Abstract:
English is an international language which is the most commonly used to
communicate by the people among the different countries. Writing is not an e y
ly our ideas into written symbol, but also
as
subject because it is transcribing not on
thinking process. Writing is the most difficult activity for many students in Junior
High School. Many students assume that writing is more difficult than other skills.
As a kind of short functional text, personal letter can be a simple material for the
students to produce their ability in writing. Many students make especially in the
use of tenses. In English, tenses are the most important thing. There are structures
and rules which should be used in arranging a sentence.
This thesis has a purpose, it is to to give description what kind of errors the
students’ have in using tenses in writing personal letter. Then the researcher
classifies each error and identifies the causes of the students’ errors in using tenses
in writing personal letter. In this research, the researcher uses descriptive
qualitative method. The subject of this study is the eighth grade of SMP N 1
Puring in the academic year 2012/2013. She takes 33 students as the sample of
this study. She uses test and interview w
instrument.
The test is made by the students spontaneously without looking up their
ote or dictionary. Then, the researcher analyzes the students’ personal letters.
fter analyzing the student’s personal letter, the researcher gets the result that the
tudents’ error belongs to fair category. There are four kinds of errors that are
ade by the students. There are omission (41.98%), addition (8.98%),
isformation (36.79%), and misordering (12.26). Omission error was the most
equent error that the students produced. It shows that the students get difficulties
in using tenses in writing personal letter. They do not master grammar and most
f them are lack of vocabulary.
There are some causes of errors found in this research. They are
interlingual error and intralingual error. Interlingual error is caused by the
tendency of using their mother tongue structures and intralingual error is caused
by the lack of grammar mastery of the learners. Besides, the students are lack of
vocabulary, and they also don’t have enough willingness to open their dictionary
