Common errors in the uses of modal verbs may, might made by the students in the grade 11 at que vo high school

2 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FACULTY NGUYEN THI LAM COMMON ERRORS IN THE USES OF MODAL VERBS “CAN”, “COULD”, “MAY”, “MIGHT” MADE BY THE STUDENTS IN THE GRADE 11 AT QUE VO HIGH SCHOOL SUBMITTED

HANOI PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY N0 2 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FACULTY

NGUYEN THI LAM

COMMON ERRORS IN THE USES OF MODAL VERBS

“CAN”, “COULD”, “MAY”, “MIGHT”

MADE BY THE STUDENTS IN THE GRADE 11

AT QUE VO HIGH SCHOOL

(SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE

DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN ENGLISH)

Supervisor: NGUYEN VAN DEN, M.A

Hanoi, 2013

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to express my respect and my deepest thanks to my supervisor Mr Nguyen Van Den, M.A - Dean of English Faculty, Hanoi Pedagogical University No 2 for his enthusiastic guidance, warm encouragement and useful research experiences

I am greatly indebted to the teachers of English at Que Vo 2 High School, especially Mrs Duong Thi Hoi for her help and guidance while I was carrying out the survey

I wish to gratefully thank all the teachers of Hanoi Pedagogical University

No 2 for their invaluable knowledge which they provide me during the past four academic years

I would also like to send my special thanks to my friends in K35A class, for their enthusiasm and kindness in helping me collect valuable reference documents and data for my research

Last, but not least, my family is really the biggest motivation for me My parents and my brother always encourage me when I have stress and difficulty I would like to send them great love and gratefulness

ABSTRACT

The modal verb is an interesting category of English grammar There is category that always poses a question to me It is a particular kind of auxiliary

However, the uses of the modals “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” referred to in

some books have not been dealt with in full and sometimes cause confusion to learners of English

As a result, students of English often make errors when they use the modals

“can”, “could”, “may”, “might” Therefore, this research work entails studying the uses of them and conducting a survey for error analysis

Base on the result of the survey, the types of errors and causes have been found Solutions to the problems have been suggested

v

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

Title: Common Errors in the Uses of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” made by the students in the grade 11 at Que Vo High School

(Graduation paper submitted in partial fulfillment of the Degree of Bachelor of

Arts in English)

I certify that no part of this report has been copied or reproduced by me from any other person’s work without acknowledgements and that the report is originally written by me under strict guidance from my supervisor

Date submitted: May 2013

Student Supervisor

Nguyen Thi Lam Nguyen Van Den, M.A

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement ii

Abstract iii

Statement of authorship iv

Table of contents v

PART ONE INTRODUCTION I Rationale 1

II Research presupposition 2

III Research objectives 2

IV Research scope 2

V Research tasks 3

VI Research methods 3

VII Significance of the proposed research 3

VIII Design of the research work 4

PART TWO DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

I.1 Literature review in brief 5

I.2 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” 6

I.2.1 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” as modality 6

I.2.1.1 Definition 6

I.2.1.2 Classification 7

I.2.1.3 Epistemic and deontic modals “can”, “could” “may”, “might” 7

I.2.2 Some Grammatical Features of “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” 8

I.2.2.1 Forms of “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” 9

I.2.2.1.1 Positive form 9

I.2.2.1.2 Negative form 10

I.2.2.1.3 Interrogative form 11

I.2.2.2 Tenses of “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” 11

I.2.2.2.1 Present tense 11

I.2.2.2.2 Past tense 12

I.2.2.3 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” combined with aspect and voice 12

I.2.2.3.1 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” with perfect aspect 12

I.2.2.3.2 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” with progressive aspect 12

I.2.2.3.3 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” with passive voice 12

I.2.3 Meaning/ uses of “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” 13

I.2.4.1 Possibility 13

I.2.4.2 Ability 15

I.2.4.3 Permission 17

I.2.4.4 Request 18

CHAPTER TWO: COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF THE MODAL

VERBS “CAN”, “COULD, “MAY”, “MIGHT”

