Abstract
This study focuses on the listening anxiety experienced by teacher candidates (TCs) in Iran and Turkey. Using different data collection methods, including two questionnaires, listening test, and semi-structured interviews, this study tried to investigate the factors behind Foreign Language Listening Anxiety (FLLA) among Iranian teacher candidates (TCs). The participants of the study in Iran context were 29 teacher candidates studying at BA level in English Language Teaching. All of the participants were asked to complete these two questionnaires with the background information regarding their age, gender, years of language study. The participants’ answers to FLLAS and FLCAS were analyzed with spss to obtain frequencies and percentages. The results were compared to the same study by Bekleyen. The findings revealed that Iranian TCs experienced a high level of FLLA compared to Turkish TCs and showed a significant positive correlation between FLLA and FLCA, which means that teacher candidates with higher levels of language anxiety tended to have higher levels of listening anxiety. In addition, interview data suggested that Iranian and Turkish participants’ FLLA mostly originated from the same source: inadequacy of past education in listening skill. Furthermore, practice was the most frequent strategy used by participants in these two countries to overcome this kind of anxiety.
Highlights
Language anxiety is a "Subjective feeling of apprehension and fear associated with language learning and use" (Phillips, 1992)
The findings revealed that Iranian TCs experienced a high level of Foreign Language Listening Anxiety (FLLA) compared to Turkish TCs and showed a significant positive correlation between FLLA and FLCA, which means that teacher candidates with higher levels of language anxiety tended to have higher levels of listening anxiety
The results of the present study revealed a significant positive correlation between FLLA and FLCA, which means that teacher candidates with higher levels of language anxiety tended to have higher levels of listening anxiety
Summary
Language anxiety is a "Subjective feeling of apprehension and fear associated with language learning and use" (Phillips, 1992). There has been a substantial body of research that has investigated Foreign Language Anxiety Studies on this affective phenomenon demonstrated that language students at different proficiency levels report feeling of anxiousness about some aspects of language learning and their language classes (Horwitz, 1996). Pea in his study detected an independent existence of each of the four skills-based anxieties as a distinctive construct His findings suggest that one general anxiety factor is not enough to explain the variances associated with L2 anxiety across the four skill areas. This implies that each of the four skill-based anxieties should receive independent attention from second language researchers.
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