Classroom Anxiety Research Articles

Managing foreign language classroom anxiety among French undergraduate students: pedagogical implications and perspectives

Managing foreign language classroom anxiety among French undergraduate students: pedagogical implications and perspectives

A study of college students’ openness personality and English learning anxiety

The present situation of college students’ English learning is one of the key research topics. Some studies have found that different personality traits have a great impact on the English learning effect of college students. However, there is still a lack of detailed analysis and summary on the impact of a specific personality on the degree of English learning anxiety. Therefore, the questionnaire that the thesis uses is developed according to the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS), conducts random surveys for college students from different regions, majors and ages, and makes statistical analysis of the collected data using SPSS to explore the relationship between openness personality traits and the English-learning anxiety level of college students. After discussion and analysis, the results of this study can be divided into two aspects. Firstly, from the anxiety of the subjects, 60% of the 408 subjects have low anxiety about English learning, and their scores were very close to the medium anxiety level (99≤b≤132), while almost only a few respondents were at the high anxiety level. Secondly, there is a linear relationship between openness personality and English learning anxiety. According to the total score, the correlation was 0.338, showing a moderate correlation, and the significance level is 0.01. According to the research results, teachers can improve the teacher-student relationship and relieve students’ anxiety by innovating teaching methods and evaluation systems. However, the results may vary due to confounding factors such as major, gender and age.

Sudden Shift to English Online Learning: Nursing Students’ Anxiety Levels

COVID-19 pandemic has forced educational institutions in Indonesia to convert face-to-face learning into online learning. This sudden change certainly brings many challenges, one of which is related to students’ anxiety. This research aims to identify the anxiety level of nursing students at Pelita Harapan University while learning English virtually. Quantitative method was applied, with a Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) questionnaire as an instrument. Second year nursing students who had passed the English for Nurses course were the population of this study. To generate the sample, the researchers utilized convenience sampling technique, resulting in 182 respondents. The results showed that 69.8% of respondents felt moderately anxious during the English online class. In addition, test anxiety was the most common anxiety category experienced by nursing students. It made students afraid of failing to get good grades, being overwhelmed in understanding the material, nervous when they must speak English, and panicking when they do not comprehend the oral feedback given by the teacher in synchronous class. The results of this study are expected to provide insight to educators to develop strategies to reduce students' anxiety levels.
 Keywords: Anxiety, English, Nursing, Pandemic

The Effects of Situational and Contextual Variables on Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety: An Investigation of Pakistani Tertiary EFL Students’ Perceptions

Foreign language anxiety is a type of anxiety that is specific to language learning process. Anxiety can not only impact the language students’ negatively but it can also enforce them to give up their studied (Horwitz, 2017; Malik et al., 2020; Milan, 2019). In Pakistan, there is a lack of research in the field of language anxiety and the majority of language teachers and students are not fully cognizant of its existence and effects on language learning (Samad, 2014). Most of the previous studies have investigated anxiety from classroom perspective and there is a lack of studies exploring anxiety from outside of the classroom perspective (Marwan, 2017). Therefore, this study is an attempt to understand language learning anxiety by investigating it in relation to various contextual variables to contribute to the existing body of knowledge. This study explored 100 BS English students’ language anxiety at University of Baluchistan. It aimed to investigate Pakistani tertiary EFL students’ perceptions when speaking English in class and outside of class. The study employed both quantitative (questionnaire) and qualitative (semi-structured interview) tools to collects data. The findings clearly suggested that students experience more anxiety when speaking English in class than speaking English outside of class. The study suggests that a friendly and supportive teacher, gentle error correction, relaxed and social classroom environment and incorporation of activities that don’t require students to be singled out may alleviate students’ anxiety.

Foreign Language Enjoyment, Foreign Language Anxiety, and Achievement in an EFL Course at a Korean University

This study aims to discover if there are relationships among Korean university students’ emotions of foreign language anxiety (FLA), foreign language enjoyment (FLE), and foreign language achievement and if those relationships were affected by gender. The 456 participants completed shortened versions of the foreign language classroom anxiety scale (FLCAS) and the foreign language enjoyment scale (FLES). Correlation analyses show that FLE is significantly and positively correlated with foreign language achievement and that FLA is significantly and negatively linked to foreign language achievement. Multiple regression analyses further revealed that FLE exerts a stronger influence on foreign language achievement than FLA, and, interestingly, the effect of FLE is greater for male students, which suggests that male students earned much lower grades when their FLE is low while the difference is much smaller for female students. The results of this study bear important implications for English education, suggesting that to improve foreign language achievement, English as a foreign language (EFL) instructors should strive to lower the FLA and increase the FLE of their students and that the role of FLE can be significantly more important for male students in Korea.