II.1 Survey 19

II.1.1 Purpose of the survey 19

II.1.2 Population of the survey 19

II.1.3 Type of the survey 20

II.1.4 Construction of the test 20

II.1.5 Preparation of the survey 20

II.1.5.1 Test items 20

II.1.5.2 Arrangement of the test items 21

II.1.6 Administration of the try-out 22

II.1.6.1 Preparation of the try-out 22

II.1.6.2 Try-out 22

II.1.7 Method of data analysis 23

II.1.8 Results of the survey 23

II.2 Common errors and causes 25

II.2.1 Errors in the wrong verb use “can”, “could”, “may”, “might 25

II.2.1.1 Errors in the use of “can, “could” vs “may”, “might” 26

II.2.1.2 Errors in the use of “can”, “could” vs “be able to”, “be allowed to” 26

II.2.1.3 Errors in the use of “may”, “might” and “be able to”, “be allowed to” 26

II.2.2 Errors in the wrong tense use “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”… 27

II.2.2.1 Errors in the use of the modal verbs with perfect aspect 27

II.2.2.2 Errors in the use of the modal verbs with progressive aspect 27

II.2.2.3 Errors in the use of the modal verbs with the present/ future 27

II.2.2.4 Errors in the use of the modal verbs with the past 28

II.2.3 Errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in sentences 28

II.2.3.1 Errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in passive voice 28

II.2.3.2 Errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in reported speech 28

II.2.3.3 Errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in conditional

sentences 29

II.2.3.4 Errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in wishing sentences 29

II.2.4 Errors in the addition 29

II.2.4.1 Errors in the addition of -S, -ES 29

II.2.4.2 Errors in the addition of TO 30

II.2.4.3 Errors in the addition of another modal verb 30

II.3 Suggested and solutions 30

II.3.1 Suggested solutions 30

II.3.2 Suggested exercises 31

PART THREE CONCLUSION CONCLUSION 33

REFERENCES 35

APPENDICES 37

SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE 37

SUGGESTED EXERCISES 44

PART ONE INTRODUCTION

I Rationale

Nowadays, English is the most widely used in the world and plays an important role in the development of society and technology It is the bridge connecting countries in many fields The mastery of foreign language enables us to communicate with people from other countries, achieve mutual understandings, and further our trade contacts, economic co-operations, and cultural and academic exchanges with other countries

In Vietnam, English is the compulsory subject for pupils in most of schools

It is also an important subject for students at all universities Particularly, English

is one of the essential requirements for those who want to find a good job

However it is not simple We have to pay attention to grammar, structure, vocabulary, and pronunciation It is easy to make mistakes and often find a lot of difficulties in using the modal verbs when dealing with grammar It is proved that English grammar is complex and often causes embarrassment to students The modal verbs are one of the language categories that students at high school have to learn much Due to its various uses, it is assumed that are many errors which may

be made In fact, many students confess that the modal verbs is one of the biggest problems of English grammar and often make errors in the use of the modals, especially modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” For examples:

She cans sing well

We don't may go to the party tomorrow

Moreover, as a prospective teacher, I would like to make a contribution to the English teaching in Vietnam For the reasons above, I conducted, which focus

on errors in the uses of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” among the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School

II Research presupposition

Some questions are raised:

1) What kinds of errors in using the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” are made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School

in the school year of 2012/2013?

2) What are the causes of the errors in the uses of the modal verbs “can”,

“could”, “may”, “might” made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 School in the school year of 2012/2013?

3) What are some effective ways that help the students of English in grade

11 at Que Vo 2 High School in the school year of 2012/2013 overcome these difficulties in the uses of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”?

III Research objectives

The study is aimed at the following goals:

1) To find out the kinds of errors made by the eleventh -grade students of English Que Vo 2 High School in the school year of 2012/2013 in using the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

2) To find out the causes of the errors in the uses of the modal verbs “can”,

“could”, “may”, “might” made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 School in the school year of 2012/2013

3) To find the best solutions to the problems throughout the survey The solutions might be concentrated on both theory and practice, in which some teaching techniques are also introduced with the goal of minimizing students’ errors at Que Vo 2 High School

IV Research scope

The general research area of this study is grammar The phenomenon is errors in the uses of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School in the school year of 2012/2013 Others relating to the definite preposition of purpose are also brief mentioned

The population involved in the study is one hundred eleventh -grade students of English (11A5, 11A6) at Que Vo 2 High School

V Research tasks

The study involves fulfilling the following tasks:

