Error Correction
@Bing
Prepared by Elsaid Rashad
GTKY 1 – Getting to Know the Trainees
Introduce yourself in the chat box! You can use any of the below points.
✓ Your name and country
✓Your experience and education
✓Something interesting about you
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elsaid-rashad-47818410b/
GTKY 2 – Getting to Know the Trainer
Read the following statements about me. Three of them are NOT True.
1. I am 44 years old.
2. I have two bachelor’s degrees and I’m Delta-qualified.
3. I lived three years in China.
4. I have two sisters.
5. I was about to eat a frog.
6. I’m a CELTA Tutor at Cambridge Assessment
7. I have a Master’s degree in TESOL from the UK.
8. I live in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
9. I work at King Saud University.
10. I’m a Cambridge Examiner at the British Council, KSA.
GTKY 2 – Getting to Know the Trainer
Read the following statements about me. THREE of them are NOT True.
1. I am 44 years old.
2. I have two bachelor’s degrees and I’m Delta-qualified.
3. I lived three years in China.
4. I have two sisters.
5. I was about to eat a frog.
6. I’m a CELTA Tutor at Cambridge Assessment
7. I have a Master’s degree in TESOL from the UK.
8. I live in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
9. I work at King Saud University.
10. I’m a Cambridge Examiner at the British Council, KSA.
Session Aims
By the end of the session, trainees will have:
▪ become more aware of types of errors and their underlying reasons
▪ had an understanding of how to respond to students’ errors in class
▪ practiced correcting students’ errors on the spot.
After the session, when trainees go back to their classrooms, they will
be better able to:
▪ identify errors and provide correction sensitively.
Error Correction
Lead-In: Open Class Discussion
How good are you at identifying errors and providing
correction sensitively in class? [Chat Box]
Not very Extremely
Only good Good Very good
good good
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
Types of Errors
TASK 1: Match the types of errors with the correct explanations/examples. [5-6 min]
Put the letters [A-F] in the boxes next to types of errors [1-6].
Types of Errors Answers Explanations/Examples
1 Missing word A E.g., Speaker A: Could you please open
the window? Speaker B: *No.
2 Appropriacy B E.g., He *playing football now.
3 Individual sounds C E.g., *govrnment, *untill, etc.
4 Spelling D Mispronunciation
E.g., *People /ˈbi·bəl/ like reading.
5 Incorrect collocation E E.g., He *have two sisters.
6 Subject-verb agreement F E.g., I *made my homework.
(Please take a screenshot.)
Types of Errors
TASK 1 FEEDBACK: Match the types of errors with the correct explanations/examples.
Put the letters [A-F] in the boxes next to types of errors [1-6].
Types of Errors Answers Explanations/Examples
1 Missing word 1-B A E.g., Speaker A: Could you please open
the window? Speaker B: *No.
2 Appropriacy 2-A B E.g., He *playing football now.
3 Individual sounds 3-D C E.g., *govrnment, *untill, etc.
4 Spelling 4-C D Mispronunciation
E.g., *People /ˈbi·bəl/ like reading.
5 Incorrect collocation 5-F E E.g., He *have two sisters.
6 Subject-verb agreement 6-E F E.g., I *made my homework.
Reasons for Errors
TASK 2: Why do learners make errors?
Now, listen and compare your thoughts.
Write down some of them.
Compare your answers.
Script prompted by Elsaid Rashad, generated by ChatGPT & recorded by PlayHT.
Reasons for Errors
course: Modules 1, 2 and 3: University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations
Spratt, M., Pulverness, A., William, M. (2011) Second Edition, The TKT Teaching Knowledge Test
TASK 2 FEEDBACK: Think - Why do learners make errors?
Check your answers.
There may be different reasons why learners make errors:
They haven't learnt or studied the word or structure yet;
They have been introduced to the language but need more time
to process it / practise using it;
L1 interference (students using a word / structure from their first
language e.g, *I’m engineer. / *He playing.);
Overgeneralization could be also a reason (e.g., go –*goed).
Ways to Respond to Students’ Errors
TASK 3: Discuss: Should teachers always correct students’ errors immediately
(on the spot)? Or should they ignore or delay it? [5-6 min]
Responding to Scenarios where Ss might make errors
students’ errors
1. A late comer. T asks, ‘Why are you late?’ S answers, ‘*I made an accident.’
2. T clarified the present simple tense. S produced this sentence: *He play the
piano. (In a controlled practice task focusing on accuracy.)
3. T has set a freer oral practice activity about future plans focusing on fluency
and students are making errors while the teacher is monitoring.
S1: What are you gonna do this summer?
S2: *I’m gonna to travel to Japan.
4. A new student is introducing herself and made an error ‘I’m come from
Spain.’
5. T is giving feedback after a written controlled practice task and a student is
making an error regarding the TL. For example, ‘The car *have been stolen.’
(Please take a screenshot.)
Ways to Respond to Students’ Errors
TASK 3 FEEDBACK: Discuss: Should teachers always correct students’ errors
immediately (on the spot)? Or should they ignore or delay it?
Responding to Scenarios where Ss might make errors
students’ errors
Ignore 1. A late comer. T asks, ‘Why are you late?’ S answers, ‘*I made an accident.’
