Identifying morphological errors in the English of Deaf learners in Lesotho

Abstract

Background: Morphological awareness (MA) is widely recognised as contributing to successful reading and reading comprehension. Despite this, research examining the nature of morphological errors among second-language (L2) English learners remains limited, particularly among Deaf learners. Objectives: This study identified and classified English MA errors made by Deaf learners in Lesotho and determined the most prevalent error types and their possible underlying sources. Method: Data were collected from 26 Deaf learners in Grade 3 to Grade 7 at a school for Deaf learners in Lesotho. Learners completed five MA tasks assessing inflectional and derivational morphology. A taxonomy was developed to identify and classify the morphological errors. Results: Overall performance on the MA tasks was low, providing important context for the high frequency of errors. Learners achieved a mean score of 15% for inflectional awareness and 26% for derivational awareness. The analysis identified intralingual errors, including overgeneralisation and the incomplete application of English morphological rules. Some errors appeared to be interlingual and may have resulted from transfer from Lesotho Sign Language (LSL) and Sesotho. These included the use of a zero morpheme, which may reflect transfer from LSL, and the addition of a word-final vowel, which may reflect the influence of Sesotho. Conclusion: Learners experienced substantial difficulties in applying English inflectional and derivational morphology. The identified error patterns reflect an incomplete understanding of English morphological processes, task-related factors, cross-linguistic transfer, limited explicit instruction in morphology, and the possible influence of learners’ multilingual repertoires. Contribution: These findings provide insight into the morphological challenges faced by Deaf learners in developing English MA and highlight areas for targeted educational support.