1) To study the definition and classification of the modality

2) To research into the grammatical features and uses of the modal verbs

“can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

3) To conduct a survey to find out error types and causes of modal verbs

“can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in English On the basis of the findings, possible solutions to the problems are found to minimize the students’ errors

VI Research methods

To achieve the objectives of the study, the following methods have been applied:

1) Collecting documents from books listed in the references

2) Consulting the supervisor, experienced teachers and friends

3) Synthesizing theoretical documents on English grammar

4) Conducting a survey and analyzing the results

5) Interviewing some typical students

VII Significance of the proposed research

Errors in any language teaching and learning, particularly in English as a foreign language, are sometimes predictable and sometimes unpredictable It is, therefore, essential for teachers to have better treatment to anticipate errors After the research, it is hoped that the results will be helpful to provide:

1) Input for learners of English in order to minimize their errors in the uses

of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in English

2) Input for teachers of English with information on error types and solutions to the problems so that they can have good methods of teaching the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in English

This study is also beneficial to anyone who is interested in the modal verbs

“can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in English

VIII Design of the research work

The research work has three main parts, namely: Introduction, Development, and Conclusion The development consists two chapters Chapter one is entitled

“Theoretical Background” It consists two sections Section one reviews literature

in brief The second one deals with things related to the definition, classification, grammatical features and uses of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

in English

Chapter two is named “Common errors in the uses of the modal verbs “can”,

“could”, “may”, “might”” It has three sections Section one is devoted to the survey The second deals with error types and causes The last one is on solutions

to the problems and suggested exercises

PART TWO DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

I.1 Literature review in brief

In English language, modal verbs, especially “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” has been described many grammarians like Aik and Hui (1992) in the

book Longman Dictionary of Grammar and Usage, Estwood (1994) in the book Oxford Guide to English Grammar, Jacobs (1995) in A Grammar for English Language Professional, Hewings (1999) in Advanced Grammar in Use, Murphy (2000) in the book English Grammar in Use, Palmer (1974) in The English Verb, Quirk et al (1985) in A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language, etc

They have their own way to describe the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” Generally, they focus on the definition, characteristic, classification, functions and the uses of them

Aik and Hui (1992) in the book Longman Dictionary of Grammar and Usage give a definition of modal verbs They mention the function as well as

structure of them Besides, they point out some errors in the use and misuse of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

Estwood( 1994) in the book Oxford Guide to English Grammar only focuses

on his attention to structure and gives examples of modal verbs “can”, “could”,

“may”, “might”

Jacobs (1995) in A Grammar for English Language Professional refers to

the forms, types of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” in English It deals with possibility or probability, ability, request

Hewings ( 1999) in Advanced Grammar in Use gives us the uses of modal

verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” which are presented clearly with explanations and examples

Murphy (2000) in the book English Grammar in Use, focuses on the

definition, form and uses of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

Quirk et al (1985) in A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language

agree in studying modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” by giving each modal the meanings of the modal necessity, possibility, ability and permission etc

Palmer (1974) in T he English Verb focus on two broad clusters of meaning:

Epistemic modal meanings which dealt with the degree of speaker commitment that forms the complement of the modals Deontic modal meanings concerned with the necessity, possibility, obligation and permission

In short, many researches have been done the modal verbs “can”, “could”,

“may”, “might” but only Aik and Hui (1992) points out errors in the use of them

In fact, there are more far more errors that learners of English often make when they use them Therefore, it is essential to have a comprehensive study of common errors in the use of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

I.2 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might”

I.2.1 “Can”, “could”, “may” and “might” as modality

I.2.1.1 Definition

There are many definition of modality written by a number of linguists Palmer F.R (1986) defined modality as “Modality expresses the attitude and opinion of the speaker toward the representational content of the sentence”

“Modality is understood as a very wide category inherent in any sentence and showing the relation between the statements affirmed the sentence and reality

as establish by the speaker”

“Modality is the grammaticalized expression of the subjective attitudes and opinions of the speaker including possibility, probability, necessity, obligation, permissibility, ability, desire, and contingency”

In the study of modality, we should not only consider the ways speaker express their attitudes and opinions but also the ways in which others may report their expressions of them For examples:

He may be there

He thought he was there

In my opinion, modality can indicate the degree of commitment of the speaker Moreover, the speaker can participate by defining in some ways under what condition he is speaking

