seive (sieve). convenice 65 . Spelling .accreditaton (accreditation), ingrident (ingredient), cann 58 (convenience), alchohol (alcohol ), (can), thoroughl (thorough), september (September . Spacing/ .growthand… (growth and…), further more 23 . Spacing/ no where (nowhere), oflate (of late), infact (in fact), more over 26 Word-Division (furthermore), table spoon (tablespoon) Word-Division (moreover), .Capitalisation … food elements Such as: (…food elements such 57 .Capitalisation food and drugs authority (Food and Drugs Authority), Adunko 51 as:), Finally, After it has… (Finally, after it has…) bitters (Adunko Bitters), Thank You (Thank you) . Paragraph .combination of intended and block paragraphs 4 . Parag raph combination of intended and block paragraphs 3 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 149 Sub-Total 138 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic .hope to submit it soon. (We hope to submit it soon) 6 . Syntactic Thanks for your time. (I thank you for your cooperation.) 7 . Concord .how food are … (how food is/foods are…). Our 19 . Concord Some minute (Some minutes), My company deal with… (My 12 products has … (Our products have…) company deals with), machines that peel (machines that peel) . Tense . the fruits are wash (the fruits are washed), are 21 . Tense How foods are process (How foods are processed …), The 17 process… (are processed…)… it is divided and organisation use… (The organisation uses…) shape into… (…it is divided and shaped into) . Semantic 2 . Semantic - . Lexical . The fruits are peeled by the peeling machine. (The 15 . Lexical .to collect them and pour it… (to collect the drinks and pour 10 fruits are peeled with the peeling machine), We have them…), I am hereby wish to bring to your noticed… (I wish farms which we get… (We have farms where we to bring to your notice…), mortal and pistil (mortar and get…), staffs (staff), Yours faithful (Yours faithfully) pestle), cherish customers (cherished customers), Sub-Total 63 Sub-Total 46 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma .secondly we wash…(secondly, we wash…), 10th 13 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,). First of all the company is… (First of all, 12 July 2016 (10th July, 2016) the company is…) . Full stop Mr Kwame Adu (Mr. Kwame Adu) 15 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 13 . Hyphen .Well being (Well-being) 1 . Hyphen - . Colon and Secondly: when… (Secondly, when…) 4 . Colon and … raw materials such as;… (…raw materials such as:…) 3 semi-colon semi-colon . Apostrophe .human beings life (human beings’ lives) 1 . Apostrophe Its a great privilege … (It’s/It is a great privilege…) 1 Sub-Total 34 Sub-Total 29 TOTAL 246 TOTAL 213 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 156 Table 4.18 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of the NF Group of KTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KNMA1 10 Score KNLA1 9 Score KNMB1 10 maintained KNLB1 10 appreciated KNMA2 9 Score KNLA2 11 Score KNMB2 12 appreciated KNLB2 10 depreciated KNMA3 7 Score KNLA3 11 Score KNMB3 9 appreciated KNLB3 12 appreciated KNMA4 8 Score KNLA4 13 Score KNMB4 8 maintained KNLB4 12 depreciated KNMA5 9 Score KNLA5 10 Score KNMB5 10 appreciated KNLB5 10 maintained KNMA6 8 Score KNLA6 14 Score KNMB6 10 appreciated KNLB6 15 appreciated KNMA7 13 Score KNLA7 13 Score KNMB7 13 maintained KNLB7 14 appreciated KNMA8 9 Score KNLA8 14 Score KNMB8 10 appreciated KNLB8 14 depreciated KNMA9 13 Score KNLA9 11 Score KNMB9 12 depreciated KNLB9 11 maintained KNMA10 8 Score KNLA10 9 Score KNMB10 9 appreciated KNLB10 10 appreciated KNMA11 10 Score KNLA11 11 Score KNMB11 9 depreciated KNLB11 11 maintained KNMA12 13 Score KNLA12 14 Score KNMB12 13 maintained KNLB12 15 appreciated KNMA13 10 Score KNLA13 13 Score KNMB13 11 appreciated KNLB13 13 maintained KNMA14 10 Score KNLA14 13 Score KNMB14 11 appreciated KNLB14 14 appreciated KNMA15 10 Score KNLA15 10 Score KNMB15 10 maintained KNLB15 10 maintained KNMA16 11 Score KNLA16 12 Score KNMB16 12 appreciated KNLB16 11 depreciated KNMA17 10 Score KNLA17 12 Score KNMB17 9 depreciated KNLB17 14 appreciated KNMA18 14 Score KNLA18 12 Score KNMB18 13 depreciated KNLB18 13 appreciated KNMA19 8 Score KNLA19 9 Score KNMB19 9 appreciated KNLB19 9 maintained KNMA20 10 Score KNLA20 12 Score KNMB20 12 appreciated KNLB20 12 maintained 4.6 Analysis of KsTU Texts The analysis is presented on the three key interventions of Direct Feedback (DF), Indirect Feedback (IF), and No (Control) Feedback (NF) used on the texts of University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 157 KsTU student-participants. The focus of this sub-section is to establish whether the intervention applied on the pre-test items collected from KsTU was helpful at the post-test levels. 4.6.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of KsTU Here, the discussion focuses on the pre- and post-tests of the DF Group of KsTU. The sub-headings are: memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.6.1.1 Memorandum Texts of the DF Group of KsTU Here, the analysis looks at the rubrical and language related errors. (a) Rubrical Errors The DF Group of KsTU made some rubrical errors at the pre-test level. For example, 7 of them (35%) made wrong alignment errors. 6 (30%) used subscriptions (for example, Yours faithfully) before appending senders’ signature and names. As 2 (KsDMA8 and 15) (10%) failed to write dates, 9 (45%) used informal dates (an example is 17/03/17). At the post-test level, the application of the DF intervention succeeded in eradicating all the rubrical errors that the DF Group committed. However, some fresh rubrical errors were also committed. For example, KsDMB9 committed wrong alignment error, a situation which was absent at the pre-test level. Again, KsDMB11 did not include the rubric To. This error may be due to human error since at the pre-test level, the participant did not commit such error. (a) Language and Formatting Errors The pre-test section of Table 4.19 portrays the number of language and formatting errors counted and corrected. The mechanical errors were 104, those University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 158 on grammar were 63 and punctuation errors were 29. In total, 196 language and formatting errors were seen and corrected at the pre-test stage of the DF Group of KsTU. At the post-test stage, the errors reduced. This is to say that 41 mechanical, 25 grammatical and 14 punctuation errors were found and corrected. In total, 80 language and formatting errors were found and corrected in the post- test memo scripts of the DF Group of KsTU. 4.6.1.2 Business Letter Texts of the DF Group of KsTU (a) Rubrical Errors A number of pre-test rubrical errors were found in the business letters of the DF Group of KsTU. For example, 6 (30%) of the 20 business letters had informal date formats (e.g. 17/03/17). Five (25%) did not have recipient’s address (KsDLA4, 11, 15, 16, and 18). 6 (25%) did not properly align the salutation with the subscription. For example, KsDLA10, 13, 17, and 20 wrongly matched Dear Sir against Yours sincerely. KsDLA2 did not include sender’s name. At the post- test stage, the use of the DF intervention led to a substantial decrease of these rubrical errors. However, two new rubrical errors were made. For example, while KsDLB7 failed to include a salutation, KsDLB16 did not date the letter. That notwithstanding, the potency of DF was displayed as most rubrical errors were corrected at the post-test level. This corroborates the effectiveness of the DF intervention as seen in the DF Groups of STU and KTU. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 159 Table 4.19– Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of the DF Group of KsTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling fone (phone), sint (sent), tink (think), assembely 47 . Spelling . allert (alert), advocat (advocate), intergrate (integrate), 18 (assembly), recieve (receive), centerr (centre), program (programme), retyrement (retirement), clossing remaind (remind), agendar (agenda) (closing), assisstent (assistant), imform (inform) . Spacing/ .can not (cannot), there fore (therefore), willnot 10 . Spacing/ .en close (enclose); mal practice (malpractice), infact (in 5 Word-Division (will not) Word-Division fact) .Capitalisation annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), 44 .Capitalisation . These Information… (These information…), I Encourage (I 17 may 5 (May 5), monday (Monday) encourage), I am Counting … (I am counting…) . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 1 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 104 Sub-Total 41 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Counting on your co-operation (We are/I am 12 . Syntactic . Were expecting everybody to come… (We are expecting 3 counting on your co-operation) everybody to come….) . Concord One of the issue… (One of the issues…), the 13 . Concord The office have… (The office has…); …everybody are 6 department have … (the department has…), food supposed… (…everybody is supposed…) are … (foods are …) . Tense All staff are encourage to attend. (All staff are 18 . Tense …had wrote… (had written…), to sensitised… (to 8 encouraged to attend.) sensitised…) . Semantic . Semantic Dangling modifier 1 . Lexical There will be a context after the programme (There 20 . Lexical Stuff (staff) lunching (launching), well meat you… (will meet 7 will be a contest after programme.) you…), discuss about (discuss) Sub-Total 63 Sub-Total 25 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma. E.g. 11 . Comma Omission and wrong placement of the comma 5 17th March 2017 (17th March, 2017) . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 9 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of the full stop 4 . Colon and Omission of colon and semi-colon. E.g. The agenda 5 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon and semi-colon: 3 semi-colon include (The agenda include :) semi-colon listed below; (listed below:) . Apostrophe dont (don’t) 4 . Apostrophe Lets come on time… (Let’s/Let us come on time) 2 Sub-Total 29 Sub-Total 14 TOTAL 196 TOTAL 80 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 160 (b) Language and Formatting Errors From Table 4.20, the overall total pre-test language and formatting errors made were 232. The total mechanical errors committed were 129; those on grammar were 80; and the errors on punctuation marks were 33. Again, the overall post- test errors committed were 89. The total post-test mechanical errors made were 42; those on grammar were 39; and those on punctuation marks were 18. If one subtracts the total post-test error marks of 89 from the pre-test marks of 232, the difference is 143. This means that more than 50% errors were corrected at the post-test stage. This further corroborates the potency of the DF intervention in terms of error correction. 4.6.1.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the DF Group of KsTU Table 4.21 shows results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the DF Group of KsTU. The total number of the items was 80. The results show that for 76 texts, the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated. For 4 of the texts, there were no changes between the score of the pre- and the post-test items. These are KsDMA6, KsDMB6 (score, 11/20 apiece); and KsDLA10, KsDLB10 (score, 10/20 apiece). The effect is that 95% of the DF Group of KsTU benefited from DF intervention. This further depicts the strength of the DF intervention in terms of error treatment. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 161 Table 4.20 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of DF Group of KsTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling repitition (repetition), contane (contain), voilate 63 . Spelling rundom (random), bigest (biggest), crame (crime), proces 15 (violate), Febuary (February), ito (iota). (process), aothority (authority), statestics (statistics), . Spacing/ .de duct (deduct), can not (cannot), 18 . Spacing/ con cept (concept), infact (in fact), be fore (before) 11 Word-Division Word-Division .Capitalisation I am Counting on your Co-operation (I am counting 42 .Capitalisation I Write to Inform your Outfit… (I write to inform your 13 on your co-operation), kumasi (Kumasi) outfit), Yours Sincerely (Yours sincerely), food and drugs authority (Food and Drugs Authority) . Paragraph Mixture of block and indented paragraphs 6 . Paragraph Mixture of block and indented paragraphs 3 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 129 Sub-Total 42 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic These are the keys points: (These are the key 16 . Syntactic I wish inform you… (I wish to inform you), One salting (The 5 points:) first process is salting..) . Concord …the issues is (…the issues are/the issue is…), … 24 . Concord Our organisation is one of the firms that is … (Our 12 tin are …(tins are/tin is), it consist… (it consists…) organisation is one of the firms that are…) . Tense …We went to the Chairman to collected (…We went 21 . Tense We have already submit our documents to… (We have already 12 to the Chairman to collect..), … the machines are fix submitted our documents to…) to be process… (to be in the various offices… (…the machines are fixed in processed), to be issue …(to be issued…), the various offices), … . Semantic . Semantic . Lexical Processing gari in the organisation is… (Processing 19 . Lexical … All what we want to … (… All that we want to …), …It 10 of gari in the organisation is), …detail report… comprises of .. (…It comprises…), (…detailed report…) Sub-Total 80 Sub-Total 39 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Omission of comma. Dear Sir. (Dear Sir,) 12 . Comma Omission of comma. E.g. Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 6 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 14 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 6 . Colon and The processes are listed below. (The processes are 3 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or semicolon 4 semi-colon listed below:) semi-colon . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully (Yours faithfully), 4 . Apostrophe Lets come together… (Let’s/Let us come together…) 2 Sub-Total 33 Sub-Total 18 TOTAL 232 TOTAL 89 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 162 Table 4.21 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of KsTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KsDMA1 12 Score KsDLA1 9 Score KsDMB1 13 appreciated KsDLB1 11 appreciated KsDMA2 10 Score KsDLA2 11 Score KsDMB2 12 appreciated KsDLB2 12 appreciated KsDMA3 13 Score KsDLA3 9 Score KsDMB3 14 appreciated KsDLB3 11 appreciated KsDMA4 9 Score KsDLA4 12 Score KsDMB4 12 appreciated KsDLB4 13 appreciated KsDMA5 8 Score KsDLA5 9 Score KsDMB5 9 appreciated KsDLB5 11 appreciated KsDMA6 11 Score KsDLA6 10 Score KsDMB6 11 maintained KsDLB6 12 appreciated KsDMA7 8 Score KsDLA7 9 Score KsDMB7 12 appreciated KsDLB7 12 appreciated KsDMA8 14 Score KsDLA8 12 Score KsDMB8 15 appreciated KsDLB8 13 appreciated KsDMA9 10 Score KsDLA9 10 Score KsDMB9 11 appreciated KsDLB9 11 appreciated KsDMA10 8 Score KsDLA10 10 Score KsDMB10 10 appreciated KsDLB10 10 maintained KsDMA11 7 Score KsDLA11 8 Score KsDMB11 10 appreciated KsDLB11 11 appreciated KsDMA12 9 Score KsDLA12 9 Score KsDMB12 11 appreciated KsDLB12 14 appreciated KsDMA13 9 Score KsDLA13 8 Score KsDMB13 13 appreciated KsDLB13 10 appreciated KsDMA14 9 Score KsDLA14 6 Score KsDMB14 11 appreciated KsDLB14 9 appreciated KsDMA15 6 Score KsDLA15 11 Score KsDMB15 10 appreciated KsDLB15 10 depreciated KsDMA16 8 Score KsDLA16 10 Score KsDMB16 12 appreciated KsDLB16 14 appreciated KsDMA17 9 Score KsDLA17 9 Score KsDMB17 11 appreciated KsDLB17 11 appreciated KsDMA18 11 Score KsDLA18 9 Score KsDMB18 12 appreciated KsDLB18 12 appreciated KsDMA19 10 Score KsDLA19 7 Score KsDMB19 13 appreciated KsDLB19 11 appreciated KsDMA20 12 Score KsDLA20 9 Score KsDMB20 13 appreciated KsDLB20 11 appreciated 4.6.2 Analysis of the Text of the IF Group of KsTU This subsection discusses three main issues: memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results of the IF Group of KsTU. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 163 4.6.2.1 Memorandum Texts of the IF Group of KsTU Here, the analysis focuses on rubrical, and language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, the IF Group of KsTU recorded some rubrical errors. For example, KsIMA8 did not write any rubrics at all. The rubrics of 2 participants (KsIMA11, and 15) did not have To; therefore, the recipient’s information was missing. 5 participants (25%) included subscriptions. 7 (35%) provided informal dates. At the post-text stage, the IF corrector facilitated the participants to correct some rubrical errors. For example, 4 (20%) of the 5 participants who initially included subscriptions, interpreted correctly the IF intervention used, and produced memoranda which did not have subscriptions. However, some participants committed fresh rubrical errors which were absent at the pre-test section. For instance, KsIDMB2 did not append a signature against the sender’s name, a situation which was absent at the pre-test level. (b) Language and Formatting Errors From the pre-test section of Table 4.22, the total mechanical errors made were 124; the errors on grammar were 63; and those on punctuation marks were 39. Therefore, a cumulative score of 226 was recorded for all categories of pre-test language and formatting memo errors found in the scripts of the IF Group of KsTU. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 164 Table 4.22 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of the IF Group of KsTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling anual (annual), agender (agenda), entaprise 54 . Spelling sencirely (sincerely) propa (proper) meating (meeting), busness 42 (enterprise), limeted (limited), anouncement (business), cuont (count),, bevereges (beverages) (announcement), organasation (organisation) . Word- dis cus (discuss), infact (in fact), 25 . Word- Infact (in fact), inspite (in spite), 18 Division Division .Capitalisation .thank you (Thank you.). We Write (We write) 45 .Capitalisation , march (March), internet (Internet) 38 Sub-Total 124 Sub-Total 98 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic I hope your cooperative with me (I hope you will 14 . Syntactic We will expecting you all … (We will be expecting you all…) 12 cooperate with me?) . Concord The organisation does not has… (The organisation 15 . Concord Every member have to…. (Every member has to…), We did not 16 does not have…) knew… (We did not know…) . Tense … be inform (be informed), have issue… (have 21 . Tense All staff are invite… (All staff are invited…), Try to avoids 18 issued…) lateness (Do well to avoid lateness), . Semantic - . Semantic The manager was driven from the house by the driver (The 4 driver brought the manager from the house) . Lexical I wish to bring your notice… (I wish to bring to your 13 . Lexical Try to submit and send all the needed documents… (Do well to 11 notice…) submit all the needed documents…) Sub-Total 63 Sub-Total 61 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma For example the R&D… (For example, the R&D…) 14 . Comma In the first place we have… (In the first place, we have…) 10 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 15 . Full stop We count on your cooperation (We count on your cooperation.) 17 . Colon and The agenda for the meeting are as follows. (The 5 . Colon and The agenda for the meeting are as follows; (The agenda for the 8 semi-colon agenda for the meeting are as follows:) semi-colon meeting are as follows:) . Apostrophe Registrar General Office (Registrar General’s 5 . Apostrophe The firms department for Human Resource…(The firm’s 6 Office) department for Human Resource…) . Hyphen - . Hyphen 2 Sub-Total 39 Sub-Total 43 TOTAL 226 TOTAL 202 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 165 At the post-test section, a total of 98 mechanical, 61 grammatical, and 43 punctuation errors were recorded. The total for all categories of post-test language and formatting memo errors found in the scripts of the IF Group of KsTU was 202. If I deduct 202 from 226, I get 24. The implication is that although the IF intervention was able to correct some errors of the IF Group of KsTU, its potency cannot be compared with that of DF; since the difference recorded is minimal. 4.6.2.2 Business Letter Texts of the IF Group of KsTU This section focuses on the analyses of the rubrical and the language and formatting errors in the letters of the IF Group of KsTU. (a) Rubrical Errors Some rubrical errors were corrected at the pre-test level. For example, 4 (20%) letters did not have recipients’ address. 8 (40%) participants misaligned the salutation with the subscription. An example from KsILA6 is Dear Sir as against Your sincerely. But for 2 participants (KsILB13 and 18) who repeated the same rubrical error of wrong date format, the IF intervention would have facilitated the correction of all errors. The IF intervention, thus, was strong in correcting rubrical errors emanating from address, salutation, heading, subscription, signature, full name; but it was feeble in correcting date format errors. Maybe, the participants’ laxity in terms of writing dates might have accounted for the repetition of this error. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 166 Table 4.23 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of the IF Group of KsTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling .griling (grilling), deligate (delegate), plocess 62 . Spelling .recieve (receive), distellers (distillers), det (debt), succesful 42 (process), fone (Phone [infor], telephone, mobile (successful), limitetion (limitation), iceing (icing) phone [formal]) . Word- Infront (in front), infact (in fact), incase (in case) 42 . Word- More over (Moreover), like wise (likewise), here by 43 Division/Spacing Division/Spacing (hereby), infact (in fact), .Capitalisation . yours sincerely (Yours sincerely), i (I), 21 .Capitalisation march (March), registrar general (Registrar General) 26 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 5 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 130 Sub-Total 114 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic The machines are not adequate enough (The 21 . Syntactic One, salting. (The first process is salting). Also, grilling. 19 machines are not adequate/The machines are not (Another process is grilling), Should in case we finish… enough) (Should we finish…/ In case we finish…) . Concord The firm don’t have… (The firm does not have/The 59 . Concord These process… (These processes…), 33 firm doesn’t have…), . Tense …those involve… (those involved…), They told us 46 . Tense How foods is process… (How foods are processed…), 24 they will issued… (They told us they will issue…) These are the ingredient we use… (These are the ingredients we use…) . Semantic Our fishermen always go to the bank to bring the 6 . Semantic We went to the registrar general office to demand for a 4 fish. (Our fishermen always go to the bank of the permit. (We went to the Registrar General’s office to river to bring the fish/Our fishermen always go to demand a permit.) the financial institution to bring the fish) . Lexical A food bow (A food bowl), We came on the Head 26 . Lexical Roasting is not among of our food processing methods … 16 Office (We came to the Head Office) (Roasting is not among our food processing methods) Sub-Total 158 Sub-Total 96 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Madam (Dear Madam,) 12 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) , In fact (in fact,) 13 . Full stop We submit to you our documents (We submit to 14 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 11 you our documents.) . Apostrophe .your’s outfit (your outfit), 5 . Apostrophe The registrar general office (The Registrar General’s Office) 3 Sub-Total 31 Sub-Total 27 TOTAL 298 TOTAL 237 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 167 (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.23 displays the business letter errors corrected at pre- and post-test levels of the scripts of the IF Group of KsTU. From the pre-test section, a total of 130 mechanical errors were seen and corrected. The grammatical errors were 158, and the punctuation errors were 31. The cumulative total errors recorded were 298. At the post-test section, a total of 114 mechanical, 96 grammatical, and 27 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. Cumulatively, 237 errors were found and corrected in the post-test business letter scripts of the IF Group of KsTU. If 237 is subtracted from 298, a difference of 61 errors is attained. What this means is that the IF intervention is able to correct some errors; but juxtaposing the application of the IF intervention on the business letters of the IF Group of KsTU, and the DF intervention used on the business letters of the DF Group, it is obvious that the DF corrects errors better than the IF. 4.6.2.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the IF Group of KsTU Table 4.24 shows results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the IF Group of KsTU. The results indicate that for 18 of the texts (22.5%), the scores of the pre- and post-test items did not change. For 6 (7.5%) of the texts, the scores of the post-tests slightly depreciated. But, for 56 texts (70.5%), the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated a little. This is an indication that the IF intervention supported 70% majority of the IF Group of KsTU to become aware of the errors in their memoranda and business letters. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 168 Table 4.24 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of KsTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KsIMA1 11 Score KsILA1 9 Score KsIMB1 13 appreciated KsILB1 13 appreciated KsIMA2 10 Score KsILA2 10 Score KsIMB2 9 depreciated KsILB2 12 appreciated KsIMA3 9 Score KsILA3 8 Score KsIMB3 10 appreciated KsILB3 13 appreciated KsIMA4 9 Score KsILA4 8 Score KsIMB4 9 maintained KsILB4 8 maintained KsIMA5 11 Score KsILA5 9 Score KsIMB5 12 appreciated KsILB5 14 appreciated KsIMA6 12 Score KsILA6 10 Score KsIMB6 13 appreciated KsILB6 15 appreciated KsIMA7 11 Score KsILA7 7 Score KsIMB7 11 maintained KsILB7 10 appreciated KsIMA8 8 Score KsILA8 9 Score KsIMB8 12 appreciated KsILB8 8 depreciated KsIMA9 9 Score KsILA9 12 Score KsIMB9 9 maintained KsILB9 13 appreciated KsIMA10 6 Score KsILA10 9 Score KsIMB10 8 appreciated KsILB10 11 appreciated KsIMA11 9 Score KsILA11 13 Score KsIMB11 9 maintained KsILB11 14 appreciated KsIMA12 10 Score KsILA12 6 Score KsIMB12 13 appreciated KsILB12 12 appreciated KsIMA13 8 Score KsILA13 12 Score KSIMB13 11 appreciated KsILB13 12 maintained KsIMA14 12 Score KsILA14 12 Score KsIMB14 10 depreciated KsILB14 12 maintained KsIMA15 10 Score KsILA15 11 Score KsIMB15 13 appreciated KsILB15 13 appreciated KsIMA16 9 Score KsILA16 10 Score KsIMB16 14 appreciated KsILB16 13 appreciated KsIMA17 9 Score KsILA17 11 Score KsIMB17 13 appreciated KsILB17 15 appreciated KsIMA18 9 Score KsILA18 10 Score KsIMB18 14 appreciated KsILB18 10 maintained KsIMA19 9 Score KsILA19 12 Score KsIMB19 9 maintained KsILB19 13 appreciated KsIMA20 9 Score KsILA20 12 Score KsIMB20 10 appreciated KsILB20 14 appreciated 4.6.3 Analysis of the Text of the NF Group of KsTU This subcategory discusses three main issues of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results of the NF Group of KsTU. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 169 4.6.3.1 Memorandum Texts of the NF Group of KsTU This sub-section has been categorized into rubrical and business letter errors. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, some rubrical errors were found in the memoranda of the NF Group of KsTU. For example, 10 (50%) candidates committed errors of alignment. Five (25%) wrote wrong date formats (for example, 17/03/17). Four (20%) included salutations and subscriptions (for example, Dear Sir, and Your faithfully). Two (10%) did not include agenda. At the post-test section, the NF intervention facilitated the treatment of errors of date format, recipient segment, salutation, and subscription. However, the participants could not work on the errors of alignment and agenda. Again, a fresh error of no heading was created by KsNMB15. This error could be attributed to forgetfulness since the participant had earlier provided a heading at the pre-test level. (b) Language and Formatting Errors From Table 4.25, the total pre-test language and formatting errors corrected were 198. Out of this number, 111 mechanical; 63 grammatical; and 24 punctuation errors were corrected. At the post-test level, a total of 201 errors were committed. Out of this figure, 108 mechanical; 76 grammatical; and 17 punctuation errors were corrected. The discrepancy between the total pre-test errors of 198, and post-test errors of 201 in the memos of the NF Group of KsTU, gives an indication that the NF intervention could not correct language and formatting errors at the post- test level. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 170 Table 4.25 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of NF Group of KsTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling agendar (agenda), reqwest (request), procurment 54 . Spelling Comfrance Hall (Conference Hall), sic books (six books), 52 (procurement), confrence (conference), tarms unversity (university), conuting (counting), anual (annual) (terms), increasment (increment) discusion (discussion), agender (agenda), . Word-Division .. ofmeeting (of meeting), can not (cannot), com 23 . Word-Division staffmembers (staff members), draw backs (drawbacks), 20 /Spacing pare (compare), /Spacing .Capitalisation march (March), 34 .Capitalisation monday (Monday), thier (their), 36 Sub-Total 111 Sub-Total 108 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Will expect all of you. (I/We will expect all of you.) 15 . Syntactic We appointed and orient some junior staff last week. (We 14 appointed and oriented some Junior Staff last week. ) . Concord Most of us don’t used…(Most of us do not use…) 20 . Concord To prepared… (to prepare…) 25 . Tense be base … (be based..), 4 . Tense To be conclude,,, (to conclude…), 13 . Semantic The agenda for members of staff who coming to 11 . Semantic In line with the XYZ company limited I will like to remind 9 held the meeting is about… (The agenda for the members of staff of… (In line with the policy of XYZ meeting are as follows:) Company Limited on meetings, I will like to remind members of staff of…) . Lexical The organisation also lack of clean water (The 13 . Lexical The reason for this meet is to… (The reason for this meeting is 15 organisation also lacks clean water), I wish to to…), The company is rewarding of the staff members.. (The infrom your about… (I wish to inform you of…) company is rewarding staff members...) Sub-Total 63 Sub-Total 76 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma 8th March 2017 (8th March, 2017) 8 . Comma 8th March 2017 (8th March, 2017) 7 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 7 . Full stop Thank you, (Thank you.) 5 . Colon and The following are the agenda for the programme. 6 . Colon and The agenda is to discuss about (The agenda are to discuss:), 3 semi-colon (The following are the agenda for the programme:) semi-colon as follows (as follows:) . Apostrophe The manager office (The manager’s office) 3 . Apostrophe The manager office… (The manager’s office) 2 Sub-Total 24 Sub-Total 17 TOTAL 198 TOTAL 201 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 171 4.6.3.2 Business Letter Texts of the NF Group of KsTU This section discusses the rubrical and the language and formatting errors in the business letters of the NF Group of KsTU. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, some rubrical errors were corrected in the business letter texts of the NF Group of KsTU. For example, 3 (15%) participants did not provide recipients’ addresses. 5 (25%) used informal date formats. KsNLA8 decided to set the salutation beneath the heading. At the post-test section, the NF intervention contributed insignificantly as most of the rubrical errors committed at the pre-test stage were repeated. (b) Language and Formatting Errors From Table 4.26, the total pre-test language and formatting errors corrected were 275. Out of this number, 138 mechanical, 98 grammatical, and 39 punctuation errors were corrected. At the post-test level, a total of 278 errors were committed. Out of this figure, 133 mechanical, 105 grammatical, and 40 punctuation errors were corrected. If you subtract the total post-test errors of 278 from the pre-test of 275, you get -2. This shows that the NF intervention could not correct errors at the post-test stage in the letters of the NF Group of KsTU. 4.6.3.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the NF Group of KsTU Table 4.27 highlights the results. The Table depicts that for 30 (37.5%) of the texts, the marks of the post-test items appreciated. For 26 (32.5%) of the scripts, the score of the pre- and post-test maintained. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 172 Table 4.26 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of the NF Group of KsTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling aplication (application), growt (growth), rice and 65 . Spelling promice (promise), iterms (items), tomato past (tomato 61 stiw (rice and stew), recieved (received), procesing paste), moden (modern), certficate, (certificate), instrements (processing), managar (manager), (instruments), drusg (drugs) . Word- satis fied (satisfied), re do (redo), border line 28 . Word- we put then in to bottles… (we put them into bottles…), 22 Division/Spacing (borderline), food stuffs (foodstuffs), economic al Division/Spacing further more (furthermore), infact (in fact) (economical) .Capitalisation food and drug authority (Food and Drugs 45 .Capitalisation our branch manager (our Branch Manager), Dear sir (Dear 50 Authority), Abc company limited (ABC Company Sir,), yours Faithfully (Yours faithfully,) Limited), Sub-Total 138 Sub-Total 133 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic In line the directive of food and drugs authority. (In 12 . Syntactic Counting on your usual co-operation. (I am/We are counting 11 line with the directives of Food and Drugs on your usual co-operation). Authority, I write to ….), . Concord The organisation have… (The organisation has…), 35 . Concord ABC Company Limited process… (ABC Company Limited 40 Does food and drugs board gives… (Does food and processes…), one of the product… (one of the products…), drugs board give…), this foods . Tense Our food are process… (our foods are 25 . Tense Sometimes, we did not use preservatives… (Sometimes, we 28 processed…), We have decided to collected… (We do not use preservatives…), was form… (was formed) have decided to collect…), . Semantic Dangling structures 3 . Semantic Dangling structures 4 . Lexical With reference of the directives… (With reference 23 . Lexical We sell our products at cheap prize. (We sell our products at 22 to the directives…), We will stick to your advise… cheap price), The company has not assessed the fund. (The (We will stick to your advice…), company has not accessed the fund), Sub-Total 98 Sub-Total 105 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Fortunately we have… (Fortunately, we have…) 19 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 20 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 15 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 17 . