Read the article below then write an abstract of the article!

Helping Students Overcome Foreign Language

Speaking Anxiety in the

English Classroom

1. Introduction

A negative correlation between second and foreign language anxiety and achievement is
established in the literature(Horwitz, 2001). Empirical research shows that anxious foreign
language students are less willing to participate in learning activities, and have lower
performance than non-anxious students(MacIntyre and Gardner 1991).

Foreign language anxiety consists of “self-perceptions, beliefs, feelings and behaviors related to
classroom language learning a rising from the uniqueness of the language learning process”
(Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope 1986). Three components of foreign language anxiety have been
identified (Horwitz,Horwitz and Cope 1986): a) communication apprehension, b) fear of
negative evaluation, and c) test anxiety. Students who exhibit communication apprehension do
not feel comfortable communicating in the target language in front of others, due to their limited
knowledge of the language, especially in relation to speaking and listening skills. Students who
experience fear of negative evaluation do not consider language errors as a natural part of the
learning process, but as a threat to their image, and a source for negative evaluations either from
the teacher or their peers. As a result, they are silent and withdrawn most of the time, and do not
participate in language activities (Ely 1986). Students who experience test anxiety consider the
foreign language process, and especially oral production, as a test situation, rather than an
opportunity for communication and skills improvement.

Many studies have addressed the relationship between language anxiety and motivation. More
specifically, integratively motivated students “are less anxious in second language contexts”
(Gardner, Day and MacIntyre 1992) thanstudents who students who are instrumentally
motivated. Their research findings provide indications that anxiety andmotivation are “two
separate dimensions with overlapping behavioral consequences” (Gardner, Day and
MacIntyre1992).

Six types of sources of foreign language classroom anxiety have been identified (Young, 1991):
personal andinterpersonal anxieties, learner beliefs about language learning, instructor beliefs
about language learning,instructor-learner interactions, classroom procedures, and testing.

An examination of sources of foreign language speaking anxiety showed a correlation between

a) anxiety and fear of negative evaluation, and b) anxiety and perception of low ability in relation
to peers and native speakers (Kitano, 2001). Kitano suggests that teachers should find ways to
support students with fear of negative evaluation, which may involve providing these students
with positive reinforcement, such as positive comments. In relation to learners’ perception of low
ability, teachers should make interventions in the classroom environment and practices and
create a “sense of community in the classroom”, so that students do not perceive it a competitive,
while pair and group work can be incorporated (Kitano, 2001).

In this article, in order to set the scene for the case study, we first present the context of the
teaching of English as a foreign language in Greek public schools. Then we present the
qualitative classroom-based case study, including the effectiveness of project work and a
supportive, collaborative learning community in reducing foreign language speaking anxiety.
Finally, the pedagogical implications for addressing foreign language speaking anxiety are
discussed.
2. English in Greek public primary and secondary education

Education in Greece is provided at the following levels: a) primary education, including

kindergarten and primary school, which has six grades, b) secondary education, including lower
secondary school, and upper secondary school, each lasting three years, c) post secondary
education, and d) higher education. Studying in primary and lower secondary education is
compulsory.

English is taught as a foreign language from the third grade of primary school for three hours
per week. In lower and in most upper secondary schools, English is taught for three hours per
week in the first grade, and two hours per week in the second and third grade.

The structure of the teaching of English as a foreign language is presented simply to help
readers understand the context of the case study. However, the findings, measures taken to
overcome foreign language speaking anxiety, suggestions, pedagogical implications, general
insights, and conclusions presented in this article can help English teachers worldwide deal with
the problem of foreign language speaking anxiety in their own teaching situations.

3. Research

3.1 Research questions

The research questions of the case study were:

􀁸 What are the characteristics of students who suffer from foreign language speaking anxiety,

􀁸 What are the sources of foreign language speaking anxiety?

􀁸 Can the incorporation of project work and a supportive classroom atmosphere help these
students overcome their anxiety?

3.2 Research aim

The aim of the research study was not to establish a link between language anxiety and
performance, because this is already well established in the literature. In contrast, the research
aimed at linking the theoretical construct of foreign language speaking anxiety with everyday
classroom practice. The overall aim was to provide English teachers worldwide with a useful
array of suggestions, arising from a classroom-based case study, which will help them reduce
language anxiety, promote motivation to learn, and, in the long run, increase English language
acquisition.

4. Method

4.1 Participants

The sample consisted of fifteen students in the third grade of a lower secondary school in
Greece, aged 13-14 years. Lessons were held three times a week for a period of forty-five
minutes each. All students had been studying English for a total of 5 years, and the average
classroom level was intermediate.