Impact of Mindfulness Training on EFL Learners’ Willingness to Speak, Speaking Anxiety Levels and Mindfulness Awareness Levels

There has been a rise of interest in mindfulness and its effects on the educational context during the last several decades. The research study aims to investigate the effects of mindfulness training on EFL students’ level of speaking anxiety, willingness to speak in the target language, and their levels of mindfulness awareness. The perceptions of participants were also investigated in this study. In total, 41 sophomore students who were studying in the Aviation Management Department (20 in the experimental group, 21 in the control group) participated in the study. The participants were taking General English Courses for 8 hours every week in one of the state universities in the Black Sea Region, Turkey. To reduce the risk of bias, the data were gathered at different times and from multiple sources; questionnaires, and interviews. For quantitative data, the Turkish adapted versions of the Mindfulness Attention and Awareness Scale (MAAS), Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS), and Willingness to Communicate Scale (WTC) were utilized as pre and post-tests. For qualitative data, Semi-structured Interviews were conducted. The findings of the study revealed that mindfulness had a positive effect on participants’ willingness to speak, their speaking anxiety levels, and their mindfulness-awareness levels. Qualitative data also showed that the participants got huge benefits not only in the English language learning context but also in different areas of their lives.

The Influence of Prior Language Experience on Foreign Language Anxiety: A Study on a Russian-Speaking Sample

The topic of foreign language anxiety has attracted considerable attention in the scientific community in recent years. However, there is no universal approach to how to overcome foreign language anxiety. Apart from everything else, it creates barriers and prevents foreign language learners from achieving high results. The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of prior experience of learning foreign languages on language anxiety. The study sample consisted of 152 Russian-speaking persons aged 16-45 who were surveyed using the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale to evaluate communication apprehension, fear of negative evaluation and test anxiety. The participants also answered questions regarding their language learning experiences: about the number of acquired languages, the age of their acquisition and the level of proficiency in these languages. The MANCOVA results showed that the group with the similar language experience had lower levels of fear of negative evaluation ( F (1, 156) = 4.07, .05, η2 = .06). Based on the results of the study, the authors put forward several practical recommendations: firstly, it is advisable for the teacher to be aware of the student’s prior language experience; secondly, it is proposed, in the educational process, to focus on the similarities in the phonology of the languages being studied; and, thirdly, it is also useful to pay extra attention to common morphemes in different languages.

Modeling personality antecedents and second language self-efficacy constructs with emerging adults in Japan: Domain-specific matching for assessing global competence in applied contexts.

Research on self-efficacy in intercultural communication (SEIC) provided validity evidence for second language (L2) self-efficacy domains. However, it lacked (1) an analysis of individual differences in personality as antecedents, (2) divergent validity from anxiety variables (i.e., foreign language classroom anxiety; FLCA), and (3) disambiguation from speaking (S-SE) and listening (L-SE) skill-specific self-efficacy types. We conducted structural equation modeling of L2 self-efficacy and anxiety as response variables predicted by the Big Five model of personality in the context of Japanese undergraduate students at three university sites (n = 373), and a geographically diverse online survey of emerging adults (n = 1,326) throughout Japan. The final model for the nationally representative sample showed that SEIC was predicted by all identified personality factors. Differentially supported paths were observed linking L-SE with Conscientiousness (β = 0.24) and Extraversion (β = 0.16), and S-SE with Extraversion (β = 0.24) and Neuroticism (β = -0.12). The fear of failure factor of FLCA was predicted positively by Neuroticism (β = 0.25) and, surprisingly, Conscientiousness (β = 0.10), and negatively by Extraversion (β = -0.13). Relationships to Openness to Experience were only supported for SEIC (β = 0.17) and S-SE (β = 0.12). These findings provide specificity matching for personality and L2 self-efficacy domains as empirical advances for assessing global competence within the context of Japan. Implications for cultural influences on self-efficacy and applied educational practices in language and intercultural learning are discussed.