English modal verbs are used to express the speaker’s attitudes or opinions like judgment, assessment or intention From semantic functions, they can denote epistemic and deontic meanings

I.2.1.2 Classification

* Epistemic modality

Epistemic modals are used to indicate necessity, probability, possibility or judgment Epistemic modals refer to the speaker’s knowledge, judgment, or belief about the events, affairs or actions They bind the speaker to commit to the proposition whether it is true or not in the real world Examples of the expression

of epistemic modality in English are:

He might be there (low probability, substantial doubt)

He may be there (possibility)

* Deontic modality

Deontic modals (root modals) express obligation, permission, intention, and ability (Greenbaum, 1991, p.97) Deontic modality is concerned with “influencing actions, states, or events” They bind the speaker to lay an obligation, give permission or prohibition They also reflect the subject’s ability (Azar, 1995, p.55; Palmer, 1990, p.5-8; Sweetser, 1990, p.49-51) Look at these examples:

She can go (ability)

You may go (permission)

I.2.1.3 Epistemic and deontic modals “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

The modals “can”, “could” “may”, “might” discussed in this study can be used epistemically or deontically at the same time Groefsema (1995, p.53) notes that “these modals can often be interpreted either epistemically or deontically” As

in the example: “John may leave tonight”, there are two different interpretations

One is that, “It’s possible that John leaves tonight.” The other is that, “John is permitted to leave tonight” The two interpretations represent epistemic possibility and deontic permission respectively

Epistemic meanings of modal verbs are related to the speaker’s subjective interpretation of the real world situation, which can be roughly divided into three categories: necessity, prediction and possibility Epistemic necessity indicates the speaker’s certainty about the proposition The group modal verbs of “can”, “could”

“may”, “might” are used to show epistemic possibility, which indicates the different levels of the speaker’s uncertainty about the proposition (Jackson, 1990, p.99-101; Quirk et al, 1985, p.219-31)

Deontic modal verbs are associated with real world By using them, the speaker may lay an obligation, give permission, and show his volition and ability The modal verbs “can”, “could” “may”, “might” belong to deontic permission To get a clearer understanding on the usage of each modal verb in different meanings, please see Table 1:

I.2.2 Some Grammatical Features of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

English modal verbs as a part of auxiliary verbs share the following grammatical characteristics of auxiliary verbs:

a They are not inflected in the third person; that is, when the subject is singular third person, no subject-verb agreement realizes in inflection so the form should be “He may come” instead of “He mays come”

b They are followed by the “bare infinitive” the base form of the verb alone

In other words, after modal verbs, the infinitive without to of other verbs is used so the form is “I can swim” but not “I can to swim”

c They are negated by the addition of “n’t” or “not” They are not added to

“don’t” as other verbs That is, the negation of modal verbs is “I can’t” or “I cannot” rather than “I don’t can”

d They are inverted with the subject to form a question without using “do” For example, the interrogative sentence is “Can I do it?” but not “Do I can do it?”

e They have no non-finite forms—past and present participles

f They can’t co-occur In other words, two modal verbs can’t be used simultaneously so the correct form is “He may come” or “He will come” instead of

“He may will come” (Palmer, 1990, p.4-5; Walker, 2000, p.121; Quirk, Leech, & Swan, 1984, p.127-28)

These grammatical characteristics are different from those of the main verbs For example, present-tense verbs with third person singular subjects require an –s ending Some linguists, such as Vince and Lim, think these differences might give rise to learning difficulty for students However, according to my observation, Vietnamese students seldom get confused choosing correct modal verb forms It seems that these grammatical characteristics are not the source of students’ difficulty

I.2.2.1 Forms of “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

I.2.2.1.1 Positive form

The positive form in English modality “can”, “could” “may”, “might” are

the following bare verb For examples:

Anybody can make mistakes

I never could play the banjo

You may borrow my car if you like

We might go to the concert

(Quirk, 2002, p.52, 53)

xix

I.2.2.1.2 Negative form

The negation of modal verbs is to add “not” to the sentence The form of

negation in English modality “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” are very easy- just

put a negative word “not” after the modal verb to form the negation However, the meaning of the negative sentence is not as easy as its surface form shows The negative sentence does not merely indicate the opposite meaning to the positive sentence- epistemically or deontically “Not” in the modality system can mean two very different things As Cook (1978, p.7-10) puts it, a sentence with modal verbs

is two verb structures- the modal verb and the main verb And, it would be a little complicated when the word “not” is put in the sentence For the negative can negate the modal verb called modal negation or negate the main verb called main verb negation For example (Leech, 1987, p.91):

