An Investigation into Factors Affecting the Use of English Prepositions by Vietnamese Learners of English

Abstract

English prepositions play a significant role in helping students form a well-structured sentence in their learning and communicating. To help Vietnamese learners of English acquire their competence, the authors have done survey research to investigate the factors affecting the uses of English prepositions made by Vietnamese learners of English. The population included 200 female and 200 male participants. A total of 400 answers on the questions provided in the 100-question questionnaire were used for hypothesis testing. The items in the survey were given different weights, and the total attainable marks were 100. The results showed that Vietnamese intra-lingual interference strongly affected prepositional sense expressed by Vietnamese EFL learners. Genders, level of learning (low, intermediate, and advanced), writing and speaking, and cognitive embodiment also played a significant role in terms of language transfer, affecting the usage of English prepositions by EFL learners.