“Their” or “There”? Examining Some of the Commonly Occurring Errors in English Writings among University Students in Kenya

Abstract

A general concern with the quality of graduates leaving the university today has been expressed by employers at both national and international levels. It has been claimed that graduates have been found to lack in some of the key skills that are required at the workplace. One such skill is communication; this in spite of the fact that communication skills have been rated as some of the most sought-after qualities by employers internationally. This paper focuses on the writing aspect of communication, specifically examining the nature of errors found in writings by university students in English and Communication courses at Kenyan universities. These could range from wrong spellings to a wrong choice of words, to wrong punctuation among others. English being a second language to most students in Kenya also means that there is a high likelihood of first language influence and interference on their English language, which could interfere with their proficiency in writing. Based on the analysis of the errors collected, the author makes some recommendations that would be useful to both learners and teachers of language and communication skills courses at all levels of learning. The research entailed a document analysis of written assignments and final examination scripts of students in selected English and Communication Skills courses at one private university in Nairobi County. This research was considered a significant step towards understanding the nature of writing errors that university students in Kenya make. Subsequently, a set of recommendations were suggested.