(1) He can’t be serious (Modal negation)

(2) He may not be serious (Main verb negation)

Example (1) means it is not possible that he is serious so it is the modal verb that is negated, while example (2) means that it is possible that he is not serious so

it is the main verb that is negated As mentioned above, the form of the negation of modal verbs is added to a negative word “not” Nonetheless, when it comes to the negation of meaning, there are some exceptions Look at the following examples (Cook, 1978, p.8):

(3) John may be lying

(It’s possible that John is lying => epistemic possibility)

(4) John may not be lying

(It’s possible that John is not lying =>main verb negation)

(5) John can’t be lying

(It’s not possible that John is lying =>modal negation)

In example (3), the sentence John may be lying—means that “It’s possible

that John is lying.” The contradictory does not simply add “not” to the sentence

because example (4) John may not be lying means “It’s possible that John is not lying” However, example (5) John can’t be lying means “It’s not possible that

John is lying” It’s very obvious that the contradictory of “may” in possibility is

can not but not may not

I.2.2.1.3 Interrogative form

As for interrogation, Palmer (1990, p.41) suggests that “with interrogation, only the modality, never the proposition, can be questioned.” That is, the modal verb, which is used to form the negation, is used for interrogation For examples:

(6) John may still be reading (epistemic possibility)

(7) John can’t still be reading

(8) Can John still be reading?

(9) May John be reading? (deontic permission)

In example (6), the sentence John may still be reading means “It is possible

that John is still reading Its negation does not just add “not” to the sentence, but changes the modal verb “may” to “can” as is explained above Therefore, the

contradictory sentence John can’t still be reading as in example (7), which means

“It’s not possible that John is still reading.” Similarly, to form the interrogative

sentence, only can but not may is used Example (8) Can John still be reading

means “Is it possible that John is still reading” As Dean (1994, p.54) proposes that

“may used in a question is always deontic, never epistemic” Hence, example (9)

May John be reading means “Is John permitted to be reading”

I.2.2.2 Tenses of “can”, “could”, “may” and “might”

The modals “can”, “could” “may”, “might” discussed in the study are used for the present and past time because the proposition is possibility, permission and ability by the speaker to happen in the present and past

I.2.2.2.1 Present tense

The modals “can”, “may” are the present tense form Look at following

examples:

He can speak English now

Today we may stay the whole afternoon

(Quirk, 2002, p.56)

xxi

I.2.2.2.2 Past tense

The modals “could”, “might” are the past tense forms of “can” “may” These examples:

Could I borrow your pencil?

It might rain

(Frank, 1972, p.97) John could run ten miles with ease, when he was young

(Palmer, 1990, p.45)

I.2.2.3 “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” combined with aspect and voice

I.2.2.3.1 “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” with perfect aspect

The modals “can”, “could” “may”, “might” with perfect aspect (modal +

have+ ed-participle) For example:

The demand for subject access may have come as a shock to the library profession (ACAD)

May and might are used with the perfect to express a certain degree of doubt

about past events or situations Take the example:

Also he may have had quite a job finding it (FICT)

Yesterday he confessed he might have forgotten one (NEWS)

I.2.2.3.2 “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” with progressive aspect

The modals “can”, “could” “may”, “might” with progressive aspect (modal + be + ing- participle) Look at this example:

Nancy can be coming back (CONV)

I.2.2.3.3 “can”, “could”, “may” and “might” with passive voice

The modals “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” with passive voice (modals +

be + ed-participle) For instance:

The door can be locked

Can and could are relatively common with passive voice The uses of the

passive avoid identification of the agent of the main verb As a result, the permission meaning doesn’t occur, and the ability meaning is also less likely to

<compare active voice: We can see each interpretation…-ability.>

The methods could be refined and made more accurate (ACAD)

<possibility>

<compare active voice: We could refine the methods…- ability.>

I.2.3 Meaning/ uses of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

I.2.3.1 Possibility “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

1 Theoretical possibility

Can is used to say that events and situations are possible (without talking

about the chances of them actually happening)

