An Investigation of Students’ Perception Towards Grammar Difficulties and the Causes

Abstract

This study analyzes grammatical complexity from the viewpoint of EFL students at Can Tho university. As they approach graduation, it is reasonable to assume that they have developed a solid command of English grammar. Additionally, it can be considered that some features of English grammar are more or less challenging for EFL learners to acquire than others. Therefore , the purpose of this study is to determine which English grammatical features are more or less challenging than others. Furthermore, it makes an effort to identify the causes that contribute to grammar difficulties. In this study, questionnaires served as the primary research tool. 200 students from 4 different majors, including English studies, English studies (high-quality), translation and interpretation, and English teacher education participated in the survey. The findings indicated that some features of English grammar were more difficult than others, while others were less challenging. To assess whether there was a substantial discrepancy among the students’ replies, the ANOVA tool was used to compare the answers. As a result, the rank difficulty order of grammatical features was shown to have some similarities and variations. The study’s findings could be used as a learning and searching resource for both teachers and EFL students at Can Tho university.