Investigating Foreign Language Anxiety among Moroccan EFL University Students in Face-to- Face and Distance Learning Modes

Since the English language has become a prerequisite for entering most domains, some students are nowadays enrolled in EFL classes, be them face-to-face or online. However, they face some obstacles that impede their learning process. Foreign Language Anxiety is one of these. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to compare the anxiety levels that Moroccan university students experience in two different learning environments (face-to-face vs. distance learning). Furthermore, it attempts to find out the sources from which anxiety stems, as well as to suggest some useful strategies to alleviate students’ anxiety levels. To this end, two research instruments were used. A survey that consists of two sets of questions adapted from the Foreign Language Virtual Classroom Anxiety Scale and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale was administered to 100 EFL students from different universities in Morocco to gather quantitative data, and interviews that were conducted with 10 students were used to collect qualitative data. In contrast to a traditional class, the study’s findings showed that students in online classes have lower levels of communication anxiety. However, it was discovered that in both learning techniques, students’ feelings of test anxiety and dread of a poor grade remained largely unchanged. Overall, the findings indicated that most Moroccan university students find online classes to be less anxiety-inducing. This study filled a gap in the literature by investigating foreign language anxiety among language learners who are studying languages remotely.

Foreign Language Learning Anxiety in Virtual Classroom During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Tunisian Students of English as a Case Study

Foreign language learning anxiety (FLLA) is one of the most vastly studied variables in the field of foreign language learning (Horwitz, 2001). It is widely conceived as an obvious factor, in foreign language learning, which explained why some learners are more successful at learning and acquiring a foreign language than others though the settings and circumstances of learning are alike. 
 The aim of this paper is to address the issue of foreign language learning anxiety that Tunisian students of English suffered from when they learn ‘behind the screen’ during the Covid-19 pandemic, by surveying 50 students enrolled in the Tunisian public universities and institutes.
 The foreign language classroom anxiety scale (FLCAS), developed by Horwitz, Horwitz, and Cope (1986), the most widely used scale for assessing general foreign language anxiety, is used in this research to inspect the anxiety level the learners face. 
 Results of the survey reveal a significant relationship between foreign language anxiety and the academic level, whereas no significant relationship between gender and foreign language learning anxiety is marked.
 Investigating online learning in relation with foreign language learning anxiety can provide guidance and recommendations for teachers, course designers, pedagogues how to deal with learners behind the screen.

Exploring EFL Students’ Speaking Anxiety in Microsoft Teams Classroom Discussion Learning

This case study reported on how students experienced speaking anxiety in online EFL classrooms. The data was obtained through observation, questionnaires on a google form, and interviews. The data analysis technique used was thematic analysis. The participants consisted of second-year students from one vocational school in Indonesia determined as many as 14 (fourteen) students, 4 representative students were chosen using FLCAS for the Interview, and 14 students for the FLCAS Questionnaire. The questionnaire sheet obtained feedback on students' types of speaking anxiety are (a) test anxiety, (b) fear of negative judgment, and (c) communicative apprehension. Data analysis showed that speaking anxiety can be influenced by several factors including fear speak in front of peers, fear of negative feedback, and fear of failure. In addition, the analysis discovered that (1) preparation, (2) relaxation, (3) positive thinking, (4) peer thinking, (5) positive outlook, and (6) using useful tools were strategies used by students to overcome speaking anxiety.

Measuring Anxiety Level of Learning English Language among Refugee Teenagers in Malaysia

Owing to legislative restrictions, Malaysia cannot provide education for refugee children. Instead, the state invites numerous parties, including NGOs, to construct alternative refugee schools. Because education for refugees is an alternative, the goal is directed at practical skills to help refugees work and integrate with Malaysian society or the following country for future resettlement. All of Malaysia's alternative schools for refugees place a strong emphasis on English language acquisition. Even with free education, refugee children struggle to learn English as a Second Language. Psychological phenomena, such as language anxiety, trigger obstacles in learning English. However, learning about language anxiety in the context of alternative education in Malaysia has rarely been studied. Using the mixed-method methodology (MMR) brings about post-positivism and interpretivism. This study had two goals: (1) bridging research gaps on anxiety in learning English as a second language from the viewpoint of alternative school actors and students in refugee communities; and (2) providing solutions for alternative education for refugee communities in Malaysia to understand and address foreign language anxiety. Our study focuses on refugee students from three alternative schools in Klang Valley: the United Learning Center (ULC), Save School Malaysia, and Refugee Academy. The quantitative technique used 92 students to complete the English language classroom anxiety scale (ELCAS), derived from the Foreign Language Classroom Scale (FLCAS). In addition, we interviewed two persons and one teacher from each school for the qualitative approach. For data analysis, we used SPSS 19 for a quantitative and interpretive approach to the qualitative data. Qualitative results indicate that refugee children from three Klang Valley alternative schools experienced medium foreign language learning anxiety. Most refugee children were anxious about English courses, regardless of gender or stream group, emphasizing the necessity for educators and other stakeholders to understand refugee children's anxiety levels and take action with extensive knowledge of anxiety and compassion. Counsellors must also work with teachers to create interventions to assist refugee children in handling their anxiety while studying English. Finally, instructors must use fascinating teaching approaches to minimize refugee children's anxiety, motivate them with emphaty and compassion,and avoid overcorrection.

