LANGUAGE ERRORS AMONG NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF YUNNAN STUDENTS AT ACADEMY OF MALAY STUDIES

Academy of Malay Studies is among the faculties that accepts many foreign students especiallyfrom China, whom are interested to learn Malay language and earn a degree in Malay Studies.The enrolment of Chinese students to the Malay language program and other courses at theAcademy of Malay Studies (APM) has become a phenomenon at University of Malaya and Malaysia. The number of students from China have been gradually increasing yearly through the MOA and MOU by University of Malaya and relevent universities in China. These students only have basic qualification in Malay language and this is a challenge to the lecturers and the structure of the courses offered. A mere basic command in Malay language is often a problem in the process of teaching and learning among the students. This paper will examine common errors made by students from Yunnan University of Nationalities (YUN), China, especially in terms of morphology, syntax and mechanical. Final examination answer scripts of the YUN students used as data. This study offers as well recommendations and suggestions to assist foreign students to learn Malay language as a second language effectively in order to improve their language proficiency.