Anybody can make mistakes The road can be blocked (=it is possible to block the road)

meaning in modern English)

We may go climbing this summer

The door might be closed (=it is possible that the door is closed)

Could is used to give the idea that something is just possible For examples:

We could go to the concert, but I doubt if we'll have time

It could rain later on this evening

b Present possibility

May, might and could are also used to say that something is possibly true at

the moment of speaking

You may be right

You could be right, but I don't think you are

What you say might be true

3 May and might with the perfect infinitive

Both may and might can be used with perfect infinitives to talk about the

possibility that past events happened

He may/might have gone (=it is possible that he has gone)

(= perhaps he has gone)

He said/ thought that she might have missed the plane

(Thomson, 1999, p132)

Might can also be used in this structure to say that a past event was possible,

but didn't happen

You were stupid to try climbing up there You might have killed yourself

4 Can and could with the perfect infinitive

* Can and could are both used with the perfect infinitive for speculating or

guessing about the past

Can is only used in questions and negative sentences

Can you get to the top of the mountain in one day?

She could have gone off with some friends (Not she can have gone )

* Could with the perfect infinitive is also used (as might was) to talk about

an unrealized past possibility Something that was possible but didn't happen

You were stupid to go skiing there - you could have broken your leg

It wasn't a good idea to throw the TV out of the window - it could have hit somebody

This structure can be used to criticize people for not doing things

You could have told me you had invited people to dinner

(=Why didn't you tell me ?)

* To say that something was not a possibility, we say it couldn't have happened

My parents wanted me to be a doctor, but I couldn't have put up with all those years of study

I.2.4.2 Ability “can”, “could”

1 Present and future

* Can is usually used to talk bout the present, or about 'general ability' - the

ability to do something any time you want to

He can speak English but he can’t write very well

(Quirk, 2002, p51)

* To talk about future ability, will be able to is normally used

I'll be able to speak German in another few months

Our baby will be able to walk in a few weeks

(Thomson, 1999, p134) But can is often possible when people make present decisions about future ability

I can’t pay you today Can you wait till tomorrow?

(Thomson, 1999, p134)

2 Past

* Could is used for 'general ability', to say that you could do something any

time you wanted to

When I was young I could climb any tree in the forest

(Thomson, 1999, p135)

* Could is not used to talk about particular ability (to do something on one occasion) in the past Instead, we use was able to, managed to, or succeeded in

How many eggs were you able to get

I managed to get 10% off the price

After six hours' climbing, we succeeded in reaching the top of the mountain

Compare the following two sentences:

He was a terrific liar: he could make anybody believe him (General ability -

could is correct.)

I talked for a long time, and in the end I managed to make her believe me

(One particular action – could is impossible here)

xxv

* Note that the negative couldn't is used for both general and particular ability

When I was younger I couldn't decide what I wanted to do

Simon was so drunk that he couldn't find the front door

3 Conditional could

Could is also used in a conditional sense (meaning “would be able to”)

I could have a really good time if I had a flat of my own

We could do it by midday if we had the tools

4 Could with the perfect infinitive

Sometimes we want to say that we had the ability to do something, but we

didn't try to do it There is a special structure for this could + perfect infinitive

(=could have + past participle)

I could have married anybody I wanted to (=I was able to marry anybody ,

but I didn't.)

I could have killed her! (=I was so angry that I was capable of killing her,

but I didn't.)

You could have helped me! (=You were able to help me - why didn't you?)

5 Could in reported speech

* Could for present ability does not change:

“I can’t/couldn’t stand on my head” he said:

= He said he couldn’t stand on his head

Could for future ability can remain unchanged or be reported by would be able:

He said: “I could do it tomorrow”

= he said he could/ would be able to do it the next day

* Could in type 2 conditional sentences is reported similarly:

“If I had the tools I could mend it” he said:

= he said that if he had the tools he could/ would be able to mend it

* Could in type 3 conditional sentences is reported unchanged

* Could for past ability can remain unchanged or be reported by have been able:

“I could read when I was there!” she boasted:

= She basted that she could/ had been able to read when she was there

I.2.4.3 Permission “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

1 Asking for permission

* Can, could, may and might are all used in asking for permission Can is

probably the commonest of the four

Can I have a drop more whisky?

