| المستخلص: |
This study aimed at identifying the errors that English major undergraduates at Yarmouk University make in the acquisition of some selected English phrasal verbs. It also attempted to account for the occurrence of those errors. Specifically, the study attempted to answer the following questions: 1) . What are the levels of acquisition of the English major undergraduates at Yarmouk University in the selected phrasal verbs? 2) . What are the types of errors made by the English major undergraduates when using the selected phrasal verbs? 3) . What are the causes of errors that English major undergraduate students at Yarmouk University make when using the selected English phrasal verbs? 4) . Are there any significant differences in the acquisition of the selected English phrasal verbs between English major undergraduate students at Yarmouk University due to academic level (year)? 5) . Are there any significant differences in the acquisition of the selected English phrasal verbs between English major undergraduate students at Yarmouk University due to gender? The population of the study consisted of all English major undergraduates at Yarmouk University during the second semester for the academic year 2009/2010. The whole population was 1200. The research sample consisted of 120 English major undergraduates, (87) female and (33) male students, about (13%) of the whole population, a percentage that seems satisfactory for the purpose of this study. The researcher chose the sample randomly out of the second, third, and fourth-year levels. A forty-item acquisition test developed by the researcher was designed to assess the students' acquisition of the selected phrasal verbs in four related areas: semantics, structure, collocations and phonology. The test was validated by five university professors of the English Department . Students' responses on the test were computed and Cronbach alpha coefficients were calculated. The calculated reliability was (0.73). The collected data were computed and analyzed using the SPSS program. Error analysis technique was used to classify errors and the test was analyzed quantitatively. Percentages, means, standard deviations were calculated to answer the first and the second questions. Analysis of variance and univariate F-tests were used to answer the fourth and the fifth questions. The results indicated that (67.5%) of the responses were above (50%) whereas (32.5%) were below (50%). The students did best in the area of structures with a mean of (78.3%). This was attributed to the simple wording of the items in this part of the test and its familiarity to the students. The results indicated that the most difficult section was phonology with a mean of (36.7%). This low proficiency reflected incomplete acquisition of the stress position in the English phrasal verbs. Moreover, the results indicated that English major undergraduates at Yarmouk University encounter difficulties and problems in the acquisition of semantic and collocational features of phrasal verbs. The percentages of the students who failed to give correct responses to the items in these two areas were (44.5%) and (44.4%) respectively. The causes of the students' errors were attributed to idiomaticalness, unfamiliarity with phrasal verbs and ignorance of the grammatical rules. Results related to the fourth question indicated that there were significant differences at the (0.05) level in the acquisition of the selected English phrasal verbs between English major undergraduates at Yarmouk University attributed to the academic level in favor of the fourth and third year students on semantics and collocations. Results also indicated there were significant statistical differences on the structure section in favor of the fourth-year students. However, results related to the fifth question indicated no significant statistical differences at (0.05) level between English major students due to gender. The researcher recommended more exposure to phrasal verbs, both oral and written, to help students use the stress properly on phrasal verb components. Language input should include the most important and most frequent phrasal verbs followed by comprehension and production activities, tasks and exercises.
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