Abstract
This study investigates the use of three verbal inflectional suffixes, i.e., the present tense -s, the past tense -ed, and the progressive -ing, among Thai ELF learners. It examines how they deviate from ENL norms and the causes of deviations are analysed. Data were taken from the academic writing of 116 English-major students at a university in Bangkok. The results showed that Thai ELF learners who have advanced and upper-intermediate level English knowledge and skills have acquired the ability to use these three suffixes, but they sometimes deviate from ENL norms. They tend to omit the -s ending when there is a long distance between the main subject and main verb, when there is a heavy subject containing a head and pre-/post-modifiers, and when the subject appears as a structurally complex category. They often omit the -ed ending when there are several past tense verbs in a sentence. They extend the use of the progressive aspect to talk about a general truth or habit which is typically expressed by the present simple tense in ENL. Results suggest that linguistic and functional causes are responsible for these deviations. Thai ELF learners use the zero forms of present and past tense verbs as a result of both syntactic complexity and the pragmatic motives of the efficiency of communication as well as the exploitation of redundancy. They use progressive verbs with general truths or habits due to the attractive form and meaning of this aspect and also the pragmatic motive of added prominence. Keywords: Thai ELF learners; deviations; the present tense -s; the past tense -ed; the progressive -ing
Highlights
The theoretical notion of “English as a Lingua Franca” ( ELF) emerged in the second half of the 1990s
Researchers using the ELF approach distinguish the form of ELF from English as a native language (ENL) and the pedagogic subject English as a foreign language (EFL)
The study of English by nonnative speakers is largely based on ENL norms, with the goal of communicating effectively with native speakers; differences from ENL norms in all aspects are regarded as errors that result from learners’ incomplete acquisition and when this takes place, teachers’ correction and remediation are very much needed (Jenkins 2006)
Summary
The theoretical notion of “English as a Lingua Franca” ( ELF) emerged in the second half of the 1990s. The norms of ELF are negotiated by its users for specific purposes by relying on their linguacultural resources and are derived from interactions involving efforts and adjustments from all parties (Jenkins 2009, Cogo 2010) Based on this tenet of the theory, differences from ENL norms are not always signs of language incompetence, but can be indicative of emerging or potential features of ELF (Jenkins et al 2011). There are just a few studies on Thai ELF learners and they mostly focus on socio-cultural aspects, not on the linguistic form of the language. The objectives of the study are: (1) to examine how Thai ELF learners deviate from ENL norms in their use of the three verbal inflectional suffixes, and (2) to analyse the underlying causes of the emerging patterns. The results help to provide more complete data for the establishment of the empirical description of ELF’s linguistic form
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