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully,) 5 . Apostrophe The companies goods (The company’s/companies’ goods), 3 Sub-Total 39 Sub-Total 40 TOTAL 275 TOTAL 278 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 173 For the remaining 24 (30%) texts, the post-test scores depreciated moderately. A comparative analysis of Tables 4.21, 4.24, and 4.27 shows that though the NF intervention has capacity of modifying errors; its efficiency cannot be compared to those of DF and IF. Table 4.27 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of KsTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score KsNMA1 10 Score KsNLA1 9 Score KsNMB1 10 maintained KsNLB1 12 appreciated KsNMA2 13 Score KsNLA2 12 Score KsNMB2 12 depreciated KsNLB2 12 maintained KsNMA3 8 Score KsNLA3 9 Score KsNMB3 10 appreciated KsNLB3 7 depreciated KsNMA4 10 Score KsNLA4 14 Score KsNMB4 12 appreciated KsNLB4 14 maintained KsNMA5 12 Score KsNLA5 11 Score KsNMB5 12 maintained KsNLB5 11 maintained KsNMA6 15 Score KsNLA6 12 Score KsNMB6 13 depreciated KsNLB6 14 appreciated KsNMA7 13 Score KsNLA7 13 Score KsNMB7 14 appreciated KsNLB7 14 depreciated KsNMA8 9 Score KsNLA8 9 Score KsNMB8 9 maintained KsNLB8 8 depreciated KsNMA9 11 Score KsNLA9 12 Score KsNMB9 11 maintained KsNLB9 12 maintained KsNMA10 11 Score KsNLA10 12 Score KsNMB10 10 depreciated KsNLB10 11 depreciated KsNMA11 12 Score KsNLA11 13 Score KsNMB11 13 appreciated KsNLB11 15 appreciated KNMA12 14 Score KsNLA12 14 Score KsSNMB12 14 maintained KsNLB12 13 depreciated KsNMA13 13 Score KsNLA13 14 Score KsNMB13 12 depreciated KsNLB13 13 depreciated KsNMA14 12 Score KsNLA14 8 Score KsNMB14 12 maintained KsNLB14 12 appreciated KsNMA15 13 Score KsNLA15 9 Score KsNMB15 14 appreciated KsNLB15 12 appreciated KsNMA16 12 Score KsNLA16 13 Score KsNMB16 12 maintained KsNLB16 13 maintained KsNMA17 9 Score KsNLA17 8 Score KsNMB17 9 maintained KsNLB17 13 appreciated KsNMA18 11 Score KsNLA18 10 Score KsNMB18 14 appreciated KsNLB18 12 appreciated KsNMA19 10 Score KsNLA19 11 Score KsNMB19 9 depreciated KsNLB19 14 maintained KsNMA20 10 Score KsNLA20 13 Score KsNMB20 12 appreciated KsNLB20 12 depreciated University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 174 4.7 Analysis of HTU Texts The analysis focuses on the three major groupings of DF, IF, and NF of HTU. 4.7.1 Analysis of the Text of the DF Group of HTU Here, the discussion focuses on the memos, letters, and results of the DF Group. 4.7.1.1 Memorandum Texts of the DF Group of HTU This sub-section looks at the rubrical and language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, some rubrical errors were found and corrected. For instance, 2 (10%) participants included subscriptions (for example, Yours faithfully), 7 (35%) made alignment errors, and 4 (20%) provided informal dates. At the post- test level, the DF intervention succeeded in correcting all the rubrical errors identified. (b) Language and Formatting Errors From Table 4.28, a total of 209 pre-test language and formatting errors were seen and corrected. Out of this figure, 95 mechanical, 79 grammatical, and 35 punctuation errors were corrected. However, at the post-test level, a total of 86 errors were seen and corrected. Out of this number, 36 mechanical, 33 grammatical, and 17 punctuation errors were identified and corrected. The difference of 123 less errors, between the pre- and the post-test errors, portrays the potency of the DF intervention in correction of rubrical errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 175 Table 4.28 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of the DF Group of HTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling openning (opening), clossing (closing), (premise), 41 . Spelling closseng (closing), abolt (about), wonda (wonder), followes 13 invirted (invited), discused (discussed), (follows), aboult (about), numberng (numbering) . Spacing/ 24 th March (24th March), conference hall 12 . Spacing/ Infact (In fact); here by (hereby), hi nder (hinder) 7 Word-Division (Conference Hall), Word-Division .Capitalisation annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), 39 .Capitalisation . annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), We 15 monday (Monday), I Write … (I write), Always… (We always…), We Are … (We are…) . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 3 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 1 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 95 Sub-Total 36 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Am honoured to write… (I am honoured to write…), 12 . Syntactic . Will expect you (I/We will expect you.); to discuss about… 6 Hope you will make it (I hope you will make it), (to discuss…), . Concord ), the company have … (the company has…), food 19 . Concord She have… (She has…); 7 are … (foods are …) . Tense It has being observed… (It has been observed…), 21 . Tense …before it is process… (…before it is processed); …have 8 their hands are clean… (their hands are cleaned…) taking…(…have taken…) . Semantic Dangling modifiers 4 . Semantic Dangling modifiers 1 . Lexical as we agreed in our… (as we agreed on in our…), 23 . Lexical Stuff (staff) lunching (launching), well meat you… (will meet 11 has chocked success… (has chalked success…) you…), discuss about (discuss) Sub-Total 79 Sub-Total 33 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Also we will discuss… (Also, we will discuss…) 15 . Comma Sadly the company… (Sadly, the company…) 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 10 . Full stop Please be punctual (Please be punctual.) 4 . Colon and …which include (…which includes:) 6 . Colon and … are listed below; (…are listed below:) 3 semi-colon semi-colon . Apostrophe Lets all… (Let’s all…) 4 . Apostrophe The companys financial…(The company’s financial…), 2 Sub-Total 35 Sub-Total 17 TOTAL 209 TOTAL 86 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 176 4.7.1.2 Business Letter Texts of the DF Group of HTU This sub-division discusses the rubrical and the language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors The DF Group of HTU made some rubrical errors at the pre-test level. For example, HDLA5 used informal date form of 24/03/17. This is unacceptable in formal letters. HDLA9, and 10 mismatched the salutation, Dear Sir, with the subscription, Yours sincerely. At the post-test stage, the application of the DF intervention led to huge decrease of these pre-test rubrical errors. This confirms the superiority of the DF intervention in error correction. However, fresh rubrical errors were created. For instance, HDLB19 wrote the full name of the sender before appending the signature, a situation which was absent at the pre-test level. This could be a clear case of human error since at the pre-test stage, the participant appended the signature first before writing the full name. (b) Language and Formatting Errors According to Table 4.29, the total pre-test language and formatting letter errors for DF Group of HTU was 318. From this figure, 152 mechanical, 138 grammatical, and 28 punctuation errors were found and corrected. Nevertheless, at the post-test level, a total of 97 errors were identified and corrected. Out of this number, 36 mechanical, 46 grammatical, and 15 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. The difference of 198 less errors between the pre- and the post-test errors attained, further interprets the effectiveness of the DF intervention in correction of language and formatting errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 177 Table 4.29 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of DF Group of HTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling expireing (expiring), maked (made), constualting 62 . Spelling proceedere (procedure), doucumentation (documentation) 13 (consulting), limitted (limited), limite (limit), explaination (explanation) . Spacing/ under go (undergo), first ly (firstly), 46 . Spacing/ Our Foods (Our foods), yours faithfully (Yours faithfully), 11 Word-Division Word-Division .Capitalisation Dear madam (Dear Madam), ho (Ho), Dear sir 39 .Capitalisation i Write to… (I write to…), march (March) 10 (Dear Sir), . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 5 . Paragraph Mixture of indented and block paragraphs 2 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 152 Sub-Total 36 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Process of gari take long time (Processing of gari 28 . Syntactic I humbly write you (I humbly write to you), first and foremost, 11 takes a long time), Freezing (The first one is freezing . Concord My company process… (My company processes…) 38 . Concord How foods is processed… (How foods are processed…) 10 . Tense to processed… (to process…/to be processed…), 45 . Tense How foods are processing in my company (How foods are 14 …is not apply (… is not applied), processed in my company), . Semantic 4 . Semantic 2 . Lexical This from the quality assurance… (This is from the 23 . Lexical The incident when happened… (The incident that 9 Quality Assurance…), happened…), All what I said… (All that I said…) Sub-Total 138 Sub-Total 46 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Sir. (Dear Sir,) 12 . Comma Omission and wrong placement of comma. E.g. Dear Sir 9 (Dear Sir,) . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 9 . Full stop Omission and wrong placement of full stop 4 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or 2 . Colon and Omission and wrong placement of colon or semicolon - semi-colon semicolon semi-colon . Apostrophe …company goods (company’s goods) 5 . Apostrophe Your’s sincerely (Yours sincerely), 2 Sub-Total 28 Sub-Total 15 TOTAL 318 TOTAL 97 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 178 4.7.1.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the DF Group of HTU Table 4.30 portrays results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the DF Group of HTU. The results indicate that for 72 (90%) of texts, the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated. For 6 (7.5%) of the texts, there were no changes between the scores of the pre- and the post-test items. However, the post-test score of one participant (HDMB19), depreciated. Though the participant had a pre-test memo score of 12/20; at the post-test level, he or she registered 7/20. His or her inability to complete the post-test memo contributed to this situation. The potency of the DF intervention was further displayed as the scores of 90% of the DF Group of HTU appreciated. Table 4.30 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of DF Group of HTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score HDMA1 11 Score HDLA1 11 Score HDMB1 12 appreciated HDLB1 11 maintained HDMA2 9 Score HDLA2 12 Score HDMB2 12 appreciated HDLB2 13 appreciated HDMA3 12 Score HDLA3 10 Score HDMB3 14 appreciated HDLB3 11 appreciated HDMA4 10 Score HDLA4 11 Score HDMB4 11 appreciated HDLB4 12 appreciated HDMA5 9 Score HDLA5 11 Score HDMB5 11 appreciated HDLB5 13 appreciated HDMA6 12 Score HDLA6 12 Score HDMB6 13 appreciated HDLB6 14 appreciated HDMA7 9 Score HDLA7 10 Score HDMB7 12 appreciated HDLB7 12 appreciated HDMA8 13 Score HDLA8 13 Score HDMB8 14 appreciated HDLB8 15 appreciated HDMA9 7 Score HDLA9 9 Score HDMB9 10 appreciated HDLB9 11 appreciated HDMA10 6 Score HDLA10 9 Score HDMB10 10 appreciated HDLB10 11 appreciated HDMA11 10 Score HDLA11 9 Score HDMB11 10 maintained HDLB11 11 appreciated HDMA12 12 Score HDLA12 10 Score HDMB12 13 appreciated HDLB12 12 appreciated HDMA13 11 Score HDLA13 9 Score HDMB13 12 appreciated HDLB13 10 appreciated HDMA14 14 Score HDLA14 12 Score HDMB14 15 appreciated HDLB14 14 appreciated University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 179 HDMA15 9 Score HDLA15 10 Score HDMB15 10 appreciated HDLB15 11 depreciated HDMA16 9 Score HDLA16 12 Score HDMB16 12 appreciated HDLB16 12 maintained HDMA17 10 Score HDLA17 10 Score HDMB17 13 appreciated HDLB17 11 appreciated HDMA18 12 Score HDLA18 11 Score HDMB18 13 appreciated HDLB18 12 Appreciated HDMA19 12 Score HDLA19 9 Score HDMB19 7 depreciated HDLB19 11 appreciated HDMA20 11 Score HDLA20 12 Score HDMB20 13 appreciated HDLB20 13 appreciated 4.7.2 Analysis of the Texts of the IF Group of HTU This sub-section analyses the memorandum and the business letter texts of the IF Group of HTU. The analysis is segmented into three parts of memorandum texts, business letter texts, and results. 4.7.2.1 Memorandum Texts of the IF Group of HTU The analyses of the memorandum texts focuses on rubrical and language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test level, I corrected a number of rubrical errors. For example, 2 of the texts (HIMA6 and 7) did not have signatures appended against names. The memoranda of 3 participants (HIMA9, 13, and 16) lacked agenda. HIMA20 did not have FROM in the rubrics. At the post-test level, apart from the 2 participants (HIMB6 and 7) who repeated the same rubrical errors of no signature, all the IF Group participants of HTU corrected all the pre-test rubrical errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 180 (b) Language and Formatting Errors Table 4.31 projects the pre- and post-test language and formatting errors found in the memoranda of the IF Group of HTU. From the pre-test section of the Table, an overall total of 263 errors were identified and corrected. Out of this figure, 130 mechanical, 86 grammatical, and 47 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. However, at the post-test stage, the total pre-test errors of 263 found at the pre-test errors were reduced by a margin of 38, implying that a total of 226 post-test errors were seen and corrected. Out of this post-test errors, 112 were mechanical, 67 grammatical, and 47 punctuation errors. The difference of 38 post-test errors is an indication that; though the IF intervention corrects errors, its strength cannot be compared with the strength of the DF in terms of correction of memoranda errors. 4.7.2.2 Business Letter Texts of the IF Group of HTU The analysis focuses on rubrical, language and formatting errors and the results. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, the IF Group of HTU made a number of rubrical errors. For instance, 2 (10%) (HILA5 and 6) did not have salutation in the texts; and 5 (25%) mismatched the salutation, Dear Sir, with the subscription, Yours sincerely. At the post-test level, the indirect feedback intervention contributed enormously. But for 2 scripts (HILB14 and HILB16) which had the same errors of no recipient’s address and wrong alignment of salutation and subscription respectively, all the rubrical errors found at the pre-test level were corrected at the post-test level. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 181 Table 4.31 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of the IF Group of HTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling mangement (management), succesful (successful), 47 . Spelling conut (count), runing (running), maneger (manager), whic 39 regulare (regular), writte (write), hopeing (hoping), (which), livel (level), usuall (usual), dinning room (dining room) . Word- fore court (forecourt), dinningroom (dining room) 32 . Word- for go (forgo), un usual (unusual), dis count (discount) 27 Division Division .Capitalisation monday (Monday), as Well as… (as well as…) 51 .Capitalisation We Understand … (We understand…), friday (Friday) 46 Sub-Total 130 Sub-Total 112 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Will write to you again on the subject matter (We 8 . Syntactic We will discuss issues formal (We will discuss formal issues), 4 will/I will write to you again on the subject matter.) shall expect everyone (We/I shall expect everyone) . Concord One of the issue is … (One of the issues is…) 34 . Concord He have to process… (He has to process…), 30 . Tense members are entreat… (members are entreated …), 23 . Tense We do that to processed… (We do that to process…) 17 . Semantic In line with the organisation, I write to … (In line 4 . Semantic with the organisation’s policy on meeting, I write - to…) . Lexical All stuff members should make it a point to attend. 17 . Lexical The Chairman will stress on the issue…. (The Chairman will 16 (All staff members should make it a point to attend) stress the issue…) Sub-Total 86 Sub-Total 67 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Also we process … (Also, we process…) 19 . Comma To begin with we have a machine… (To begin with, we have a 18 machine…) . Full stop Please be punctual (Please be punctual.) 20 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 19 . Colon and The meeting will discuss the following agenda. The 8 . Colon and The agenda for the meeting are as follows. The agenda for the 7 semi-colon meeting will discuss the following agenda: semi-colon meeting are as follows: . Apostrophe - . Apostrophe General Manager Secretary (General Manager’s Secretary) 3 Sub-Total 47 Sub-Total 47 TOTAL 263 TOTAL 226 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 182 (b) Language and Formatting Errors From the pre-test section of Table 4.32, an overall total of 240 errors were found and corrected. Out of this number, 118 were mechanical, 98 grammatical, and 24 punctuation errors. However, at the post-test stage, an overall total of 206 errors were recorded. Out of this, 97 mechanical, 80 grammatical, and 29 punctuation errors were found and corrected. The difference of 34 post-test errors is an indication that the IF intervention can correct errors, though its strength cannot be compared with the strength of the DF intervention. The possible reason for this situation is that, though the participants’ attention was drawn to some faulty structures, they could not specifically determine the errors, and therefore failed to correct them subsequently. 4.7.2.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the IF Group of HTU Table 4.33 shows results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the IF Group of HTU. The results display that for 12 of the texts (15%), the scores of the pre- and post-test items did not change. For 8 (10%) of the texts, the scores of the post-tests reduced. For the remaining 60 texts (75%), the score of the pre- and the post-test items appreciated. The implication is that the IF intervention facilitated 75% of the IF Group of HTU to produce relatively accurate texts. Maybe the participants could not decode some of the error symbols used. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 183 Table 4.32 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of the IF Group of HTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling managment (management), finanse (finance), 58 . Spelling gorveing (governing), noter (noted), mordern (modern), 48 conveged (conveyed), highted (highlighted), pistle accross (across), preperation (preparation), (pestle), lessing (lessen), senting (sending) . Word- In deed (Indeed), in to (into), 15 . Word- The work that we do is tire some (The work that we do is 13 Division/Spacing Division/Spacing tiresome) .Capitalisation march (March), i am the Ceo of Abc Company 45 .Capitalisation General manager (General Manager), 36 limited. (I am the CEO of ABC Company Limited) Sub-Total 118 Sub-Total 97 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic The processing machines are adequate enough 12 . Syntactic Counting on your usual cooperation (We are/I am counting 7 (The processing machines are adequate/The on your usual cooperation) processing machines are enough) . Concord The company will registers the product… (The 34 . Concord The organisation have a lot of equipment… (The 24 Company will register the product…) organisation has a lot of equipment…) . Tense We went to the market to purchased… (We went to 29 . Tense Our juice is process… (Our juice is processed…) 28 the market to purchase…) . Semantic Misplaced subjects 4 . Semantic Dangling modifiers 4 . Lexical motor (mortar), The reduces cost… (This reduces 19 . Lexical First we grill the meat in other to… (First, we grill the meat 17 cost…), in order to…) yours faithful (Yours faithfully,) Sub-Total 98 Sub-Total 80 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Sir/Madam (Dear Sir/Madam,) 10 . Comma Dear Sir (Dear Sir,) 12 . Full stop We hope to hear from you (We hope to hear from 12 . Full stop We thank you (We thank you.) 13 you.) . Apostrophe We will write to you in one week time. (We will 2 . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully), 4 write to you in one week’s time) Sub-Total 24 Sub-Total 29 TOTAL 240 TOTAL 206 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 184 Table 4.33 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of IF Group of HTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score HIMA1 10 Score HILA1 12 Score HIMB1 10 maintained HILB1 13 appreciated HIMA2 8 Score HILA2 9 Score HIMB2 9 appreciated HILB2 14 appreciated HIMA3 9 Score HILA3 12 Score HIMB3 12 appreciated HILB3 12 maintained HIMA4 9 Score HILA4 9 Score HIMB4 10 appreciated HILB4 10 appreciated HIMA5 11 Score HILA5 12 Score HIMB5 11 maintained HILB5 14 appreciated HIMA6 12 Score HILA6 9 Score HIMB6 12 maintained HILB6 11 appreciated HIMA7 10 Score HILA7 12 Score HIMB7 13 appreciated HILB7 11 depreciated HIMA8 11 Score HILA8 11 Score HIMB8 13 appreciated HILB8 13 appreciated HIMA9 8 Score HILA9 13 Score HIMB9 9 appreciated HILB9 14 appreciated HIMA10 11 Score HILA10 11 Score HIMB10 10 depreciated HILB10 13 appreciated HIMA11 9 Score HILA11 10 Score HIMB11 12 appreciated HILB11 11 appreciated HIMA12 12 Score HILA12 10 Score HIMB12 13 appreciated HILB12 11 appreciated HIMA13 6 Score HILA13 9 Score HIMB13 10 appreciated HILB13 12 appreciated HIMA14 8 Score HILA14 12 Score HIMB14 11 appreciated HILB14 13 appreciated HIMA15 10 Score HILA15 12 Score HIMB15 11 appreciated HILB15 14 appreciated HIMA16 8 Score HILA16 10 Score HIMB16 9 appreciated HILB16 10 maintained HIMA17 12 Score HILA17 10 Score HIMB17 12 maintained HILB17 13 appreciated HIMA18 11 Score HILA18 11 Score HIMB18 10 depreciated HILB18 12 Appreciated HIMA19 12 Score HILA19 11 Score HIMB19 13 appreciated HILB19 13 appreciated HIMA20 10 Score HILA20 10 Score HIMB20 9 depreciated HILB20 12 appreciated 4.7.3 Analysis of the Text of the NF Group of HTU The section discusses the memos, letters, and results of the NF Group from HTU. 4.7.3.1 Memorandum Texts of the NF Group of HTU This part has been grouped into rubrical, and language and formatting errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 185 (a) Rubrical Errors The NF Group of HTU made some rubrical errors at the pre-test level. For instance, HNMA4 did not provide the heading notation, TO:. 10 (50%) of the participants made wrong alignment errors. Again, HNMA12 included a subscription, Yours faithfully. At the post-test section, some of the participants were able to correct some of the pre-test rubrical errors. For example, 3 of the participants aligned their rubrics correctly. Also, HNMB12 did not include a subscription again. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At the pre-test section of Table 4.34, an overall total of 226 errors were found and corrected. Out of this number, 114 were mechanical, 82 grammatical, and 30 punctuation errors. But, at the post-test section, an overall total of 222 errors were found. Out of this figure, 110 mechanical, 80 grammatical, and 32 punctuation errors were seen and corrected. The difference of 4 errors between the pre- and the post-test items, shows that NF is not a strong interventional tool. The possible reason for the poor post-test performance was that when the participants were given a second chance to re-write the text, they did not see any error to correct. 4.7.3.2 Business Letter Texts of the NF Group of HTU The issues here are grouped into rubrical, and language and formatting errors. (a) Rubrical Errors At the pre-test stage, some rubrical errors were seen and corrected. For example, HNLA1, and 2 (10%) did not include recipient’s address; HNLA14 did not have sender’s address. Again, 5 scripts (25%), did not have subscription, signature University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 186 and full name at all. At the post-test section, 3 participants (30%) repeated the errors of no subscription, signature and full name. Again, 2 participants (HNLB3, and 5) (10%) repeated ‘name before signature’ error at the subscription section. (b) Language and Formatting Errors At pre-test section of Table 4.35, a total of 241 errors were found and corrected. From this figure, 110 were mechanical, 94 grammatical, and 37 punctuation errors. At the post-test section, a total of 238 errors were found and corrected. Out of this, 106 were mechanical, 93 grammatical, and 39 punctuation errors. The difference of 3 errors between the pre-test and the post-test errors is insignificant. This thus, renders the NF intervention ineffective in terms of correcting language and formatting errors found in the letters of the NF Group of HTU. The possible reason was that the NF could not trigger their noticing ability. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 187 Table 4.34 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Memos of NF Group of HTU PRE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Examples Number Types of Examples Number Errors of Errors Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling paryment (payment), remaind (remind), heled 48 . Spelling conferance (conference), heled (held), menting (meeting), 47 (held), increasement (increment), apprinting increasement (increment), venu (venue), limitted (limited), (appointing), . Word-Division chair person (chairperson), theagenda (the agenda) 21 . Word-Division 20thmarch (20th March), infact (in fact) 19 /Spacing /Spacing .Capitalisation annual general meeting (Annual General Meeting), 45 .Capitalisation To Introduce new members… (To introduce new members…) 44 Sub-Total 114 Sub-Total 110 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Will expect all to attend (I/We expect all of you to 13 . Syntactic Last week, a member proposed and the house discuss … (Last 13 attend) week, a member proposed and the house discussed…) . Concord The meeting start at… (The meeting starts at…) 16 . Concord Each member of staff are expect to pay… (Each member of 16 staff is expected to pay…) . Tense We have take delivery…(We have taken delivery…) 27 . Tense Are expect to pay… (Are expected to pay…) 23 . Semantic The following are the agenda to discuss at the 5 . Semantic In line with the policies of the organisation. (In line with the 7 meeting. (The following are the agenda to be polices of the organisation, I write to invite you….) discussed at the meeting.) . Lexical Remainder of Annual General meeting (Reminder 21 . Lexical The meeting will find out as to whether… (The meeting will 21 of Annual General Meeting) find out whether…) Sub-Total 82 Sub-Total 80 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma 14th March 2015. (14th March, 205) 14 . Comma However we are able to … (However, we are able to…) 15 . Full stop Thank you, (Thank you.), 8 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 8 . Colon and The issues are as follows. (The issues are as follows 4 . Colon and The following are the agenda. (The following are the agenda:) 4 semi-colon :) semi-colon . Apostrophe Im requesting that… (I’m requesting that…) 4 . Apostrophe We will meet there in one hour time. (We will meet there in 5 one hour’s time.), 4 Oclock pm (4 O’clock pm) Sub-Total 30 Sub-Total 32 TOTAL 226 TOTAL 222 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 188 Table 4.35 – Errors Corrected in the Pre- and Post-Test Letters of the NF Group of HTU P RE-TEST POST-TEST Types of Errors Examples Number Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors of Errors found found Mechanics: Mechanics: . Spelling conveged (conveyed), highted (highlighted), pistle 67 . Spelling gorveing (governing), noter (noted), mordern (modern), 64 (pestle), lessing (lessen), senting (sending) accross (across), preperation (preparation), . Word- The so lid form of …(The solid form of … ), prin 10 . Word- pro cess (process), pro cedure (procedure), infact, (In fact), 11 Division/Spacing ciple (principle), further more (furthermore) Division/Spacing .Capitalisation I Write to … (I write to…), ABC company limited 29 .Capitalisation yours Sincerely (Yours sincerely), ho food center (Ho Food 27 (ABC Company Limited) Centre), food and drugs authority (Food and Drugs Authority) . Paragraph Mixture of block and indented paragraphs 4 . Paragraph Mixture of block and indented paragraphs 4 inconsistency inconsistency Sub-Total 110 Sub-Total 106 Grammar: Grammar: . Syntactic Am writing this letter to… (I am/I’m writing this 12 . Syntactic In refer to your letter dated 10th January, 2016. (I reference 11 letter to…) to your letter dated 10th January, 2016, I write to …) . Concord How food are … (How foods are/How a food is…), 28 . Concord These crop (These crops), one of the best food (one of the 29 best foods…), ABC Company have (ABC Company has…), . Tense The machine can processes… (The machine can 31 . Tense We have acquire … (We have acquired…), Our company 30 process…), It was form … (It was formed…) didn’t knew about… (Our Company did not know about…) . Semantic Ambiguous sentences 6 . Semantic Ambiguous sentences 5 . Lexical The motor that we use in …(The mortar that we use 17 . Lexical yours faithful (Yours faithfully), The reduces… (This 18 in…), The reduces cost… (This reduces cost…) reduces…), We made a complain… (We made a complain) Sub-Total 94 Sub-Total 93 Punctuation marks: Punctuation marks: . Comma Dear Sir /Madam(Dear Sir/Madam,) 20 . Comma Also we have… (Also, we have …) 22 . Full stop We have already written to you on this (We have 10 . Full stop Thank you (Thank you.) 11 already written to you on this.) . Apostrophe Your’s faithfully (Yours faithfully) 5 . Apostrophe The company rules and regulations… (The Company’s rules 4 and regulations), Your’s faithfully, (Yours faithfully), . Hyphen A two day programme (A two-day programme) 2 . Hyphen A two day programme (A two-day programme) 2 Sub-Total 37 Sub-Total 39 TOTAL 241 TOTAL 238 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 189 4.7.3.3 Results of Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Scripts of the NF Group of HTU Table 4.36 shows results of memorandum and business letter scripts of the NF Group of HTU. The Table shows that for 32 (40%) of the texts, the marks of the post-test maintained. For 28 (35%) of the texts, the score of the pre- and post- test increased. For the rest of the 20 scripts (25%), the post-test scores depreciated. When you compare the memo and the business letter results of the three Groups, as illustrated in Tables 4.30, (DF Group), 4.33 (IF Group), and 4.36 (NF Group), you realise that the NF could not adequately facilitate correction of errors at the post-test level than the DF and the IF interventions did. Maybe, the participants’ attention was not drawn to specific errors. Table 4.36 – Pre- and Post-Test Memo and Business Letter Results of NF Group of HTU Code Pre- Post- Comments Code Pre- Post- Comments (Memo) Test Test (Bus. Test Test Score Score Letter) Score Score HNMA1 10 Score HNLA1 10 Score HNMB1 9 depreciated HNLB1 9 depreciated HNMA2 13 Score HNLA2 12 Score HNMB2 13 maintained HNLB2 13 appreciated HNMA3 10 Score HNLA3 9 Score HNMB3 10 maintained HNLB3 9 maintained HNMA4 10 Score HNLA4 12 Score HNMB4 11 appreciated HNLB4 14 appreciated HNMA5 12 Score HNLA5 12 Score HNMB5 13 appreciated HNLB5 11 depreciated HNMA6 13 Score HNLA6 12 Score HNMB6 13 maintained HNLB6 12 maintained HNMA7 12 Score HNLA7 12 Score HNMB7 13 appreciated HNLB7 12 maintained HNMA8 10 Score HNLA8 8 Score HNMB8 9 depreciated HNLB8 8 maintained HNMA9 10 Score HNLA9 10 Score HNMB9 12 appreciated HNLB9 13 appreciated HNMA10 10 Score HNLA10 13 Score HNMB10 10 maintained HNLB10 12 depreciated HNMA11 13 Score HNLA11 12 Score HNMB11 11 depreciated HNLB11 11 depreciated HNMA12 12 Score HNLA12 13 Score HNMB12 12 maintained HNLB12 15 appreciated HNMA13 12 Score HNLA13 9 Score HNMB13 14 appreciated HNLB13 9 maintained University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 190 HNMA14 13 Score HNLA14 7 Score HNMB14 12 depreciated HNLB14 9 appreciated HNMA15 12 Score HNLA15 10 Score HNMB15 11 depreciated HNLB15 10 maintained HNMA16 10 Score HNLA16 8 Score HNMB16 10 maintained HNLB16 10 appreciated HNMA17 8 Score HNLA17 12 Score HNMB17 8 maintained HNLB17 10 depreciated HNMA18 11 Score HNLA18 11 Score HNMB18 14 appreciated HNLB18 15 appreciated HNMA19 9 Score HNLA19 12 Score HNMB19 12 appreciated HNLB19 12 maintained HNMA20 12 Score HNLA20 9 Score HNMB20 12 maintained HNLB20 9 maintained 4.8 Discussions of Results The discussions have been segmented into the three groups – DF, IF and NF – of the 4 selected cases. 4.8.1 Discussions of Results of the DF Groups In comparing the rubrical errors of the DF participants (of STU, KTU, KsTU, and HTU) at the pre- and post-test levels, it can be realized that, at the post-test level, the participants were able to correct a majority of the errors pointed out directly at the pre-test level. Noticing Hypothesis (NH) strongly aided the participants in this group as they were able to work on major errors identified at the pre-test level49. For example, on memoranda, the DF intervention succeeded in eradicating all errors of wrong alignment of salutation and subscription. A comparative analysis of the total language and formatting errors at the pre- and post-test levels of the memo scripts of the Direct Feedback (DF) Group from STU revealed that the 207 errors committed at the pre-test level were significantly reduced at the post-test level to only 71 errors. The difference is 136 errors. Furthermore, in juxtaposing the 83 business letter errors corrected at 49 The Noticing Hypothesis states that SLL must consciously notice the grammatical from of their input before they can learn grammar (Schmidt 2010). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 191 the post-test level, with the 245 errors corrected at the pre-test level, one realizes that the participants in the DF were able to notice 162 errors and subsequently correct them at the post-test level. In the case of KTU, a total of 145 pre-test memorandum errors were found and corrected. At the post-test level, this number reduced to 65; and the difference is 80 errors. Again, the pre-test business letter errors of the DF Group of KTU was 278. This number reduced considerably to 99 errors with the difference being 179. At KsTU, a sum total of 232 pre-test letter errors were seen and corrected. However, at the post-test level, the errors were reduced to 89. At HTU, a total of 209 pre-test memo errors were recorded and corrected; but at the post-test stage, the errors were reduced to 86. The discrepancies of errors in the pre- and post-test memorandum and business letter items of the DF Groups have lots of implications:  One, the incongruities show the potency of corrective feedback in general.  Two, the differences are an indication that time is a major variable when it comes to error correction. Students need to be given ample time to reproduce structures if accuracy of text is the aim.  Three, it shows the efficacy of DF in the treatment of errors. Thus, the use of Direct Corrective Feedback triggered the DF Groups to recognize flaws in their write ups. Swain’s (1985) Comprehensible Output Hypothesis (COH) maintains that it is normal for a learner to produce abnormal forms grammatically. However, he can do well if he is pushed towards producing the right forms. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 192 Therefore, the application of the DF intervention, activated the capacity of the participants in the DF Groups in noticing the errors. Since the errors committed at the pre-test levels in both composition of memoranda and business letters were considerably reduced at the post-test levels, I argue that DF is a strong interventional tool for correcting business communication texts. 4.8.2 Discussions of Results of the IF Groups The memo and business letter rubrical errors corrected at the pre- and post- test levels of the IF Groups of STU, KTU, KsTU, and HTU also brought out revelations. The participants in the IF Groups were able to decode the indirect CF intervention applied on the rubrics of their texts at the pre-test level and subsequently produced the right formats at the post-test level. For example, 15 of the 20 IF Group of STU made memo errors of wrong alignment at the pre-test level. However, at the post-test level, 13 of the 15 understood the indirect CF intervention as they were able to correct this anomaly. This is an indication that the indirect CF is strong in eradicating rubrical errors. The effectiveness of the indirect CF on rubrical errors further heightened as the 13 (KIMA5- 14, and 18-20) participants in the IF Group of KTU, who made wrong alignment errors at the pre-test level, were able to decode the IF corrective symbols and corrected this error accordingly at the post-test level. Another instance is where 8 (40%) out of the 20 IF Group participants of STU made a business letter rubrical error of no recipient address at the pre-test level. At the post-test level, all the 8 participants were able to correct this error. At the language and formatting section of the memo scripts of STU IF participants, a total of 190 errors were seen and corrected at the pre-test level. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 193 When the indirect CF was applied, a total of 187 errors were found and corrected. The difference between the two figures is only 3. This number is insignificant. This implies that the IF was weak in correcting language and formatting errors of the IF Group of STU. . Again, a total of 208 mechanical, grammar, and punctuation marks were spotted and corrected at the language and formatting section of the business letters of STU IF participants; 165 were seen and corrected at the post-test level. The difference between the two figures is 43. This implies that the IF intervention helped students to notice some of the language and formatting-related gaps in their write ups at the post-test level. Moreover, the pre-test stage of KTU IF Group memoranda produced 222 language and formatting errors; but at the post-test level, 185 errors were seen and corrected with the difference being 37 errors. Furthermore, the IF Group of KsTU produced 226 pre-test memorandum errors which were reduced to 202 at the post-test level. At HTU, 240 pre-test letter errors were recorded and corrected; but they were reduced to 206 at the post-test level. The inference is that IF worked better on letter rubrical errors than it did on errors that emanated from language and formatting. This explains why for example, almost all the STU IF participants who committed various letter rubrical errors at the pre-test level, were able to correct them at the post-test level. The Noticing and Swain’s Comprehensible Hypotheses worked when indirect CF intervention was applied on the rubrics of the scripts. However, the effects of the two hypotheses and the effect that the indirect CF pose cannot be compared with the effects that emerged from the language and formatting errors. Here, the conclusion is that although indirect CF has University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 194 positive effect on students’ scripts, its strength cannot be compared with that of direct CF as seen in the case of the DF Groups of all the 4 technical universities. 4.8.3 Discussions of Results of NF/Control Groups The memorandum and business letter rubrical errors of the NF Groups brought out some revelations. At the pre-test levels of both the memo and business letter scripts, the NF Groups were not able to correct some errors when they were given the opportunity to reproduce new scripts at the post-test levels. For example, 5 (SNMB2, 3, 5, 12, and 15) of the 11 participants, whose memoranda had alignment errors, repeated the same errors at the post-test level. Again, at the post-test level, six participants (SNLB1, 6, 11, 14, 15, 16) repeated business letter errors of no subscription, signature, and full name. The indication is that the NF did not yield positive results on the scripts of the NF Groups in terms of correcting of errors of alignment, subscription, signature, and full name. Therefore, the NF intervention was not potent. Concerning the business letter scripts, SNLB3, and 5 committed name before signature error at the subscription section, though the assessor had earlier commented on this error at the pre-test level. At the pre-test level, only SNLB3 committed this error. For SNLB3 to have repeated this error and for a fresh case to have been recorded is an indication of inefficacy of the No Feedback intervention. Again, the NF yielded no results in terms of correction of errors of wrong alignment because KNLB13, 18, and 19 repeated the error of wrong alignment of salutation and subscription. Their post-test business letters still had Dear Sir as the salutation and Yours sincerely, Sincerely, and Sincerely yours as University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 195 subscriptions. The inefficacy of the NF was further revealed when the language and formatting errors of the memoranda and business letters the NF Group of STU were analysed. For the memo scripts, a total of 176 errors were seen and corrected at the pre-test level; but at the post-test level, this figure shot up to 186. One would have expected the reverse to happen. Specifically, pre-test errors such as word-division/spacing, capitalisation, syntax, and lexis went up from 14, 25, 9, and 18 to 15, 36, 14, and 28 respectively at the post-test level. This situation is a strong indication that NF does not have a place in memoranda and business letters. The participants could not notice the pre-test errors and subsequently correct them at the post-test stage. This also defeats the theory behind Swain’s COH as learners were not able to learn from the gaps found in their scripts. Maybe, the learners’ inability to learn from their gaps was because the NF intervention was used. For the business letter scripts of STU for instance, 208 pre-test language and formatting errors were seen and corrected; and 197 were also spotted and corrected at the post-test level. The difference is only 11. This figure is insignificant since the participants were given a second opportunity to rewrite their letters at the post-test level. Spelling, syntactic, tense, comma, and apostrophe errors recorded marginal modifications from 66, 10, 27, 25, 5, at the pre-test level to 61, 9, 25, 23, and 3 at the post-test level correspondingly (see Table 4.8). In the case of errors such as: concord, semantic, and full stop, the post-test errors rather increased. That is while 10 concord, 3 semantic, and 8 full stop errors were corrected at the pre-test level, 16 concord, 4 semantic, and 11 full stop errors were corrected at the post-test level (see Table 4.8). This state of affairs further University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 196 corroborates the fact that NF intervention is not a strong variable when it comes to fixing of errors. The situation is the same at HTU where 241 pre-test letter errors were seen and corrected; and 238 post-test letter errors were also found and corrected. The difference of 3 errors is also not substantial. 4.9 Summary Chapter Four focused on analysis and discussion of classroom data collected from the four selected technical universities. The Chapter presented and discussed two analytical frameworks which were used as benchmarks for assessing the data (scripts) collected from the field. Each of the scripts was assessed on the two main variables in the frameworks. These main variables of the frameworks are rubrical errors and language and formatting errors. For data collected from classrooms, the results (grades/scores) have also been discussed. The chapter revealed that the DF is effective in correcting memo and letter errors. The chapter also exposed the efficacy of IF, but the strength the IF poses cannot be compared with that of the DF. However, the NF was not effective in correcting memo and letter errors. Other factors may have contributed to the efficacy and inefficacy of the interventions used. The results the students registered in the various categories may have also stemmed from other factors such as individual differences in students, educational background, and family background. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 197 CHAPTER FIVE ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF BUSINESS WORLD DATA 5.0 Introduction Chapter Five investigates the rubrical and the language and formatting (LF) issues found in the memoranda and the business letters I solicited from the field. The analyses were done by using the two frameworks I developed (see Figures 4.1 and 4.2). As stated earlier, 40 business write-ups were used for these analyses50. This Chapter provides a response for one of the objectives which sought to establish how similar or different classroom texts were from corporate Business Communication texts of letters and memoranda? Though the business world texts were graded, the grading did not include marks for content, expression, organisation, and mechanical accuracy that the grading sections of the frameworks present. This implies that the analysis excludes results. Thus, only the rubrical and the LF issues were analysed. Again, the texts were not segmented into groups of DF, IF, and NF, even though the intervention used in assessing the texts was DF. The decision of using DF is justified since the DF intervention was very efficacious in treating classroom errors. There was no pre- and post-test items since the business write- ups were solicited only once. Just like the classroom texts, the business world texts were coded. The 50 Twenty (20) of the business correspondence were letters, while 20 were memoranda. Please see Section 3.3.2 for more information. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 198 coding facilitated anonymity and easy referencing. The manual coding was done according to the type of write-up and the specific text code. For example, codes L1, and L3, mean business letter number 1 and 3 respectively; while M6, M8, mean memorandum number 6, and 8 correspondingly. Accordingly, this Chapter serves as a confirmatory section which corroborates or disconfirms the errors that the classroom participants made when I went to the field. Upon completion of their various programmes of study, most of the participants go to the business world to practise what they were taught at school. Owing to diversities of rubrical house styles adopted by business institutions, there are situations where discrepancies exist between what the student learnt at school, and what is being practised in the business world. However, one would expect language and formatting issues of business letters and memoranda to be similar if not the same. This is because most business entities in Ghana use Standard English language or formal English (especially British English) in their daily activities. 5.1 Memorandum Texts The analyses have been segmented into rubrical, and LF issues. 5.1.1 Rubrical Issues A number of rubrical issues were found in the memoranda collected from the field. For example, M17 had a salutation, Hello team. Although, this memorandum was an informal one, salutations are generally not a feature of memos. M17 also had other uncommon rubrical features of:  Sent: Thursday, May 26, 2016  Importance: High  Attachments: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 199 These uncommon rubrical features correspond with Owusu (2015:59) who has argued that most business organisations normally add their own features to the traditional rubrics of From, To, Date, Subject. MI6 had reference number centred beneath the subject. This style is unusual. Surprisingly, 6 (30%) of the memoranda had subscriptions (complimentary closes). For example, M6, 8, and 14 used Yours faithfully. M13, and 18 used Yours sincerely, and M16 use Regards. This is somewhat strange, as one would have expected those in the corporate world to avoid this error. However, the memoranda with these mismatched features are in the minority. Furthermore, there were some font size and style inconsistencies. For example, M3 used smaller font size of 12 for the subject and bigger font size of 14 for the other rubrical items. M12 also used different font sizes and font styles for the rubrics, and the body of the memorandum. Also, there were sentences in the body of the M12 which had different font sizes and styles. Obviously, this cannot be equated with design. It is a clear case of inconsistency of font size and style. Moreover, while M2 and M11 had no date segment in their rubrics, M2 and M15 had no signature against senders’ names. As M8 had wrong alignment of rubrics, M15 did not highlight the subject. Additionally, some informal date styles were used in the formal memoranda collected. For example, MI used 02/03/2017; as M16 used 8 March 2017, M15 used 4 March, 2017. 5.1.2 Language and Formatting (LF) Issues Table 5.1 projects the LF errors found in the memoranda collected from the business world. In all, a total of 56 LF errors were found. Out of the 56 errors, University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 200 8 mechanical, 28 grammatical, and 20 punctuation errors were recorded51. Comparing this situation to the texts collected from the classroom, one realises that most business memoranda are normally error-free in terms of spelling, word-division, concord, and tense. What might have accounted for this situation is that all the memoranda that were collected from the business world, are computer-generated texts. Since all modern computers have spelling and grammar icons which prompt writers of spelling and other grammatical errors, meticulous writers are able to identify and correct such errors easily. 5.2 Business Letter Texts Here, the analyses have been segmented into two main types – rubrical and LF errors. 5.2.1 Rubrical Errors Some rubrical errors were found in the business letters collected from the field. For example, 3 (15%) of the texts mismatched salutations with subscriptions. In text L3, the writer mismatched the salutation, Dear Miss Yeboah, with the salutation, Yours faithfully. Also, in text L7, though the writer used Dear Sir/Madam as salutation, the subscription was Kind faithfully. 51 Although the total errors were 56, most of the sub-error category did not record any errors. This is to say that no errors were seen on spelling, word-division/spacing, (from mechanics category), and concord (from grammar category). University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 201 Table 5.1 LF Issues in the Memos collected from the Business World Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors found Mechanics: . Spelling - . Word-Division - /Spacing .Capitalisation a Mother... (a mother…), world women’s day (World Women’s Day), End of the Year Bonus (end-of-year 8 bonus), … our regular research seminars… (…our regular Research Seminars…) Grammar: . Syntactic This year’s International Women’s Day theme is … (The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day 12 programme is…), Looking forward to have a glorious moment … (We look forward to having a glorious moment…/We are looking forward to having a glorious moment…), The attached is the sample format… (The attached document/paper is a sample format…), Hope this directive will make us efficient… (I/We hope this directive will make us efficient..) . Concord - . Tense … schedule for 2nd March, 2017… (…scheduled for 2nd March, 2017…) 4 . Semantic This is to inform you all with pleasure that the authority has taken decision to distribute End of the Year Bonus 8 to all employees of the company. (With pleasure, this memo is to inform all employees of this Company that the Authorities have decided to distribute end-of-year bonus), We wish to inform you that Mr. George Senkyire has been nominated to attend the above forum schedule for… (We wish to inform you that Mr. George Senkyire has been nominated to attend the above-mentioned forum scheduled for…) . Lexical Huddles (inf) (Conferences/Discussions), Thanks (Thank you.) 4 Punctuation marks: . Comma HOD’s, File (HOD’s file), On behalf of the Chaplaincy Board we write to… (On behalf of the Chaplaincy 10 Board, we write to…), 8th April 2016 (8th April, 2016) . Full stop Please, treat this as urgent (Please treat this as urgent.), Thank you (Thank you.) 7 . Colon and semi-colon The agenda is as follows. (The agenda is as follows:) 2 . Hyphen End of the Year Bonus (end-of-year bonus) 1 TOTAL 56 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 202 In text L11, the writer mismatched Dear Sir and Sincerely as salutation and subscription respectively. All these permutations are not in line with business communication principles (McClave 2008:132, Locker and Kienzler 2010:637). Another flawed rubrical feature found with text L2, is the use of the informal date, 06/01/2017. All the letters collected from the field were formal letters. Therefore, one would have expected the writer of L2 to have used a formal date format. Moreover, in L5, the writer used the salutation, Dear Mr TSATSU. In standard practice, Mr. is always followed by a full stop and the surname is typed in initial capital letter format. But what we see here is different – the surname has been typed in capital letters throughout. In business communication, most salutations of letters end with either a comma or a colon. However, L1 had a salutation without a final comma or colon, but with a full stop – Dear Miss Anang. This is not unusual. Because subscriptions in business letters may or may not end with a comma, most business entities have also developed house styles where salutations do not end with a comma but with a full stop. 5.2.2 Language and Formatting Errors Table 5.2 shows the language and formatting errors found in the business letters collected from the business world. From the Table (5.2), 4 mechanical, 30 grammatical, and 19 punctuation errors were found and corrected. Therefore, the total number of errors found were 53. From the Table (5.2) one realizes that more grammatical errors were made than mechanical and punctuation errors. In juxtaposing this situation with the language and formatting errors found in Table 5.1, you see that more grammatical errors were also made. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 203 Table 5.2 LF Issues in the Letters collected from the Business World Types of Errors Examples Number of Errors found Mechanics: . Spelling Dinning Hall (Dining Hall) 1 . Word-Division Infact (In fact) 1 /Spacing .Capitalisation Yours Faithfully, (Yours faithfully,), annual end of year conference (Annual End-of-Year Conference) 2 Grammar: . Syntactic Waiting anticipating for your earliest confirmation (We are waiting in anticipation of your earliest 12 confirmation), Counting on your cooperation (Counting on your cooperation), Failure will leave us with no other option than to refer your case to the banks’ … (If you fail to comply, we will have no other option than to refer your case to the bank’s …) . Concord - . Tense - . Semantic Thank you for allowing our company intermediary to submit your application for assurance to us (Thank you 10 for allowing our company intermediary to submit your application to us for assurance), We are requesting for the use of the Dinning Hall, from Tuesday, 27th to Saturday 31st December, 2016 (We are expecting the Dining Hall to be used from Tuesday, 27th to Saturday, 31st December, 2016.), Kindly handover your duties to …. before you proceed. (Kindly handover your duties to… before your proceed on leave) . Lexical Please be informed that fourteen (14) days leave has been granted… (Please be informed that your/the fourteen 8 days leave has been granted…), Customer is therefore not indebted… (The/A customer is therefore not indebted…) Punctuation marks: . Comma 30th June 2013 (30th June, 2013), This shall however be limited… (This shall, however, be limited…), 12 . Full stop Dear Mr TSATSU (Dear Mr. Tsatsu) 5 . Hyphen annual end of year conference (Annual End-of-Year Conference) 2 TOTAL 53 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 204 Out of these 30 grammatical errors found in Table 5.2, 12 were syntactic errors, 10 were semantic errors, and 8 were lexical. No concord and tense errors were found. 