Review of Studies of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety

Anxiety is considered to be one of the key psychological variables as well as one of the important emotional factors that affect language learning. Taken into account that classroom is the main place in which Chinese college students learn English,it is of great significance to study students' language anxiety in the classroom environment. Based on the previous researches, this paper reviews the relevant studies in this area conducted at home and abroad.

A Brief Analysis About the Function of the Communicative Approach -- It Can Lighten Classroom Anxiety in Foreign Language Teaching

Classroom Anxiety is very common and to some extent it influences students＇ achievements in foreign language learning. So, how to solve this problem in order to help students have a good performance in foreign language learning is a very urgent issue. According to the writer＇s study, communicative approach is an effective method to deal with it.

An Empirical Study on Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety of College Students

Classroom anxiety could exert a tremendous influence on foreign language learners during their process of studying.Within this study,353 college students of China Youth University of Political Studies(CYUPS)are selected as participants;the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale(FLCAS)is applied as a tool and Statistic Package for Social Science(SPSS)software is used to analyze all the data to figure out whether there is difference on genders,grades,and majors among college students on their levels of foreign language classroom anxiety.The results show that considering all three anxiety perspectives:communication apprehension,test anxiety,and fear of negative evaluation,anxiety level between males and females are similar;there is also no significant difference among grades;however,English majors are significantly less anxious than non-English majors on test anxiety.

Speaking Anxiety in a Kazakhstani Foreign Language Classroom

The present study aimed to contribute to our understanding of foreign language anxiety, in general, and in particular speaking anxiety in Kazakhstani environment. It was the first attempt to fill this gap and reveal more about the speaking anxiety in the Elementary level of Kazakh students group, having considered how anxiety might have affected speaking and overall classroom performance. This study addressed the issue of identifying foreign language speaking anxiety and the major consequences of language speaking anxiety reported by students learning English in the evaluation of the foreign language classroom. Anxiety levels in Kazakh students of English were studied through self-evaluation using a scale adapted from the FLCAS （Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale） developed by E. K. Horwitz, M. B. Horwitz, and Cope （1986）. As revealed by the results of this study, English language speaking anxiety does exist among the Kazakh second-year university students who participated in this study. And too, the study revealed that these students have had a number of negative experiences with speaking activities in a foreign language class.

A Study on Left-behind Junior Students'Foreign Language Learning Anxiety

Since the 1960s, foreign language educators and researchers home and abroad have started to pay attention to the influence of the affective variables including language learning anxiety on foreign language learning. This thesis tried to find out the factors that may influence the foreign language learning anxiety level of left-behind students and put forward ways to help lower down the foreign language learning anxiety level of the left-behind junior middle school students.

Foreign Language Enjoyment and Anxiety:Associations With General and Domain-Specific English Achievement

Recent research has confirmed the predictive effect of general foreign language(FL) achievement on Foreign Language Enjoyment(FLE) and Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety(FLCA).However,few studies have examined the effect of domain-specific language achievement in shaping FL learning emotions.The present study thus aims to examine how FLE and FLCA are linked to overall FL achievement and self-perceived achievement in six different domains across listening,speaking,reading,writing,vocabulary,and grammar.A total of 1,415 Chinese senior secondary students participated in the questionnaire survey.Regression analyses showed that 1) both FLE and FLCA were predicted more by self-perceived general English proficiency,while less by actual English achievement;2) perceptions of speaking and grammar competence were significant predictors of both emotions;3) perceived reading competence predicted FLE significantly but not FLCA;and that 4) perceptions of listening,writing,and vocabulary competence predicted neither FLE nor FLCA.The implication is that domain-specificity should be taken into consideration in future explorations of FL emotions.

Foreign Language Enjoyment and Anxiety: The effect of teacher and learner variables (Ⅰ)

Positive psychology has boosted interest in the positive as well as the negative emotions that Foreign Language learners experience. The present study examines whether -and to what extent -foreign language enjoyment (FLE) and FL classroom anxiety (FLCA) are linked to a range of learner-internal variables and teacher/classroom-specific variables within one specific educational context. Participants were 189 British high school students learning various FLs. Levels of FLE were linked to higher scores on attitudes towards the FL, the FL teacher, FL use in class, proportion of time spent on speaking, relative standing and stage of development. Lower levels FLCA were linked to higher scores on attitudes towards the FL, relative standing and stage of development. FLCA thus seems less related to teacher and teacher practices than FLE. The pedagogical implication is that teachers should strive to boost FLE rather than worry too much about students' FLCA.

