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i TITLE PAGE AN ERROR ANALYSIS OF THE WRITTEN ENGLISH OF THE FIRST YEAR STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA BY ANAGBOSO, UZOCHUKWU LUCY PG/MA/06/41881 DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH AND LITERARY STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA, NSUKKA JANUARY,

2010 ii APPROVAL PAGE This project has been approved by the Department of English and Literary Studies, University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

By Dr. P.A. Ezema Prof. Sam Onuigbo Supervisor Head of Department iii CERTIFICATION Anagboso, Uzochukwu Lucy, a postgraduate student in the Department of English and Literary Studies with the Registration Number PG./MA/06/41881 has satisfactorily completed the requirements for course and research work for the degree of Master of Arts in English. The work embodied in this thesis has not been submitted in part or in full for any other diploma or degree of this or any other university. Prof. Sam Onuigbo Dr. P.A. Ezema Head of Department Supervisor External Examiner iv DEDICATION For my brothers: The Rev. Fr. Robert Nwabueze T. Anagboso and Mr. Toochukwu J. Anagboso v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is quite clear that this work would not have been a reality without the unwavering support and co-operation I received from many people to whom I wish to record my appreciation. I am sincerely grateful to my supervisor, Dr. P.A.Ezema, a brilliant academic and a motivator, for his invaluable contributions and assistance. He gave me his attention and devoted his time supervising the work. His constructive criticisms and directions tremendously helped in making this work an actualized dream. I profoundly appreciate the wonderful intellectual exposition given to me by my lecturers, Prof. Sam Onuigbo, Prof. A.N. Akwanya, Prof. D.U. Opata, Prof. Inyama, Mr. Okoro and others. Their lectures and contributions during my seminar presentation evidently beefed up the quality of this work. My special thanks go to my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Peter Anagboso whose prayers and encouragements saw me through rough times in the course of this work. I owe a million thanks to my brothers, Mr. Lawrence Anagboso, the Rev. Fr. Robert Anagboso and Mr. Toochukwu Anagboso whose continual, immeasurable moral and financial support brought me thus far. I am particularly indebted to Mrs Juliana Nwosu for her all-round support. She was always there for me throughout the time of my M.A. Programme. She is indeed a sister to be counted on. I do not forget Mr. A.C. Nwosu who accommodated me in his house and the warmth I got from the children, Chisom, Eby, Ndii and Sochima. I appreciate them all. I thank Mrs Amaka Edieh and Miss Ogoo Anagboso for their help and understanding. I wish to thank my friends and colleagues, Miss Oby Akaegbobi, Mrs Pauline Achom and others who have assisted me in one way or the other. I remain very grateful to the authors whose works I consulted and used in this research work. Finally and most importantly, my unreserved gratitude goes to my wonderful God. He is awe-inspiring. vi ABSTRACT This research work is an error analysis of the first year students from five selected departments of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The aim is to get a feedback that will be of immense value for better performances of the students. Literature on error analysis by different authors was reviewed. The students supplied the data for this study through written essays. The errors identified after marking the essays were classified into error types and were systematically analysed. The analysis included the explanation of different types of errors made by the students as they relate to different sources. The result of this work was amazing and showed that this category of students, though already in the university, still lacked some fundamental knowledge of the English language for effective communication, which they seriously need for their academic excellence in their various fields of study. On the basis of the findings, the researcher made some recommendations which if effected, will go a long way to remedy the problem of poor expressions in English. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Title page i Approval page ii Certification iii Dedication iv Acknowledgments v Abstract vi Table of contents vii Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Background to the Study