By the Old Gods and the New: The Effect of the Congruence and Incongruence of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety and Enjoyment on Self‐Perceived Proficiency

AbstractEmotions in foreign language (FL) learning have become an increasingly popular research avenue in applied linguistics. Such research is often carried out using linear correlational or regression methods, which are limited in the extent to which they can depict interrelations. In this study, we aimed to reexamine the relationships between the emotion variables of foreign language classroom anxiety (FLCA) and foreign language enjoyment (FLE) and the outcome variable of self‐perceived proficiency (SPP) through nonlinear methods. Specifically, we examined how different levels of FLCA and FLE influenced SPP in concert in a sample of N = 1,039 FL learners by utilizing polynomial regression with response surface analysis. The nonlinear method generated a response model that visually depicted a complex SPP pattern as a result of differing levels of FLCA and FLE. This three‐dimensional model provides considerable insight into the interaction of positive and negative emotions above and beyond what could be derived from “classical” methods of correlation and linear regression.

The Level of Arabic Language Anxiety based on Student’s Academic Background in Learning Arabic Language

This research aims to investigate the level of language anxiety among Arabic as a Foreign Language students at Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), focusing on the following variables: the level of anxiety for the students in general and the differences in anxiety levels between students with an academic background in learning Arabic Language and students with no prior experience learning Arabic Language. The study sample includes 149 students, including 73 from the Faculty of Business and Management, 38 from the Faculty of Health Sciences, and 38 from the Faculty of Accountancy. They were given a questionnaire on the phenomenon of language anxiety, the Modified Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (MFLCAS), which was then analysed using SPSS IBM Statistics. The findings indicate that the average level of language anxiety among students is moderate. In addition, students with no academic background in the Arabic Language have a higher level of language anxiety than those with an academic background in the Arabic Language.

Effects of Learner Variables on Chinese Bilingual Undergraduates’ Intercultural Sensitivity and Effectiveness

This study investigated the effects of learner variables on Chinese bilingual undergraduates’ intercultural sensitivity and effectiveness. A total of 439 students from different universities answered a battery of questionnaires. Major findings were: (a) the participants reported a moderate to high level of intercultural sensitivity and a moderate level of intercultural effectiveness; (b) no significant gender difference occurred in intercultural sensitivity and effectiveness, except for Interaction Engagement and Respect for Cultural Differences; (c) intercultural sensitivity and effectiveness were significantly positively related to and predicted each other; (d) confidence in learning English, self-efficacy in learning English and English classroom anxiety significantly predicted students’ intercultural sensitivity; and (e) English classroom anxiety, English learning motivation, and self-efficacy in learning English significantly predicted students’ intercultural effectiveness. Based on these findings, a path model was constructed which explains the relations among affect, intercultural communication sensitivity, effectiveness and competence.

Analysis of English Learning Anxiety of English Pre-service Teacher Education Students in Mainland China

This study aims to investigate the anxiety of preservice English EFL teachers in a normal Chinese university. This article identifies and analyzes the various types of anxiety students experience in their typical classroom experiences. We used a survey research design with the FLCAS questionnaire in this study, along with the FLCAS questionnaire, to conduct this research. 74 preservice English teachers participated. The results showed that communication apprehension represented the highest anxiety among the three categories. As preservice English teachers, participants had less test anxiety. Further research on how their anxiety in teachers' preparation programs affects their subsequent teaching performance at schools would be helpful. This is based on the study participants' perceptions of classroom anxiety as a preservice English teacher.