A Path Analysis of the Interrelationship Among EFL Learners’ Humor Style, Anxiety, and Language Proficiency

Humor is a complicated part of the human experience and therefore an important dimension of humanity’s unique ability for language. The main purpose of this study is to find which dimension of humor styles can better predict anxiety and language achievement. The participants of the present study were 210 (103 female and 107 male) Iranian advanced EFL learners with different ages, both genders, and various educational backgrounds. Convenience sampling was employed to collect data. This study utilized one test and two questionnaires which are Preliminary English Test (PET), the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ), and The Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS). Path Analysis and Pearson correlation were used to analyze data. Results showed that all four sub-constructs of humor styles, affiliative humor (β=-0.27, p < 0.05), self-enhancing humor (β=-0.31, p < 0.05), aggressive humor (β= 0.17, p < 0.05), and self-defeating humor (β= 0.20, p < 0.05) are significant predictors of learners’ anxiety. However, among four sub-constructs of humor styles, only affiliative humor (β=-0.32, p < 0.05), and self-enhancing humor (β=-0.25, p < 0.05) are positive significant predictors of learners’ Language Achievement. In addition, language achievement is predicted negatively by anxiety (β=-0.26, p < 0.05). Two paths from aggressive humor to language proficiency (β= 0.09, p > 0.05), and from self-defeating humor to language proficiency (β= 0.07, p > 0.05) were not significant and removed from the model. With regards to the field of foreign language, humor has been identified as a powerful means to decrease students’ anxiety in a foreign language learning situations and it helps language learners in performing in a foreign language.

外语焦虑量表(FLCAS)在大学生中的测试报告

本研究通过外语课堂焦虑量表 (FLCAS)在我国大学生中初步应用及因素分析 ,结果发现 :(1)中文版FLCAS具有较好的信度和效度 ,可用于今后的有关研究或实际工作。 (2 )我国大学生在学习英语过程中产生的焦虑主要包括担心、紧张不安、害怕说英语和害怕课堂提问等四个方面 ;(3)女大学生的外语焦虑水平显著低于男大学生 ,这可能女性的语言能力相对较强有关 ;(4)我国非英语专业大学生的外语学习焦虑水平显著低于国外学习其它外语的大学生 ,这可能跟他们外语学习的经历较长有关。

基于FLCAS的高职院校非英语专业学生外语课堂焦虑研究

该研究采用FLCAS问卷,对广东某高职院校非英语专业外语课堂焦虑情况进行调查,发现:高职非英语专业学生中普遍存在外语课堂焦虑问题;高分学生与低分学生的外语课堂焦虑水平差别不大;女生整体课堂焦虑水平较高,而男生考试焦虑比女生严重;艺术专业学生总体焦虑水平比文科专业和理科专业学生高。因此,高职院校英语教师必须注重情绪引导,因材施教,提高学生的自我效能感,才能有效降低学生的外语课堂焦虑水平。

高校英语课堂学习焦虑量表(FLCAS)问卷分析

通过对高校非英语专业学生英语课堂学习焦虑量表的问卷调查,发现专业和性别的不同产生焦虑程度显著差距,并提出降低焦虑程度的策略。

OPTIONS IN COPING WITH FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASSROOM ANXIETY

This thesis is a project on foreign language classroom anxiety. Since Krashen put forward the affective filter hypothesis, more and more concern has been paid to the anxiety problem by foreign language educators and researchers at home and aboard. Among them, one qualitative research in Reticence and Anxiety in Second Language Learning by Amy B. M. Tusi stood out and received much attention. My project intends to justify the causes for foreign language classroom anxiety and corresponding strategies, based on the research of Amy B. M. Tusi (1985). The subjects in Tsui's project are English teachers in secondary school. Little research has been done on non-English-major students in the general university of technology in mainland of China. Therefore, this thesis will provide some practical data and suggestions for the research in this field. The whole thesis consists of five chapters. The first two chapters mainly discuss the definition, the causes of foreign language classroom anxiety and current research in this field. The third and the fourth parts focus on the research in this thesis: objects, subjects, instruments, methodology and data results and analysis. The study shows that because of the difference in English proficiency level, style of cognition, culture, and educational background among students, five factors and five strategies for foreign language classroom anxiety proposed by Amy B. M. Tusi only fit some students in college English class. Based on the data results, five personal proposals are put forward, and I hope these proposals will provide some options for practicing English teachers of non-English-major instruction in the general university technology to cope with foreign language anxiety.

ANXIETY IN THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

Introduction With the rapid growth in international communication, English is becoming more and more important. The urgent task for English teachers, is to apply knowledge gained from educational psychology research to make teaching more efficient. For this purpose, anxiety, an important psychological phenomenon in foreign language learning, is discussed in this article. First anxiety will be defined to build up a clear concept of its origin and its nature. Then its effect on foreign language learning will be analysed. A few suggestions for teachers will be presented at the end.

