Examining Article Misuse in Writing Among Students of Public Secondary Schools in Mbale City, Uganda

Abstract

Misuse of English articles among second language learners is a source of difficulty in language and education, particularly in nations where English is an official language. Language proficiency is one of the elements that contribute to the improper usage of English articles in writing. The study examines the misuse of articles in the writing of students in public high schools in Mbale town, Uganda, in this context. Krashen's Input Hypothesis Theory, which attempts to explain the misuse of articles in writing, was used as the theoretical framework and a descriptive research design for data. The target students’ population was 600 with a sample size of 235 while the teachers’ population was 20 with a sample size of 19. The study used interviews and questionnaires as its two main research instruments. The study found that instructional, linguistic, and contextual variables have significant impact on how students use articles in their writing. The study concludes that students face a variety of challenges, including insufficient fundamental education, insufficient feedback, a lack of exposure to acceptable use models, interference from their native language, and insufficient writing practice, all of which contribute to the systemic and complex nature of the issue. When teaching Grammar, the study recommends that teachers to explicitly compare the structure and function of English articles to the absence or variance of these characteristics in native languages.