* Could is rather more hesitant that can, and is used when you are not sure

that you will get permission (or when you don't want to sound too sure)

Could I ask you something, if you're not too busy?

* May and might are used in a more formal style; they often suggest respect Might is more hesitant, and is not very common

May I make a suggestion?

May I stop work a little earlier tonight?

Might I take the liberty of pointing out that you have made a small mistake? Note that, in asking for permission, could and might are not past tenses; all

four words refer to the future

In the past, could is used to say that one was allowed to do something at any

time ('general permission')

When I lived at home, I could watch TV whenever I wanted to

But we don't use could to talk about permission for one particular action in

the past Look at these examples:

I was allowed to see her yesterday evening

He had permission to go out for an hour

4 Could in reported speech

* In type 2 conditional sentences could remain unchanged or be reported by would be allowed to:

“If I paid my fine I could walk out of prison today” he said:

= he said that if he paid his fine he could/ would be allowed to walk out of prison today

* Could in the past can remain unchanged or be reported by was/ were

allowed to or had been allowed to:

He said, “When I was a boy I could stay up as long as I liked”

= He said that when he was a boy he could/ would allowed to stay up

OR: He said that as a boy he was/ had been allowed to stay up

I.2.4.4 Offers and Requests “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

Can and could are often used to offer to do things for people, and to ask

other people to do things Could is more 'hesitant', less definite, than can, and it is used when we want to make an offer or a request seem more polite or respectful Statements and questions are both common

* Requests can be expressed by Can I ? Could I…? May I… ? Might I …?

Can I use your phone? (informal) Could I use your phone? (polite) May I make a phone call, please? (formal) Might I borrow your pen? (very formal)

* Offers

Can I/ We do anything to help? (informal) May I buy you a drink? (formal)

CHAPTER TWO COMMON ERRORS IN THE USES OF THE MODAL VERBS

“CAN”, “COULD”, “MAY”, “MIGHT”

This chapter presents the finding of the practical research with the students

of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School It falls into three sections Sections II.1 deals with the survey questionnaire, which was designed to map out some common errors made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School Section II.2 presents common errors and causes Sections II.3 provides students and teachers with some suggested solutions to minimize the errors in the uses of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might”

II.1 Survey

As it was mentioned in chapter one, the study does not only help students of English have deep insight into the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” but also find out errors in modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” Due to the framework of a thesis, to show all the mistakes made by students at all educational level is impossible Therefore, this thesis is only focused on common errors in modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School To find out the errors made by those students,

a survey questionnaire was conducted

II.1.1 Purpose of the survey

The overall objectives of the survey questionnaire are to test students’ understanding of the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, “might” and find out common errors made by the students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School in the school year of 2012/2013

II.1.2 Population of the survey

The number of students joining in the survey questionnaire is one hundred students of English in grade 11 at Que Vo 2 High School They have to learn English as a compulsory subject Most of them have been learning English for 6 years Some have learnt English for 9 years Therefore, the expected English level

among them is intermediate Naturally, they have been taught the rules of modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”, and “might” Some of them are really good at grammar, but some of them are bad at grammar in general and modal verbs “can”,

“could”, “may”, “might” concord in particular

II.1.3 Type of the survey

To collect data, a completion test was used It involves such activities as choosing the best answer, supplying the correct form of the modal verbs “can”,

“could”, “may”, “might”, rewriting the sentence and translating Vietnamese into English

II.1.4 Construction of the test

The material used in the test was taken from grammar books high school finals and other exams concerned with the modal verbs “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” The survey has five exercises

1) Exercise 1: Choose the best answer

This exercise consists of ten items

2) Exercise 2: Choose the sentence closest in meaning to the sentence given

There are ten items in this exercise

3) Exercise 3: Fill the correct form

This exercise consists of ten items

4) Exercise 4: Rewrite the sentences

This exercise has ten items

5) Exercise 4: Translate into English

This exercise consists of ten items

II.1.5 Preparation of the survey

II.1.5.1 Test items

There are many possible errors in the uses of “can”, “could”, “may”,

“might” that a survey can not find out Thus, it is necessary to predict possible errors and include them in the survey In this survey, possible errors were classified into the following categories