L-influwenza ta' xi lingwi barranin fuq il-kitba tal-Malti fil-livell primarju

Abstract

In a bilingual environment language interference is a common factor. This study examines the main influences on the target language (i.e. Maltese) and it attempts to identify the major factors that contribute to these influences. The classification of linguistic errors in Maltese writing serves as a description of the principal problems facing mother tongue learners in primary schools. A sample, consisting of 4 79 compositions written by year 6 primary school children, coming from the private and the state sector, was studied in this dissertation. In this study there were some indications that language interference in Maltese came more from English than Italian. Primary school children are being exposed to a variety of language heavily influenced by the second language with the result that false perceptions are being created mostly in lexical matters. Year 6 students are more concerned with the communicative function of language and very often they tend to use the first available words in their system, with the result that there is very little polishing of language use in their written compositions. Within the context of the Maltese bilingual environment in the school, children do not often distinguish between Maltese and English terms because in other social areas they are faced with the same linguistic mixture, which is therefore realistic and functional to them. Consequently, it is only natural that a lot of transference takes place from the informal aspects of speech to the formal aspects of writing.