5.3 Discussions of the Memorandum and Business Letter Texts The discussions have been categorized into memorandum and business letter texts. This segmentation facilitates adequate focus of the two texts. 5.3.1 Memorandum Texts The rubrics of the memoranda collected from the business world brought out some exposures. Two of such rubrical exposures are the use of salutation and subscription. This is seen in M17 (salutation error – Hello team) and M6, 8, 13, 14, 16, and 18 (subscription errors – for example, Yours faithfully). Although organisations may have their house styles in writing the rubrics of memoranda, generally, most authors do not include salutations and subscriptions in the rubrics of memoranda (Guffey 2007:108, Bovée and Thill 2008:169, McClave 2008:171, Locker and Kienzler 2010:647; Thill and Bovée 2013:170, Owusu 2015:65). Therefore, the inclusion of salutations and subscriptions in the rubrics of any memoranda (whether formal, informal or semi-formal) makes it incongruous. Some business entities may be oblivious of this memorandum flaw. At the classroom level, the error of inclusion of salutation and subscription in memoranda was prominent in all the various groups of the 4 technical universities. Examples of texts with these errors are: KDMA15, 18, KIMA1, 6, 18, 19, HNMA12 (Yours faithfully), KNMA6, KsNMB15 (Dear Sir). The existence of these wrong features in the memoranda of some business entities corroborates the same rubrical errors that some of the student- University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 205 participants committed. It is an indication that attention should be given to this area. Again, there are some issues in the language and formatting section of the memoranda that are worth discussing. One, a total of 56 mechanical, grammatical, and punctuation errors were recorded from the 20 memoranda solicited from the corporate world. This is not bad, taking into consideration the fact that no intervention was applied. Another observation is that no spelling, word-division/spacing, and concord errors were recorded. Mechanically, it is an indication of how strong memoranda from the world are. Because business write-ups are computer- generated texts, writers normally spot these flaws out easily. Also, most writers of corporate memoranda normally submit draft copies to superiors to peruse, before final copies are printed. As a result, most of these errors are dealt with. However, some noticeable errors were recorded. Some of the key ones are capitalisation (8), syntax (12), semantics (8) and comma (10). Majority of the syntactical errors were null-subject constructions52. Examples are: a. Looking forward to have a glorious moment in the presence of the Lord with you. (With you, we/I look forward to having a glorious moment in the presence of the Lord/With you, we are/I am looking forward to having a glorious moment in the presence of the Lord.) (Text M9). b. Hope this directive will make us most efficient in our various offices for increase in productivity. (We/I hope this directive will make us efficient in our various offices for productivity to increase.) (Text M2). 52 These are sentences or structures which do not possess subjects. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 206 Because null-subject constructions are mostly used in informal contexts, some writers of business memoranda are oblivious of its flawed nature in formal contexts. In the classroom, most of the student-participants also committed errors of null-subject construction. 5.3.2 Business Letter Texts There are some issues in the rubrics of the business letters that are worth discussing. As already stated in section 5.2.1, three (L3, L7, and L11) of the business letters collected from the corporate world had errors of matching the salutation and the subscription. A number of the classroom letters (for example, SDLA14, KDLA12, HILB16, and KsDLA10) had this error as well. This is a confirmation that this error needs attention. Another format seen in business letter L8, which is worthy of discussion is the absence of salutation and subscription. This is not an error. It is a format in business letters known as the Simplified Format (Guffey 2007:A-8). This format was introduced by the Administrative Management Society53. Although I explained the Simplified Format to the student participants, none of them used it. The reason could be that the format is not popular enough. Again, most teachers normally stress the traditional format (which has salutation and subscription) so much so that letters without salutations and subscriptions look unusual to students. The language and formatting section also has some issues which are worthy of discussion. A total of 53 errors were seen and corrected in the letters collected from the field. Although 30 grammatical errors were found and 53 Please refer to sub-section 2.2.3.2(Business Letters) for literature on Layouts (formats and Types of Business Letters) University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 207 corrected, no concord and tense errors were found. Also, only 1 spelling (dinning hall, dining hall) and 1 spacing/word-division (infact, in fact) errors were recorded. If you compare this with the classroom texts (of all the groups), you realise that more pre-test errors were recorded in areas such as: spelling, spacing/word-division, concord, tense, lexis, capitalisation, full stop and comma (SSCTLCFC). (Please see Tables 4.2, 4.5, 4.8, 4.11, 4.14, 4.17, 4.20, 4.23, 4.26, 4.29, 4.32, and 4.35). This situation confirms that technical university students commit SSCTLCFC errors more in classrooms than the errors are committed in the business world. The bases are not far-fetched. (1), Business letters are computer generated texts, whose editing are facilitated by both computers and the writer’s business-experienced mind. Classroom sit-in texts are mostly handwritten, and normally the writer, under the classroom situation, is not aided by any corrective tool except his or her business mind. (2), Most of the entities in the business world are people who have or assumed to have graduated from a certain level of education already. Most students are assumed to be learners who have not graduated from school yet. However, like the memorandum texts, the business letters had high levels of errors syntactical (12) semantical (10), lexical (8), and comma errors (12)54. Specific examples of such errors are: 1. Counting on your usual co-operation (I/We count on your usual co- operation) (L11) 2. Failure will leave us with no other option than to refer your case to the bank’s External Collectors to recover the debt. (If you fail to comply, we 54 By high levels, I mean 8 and above errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 208 will have no other option than to refer your case to the bank’s External Collectors to recover the debt.) 3. Please be informed that fourteen (14) days leave has been granted… (Please be informed that your/the fourteen days leave has been granted…). These errors were also prominent in the classroom texts, as well as the memoranda collected from the corporate world. The existence of such errors is a confirmation that major attention should be given to syntactical errors of students so that they do not graduate from university with these errors. 5.4 Summary Chapter Five has focused on the analysis of business world data. This chapter, which served as a confirmatory chapter, has revealed that people in the world of business also commit some of the errors that classroom learners commit. Key among the errors found in both the memoranda and the business letters are errors of syntactic, semantic, comma, and full stop errors. An example of a syntactic error (null-subject construction) found in one of the texts is counting on your usual cooperation (I/We are counting on your usual cooperation). This situation is a confirmation that some errors produced in the classroom are absolute errors which are not limited to classroom situations only. However, there are some strong points that the texts from the business world exhibited. For example, spelling, spacing/word-division, capitalisation, concord, and lexical errors were minimal in the business texts. Again, business people are experienced in terms of producing business correspondence. Stereotype is another issue. Business people are perceived as experts in terms of business write-ups. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 209 CHAPTER SIX ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF QUESTIONNAIRE ITEMS 6.0 Introduction Chapter six discusses questionnaire items collected from the participants (students and teachers) from the four selected schools. After the classroom and business world texts were collected and graded, there was the need for me to sample the views of students about the interventions used by various classroom teachers in grading their texts. I used close-ended questionnaire items in soliciting the opinions since they have the propensity of soliciting standardized information from respondents. However, there was one open-ended question which gave both respondents the opportunity of expressing their sentiments. This chapter has been segmented into two parts of Analysis of the Main Data Collected, and Discussions. The analyses of the main data collected have been grouped under the research objectives of the study. 6.1 Analysis of the Main Data Collected Here, the analysis has been segmented according to the themes of the questionnaires which (themes) were also generated from the objectives. 6.1.1 Corrective Feedback (CF) Type that Business Communication Students Receive on their Texts The research sought to determine the type of CF that students receive on their texts. The data collected from the field on this issue are illustrated below: University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 210 Marking of Errors in Text 80 70 60 50 40 76.7 30 20 Marking of errors in text 10 15 8.3 Percent 0 underlined underlined passing of only with general corrections comments provided RESPONSES OF STU STUDENT PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.1 – Type of CF used on STU students’ Texts From Figure 6.1, out of a total of 60 student respondents from Sunyani Technical University (STU), 46 majority (76.7%) indicated that errors in their texts are underlined and corrections are provided (DF), 9 (15%) said the errors are underlined only (IF), and 5 (8.3%) said general comments are provided on their texts (NF)55. The data in question suggest that the DF intervention is mostly used on the texts of STU students. Figure 6.2, indicates that 47 (78.3%) majority of the student participants of Koforidua Technical University (KTU) receive DF on their texts, 10 (16.7%) receive IF and 3 (5%) receive NF on their texts. This shows that at KTU, majority of the students receive DF intervention on their scripts. 55 The method of error treatment where errors are underlined and the corrections provided is the direct feedback method (DF). The one where the errors are underlined only is the indirect feedback technique (IF), and the one where a general comment is written on the text is the no feedback method (NF). These abbreviations have been used in the subsequent analyses. % of marking of errors University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 211 Marking of Errors in Text 80 70 60 50 40 78.3 30 20 10 16.7 5 Marking of errors in text 0 Percent underlined underlined passing of only with general corrections comments provided RESPONSES OF KTU STUDENT PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.2 – Type of CF used on KTU students’ Texts Marking of Errors in Text 90 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 6.7 3.3 20 Marking of errors in text 10 0 Percent underlined underlined passing of only with general corrections comments provided RESPONSES OF KSTU STUDENT PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.3 – Type of CF used on KsTU students’ Texts Figure 6.3 shows that 54 (90%) of the 60 student participants receive DF on their texts, 4 (6.7%) receive IF, and 2 (3.3%) receive NF. Here, it is also obvious that majority of the KsTU student respondents receive DF intervention on their texts. Figure 6.4 shows that 33 (55%) receive DF, 24 (40%) receive IF, and 3 (5%) receive NF intervention on their texts. The implication is that 55% majority of HTU student participants receive the DF intervention on their texts. % of responses % of marking of errors University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 212 Marking of Errors in Text 55 60 40 50 40 30 5 20 10 0 Marking of errors in text errors passing of errors Percent underlined general underlined with comments only corrections provided RESPONSE OF HO TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY (HTU) STUDENT PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.4 – Types of CF used on HTU Students’ Texts Also, the teachers were asked to indicate the type of CF that they employ on the texts of students. The teachers’ response was to confirm or disconfirm the opinion of the students on the subject matter. Figure 6.5 shows the responses of all the 40 teachers sampled. From the Figure, 31 (77.5%) said they used DF, 7 (17.5%) said they used IF, and 2(5%) said they used NF intervention in grading students’ texts. The opinion of the 77.5% majority corroborates the views of majority of the student-participants’ data on the issue. 77.5 Marking of Errors in Text 80 60 17.5 5 40 20 0 errors errors Passing of Marking of errors Percent underlined underlined general only with comments corrections provided RESPONSES OF TEACHERS Figure 6.5 Types of CF used on Students’ Texts by Teachers % of responses % of responses University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 213 6.1.2 CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Punctuation, Mechanics, and Grammar (PMG). The research also sought to find the kind of CF that has the greatest impact on punctuation, mechanical, and grammatical (PMG) errors. The findings of the respondents are depicted in Figures 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, and 6.10. Feedback Type & Impact on Punctuation, Mechanical, and Grammatical Errors 80 70 60 50 40 71.7 30 20 10 21.7 6.6 Feedback type & effect on 0 mechanical, grammar, underlined errors passing of punctuation errors Percent grammatical underlined general errors with comments corrections about errors provided RESPONSE OF STU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.6 – CF that has the greatest Impact on STU students’ PMG errors Figure 6.6 portrays the CF type that has the greatest impact on students’ PMG errors at STU. From the Figure, 43 (71.7%) majority think that the DF technique is a better error corrector as against 13 (21.7%) and 4(6.6%) who selected the IF and the NF techniques respectively. Figure 6.7 also shows that 48 (80%) majority of KTU participants selected DF as the intervention that has the greatest effect on students’ PMG errors. While 10 (16.7%) selected IF, 2 (3.3%) selected NF. % of feedback University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 214 Feedback Type & Impact on Punctuation, Mechanical, and Grammatical Errors 80 70 60 50 40 80 30 20 10 16.7 3.3 Feedback type & effect on 0 mechanical, grammar, underlined errors passing of punctuation errors Percent grammatical underlined general errors with comments corrections about errors provided RESPONSES OF KTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.7– CF that has the greatest impact on KTU students’ PMG errors Feedback Type & Impact on Punctuation, Mechanical, and Grammatical Errors 95 100 80 60 3.3 40 1.7 20 Feedback type & effect on 0 mechanical, grammar, punctuation errors Percent RESPONSES OF KSTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.8 – CF that has the greatest impact on KsTU students’ PMG errors Figure 6.8 shows the responses of 60 KsTU students’ participants on the type of CF that has the greatest impact on students PMG errors. 57 (95%) selected DF, 2 (3.3%) selected IF, and 1 (1.7%) chose NF. The conclusion is that majority (95%) of KsTU respondents believe that the DF intervention is the one that corrects PMG errors better. From Figure 6.9, 34 (56.7%) majority of HTU participants selected DF, 24 (40%) chose IF, and 2 (3.3%) chose NF as the best PMG error corrector. % of responses % of feedback type University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 215 Feedback Type & Impact on Punctuation, Mechanical, and Grammar Errors 56.7 60 40 50 40 30 3.3 20 10 0 Feedback type & effect on errors passing of errors mechanical, grammar, underlined general underlined punctuation errors Percent with comments only corrections about provided errors RESPONSES OF HTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.9 – CF that has the greatest impact on HTU students’ PMG errors Feedback Type & Impact on Students' Punctuation, Mechanical, and Grammatical errors 82.5 100 50 17.5 Feedback type & effect on 0 student grammar text errors errors Percent underlined underlined only with corrections provided TEACHERS' RESPONSES Figure 6.10 – Teachers’ views on CF that has the greatest impact on students’ PMG errors The responses of teachers (as depicted in Figure 6.10) corroborate that of the student respondents from all four schools. From the Figure, 33 (82.5%) selected DF, and 7 (17.5%) chose IF. No teacher chose NF. This means that the majority (82.5%) of the teachers believe that CF has the greatest impact on students’ PMG errors. % of responses % of responses University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 216 6.1.3 CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Rubrics in Writing Memoranda and Business Letters Another research objective was to find the kind of CF that has the greatest impact on the rubrics of students’ memoranda and business letters (RoMeL). The results are illustrated in Figures 6.11, 6.12, 6.13, 6.14, and 6.15. Feedback Type & Impact on Rubrics of Texts 80 70 60 50 40 76.7 30 20 10 20 Feedback type & effect on3.3 0 rubrics of text Percent underlined errors passing of rubrics text underlined general only with comments corrections about errors provided RESPONSES OF STU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.11 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of STU respondents From Figure 6.11, 46 (76.7%) majority of the STU respondents selected DF as the best RoMeL corrector, 12 (20%) chose IF, and 2 (3.3) selected NF. The implication is that the DF intervention has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of STU participants. Figure 6.12 also projects the responses KTU participants on the CF type that has the greatest impact on students’ RoMeL. 