AN ERROR ANALYSIS OF USING PERSONAL PRONOUN IN WRITING DESCRIPTIVE TEXT

Abstract

The use of personal pronouns in descriptive writing is essential for clarity and cohesion, yet many EFL learners struggle with correct application due to grammatical differences between their first language and English. This study aimed to analyze the types of personal pronoun errors found in descriptive texts written by eighth-grade students at SMP Negeri 1 Berastagi and to describe the patterns of these errors. A qualitative content analysis design was employed. The data were collected from 30 descriptive texts written by students of class VIII-3 on the topics "My Best Friend" or "My Pet." Errors were identified and classified using Dulay, Burt, and Krashen's Surface Strategy Taxonomy. The analysis revealed 55 personal pronoun errors across four types: omission (14 errors, 25.4%), addition (7 errors, 12.7%), misordering (1 error, 1.8%), and misformation (33 errors, 60%). Misformation was the most dominant error type, indicating persistent difficulties with case confusion (subject/object/possessive) and gender mismatches. These findings suggest that L1 transfer from Indonesian, where the pronoun dia covers all third-person functions without case or gender marking, significantly contributes to students' errors. This study provides practical insights for EFL teachers to develop targeted instructional strategies for teaching personal pronouns in descriptive writing contexts.