4.2 Data collection

Qualitative research techniques were employed in the case study, since research questions
pointed to the need to gain access to “a wealth of detailed information” (Patton, 2002), and to
processes and meanings that are difficult to measure. The following techniques of qualitative
data collection were used: a)semi-structured interviews, b) group discussion, and c) direct
observation.
5. Results

After data was collected, we found that six of these students were experiencing English language
speaking anxiety as a result of: a) fear of negative evaluation from their peers and b) perception
of low ability in relation to their peers. Their anxiety was attributed to the above factors, on the
basis of the following.

First, these students were unwilling to participate in speaking activities. While a number of
factors can potentially account for this, research showed that their unwillingness was not due to
the fact that they did not realize the value of learning English, laziness, or lack of interest in the
English language. These students’ narratives provided strong evidence that they did not
participate in speaking activities, because they believed that they were not good at speaking.

Consequently, they feared that their fellow students would evaluate them negatively. As Hara, a
highly anxious student reported:

“I like English, but don’t take part in speaking, because I’m so bad at speaking, and my friends
will laugh at me.”

Hara’s text highlights her concern with her social image and her preoccupation with how her
peers would perceive her.

Another source of fear of negative evaluation was the belief that they should produce faultless
sentences. This finding seems consistent with Gregersen’s (2003) suggestion that anxious
learners tend to focus on form rather than content. All of these anxious students feared that
mistakes in speaking activities would destroy their social image as able students.

Nikos, a highly anxious boy describes feelings created by his exaggerated focus on avoiding
language mistakes:

“When I speak I always make an awful lot of mistakes, and I don’t like it. That’s why I use
Greek when I’m not sure of what to say. I also speak very slowly to avoid mistakes. If you listen
to me speaking English, you’d think I’m not clever, but it is not so.”

Fear of negative evaluation from their peers was also evident by the following characteristic,
which was common to most of the above students. When asked to participate in speaking tasks
with the teacher only, without their fellow students listening to them, these anxious students were
markedly more willing to participate and experiment with language.

Apart from anxiety due to fear of negative evaluation from their peers, all anxious respondents
compared their speaking skills negatively in relation with their peers. As an anxious girl
commented:

“You listened to them (fellow students), didn’t you? They speak English as if it’s Greek. They’re
so much better than me. It’s better if I just listen and not speak.”

The language here is one of desperation and low self confidence. Not unsurprisingly, this student
was withdrawn and silent during speaking activities.

6. Conclusion and pedagogical implications

Teachers should realize that language learning, and particularly oral production, is a potentially
stressful situation for some students, and that the “tension and discomfort related to language
learning call for the attention of the language teaching profession” (Horwitz, 2001). The
recommendations we make are congruent with previous studies suggesting that teachers should
not be consider withdrawn students as lazy, lacking in motivation, or having “poor attitude”
(Gregersen, 2003), when in fact they suffer from anxiety. Instead, they should identify anxious
learners and make interventions to help them overcome foreign language anxiety (Aida, 1994).
Because foreign language speaking anxiety in the English classroom may stem from fear of
making mistakes and the consequent fear of negative evaluation, and students’ perception of low
ability in relation to their peers, we suggest that teachers may want to consider the following
interventions. First, teachers can incorporate project work, because it can provide anxious and
non-anxious students alike with abundant opportunities to use language in a non-threatening
context. We argue that the first step in reducing anxiety is to actually have students participate in
speaking tasks.

Because students are more eager to participate in oral activities in small groups (Young, 1990),
project work can be very helpful. Second, the creation of a friendly classroom atmosphere is
important. The case study presented in this article showed that a supportive classroom
atmosphere, in which language errors are considered as natural in the process of language
acquisition, without overcorrection which can “draw students’ attention away from
communication and toward a focus on form and accuracy” (Gregersen, 2003), can be
instrumental in helping anxious students overcome their perception of low ability and fear of
negative evaluation.

The final conclusion is that teachers need to assume the role of the researcher in their own
classrooms. Before employing strategies to help students overcome foreign language speaking
anxiety, foster motivation, and increase foreign language performance, practitioners should get to
know their students, their attitudes toward oral production, and to shed light into the reasons that
underlie their low performance and their unwillingness to engage in speaking activities. It is
suggested that “teacher as a researcher” approach is an invaluable tool. Such an approach, which
brings together theory and practice, can have positive effects both on the professional
development of English teachers and on students’ anxiety levels, motivation and language
acquisition.