Lexical Errors in English Language Writing – The Case of selected Senior High School students in the Ashanti Region of Ghana
Dorah Mensah 
, Charles Owu-Ewie , Levina Nyameye Abunya , Albert Abban & Halimatu Sadia Jibril
Issue: Vol.5 No.16 Issue Article 31 pp.3067-3086
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202451631 | Published online 24th December, 2024
© 2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
The present study analyses the lexical errors committed by students in their written output. Using the Quantitative approach, it examines the lexical errors of students selected from each of the three-layered categories (A, B, and C) of Senior High schools in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. A sample of 824 out of 2713 students was arrived at through Yamane’s sample size determiner. The sample was selected through the systematic random sampling strategy. A model based on Corder’s Error Analysis theory was used to analyse the data. The results revealed that the students committed lexical errors in varying frequencies. Lexical errors identified from the essays were wrong word selections, literal translation, omission, misspelling, punctuation, capitalisation, modification, collocation, and morphological/word formation errors. Punctuation errors had the highest occurrence whereas literal translation errors had the least occurrence. The findings also revealed that lexical errors in the students’ output affected clarity and hindered effective communication by causing confusion, misinterpretation, and distortion of the intended messages. The study recommends that English language teachers should employ practical teaching and error correction strategies to address the writing challenges of students. Students should keep track of their learning; identify their weaknesses and relate such to their teachers for redress.
Keywords: Error Analysis, Mistakes, Lexical errors, Senior High schools, Ghana.
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Dorah Mensah (PhD) is a Lecturer at the Department of Languages, Akrokerri College of Education. She holds a Master of Philosophy degree in English and a Doctor of Philosopy (PhD) in Language and Literacy education from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana. Her research interests are in the areas of English Language Education, Discourse analysis, and Sociolinguistics. She teaches courses in English Education, Semantics, Syntax, and Stylistics.
Charles Owu-Ewie (Prof.) is an Associate Professor at the College of Languages Education, University of Education, Winneba-Ghana. He is a Fulbright Scholar and an American-trained educationist from Ohio University, Athens, United States of America (USA) with a vast experience in Language and Education (First and Second Language Teaching, Language Materials Development, Language Planning and Language Policy of Education, Bilingual Education, and Curriculum Development). He obtained his Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) in Akan at the University of Education, Winneba, and Master of Arts (M.A.) in Applied Linguistics and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Teacher Education (Curriculum and Instruction) all from Ohio University, Athens, USA.
Levina Nyameye Abunya (PhD) is a Lecturer at the Department of Language and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Social Sciences, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi-Ghana. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and Philosophy, Mphil, and PhD in Linguistics all from the University of Ghana. She has taught courses in Core Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, African Studies, and Business Communication. Her research interests include Syntax, Morphology, Functional Linguistics, and General Linguistics.
Albert Abban is affiliated to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi-Ghana, where he served as a Teaching Assistant in the Department of English, Faculty of Social Sciences, College of Humanities and Social Sciences. He is also a Teaching Consultant at Education USA Kumasi – ACE Consult where he handles lessons in standardized tests – SAT, IELTS, and TOEFL. He is a member of the British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL)- United Kingdom (UK). His research interests include Rhetoric, Multimodal studies, Crutical Discourse Analysis, Sociolinguistics, Technical and Professional communication, Applied linguistics, Bilingual Education, and Language contact in multilingual contexts.
Halimatu Sardia Jibril is a tutor at the Department of Languages, Accra College of Education. She holds a Bachelor of Education in English (from the University of Education, Winneba) and a Master of Philosophy in English (from the University of Ghana, Legon). She is currently a PhD candidate at the Department of English, University of Education, Winneba. She is an experienced teacher with research interests in Education, English Language Teaching and ICT- Supported Learning.
Mensah, Dorah, Charles Owu-Ewie, Levina Nyameye Abunya, Albert Abban and Halimatu Sadia Jibril. “Lexical Errors in English Language Writing – The Case of selected Senior High School students in the Ashanti Region of Ghana,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 5, no.16 (2024): 3067-3086. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202451631
© 2024 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