2. T clarified the present simple tense. S produced this sentence: *He play the
Correct on the spot
piano. (In a controlled practice task focusing on accuracy.)
3. T has set a freer oral practice activity about future plans focusing on fluency
and students are making errors while the teacher is monitoring.
Delay correction
S1: What are you gonna do this summer?
S2: *I’m gonna to travel to Japan.
4. A new student is introducing herself and made an error ‘I’m come from
Ignore
Spain.’
Correct on the spot 5. T is giving feedback after a written controlled practice task and a student is
making an error regarding the TL. For example, ‘The car *have been stolen.’
Watch the video and leave a relevant comment in the chat. ☺
On the Spot Correction
TASK 4 (Open Class): What are the different ways of correcting
students’ errors on the spot?
On the Spot Correction
TASK 4 (Open Class): What are the different ways of correcting
students’ errors on the spot?
On the Spot Correction Techniques:
▪ Peer correction
▪ Gestures / Facial Expressions
▪ Echo correcting
▪ Reformulating
▪ Recasting
▪ Finger correction
On the Spot Correction Techniques
course: Modules 1, 2 and 3: Module 3 Part 2 Unit 32. University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations
Spratt, M., Pulverness, A., William, M. (2011) Second Edition, The TKT Teaching Knowledge Test
TASK 4: Match the error correction technique with its correct clarification. [5-6 min]
Peer correction – Gestures and Facial Expressions – Echo correcting
– Reformulating – Recasting – Finger correction
1. ____________________________ are useful when we do not want to interrupt learners, but still want to
show them that they have made a slip (without having to say a word).
2. __________________. We show one hand to the class and point to each finger in turn as we say each
word in the utterance (usually when a student drops a word in a sentence).
3. __________________ means repeating what a learner says wrong with rising intonation (the rising
intonation sounds like a question). Example, S: I made* my homework. T: I MADE* my homework?
4. __________________. It involves learners correcting each other’s mistakes. S makes a mistake. T asks:
Who can correct it?
5. __________________. Teachers correct the mistake by repeating the utterance correctly (without
drawing the student’s attention to the mistake). Example, S: I go* to the zoo yesterday. T: You went to the
zoo yesterday.
6. __________________. Sometimes we do that by rewording a student’s utterance and saying it back to
the learner in its improved form. Example, S: I’m not of the same opinion as my friend*. T: Oh, you mean
you don’t agree with him.
(Please take a screenshot.)
On the Spot Correction Techniques
course: Modules 1, 2 and 3: Module 3 Part 2 Unit 32. University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations
Spratt, M., Pulverness, A., William, M. (2011) Second Edition, The TKT Teaching Knowledge Test
TASK 4 FEEDBACK: Match the error correction technique with its correct clarification.
Peer correction – Gestures and Facial Expressions – Echo correcting
– Reformulating – Recasting – Finger correction
Gestures and Facial Expressions are useful when we do not want to interrupt learners, but still want to
1. ____________________________
show them that they have made a slip (without having to say a word).
Finger correction
2. __________________. We show one hand to the class and point to each finger in turn as we say each
word in the utterance (usually when a student drops a word in a sentence).
Echo correcting
3. __________________ means repeating what a learner says wrong with rising intonation (the rising
intonation sounds like a question). Example, S: I made* my homework. T: I MADE* my homework?
Peer correction
4. __________________. It involves learners correcting each other’s mistakes. S makes a mistake. T asks:
Who can correct it?
Reformulating
5. __________________. Teachers correct the mistake by repeating the utterance correctly (without
drawing the student’s attention to the mistake). Example, S: I go* to the zoo yesterday. T: You went to the
zoo yesterday.
Recasting
6. __________________. Sometimes we do that by rewording a student’s utterance and saying it back to
the learner in its improved form. Example, S: I’m not of the same opinion as my friend*. T: Oh, you mean
you don’t agree with him.
Practice providing correction on the spot
HW: Make a conversation as a teacher and as a student. When you’re a teacher,
correct the student’s errors. Use a variety of techniques. [Out of the session]
Student: *I’m nurse.
Teacher:
Student: I*think /sɪnk/ he is rich.
Teacher:
Student: My sister *don’t like pizza.
Teacher:
Student: I didn’t like the movie. I was *boring.
Teacher:
Student: You’re *gooder than me at English.
Teacher:
Student: I *have 21 years old.
Teacher:
(Please take a screenshot.)
Error Correction
Reflection
➢ Something useful I’ve learnt today about Error
Correction that may help me with my Teaching is
_______________________________________.
Put your answer in the chat box.
Further (Recommended) Reading
Recommended Books / Chapters / Websites
Harmer, J - The Practice of English Language Teaching (Pearson Longman) 2015
Chapter: 8 Feedback, mistakes and correction p. 154
Scrivener, J - Learning Teaching (Macmillan) 2011 Chapter 14 Toolkit 2: Focus on
language 1 Errors and Correction p. 298
Spratt, M., Pulverness, A., William, M. (2011) Second Edition, The TKT Teaching
Knowledge Test course: Modules 1, 2 and 3: Module 3 Part 2 Unit 32. University
of Cambridge ESOL Examinations
https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/professional-development/teachers/assessing-
learning/articles/error-correction [Retrieved on 7/2/2024]
Everything I am in one, simple link.
https://linktr.ee/Elsaeed_Rashad
