First Language transfer effect on acquisition of english third person singular-s in Ivorian high school context

Abstract

Abstract: This article reports the results of a classroom research exploring the effects of first language (L1) transfer on the acquisition of English Third Person Singular –s by some Ivorian high-school students learning English as a foreign language. Reading and writing tests showed sporadic omission and misplacement of the variants of this morpheme. In English, third person singular verbs conveniently end with either -s or -es in writing, respectively pronounced [-s], [-z] or [iz], depending on the verb’s morpho-phonological environment. The results are discussed in the light of a number of didactical hypothesis, putting forward the effect of first language. The objective of this study is to determine the order of acquisition of these variants. Keywords: interlanguage, third person singular -s, first language transfer, grammatical morpheme acquisition