Analyzing Past Tenses Errors Made by EFL Learners at Tertiary Level (A case study of semester8 Students, 2015 - Faculty of Arts - Shendi University - Sudan)

Abstract

This study attempts to investigate and identify the problems facing the students regarding the past simple and the past continuous tenses and to suggest suitable remedial procedures. In this study the researcher takes the students of semester eight at the Faculty of Arts who study English as a foreign language at the University of Shendi as a sample to carry out this study. A test was given to 40students who represent the whole class of the semester. The test results were analyzed by using (SPSS). The tests revealed the following findings: 1- Concerning the past simple test, 7 of the students are excellent, the average are between good and pass although few of them failed. 2- Concerning the past continuous test none of the students get excellent, the majority is between pass and failure. 3- The performance of the students in the simple past tense is better than their performance in the continuous past tense test. Considering the findings of the study, and in order to participate in solving the students’ problem, the researcher recommends and suggests the following: 1. Teaching tenses should be given more attention like other aspects of language. 2. Tenses and their activities should be taught as a part of studying writing and semantic, as tenses have a big impact on meaning. 3. Reading comprehension passages could be more effective in practicing tenses. 4.Curriculum should include enough courses about tenses and their activities. 1.2 Key concepts: (Tenses, past simple, past continuous, analysis, EFL learners)