Analyzing Cohesion Errors in Written Discourse of Iranian Arabic Learners (Case Study: Kashan University)

Writing is usually the last skill to develop among the four language skills. This is an advanced level in which the second language learner must be able to produce a text conforming to the principles of text construction in the target language. Since coherence is one of the basic features of every text, the present study attempted to investigate errors that caused text incoherence. To be coherent and cohesive, every text should contain linguistic forms which create links among sentences. These forms include elements of grammatical coherence, lexical coherence, and conjunctions categorized by Halliday and Hassan who consider them as guarantees for the link among sentences. Using a descriptive-analytic method as well as the theoretical model, the present study attempted to analyze, classify and interpret errors in texts written by Persian-speaking learners’ of Arabic. Considering the purposes of the study and the accessibility of the participants, the targeted population included all the forth-year female undergraduate learners studying Arabic at the University of Kashan in 2017 and 2018. Writing samples were collected from all members and the sample was, therefore, equal in size to the population. The instruments included the error identification checklist and the sample compositions on three descriptive tasks. The results of the analysis, following Halliday’s and Hassan’ categories, indicated that failure to use coherence-related linguistic forms and their incorrect application can lead to text weakness and incoherence. It was also found that an important indicator of writing quality for Arabic learners is their mastery of these linguistic elements. This is to say that learners who used the elements more frequently, produced texts of a better quality.