A STUDY OF ADVERB MISUSE IN UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS' WRITTEN ENGLISH

1.1 Introduction

The term adverb is used to refer to "a heterogeneous group of items, whose most frequent function is to specify the mode of action of the verb" (Crystal, 1980:16). An adverb may modify a verb "by giving circumstantial information about the time, place or manner in which an action, process takes place" (Finch, 2000:84). Adverbs are admitted to be very important as a part of daily conversation, adverbs make conversation sounds interesting and convenient to use. The fact is many students avoid in using adverbs when they were speaking or writing because use adverbs is difficult for them. The students' still confuse to determine which the correct adverb in composing the sentences and students is also difficult in distinguish the adverb and the adjective.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.

1.2 Background of Study

English's most varied grammatical structures are adverbials, both syntactically and morphologically (Freeman, 1999:491). Their functions are manifold: they might depict the relationship between time and place, highlight or underline certain details, express regularity or style, or connect concepts. In sentences, they can appear before nouns, adjectives, or verbs at the beginning, middle, or end. Through observing this kind of dynamic word class, the researcher is able to see variations in the language development of Delta State University students at the one hundred (100) level. An important clue to the subjects' language skills is provided by the way they select and arrange adverbs in their sentences.

According to Altenburg (2010:103), "a word is probably an adverb if you don't know what else it is." Since adverb meanings and emphasis vary slightly among the grammar texts we looked at (Larsen-freeman, 1999; Biber, 1999; Azar, 2002; Freeman, 1999:491), it follows that adverbs are one of the trickiest word classes to define. Adverbs are defined for the sake of this research as words or phrases that alter verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or entire clauses. Relationships like time, place, style, or certainty are depicted. However, this study's focus is somewhat enclose to the conservative form, or single-word adverbs that are only allowed to exist in adverbial forms for practical reasons.

Error analysis is a crucial tool for identifying if the students under research make mistakes while selecting and positioning adverbs. It can reveal which adverbs the students use correctly, how often they misuse them, and more. When evaluating learners, it's important to consider how closely their word choices match those of native speakers as well as how accurate their grammar is. To expect language acquisition to be error-free is ridiculous. Nevertheless, this indicates that mistakes can be made when learning a second language, and that's why it has to be recognized and addressed.

Error analysis has gained attention due to the necessity of fixing erroneous or aberrant sentences that cannot be adequately described by the grammar of either the target or mother tongue. The dynamic and generative nature of languages means that unless new avenues for Applied Linguistics study are explored, conclusions from linguistic studies will remain ineffectual. Additionally, the low performance of pupils in English language exams has continued to have a detrimental effect on the goals of education in the country. Based on Banjo (1981), Bamgbose (1982), and Odumuh (1985), this is based on the fact that English is widely used in Nigeria.

Error analysis is the study of deviations from the intended models by which or against which structures are to be evaluated. There are many distinct kinds of grammatical faults in second language learners' written and spoken English. Adverb abuse as a modifier in writing or speech is not unique to second language learners from various linguistic origins; these learners make comparable mistakes while they are learning the target language. Overgeneralization, language transfer, learning transfer, second language learning tactics, and second language communication strategies are some of the potential general origins of mistakes.

Errors are bound to occur in one form or the other depending on the varying degrees of frequency. According to Omujowa's (1979:178) study, mistakes fall into two categories: linguistic and psycho-linguistic. Language use is examined to determine which category an error falls under, such as tense agreement, misspelt infinitives, or other misuses of grammatical rules like the one the work "The Misuse of Adverbs" examines. When classifying mistakes in psycholinguistics, one looks at the point at which the errors occur throughout the language acquisition process: is it during the development, testing, or application of hypotheses? This is due to the fact that certain mistakes are made because the student still does not fully grasp the grammatical principles that produce the right form.

Error correction relies heavily on linguistic categorization, a technique that most language teachers are familiar with. For example, some language instructors highlight the incorrect language item or items and place a symbol in the paper's left or right margin to indicate the language region where the faults are located. Typically, teachers use different symbols, so it doesn't matter whether they are all the same as long as everyone knows what the specially modified sign represents for both the instructor and the students. Psycho-linguistic categorization is crucial for error explanation, which in turn establishes the instructional approach needed to separate the error. The need for a psycho-linguistic classification of error quite often escapes the attention of the majority of the language teacher, with the result that marking becomes unnecessarily wearisome and correction unrewarding and time wasting for both learner and the teacher.

Therefore, in Delta State University where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Misuse of Adverb in the Written English among Undergraduate.

1.3 Statement of Problems

Investigation revealed that a large number of 100 Level students do not even know how to use adverbs in their writing. Based on the students' writings, it appears that the secondary school's inadequate attitude and orientation are to blame for the awkward placement of adverbs. Over time, researchers have concentrated on the areas where learners' communicative abilities are lacking, such as in areas like improper word choice, bad spoken grammar, and unsuitable structures.

Hence, this study focuses on the difficulties of the use of adverbs in the students‟ written work. This identifiable problem prompted the work to investigate the extent and types of error made by the one hundred (100) level students of Delta State University.

1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study

The aim of the study is to analyze the Misuse of Adverb Misuse in Undergraduate Students' Written English of Delta State University. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:

1. To ascertain the extent of the misuse of adverbs among the select first level students of Delta State University.
2. To investigate the type of adverbs misused by these students.
3. To investigate and document the differences in the adverb errors made by the students of the English Language and the Business Administration students.
4. To investigate and document the differences in the errors made by the students of the English Language and the Biochemistry students.

1.5 Research Questions

The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:

• To what extent is the misuse of adverb rampant?
• What type of adverbs do the students usually misuse?
• To what extent do the adverb errors committed by the students of English Language differ from the Biochemistry students?

1.6 Significance/Justification of Study

The finding that Nigerian pupils are increasingly making grammatical mistakes led to the necessity for this study. If these children are unable to create grammatically acceptable sentences with the appropriate placement of adverbs, then there is an issue with the courses they are studying that will benefit society in the future. For their written English, students must become proficient in the principles governing the usage of English adverbs in sentences. Although, other studies may have been carried out on grammatical errors of this kind in either secondary or tertiary levels, there is a need to be carry out the work in a tertiary institution like Delta State University, particularly among the one hundred (100) level students.

Nevertheless, it is anticipated that this research will assist educators in removing a lot of mistakes related to students' adverb usage and inspire educators to adopt innovative techniques for better target language instruction.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

1.7 Scope of Study

The scope of this research is focused on the Study of the Misuse of Adverb Misuse in Undergraduate Students' Written English of Delta State University.

1.8 Methodology

Data used in this work is derived primary from secondary sources. The methodology therefore, is basically documentary in nature. This involves learning new facts and principles through the study of documents and records. The documents and records include journals, textbooks, newspapers, magazines, official publications etc. By putting together logically evidence derived from documents and records. Conclusion which either established facts hitherto unknown or sound generalization can be obtained.

1.9 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Research Material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
3. Frequent Power Failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
4. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).