L1 Negative Transfer in Moroccan EFL Academic Writing: A Corpus-Based Analysis Study of ENS-M English Department

Abstract

L1 negative transfer has long been identified as a source of writing errors in EFL contexts, yet corpus-based investigations of this phenomenon at the Moroccan higher education level remain limited. In this regard, the study at hand investigates the frequency, typology, and cross-proficiency distribution of L1 transfer-based errors in the academic writing of student-teachers at ENS Marrakech, determining whether interlingual errors remain dominant as learners’ proficiency increases. It was not the purpose of this study to investigate the reasons behind the occurrence of such errors. Guided by Corder’s Error Analysis, a corpus-based research design was adopted. A localized learner corpus of approximately 27,800 words was compiled from 128 argumentative essays across semesters. Participant linguistic profiles were collected via the Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire (LEAP-Q), and corpus errors were classified and analyzed using AntConc software. The analysis revealed 1,630 classified error instances including 914 interlingual errors and 716 intralingual errors. Article omission, preposition errors, and verb tense transfer were the most frequent interlingual subtypes, while spelling errors and wrong verb form selection were predominated among intralingual types. While absolute error frequency declined evidently from Semester 2 (n=854 instances) to Semester 6 (n=306 instances), the proportional ratio between interlingual and intralingual errors remained stable across all three levels, indicating that the proficiency gained reduces error output without restructuring its underlying sources. These findings confirm that L1 negative transfer is a persistent feature of Moroccan EFL writing. In view of this, the study recommends the use of corpus-informed contrastive instruction, discourse-level writing scaffolding, and the integration of concordance tools more systematically into EFL curricula in Moroccan higher education.

Keywords: L1 Negative Transfer, Learner Corpus, Error Analysis, Interlanguage, Scriptthesia, Moroccan EFL Writing 

Received Date: September 17, 2026

Accepted Date: October 09, 2026

Published Date: November 01, 2026

Available Online at: https://www.ijsrisjournal.com/index.php/ojsfiles/article/view/1059