This thesis project will analyze interference from Spanish (L1) to English (L2) for the personal pronoun "it" among English language learners. The researcher, Lor gia Rueda de León Barbosa, will conduct a descriptive study to determine how factors like English proficiency level, exposure to English, and age influence misuse of the pronoun. The study aims to provide useful information for both students and teachers on common errors and how to explicitly teach pronoun functions to improve language acquisition.

1. THESIS PROJECT
W O R K I N G T I T L E : “ P R O N O U N I T: I N T E R F E R E N C E F R O M L 1
( S PA N I S H ) TO L 2 ( E N G L I S H ) . ”
GENERAL LINE OF RESEARCH: APPLIED LINGUISTICS
N AT U R E O F R E S E A R C H :
DESCRIPTIVE
R E S E A R C H E R ’ S N A M E : LO R G I A R U E DA D E L E Ó N B A R B O S A
S T U D E N T R E G IS T R AT IO N N U M B E R :
08-09598

2. BACKGROUND
When someone is learning a second language
has to go through a process which is know as
interlanguage. During this period, many factors
could be the responsible for English Foreign
Language (EFL) students’ errors. One of the
common factors is the phenomenon know as
Negative Transfer or Interference. In linguistics,
interference is: “the automatic transfer, due to
habit, of the surface structure of the first
language onto the surface of the target
language” (Dulay et al, 1982).

3. Research questions:
RQ1: In which
English level of
English (beginners
and pre-
intermediate) is this
interference more
frequent?
RQ2: Does this
phenomenon only
occur due to the
interference of the
L1 in L2 or are there
other factors?
EFL students’ error s are caused by the phenomena
known as inter ference, which means students tend RQ3: Is it a factor to
to carr y out patterns from the mother tongue to the be exposed to the
target language?
target language, practically using grammar
rules, vocabular y and syntax from l1 . RQ4: Is age a factor
(richards, platt, & platt, 1992) that plays an
important role in this
interference?

4. RELEVANCE
OF THE
STUDY:
This study might
be useful for
both, students
a n d te a c h e r s .
Students will be
m o r e aw a r e o f t h e
f u n c t io n s o f t h i s
personal pronoun
and the reason of
this phenomenon
it is known as
i n te r f e r e n c e .
M o r e ove r, te a c h e r
s will realize that
the functions of
t h i s p r o n o un
m ay b e n e e d to b e
 The principal purpose of this study is to ex p l ai n e d i n a n
analyze the dif ferent functions when ex p l ic i t w ay a n d
give it the
using this pronoun in L2. In other importance that it
deser ves because
words, to analyze the factors that may most of the time
te a c h e r s t a ke f o r
influence and therefore lead EFL students g r a n te d t h a t t h e
to misuse the pronoun it during the students already
k n o w h o w to u s e
acquisition of L2. t h e p r o n o un i t .

5. RELEVANCE
This study might be useful for both:
Students Teachers
 Students will be more  Teachers will realize that
aware of the functions of the functions of this
this personal pronoun and pronoun maybe need to be
the reason of this explained in an explicit way
phenomenon it is known as and give it the importance
interference. that it deserves because
most of the time teachers
take for granted that the
students already know how
to use the pronoun it.

6. Conclusion of the Literature
Review
I t h a s to b e m e n t i o n e d t h a t o n l y t h e w o r k s t h a t w e r e t a ke n
i n to a c c o un t a s p r ev i o us w o r k s w e r e t h e o n e s w h i c h to o k
as L1 Spanish and as L2 English. T his study might be
u s e f ul a n d r e l ev a n t s i n c e p r ev i ew s s t u d i e s o n l y f o c u s e d o n
g e n e r a l i n te r f e r e n c e/ i n te r l a n g ua g e ; t h ey w e r e m o r e o p e n .
I n c o n t r a d i s t i n c t io n to t h i s s t u d y t h a t a i m s to d o w i t h t h e
personal pronoun it.
T h i s s t u d y a i m s to p r o v i d e u s e f u l a n d r e l ev a n t i n f o r m a t i o n ,
a n d a l s o s t a t i s t ic s o f h o w t h e p e r s o n a l p r o n o u n i t i s
m i s us e d b y E F L s t u d e n t s . M o r e o ve r, w h a t f u n c t i o n o f t h i s
p e r s o n a l p r o n o u n i s m i s u s e d w i t h m o r e f r e q u e n c y.