Graded Assignment 2: Part 2

Title: Language Production Errors in YouTube comments
Link: http://is.muni.cz/th/209464/ff_b/Varga_Thesis.pdf

Introduction

Computer Mediated Communication has two parts which are asynchronous and synchronous communication. YouTube is one of the components of CMC and it is categorized into asynchronous communication. YouTube is a site where the users can share their videos and it also allows people to comment on it.

The objective of this study is to examine the phenomena of language production error on asynchronous communication. The purpose of this study is to explore the error in language production in the written language in Computer Mediated Communication (YouTube).

Statement of Problem

In this digital era of technology, CMC is looked upon as an essential tool widely used by people all over the world to communicate with each other and to gain information. However, people tend to make language production errors in producing language when they communicate on the social networking sites, such as YouTube.

Methodology

1. YouTube users that watched and commented on a specific YouTube video.

2. "The most inspiring video you will ever watch!" uploaded by nuki255.

3. Examine the written production errors made by the YouTube users in their comments of the mentioned video above.

4. The data analysis will then be categorize into three parts:

     i. Mechanical errors

    ii. Grammar

   iii. Usage mistakes

Data Analysis

I. Mechanical Errors

Mechanical errors consists of spelling, capitalization and punctuation. As can be seen from the above table, both native and non-native speakers commits to this type of language development error.  Nonetheless, everyone who writes in English makes such mistakes sometimes. In this case however, mechanical errors that occurred in the comments above are resulted from the consequences of quick typing. The users are more focused to the content of the written message rather than the form itself.

II. Grammar

Grammar mistakes occurs rarely in native speakers however it is commonly done by the less proficient non-native speakers. The mother-tongue of the non-native speakers language in a way influences their language production to produce the correct English sentences.  Grammar mistakes that have been done by the non-native speakers in written form usually disrupts the comprehension meaning of the whole sentences but in this data analysis, it does not show. The YouTube users above may have a good command of English language skill although not to excellent to a native-speakers extent of language understanding process.

III. Usage Mistakes

Usage mistakes is using  a word or a string of words in a sentence that is grammatically possible but not unlikely to used in an English sentence appropriately. This type of error is usually done by the non-native speakers, native speakers however, rarely makes this error. Usually, the failure to use the dictionary correctly results in usage mistakes error. This happens especially when a second-language learner for example, looks up a word in the dictionary using their mother-tongue language, and they are unaware of the wrong selection of the English word they selected to wish to express. In this data analysis, can be seen iw3ids made a usage mistake error of the unlikely word choice that is ball.


Discussion

           

From the YouTube comments that we gathered, most of the users used excellent form of English sentences and less of them made errors. This shows that they know how to produce language correctly. However, the errors that are frequently pointed out from the comments consists more mechanical error than the other two errors; grammar and usage mistake. This simply means that the errors that are widely committed are the result of their ignorance to focus on the structural form of the language and not because they do not know the language. The widely used language production error that had been made are the consequences of quick typing only, because the YouTube users focuses more on the content of the message they had sent out to the other YouTube users. 


Conclusion

To conclude, the study that we have conducted examines how YouTube through video sharing and user commenting on the video reflected on CMC in a broad sense and the systematic errors that occured in speech, writing and typing of language of the YouTube users are an inevitable part of a learning process.