چکیده:
Nongeneric use of the English definite article is one of the problematic areas
of foreign language learning for Persian speakers. In this study the subjects
were placed in different proficiency groups based on the results of a Cambridge
First Certificate in English test. The participants responded to an instrument
which consisted of 91 sentences by inserting the definite article wherever
needed. The results show that out of four nongeneric uses of the definite
article, Cultural use continues to be a problem for all language proficiency
groups irrespective of the language proficiency. Structural use and Textual use
are the next problematic areas. Finally, Situational use is the least
problematic area. It is implied here that learners first learn the situational
and textual uses and then the structural and cultural uses. The results also
confirm overuse of the cultural category by all groups with steady decrease
along with proficiency improvement. Finally, missing the obligatory use of the
article does not seem to stop with proficiency improvement. Pedagogically these
findings could be incorporated into syllabuses.
خلاصه ماشینی:
In the case of textual and situational overuses of the, it is concluded that they are improved at upper-intermediate level but again worsened at advanced level showing the recurrence or at least traces of difficulty despite the high proficiency.
It could be said that cultural overuse of the is one of the most difficult problematic areas for learners of all proficiency levels whose mother tongue which lacks definite article and those who learn English in a nonnative context; Persian is an example of this.
But the interesting finding (based on table 2) is that there is no difference between the groups in the case of textually and culturally missed obligatory uses, suggesting that learners have the same difficulty level despite the difference in language proficiency.
e. Textual, Structural, Situational, and Cultural (1) will be learned at different stages by second language learners and (2) they will impose different difficulty for learners with various language proficiency levels,” it could be claimed that in terms of structurally and situationally missed obligatory uses of the, our hypothesis is confirmed.
These usages are the first ones which are learned as the proficiency improves; but the weight of imposition of difficulty attributed to proficiency in the case of textually and culturally missed obligatory uses is different from Structural and exposure to foreign language has not helped advanced level students much to fully grasp the cultural knowledge.
Table 1 Means of Missed Obligatory Use of The by Four Proficiency Groups Groups N Textual Structural Situational Cultural Low 13 4.