An Analysis of Errors in Online English Writing made by Thai EFL Authors

English writing produced by Thai EFL authors inevitably contains errors of various types. Errors can lead to not only wrong interpretations but also unfavorable criticism. This study is an endeavor to examine errors of English writing made by Thai EFL authors on the Tourism Authority of Thailand Website and to suggest revisions to each error found. To do this, the information on tourist destinations in five provinces in the lower north of Thailand, namely, Phitsanulok, Sukhothai, Phetchabun, Uttaradit, and Tak, was collected. The gathered data consisted of 230 pieces of the information which contained 2,559 sentences. The data were analyzed by applying the framework of Dulay, Burt, Krashen’s surface structure taxonomy (1982). The results revealed that almost half of all the considered sentences (44.78%) contained errors. Based on the framework, errors of omission were found to be the most frequent, followed by those of misformation, addition, and misordering, respectively. Interestingly, the results also showed that the mechanical errors, not in the list of the framework, occurred with the highest frequency. Based upon research findings, online English writing made by Thai EFL authors need more proofreading, especially on the types of errors committed at the highest frequency according to or beyond the framework. However, in focusing on high frequency errors, it is to be noted that miscellaneous occurred the least yet should not be ignored in the correcting process