Analysis of English Learning Anxiety of English Pre-service Teacher Education Students in Mainland China

This study aims to investigate the anxiety of preservice English EFL teachers in a normal Chinese university. This article identifies and analyzes the various types of anxiety students experience in their typical classroom experiences. We used a survey research design with the FLCAS questionnaire in this study, along with the FLCAS questionnaire, to conduct this research. 74 preservice English teachers participated. The results showed that communication apprehension represented the highest anxiety among the three categories. As preservice English teachers, participants had less test anxiety. Further research on how their anxiety in teachers' preparation programs affects their subsequent teaching performance at schools would be helpful. This is based on the study participants' perceptions of classroom anxiety as a preservice English teacher.

Relationship between English Speaking Performance and Foreign Language Anxiety in Online Peer Learning

This study investigated the relationship between English speaking performance and foreign language anxiety before and after an online peer learning program at the college level. A total of 59 students enrolled in a one-semester English Speaking Communication course at a university in central Taiwan participated in the study. The course entailed a 7-week online peer learning program. The participants took a computer-based speaking proficiency test and completed the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale questionnaire before and after the program. The collected quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient. The results revealed that the participants experienced a moderate level of anxiety when taking the computer-based speaking test before and after attending the online peer learning program. A negative correlation was observed between foreign language anxiety and computer-based speaking performance before the online peer learning program. However, after the online peer learning program, a positive correlation was noted between anxiety and speaking performance. On the basis of these findings, this study provides pedagogical suggestions for second-language practitioners.

EXAMINING THE PREVALENCE OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE SPEAKING ANXIETY AMONG BS LEVEL STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HARIPUR

This study was carried out to investigate English language speaking anxiety among the students of The University of Haripur at BS level. Specifically, the objectives of the study are, to investigate students’ anxiety level towards speaking English as a foreign language to measure the different level of speaking anxiety between male and female students and to identify the factors that cause high level of speaking anxiety among the students. Foreign Language Class Room Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) introduced by (Horwitz, Horwitz& Cope, 1986) was applied as an instrument to measuring the English language speaking anxiety level of the students.The questionnaire consists of 33 items, each one on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree”. In this research, Strongly Agree (scale point 5), Agree (scale point 4), Neither Agree nor Disagree (scale point 3), Disagree (scale point 2) and lastly Strongly Disagree (scale point 1) The data obtained was analyzed by using SPSS version-23 Windows and was presented in the form of descriptive statistics which include percentages, standard deviation and mean value. High the mean value more the level of anxiety. Results from the study show that, overall English language speaking anxiety of the participants is at medium level (M=3.0, SD=0.48). Level of speaking anxiety in FLCAS three factors CA ,TA and FNE is at medium level with mean values (M=3.07), (M=2.85) and (M=3.07) respectively. Female students are slightly more anxious with (M=3.10, SD=0.41) as compared to male students with (M=2.94, SD=0.51). The research concludes by bringing together the key findings, recommendations and suggestive areas for further research. Keywords: Speaking Anxiety, factors, communication apprehension, test anxiety and fear of negative evaluation.

Investigating the reliability of foreign language classroom anxiety scale (FLCAS): An application of generalizability theory

Ever since it was developed in the mid-1980s by Horwitz et al. (1986), the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) has served as a pivotal instrument that aids research into individual differences that might have a bearing on second and foreign language learning outcomes. Much research has been carried out as to the factorial structure of the scale, providing validity evidence about a construct of substantial interest to second and foreign language practitioners and researchers alike: Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA). However, there exist only limited amounts of information about the reliability of the scale, with much of the extant research reporting Cronbach's alpha as an index of internal consistency. Considering that the FLCAS is a self-report instrument, examination of scoring reliability ought to consider not only the internal consistency of the scale items, but also the extent to which responses remain consistent over time. To address this question, we adopted generalizability theory (G theory) to estimate the reliability of the FLCAS. Data were collected from 314 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students enrolled in a Chinese higher education institution by administering the FLCAS two times with a 12-day interval between administrations. Results from the univariate G theory analysis suggested that, when the occasion facet was taken into consideration, the reliability coefficients were much lower than Cronbach's alpha values. Next, findings from the multivariate G theory analysis indicated that the composite generalizability and dependability coefficients were satisfactory. However, one of the latent traits hypothesized to be part of the scale, test anxiety, comprising of three items, went far below an acceptable range of reliability. Implications are discussed.