52 (86.7%) of them chose the DF intervention, 8 (13.33%) selected IF, and no participant selected NF. This suggests that the DF intervention was once again selected by the majority of the KTU participants. % of feedback University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 217 Feedback Type & Impact on Rubrics of Texts 90 80 70 60 50 86.7 40 30 Feedback type & effect on 20 rubrics of text Percent 10 13.3 0 underlined rubrics errors underlined text only with corrections provided RESPONSES OF KTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.12 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of KTU respondents Feedback Type & Impact on Rubrics of Texts 90 100 50 6.7 3.3 Feedback type & effect on 0 rubrics of text Percent underlined errors passing of rubrics text underlined general only with comments corrections about provided errors RESPONSES OF KSTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.13 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of KsTU respondents Figure 6.13 shows the data on the CF that has the greatest impact on RoMeL of KsTU respondents. From the Figure, 54 (90%) majority opted for DF, 4 (6.7) chose IF, and 2 (3.3%) selected NF intervention. This means that majority of the KsTU participants believe that the DF intervention has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of their texts. % of responses % of feedback type University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 218 Feedback Type & Impact on Rubrics of Texts 60 60 36.7 50 40 30 3.3 20 10 0 Feedback type & effect on errors passing of errors rubrics of text Percent underlined general underlined with comments only corrections about errors provided RESPONSES OF HTU PARTICIPANTS Figure 6.14 – CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of HTU Respondents From Figure 6.14, 36 (60%) selected DF, 22 (36.7%) selected IF, and 2 (3.3%) chose NF intervention as the CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of HTU participants. The conclusion is that 60 % majority see DF as the intervention that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of HTU participants. From Figure 6.15, 37 (92.5%) of the teacher respondents said the DF intervention has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of students, while 3 (7.5%) opted for IF. It implies that majority of the teachers sampled argue that the DF intervention corrects rubrical errors better than the IF. No teacher opted for NF. Feedback Type & Impact on Rubrics of Texts 92.5 100 50 7.5 0 Feedback type & effect on rubric of text Percent rubrics errors errors underlined underlined only with corrections provided TEACHERS RESPONSES Figure 6.15 – Teachers’ views on the CF that has the greatest impact on the RoMeL of students. % of responses % of responses University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 219 6.2 Discussions The analysis of the questionnaire items brought out some findings. On the type of CF applied on the texts of learners, both the majority of the teacher and student participants confirm that the DF is utilized. That is, out of the 60 student- participants from each school, 46 (76.7%) from STU, 47 (78.3%) from KTU, 54 (90%) from KsTU, and 33 (55%) from HTU confirm that DF is used on their texts. On the side of the teachers, 31 (77.5%) also corroborated this assertion. The DF CF thus, is popular in the population of the study. Another finding is that the CF corrects errors better than the IF and the NF. From the data collected, 43 (71.7%) of STU, 48 (80%) of KTU, 57 (95%) of KsTU, and 34 (56.7%) of HTU student-participants corroborated this assertion. The findings of this questionnaire item validate the results of the classroom texts which exhibited the superiority of the DF in correction of errors. Again, 50 (83.3%) of the teachers confirmed this claim. In the case of the teachers, no respondent even selected the NF intervention; and some of the 10 (16.7%) respondents who chose the IF intervention said that the IF has the ability of challenging students in editing their own texts. In Chandler (2003:287) ¾ majority of the participants opted for corrections (DF) as against underlining only (IF) and descriptions (NF)56. My study substantiates Chandler’s (2003) research findings that the DF corrects errors better than the IF and the NF. Generally, the data also revealed that DF has the greatest impact on students’ texts in terms of the rubrics of memoranda and letters (RoMeL). For example, 46 (76.7%) student-participant of STU confirmed this statement. At KTU, 52 (86.7%) corroborated it. At KsTU, 54 (90%) substantiated this claim; 56 Chandler (2003) studied the effectiveness of various kinds of error feedback for improvement in the accuracy and fluency of L2 student writing and concluded that DF is the better error corrector. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 220 and 36 (60%) HTU student-respondents also confirmed this finding. On the side of the teachers, 37 (92.5%) opted for DF and 3 (7.5%) selected IF. A teacher respondent who selected IF commented that it challenges the students to work on their own errors. This validates the research works of Ferris and Roberts (2001), Chandler (2003) and Bitchener et al. (2005). The implication is that majority of the student-participants will always need a second time to respond to issues in their texts and, ample time to complete a task. To them, this will lead to accuracy on PMG issues. But, majority of the teachers are of the opinion that time is not always a factor that leads to accuracy of PMG. Three of the teachers commented that issues such as the background of the learner, his level of intelligence, and the kind of pre-school the student attended also matter a lot. That is, for some of the students, no amount of time given can lead to accuracy of their texts. 6.3 Summary Chapter Six has focused on the analysis and discussions of questionnaire data. The analysis has revealed that CF corrects better than IF; and NF does not have a place in the teaching of Business Communication at the technical university level. CF again, impacts positively on the rubrics of memoranda, and business letters better than the IF intervention. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 221 CHAPTER SEVEN SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION 7.0 Introduction Chapter Seven presents a summary of the main findings of the research. The chapter, again, presents the recommendations that I have made to the various stakeholders. It also shows the contribution that this research has made to knowledge, and the direction for future research. Finally, the Chapter gives a conclusion of the entire research. 7.1 Summary of Findings The summary of findings has been segmented on the basis of the research objectives of the study as follows: 7.1.1 CF Type that Business Communication Students Receive on their Texts The research revealed that the sampled Business Communication students from the 4 technical universities receive DF intervention on their texts. From STU, 76.7% majority indicated that they received DF, 15% said IF, and 8.3% selected NF. From KTU, 78.3% majority said DF, 16.7% chose IF, and 5% said NF. From KsTU, 90% said DF, 6.7% said IF, and 3.3% selected NF. From HTU, 55% selected DF, 40 said IF, and 5% said NF. The data of the majority of the student- participants were corroborated by the teachers, majority of whom (77.5%) said they employed DF on students’ texts. 17.5% said IF and 5% said NF. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 222 7.1.2 CF’s and their effect on the Business Communication Texts of students. The research revealed that DF and IF had positive effect on the texts of business communication students; but the effect of NF was sporadic. The post-test assessments of all the DF and IF Groups of the 4 selected cases showed that the students were able to correct both rubrical and language and formatting errors. For example, all the participants in the DF and IF Groups corrected major rubrical errors such as mismatch of salutation and subscription, wrong alignment, wrong and missing rubrics, date, signature, and full name. This is an indication that the DF and IF interventions have positive effects on students’ business communication texts. However, the NF Groups were not consistent in their rubrical performance. For example, SNLB2, 3, 5, 12, 15; and KNMB3, 6, 10, and 16 repeated errors of wrong alignment; but KNMB5, 7, KNLB4, 7, 13 were able to correct various rubrical errors. What accounted for the repetition of the 16 errors of wrong alignment could be the absence of error symbols at the specific place where the errors were committed. The language and formatting section also revealed that CFs, in general, have positive impact on students’ texts. From the data collected, the DF and the IF groups of all the cases made significant corrections at the post-test level. However, the NF groups’ corrections on language and formatting were sporadic. (See Table 7.1). For example, while the pre-test errors counted in the memoranda of the NF Groups of STU and KsTU were 176 and 198 respectively, the errors counted at the post-test level were 186 and 201 for STU and KsTU respectively (See Table 7.1). Ideally, one would have expected a reduction of post-test errors. But, this was not the case. This shows that the NF intervention has negative impact on students’ business communication texts. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 223 7.1.3 The CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Punctuation, Mechanics, and Grammar (PMG). The research brought to light the fact that DF and IF have positive effect on students’ texts. However, the CF that had the greatest impact on students’ PMG, is the DF intervention. From Table 7.1, one realizes that few errors were found and corrected at the post-test stages of the DF Groups. This is significant as compared to the post-test errors of the IF and NF Groups. Group/ Memoranda Letters PMG Institution Intervention PMG Errors Comments Errors Comments Pre- Post- (Memo) Pre- Post- (Letter) Test Test Test Test DF 207 71 Very sig.57 245 83 Very sig. STU IF 190 187 Significant 208 165 Significant NF 176 186 Depreciated 208 197 Insignificant DF 145 65 Very sig. 278 99 Very sig. KTU IF 222 185 Significant 282 193 Significant NF 153 123 Significant 246 213 Significant DF 196 80 Very sig. 232 89 Very sig. KsTU IF 226 202 Significant 298 237 Significant NF 198 201 Depreciated 275 278 Depreciated DF 209 86 Very sig. 318 97 Very sig. HTU IF 263 226 Significant 240 206 Significant NF 226 222 Insignificant 241 238 Insignificant Table 7.1 – Total Pre- and Post-test PMG errors of all the Groups When the participants were asked to state the kind of CF that had the greatest impact on students’ PMG errors, 33 (82.5%) of the teachers selected DF and 7 (17.5%) selected IF, but no teacher selected NF. Again, the majority of the student-participants in all cases, opted for the DF intervention. This is to say that, 43 (71.7%), 48 (80%), 57 (95%), and 34 (56%) majority of the student- respondents from STU, KTU, KsTU, and HTU correspondingly selected DF as against IF and NF (See Figures 6.6 to 6.10). This corroborates the results projected in Table 7.1. 57 Very sig.(Very significant) means the margin between the pre-test and post-test errors is a positive one, which means that students corrected massive errors at the post-test level. Significant means few errors were corrected at the post-test stage. Insignificant means fewer errors were corrected at the post-test level. Depreciated means the post-test errors outweighed the pre-test errors. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 224 7.1.4 Time and Accuracy in Writing The research revealed that time as a variable has the propensity of leading to accuracy in writing, but this depends on the kind of intervention used on the student’s texts. When the DF and the IF Groups were given a second time to respond to issues raised in their business communication texts at the post-test level, they made significant progress in terms of accuracy in writing. Therefore, accuracy in writing is dependent on time. The use of mediating variables of DF and IF at the second time, will trigger this accuracy in writing. Nevertheless, time could not lead to accuracy in the writings of the NF Groups. From Table 7.1, one realizes that the post-test PMG errors of the DF and the IF groups were minimized, but those of the NF were irregular. There were even cases where the PMG errors committed at the post-test by some NF Groups outweighed those of the pre-test errors. From Table 7.2, you see that post-test PMG errors of NF Groups of STU and KsTU were heavier than the pre-test errors. What could be accounting for this inaccuracy in writing, is the participants’ inability to decode the general comments written beneath the scripts at the post-test level. There could be other factors such as: students’ academic and family backgrounds, the type of input received, lack of logistics, and students’ refusal to compose the texts at the post- test level. Group/ Memoranda Letters PMG Institution Intervention PMG Errors Comments Errors Comments Pre- Post- (Memo) Pre- Post- (Letter) Test Test Test Test STU NF 176 186 Depreciated 208 197 Insignificant KTU NF 153 123 Significant 246 213 Significant KsTU NF 198 201 Depreciated 275 278 Depreciated HTU NF 226 222 Insignificant 241 238 Insignificant Table 7.2 – Total of Pre- and Post-test PMG errors of the NF Groups University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 225 7.1.5 The CF that has the Greatest Impact on Students’ Texts in Terms of Rubrics in Writing Memoranda and Business Letters (RoMeL). The research revealed the potency of the DF and the IF interventions in terms of their ability to correct RoMeL errors. The use of the DF and the IF interventions helped the students to notice the RoMeL errors and corrected them accordingly. However, the NF Groups could not make any progress in correcting RoMeL errors. This means that the NF intervention did not help them to notice their RoMeL flaws. Examples are found in SNMB2, and 15 where the NF participants repeated a wrong alignment error committed earlier at the pre-test level. When the participants were asked to state the type of CF that had the greatest impact on students’ RoMeL, 37 (92.5%) of the teachers chose DF and 3 (7.5%) selected IF. No teacher opted for NF. On the part of the students, the majority selected DF. This is to say that 46 (76.7%) STU, 52 (86.7%) KTU, 54 (90%) KsTU, and 36 (60%) HTU participants opted for the DF intervention. Thus, the participants selected the DF, as the CF that had the greatest impact on students’ RoMeL. However, the pre- and post-test memoranda and letters showed that both DF and IF corrected RoMeL flaws better. 7.1.6 Similarity and Differences of Corporate and Classroom Business Communication texts of Letters and Memoranda The research revealed some resemblances and variances in the memoranda and letters of both corporate and classroom business communication texts. In the first place, in the field, students were taught reference numbers and their importance in business communication. While all the corporate texts had reference numbers, majority of the classroom texts did not have reference numbers. In the corporate world, reference numbers facilitate proper filling system. Therefore, its inclusion in a business communication text is imperative. Since the inclusion of a reference University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 226 number is not one of the compulsory rubrical features of letters and memoranda, most of the students omitted it, although they were taught in class. Furthermore, there were some unfamiliar rubrical features in both letters and memoranda of the corporate texts sampled. For example, L8 did not have a salutation and a subscription. This is the Simplified Format. None of the classroom texts used this format. Presumably, it is uncommon and weird to them. According to Owusu (2015:59) organisations may include other rubrical features (for example, the specific day a correspondence was sent, department of sender and recipient, attachment, and priority level of the text) to the traditional rubrics. M17 included some of these features, but almost all the classroom memoranda used only the traditional memo rubrics of To, From, Date, Subject, and CC. Again, because corporate written communication is mostly computer- generated texts, major errors were not found in areas such as spelling, word- division, concord, and tense. This is one feature that brings the difference between classroom and corporate texts. With the classroom texts, major mechanical, grammatical, and punctuation errors were recorded. However, the research showed that some errors were absolute. For example, both the classroom and corporate texts had errors of mismatch of salutation and subscription. As L7 mismatched Dear Miss Yeboah with Yours faithfully, KDLA12, 13, and 19 mismatched Dear Sir with Yours sincerely. Another parallel issue of both classroom and corporate texts is the identification of null-subject constructions at the syntactic section of language and formatting. For example, the expression: Counting on your usual co-operation (I/We count on your usual co-operation or We are/I am counting on your usual co-operation) was found in L11. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 227 I found similar null-subject constructions in most of the classroom texts. An example is, Am grateful to have this opportunity … (We are/I am grateful to have this opportunity) was found in KILA7. What may account for the existence of such structures in formal correspondences is the frequent informal written social media chat sessions that most people engage in. 7.2 Summary of the Strengths and Weaknesses of my Research Every research work has its own strengths and weaknesses. My research is of no exception. The positive side (strengths) of the work has been presented under 7.2.1 (contribution to knowledge) below; and the negative side (weaknesses) has been presented under sub-section 7.2.2 (direction for future research). 7.2.1 Contribution to Knowledge In research institutions outside Ghana, studies on Corrective Feedback (CF) are many. Here in Ghana, it is a grey area. Again, most of the research works on CF (for example, Truscott 1996, Ferris 1999, Truscott 1999, Chandler 2033) have not placed a lot of emphases on the text(s) used. In most of the cases, emphases have been placed on only the interventions. My work has researched both CF and business communication texts of letters and memoranda. Another contribution that I have made to knowledge, is the development of two innovative analytical frameworks meant for assessing business communication texts of letters and memoranda. These frameworks are Memorandum Analytical Framework (MAF), and Business Letter Analytical Framework (BLAF) (Please see figures 4.1 and 4.2). In this current research, these frameworks facilitated the analysis of classroom data. The variables of the frameworks guided me in grading the texts in a chronological and logical order. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 228 Furthermore, my study has added definitions to existing definitions. Under sub-section 1.1.2, I defined Business Communication as ‘a specified system of disseminating the vision, mission, core values, goals, objectives as well as goods/services of a business entity to its internal and external stakeholders.’ Also, under sub-section 2.2.1, I defined CF as the ‘teacher’s response to students’ written or verbal structures that seeks to critique the structures.’ 7.2.2 Direction for Future Research This current research focused on the application of CF on business communication texts of memoranda and letters. Future studies could focus on other business communication texts such as: reports, proposals, e-mailing, minutes of meeting, marketing plans, strategic plans, business plans, notices, succession plans, and communication strategies. Furthermore, this current research used only pre- and post-test items. Future studies, may include a mid-test, which follows the pre-test, and a transfer test, which follows the post-test. The transfer test assesses the application of the participants’ knowledge (acquired from the pre- and post-test items) on some unknown materials. Such an experimental study may use a whole semester or at least a period of 12 weeks. Again, 4 technical universities were selected for the study. Future research may consider the other 4 technical universities, or some of the public and private tertiary universities in Ghana. The population of future studies may also include the second-cycle institutions and other diploma awarding institutions in Ghana and elsewhere. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 229 7.3 Recommendations The following recommendations are made to the various stakeholders in the educational section: 7.3.1 Recommendations for Teachers (a) I recommend that teachers who teach Business Communication and other English language-related courses should offer CFs on students’ texts. This is because, CFs in general, have positive impact on students’ texts. (b) I also recommend that for smaller classes (of between 1 – 45 students) DF should be the intervention used in grading students’ texts. But where the class size is large (from 46 and above) teachers who find DF more laborious and time- consuming, may use the IF. (c) I propose that each continuous assessment of students should be both pre- and post-test items; and the marks of only the post-test items should be recorded. My research showed that at the post-test levels of the two texts used, the errors of the DF and IF groups reduced. So, when post-test marks are recorded instead of pre-test marks, it will enable students to experience a degree of success in the classroom. (d) From the study, high levels of spelling, tenses, capitalisation, syntactic, and concord errors were recorded at the pre-test stages of the various student- groupings. I therefore recommend that business communication teachers and, by extension, all language teachers should devote a lot of time to the teaching and learning of spelling, verb forms, capitalisation, and concord, through some student-friendly methods. For example, teachers may use scrabble in teaching vocabulary and spelling58. 58 Scrabble is a word-forming game that facilitates spelling and word formation. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 230 (e) I propose that teachers should use my analytical frameworks (see Figures 4.2 and 4.3) for assessing business communication texts. The frameworks have the propensity of eradicating incongruity of grading of business communication texts. (f) Since the NF was weak in correcting classroom text errors, it should only be used as a prelude to the use of DF or IF interventions. That is, in some take-home assignment cases, when students submit their texts, teachers may challenge them to go and grade their own scripts before the teachers would use either the DF or the IF in grading students’ scripts. (g) I propose that at the beginning of each academic year, departments of English and other language-related programmes, should meet and decide on the type of CF that departmental members will use in grading students texts. This will ensure a certain level of consistency in grading of students’ texts in the department. This, however, may be based on the students and their academic level. Again, the style sheets of such departments may include departmental approved CF on students’ texts. (h) I recommend that business communication teachers should be given training on modern business communication on semester basis. 7.3.2 Recommendations for Students (a) I recommend that students should use full structures whenever they engage in social media chat sessions. Frequent use of such informal structures leads to automaticity of such productions. In most of the groups, some flawed structures were repeated at the post-test levels. (b) I suggest that for a sit-in task with a duration of not more than 1 hour, students should devote 10 minutes for self-editing before submitting their texts. In the University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 231 case of sit-in tests with duration of more than 1 hour and above, the editing time may be increased to 15 or 20 minutes. For take-home texts, the editing may include the use of proofreaders who have in-depth knowledge of the subject matter. (c) I recommend that full-time students should occasionally embark on voluntary industrial attachments. Such attachments may be useful in automatizing some business correspondence text rubrics. (d) I recommend that business communication students should join business- related clubs and associations and also read business-related periodicals, journals, magazines, and annual reports. Such exercise may facilitate acclimatization to business world texts. 7.3.3 Recommendations for Corporate Entities (a) I recommend that Senior Management in the various corporate entities should periodically hire the services of experts or authorities of business communication to run various training programmes, seminars, and workshops on modern business communication texts of memoranda and letters for various categories of staff in smaller groups. (b) I recommend that the training programmes proposed in (a) above should also focus on rubrics of memoranda and letters, and language and formatting issues. University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 232 7.4 Conclusion Studies on the application of CF on business communication texts in Ghana have not been prominent. This is because CF itself is a controversial area in Second Language studies. The controversy has ignited two main schools of thought on CF: 1. The school of thought that is averse to CF, which is advocated by Truscott (1996; 1998; 1999; 2004; 2007), and 2. The school of thought that backs CF, which is championed by Ferris (1995a, b, c; 1997; 1999; 2002; 2003; 2004; 2006). Because of the thorny nature of CF, most language teachers rely on their own style(s) in grading students’ business communication texts. Debates on the efficacy of CFs, consequently, generated a lot of ideas and CF types. Some of the types include: 1. Focused and unfocused (Beuningen 2010:11), 2. Explicit (direct) correction, recasts, clarification requests, metalinguistic elicitation, and repetition. (Lyster and Ranta 1997:46), 3. Paralinguistic signal (Ellis 2009:9), 4. Prompt (Lyster and Mori 2006), and 5. Indirect feedback, electronic feedback, reformulation (Ellis 2008). The current research used the DF, IF, and NF interventions or techniques to establish a relationship between accuracy of business communication texts and CFs. Generally, the objective of the research was to establish whether CFs have impact on the writing of business communication students of selected tertiary institutions in Ghana. The current research drew its underpinnings from two theoretical frameworks – Noticing Hypothesis and Swain’s Comprehensible University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 233 Output Hypothesis. The reason for selecting these frameworks was to establish if CF could facilitate the students’ ‘noticing’ of gaps in their ‘outputs’. Again, I constructed two analytical frameworks which served as benchmarks for assessing the business communication texts of letters and memoranda. The literature reviewed included both theoretical and empirical reviews. The selected cases were four technical universities of STU, KTU, KsTU, and HTU. At the commencement of this current research, technical universities were new phenomena which warranted a research of this nature in the then newly- converted Technical Institutions. A sample size of 1280 data was used. This included: 960 classroom texts, 40 business communication texts from the corporate world, 240 student-questionnaire items, and 40 teacher-questionnaire items. In each of the selected cases, the sampled student-participants were grouped into 3 strata of Experimental Group A, Experimental Group B and Control Group. Those in the Experimental Group A category received DF intervention on their texts, those in Group B received IF, and the Control Group received NF intervention. The two instruments used in collecting the field data were texts (tasks on letter and memorandum) and questionnaire items. 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TESOL Quarterly, 19, 79-101. www.yourdictionary.com www.dictionary.com www.businessdictionary.com www.google.com www.biomedicaleditor.com www.hopoly.edu.gh www.koforiduapoly.edu.g www.spoly.edu.gh www.kpoly.edu.gh University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 247 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 248 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 249 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 250 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 251 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 252 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 253 APPENDIX 1B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 254 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 255 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 256 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 257 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 258 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 259 APPENDIX 1C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 260 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 261 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 262 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 263 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 264 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 265 APPENDIX 1D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 266 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 267 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 268 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 269 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 270 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 271 APPENDIX 2A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 272 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 273 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 274 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 275 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 276 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 277 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 278 APPENDIX 2B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 279 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 280 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 281 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 282 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 283 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 284 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 285 APPENDIX 2C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 286 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 287 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 288 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 289 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 290 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 291 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 292 APPENDIX 2D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 293 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 294 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 295 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 296 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 297 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 298 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 299 APPENDIX 3A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 300 APPENDIX 3B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 301 APPENDIX 3C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 302 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 303 APPENDIX 3D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 304 APPENDIX 4A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 305 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 306 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 307 APPENDIX 4C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 308 APPENDIX 4D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 309 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 310 APPENDIX 5A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 311 APPENDIX 5B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 312 APPENDIX 5C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 313 APPENDIX 5D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 314 APPENDIX 6A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 315 APPENDIX 6B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 316 APPENDIX 6C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 317 APPENDIX 6D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 318 APPENDIX 6E University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 319 APPENDIX 6F University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 320 APPENDIX 7A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 321 APPENDIX 7B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 322 APPENDIX 8A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 323 APPENDIX 8B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 324 APPENDIX 9 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 325 APPENDIX 10 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 326 APPENDIX 11 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 327 APPENDIX 12 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 328 APPENDIX 13 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 329 APPENDIX 14A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 330 APPENDIX 14B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 331 APPENDIX 14C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 332 APPENDIX 14D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 333 APPENDIX 15A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 334 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 335 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 336 APPENDIX 15B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 337 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 338 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 339 APPENDIX 16 WORK PLAN The table below showcases the timelines for the various sections of the study: Activity Date Drafting of Introduction November, 2015 Drafting of Literature review December 2015 – March, 2016 Collection of field data I April, 2016 Collection of field data II May – June, 2016 Analysis of field data July – September, 2016 Drafting of thesis report October – December, 2016 Drafting of findings, and recommendations. January, 2017 Submission of draft work February – March, 2017 Correction of Errors, Printing and April – June, 2017 Submission University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 340 APPENDIX 17A University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 341 APPENDIX 17B University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 342 APPENDIX 17C University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 343 APPENDIX 17D University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 344 APPENDIX 17E