外语阅读焦虑与英语成绩及性别的关系

利用外语阅读焦虑和外语课堂焦虑量表,对通过分层随机抽样得到的211名非英语专业二年级大学生进行了测试,并就阅读焦虑与英语四级统考成绩及性别的关系进行了研究。结果表明:1)中国大学生外语阅读焦虑明显高于美国初学外语的大学生;2)阅读焦虑和英语四级统考成绩及阅读理解成绩之间存在负相关关系;3)男生阅读焦虑显著高于女生,英语成绩则显著低于女生,但是课堂焦虑在性别上没有表现出显著差异。

中国大学生英语阅读焦虑感研究

本文是一项关于学生英语阅读焦虑感与英语成绩及其与性别之间关系的实证性研究。实验采用"外语课堂焦虑量表"(FLCAS)和"外语阅读焦虑量表"(FLRAS)对随机抽取的135名非英语专业二年级学生的英语课堂焦虑度和阅读焦虑度进行测试,并且收集了他们所取得的英语四级总成绩和阅读成绩等有关数据。在运用SPSS13.0中的描述、相关、独立样本T检验和一元线性回归等统计手段对所得数据进行分析处理后发现:1)阅读焦虑主要是由于过分注重阅读效果,缺乏必要的文化背景知识和不够自信等三方面引起的;2)阅读焦虑与英语四级统考成绩及阅读成绩呈显著负相关;3)阅读焦虑是与外语学习焦虑感既有联系又相区别的一种特殊的焦虑情绪;4)男女生在阅读焦虑和课堂焦虑上均未表现出显著性别差异,但是男生的英语成绩显著低于女生;5)阅读焦虑对男生英语成绩的预测力大大超过对女生的预测力。

英语阅读焦虑的因素及对策

为了探讨英语阅读焦虑心理及其影响因素,采用外语学习焦虑量表和外语阅读焦虑量表对辽宁工程技术大学近400名英语专业和非英语专业本科生和研究生进行问卷调查。结果表明:受试者普遍存在英语阅读焦虑;英语阅读焦虑和外语课堂学习焦虑存在高度正相关关系;性别、年级等要素与英语阅读焦虑并无显著相关性。文化、词汇、元认知能力等是造成学生阅读焦虑的重要因素,因此从提高英语文化课程比例、提高词汇习得策略及培养学生元认知能力等方面提出了缓解学生英语阅读焦虑的解决对策。

外语学习课堂焦虑与课堂气氛的相关研究及其教学意义

焦虑是外语学习中的重要情感障碍。在梳理国外相关文献的基础上,通过问卷调查和描述性的统计分析,研究了外语课堂焦虑和课堂气氛之间的关系。研究结果显示:(1)引起课堂焦虑的主要因素是交际畏惧和惧怕负评价,外语课堂缺少互动及师生的支持。(2)男生焦虑指数高于女生,其课堂气氛指数低于女生。(3)文科班焦虑状态略高于理科班,其课堂气氛却大大低于理科班。(4)课堂焦虑与课堂气氛呈负相关。受试者的焦虑指数差异小,课堂气氛指数差异大。

大学生外语焦虑状况的调查与分析

以问卷的方式对301名河海大学和南京财经大学全日制二年级本科生进行了外语焦虑调查和分析。结果表明,被试者在外语学习过程中普遍感受到较强的焦虑感;外语焦虑和外语学习效果之间呈现极为显著的负相关关系;焦虑程度越高,对于外语学习的负面影响越大。据此提出了一些减轻大学生外语焦虑的方法和建议。

英语学习焦虑与英语成绩的相关研究

在以英语作为外语的环境下,采用一个由“背景问卷”以及经过改编的“外语课堂学习焦虑”、“外语阅读焦虑”和“外语写作焦虑”组成的问卷调查、一套最新的全国四级统考试题和一个口语测试来实证性地探索英语焦虑和英语成绩之间的关系。通过使用SAS软件计算焦虑值与英语各技能成绩之间的皮尔逊相关系数,发现外语课堂学习焦虑与英语听、说呈负相关,外语阅读焦虑与阅读成绩呈负相关,外语写作焦虑与写作成绩呈负相关。通过计算外语课堂焦虑与外语阅读焦虑和外语写作焦虑之间的皮尔逊相关系数,发现外语阅读焦虑和外语写作焦虑是不同于外语课堂焦虑的由阅读和写作的独特性所引起的两种特殊的焦虑。