A Research Design of Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety in Chinese High School English Classrooms

雷涵彧

1. Introduction

Since MacIntyre and Gardner （1991） identified that learners feelings and attitudes towards study can affect their learning ability， one of the most significant affective variables in the learning process has been proved to be anxiety. Meanwhile， researchers have shown great interest in anxiety in language learning， which many of them believe is the most pervasive obstruction to the language learning process. Among all the topics related to anxiety in language learning， foreign language anxiety （FLA） has attracted the most attention.

FLA is important and necessary for researchers to explore as it is not just a theory studied in laboratory but also a reality for many students （Liu， 2005; Tran， 2012）. Many researchers also indicate that FLA is always related to speaking activities in class and functions as an inhibitor in foreign langue learning （Mak， 2011）. Although there is a growing need for proficient spoken English in China， the attention on speaking anxiety in Chinese secondary schools is not enough.

2. Literature review

Since Krashens （1982） “affective filter” hypothesis published， an increasing attention has been given to affective factors in language learning process， among which language anxiety is viewed as a powerful predictor and one of the most important affective variables on learners language performance.

In the 1970s， general anxiety included two dimensions， that is， state anxiety and trait anxiety. The former claims that a subjective feeling of tension or worry aroused by nervous system， and the latter emphasises a stable individual difference in anxiety. While in the 1980s， Horwitz et al. （1986） pointed out that FLA is aroused in specific situations and should be regarded as situation-specific anxiety. It mostly happens when learners are required to complete a learning task （e.g. speaking） by using a foreign language. Besides， in order to explore the relationship between foreign language anxiety and foreign language achievement with a proper measurement method， they created the well-known FLCAS （Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale）.

As for the anxiety that learners experience when speaking a foreign language in class， a number of studies share an agreement that learners will feel anxious when speaking English in front of the class such as making presentations and role play， and their oral performance is highly correlated with the degree of FLA. In China， students pay more attention on rote learning and teacher instructions （Mak， 2011）， reasons of their speaking anxiety should be different from students in western countries （e.g. American students with focus on self-expression）. In the Chinese context， Liu （2005） investigated 24 university students for one term and found possible factors leading to their speaking anxiety and reticence in oral English classrooms such as Chinese modest culture， low English proficiency， past educational experience， lack of practice， fear of losing face， etc.

The gap of aforementioned studies can be summarised in two aspects. One is that though FLA is a complicated phenomenon to investigate， few studies in this field have adopted mixed methods， and most of them mainly employed the data of self-report FLCAS to measure the degree of FLA， which might not be enough to explore the complex factors contributing to FLA in different cultural backgrounds. The other gap is that little research has focused on English speaking anxiety among high school learners in China， especially in developing regions， although according to Wang and Ding （2001）， the language anxiety index of secondary students in Chinese developing areas and rural areas （e.g. Southwest China） actually was very high.

3. Research design

In order to fill the gap mentioned above， the current study applies theory into research design with a focus on speaking anxiety of high school students in Southwest China as students are the direct stakeholders in the language learning and teaching process. Besides， teachers and policymakers should also be aware of students perceptions to develop student-centred learning environments， by finding out factors contributing to the anxiety as well as strategies used to tackle this problem.

3.1 Research questions

3.1.1 To what extent do high school students experience foreign language speaking anxiety in English classrooms in Southwest China？

3.1.2 What factors might explain the existence of speaking anxiety in English classrooms？

3.1.3 What coping strategies do learners use to manage their speaking anxiety？

3.2 Methodology

Both quantitative and qualitative approaches employed in this study and the problem solving process implies pragmatism as the theoretical perspective for the research， which also follows a “sequential explanatory design” （Robson 2011， p. 165）， that is， the qualitative data are used to elaborate on qualitative data in order to find out the comprehensive understanding of the phenomena.

3.2.1 FLCAS

Since the 1980s， FLCAS has been widely used in FLA anxiety and showed consistent findings so that its reliability has been proved （Mak， 2011）.

3.2.2 Reflective journals

To gather additional information about students personal variables that affect language learning and cause speaking anxiety， the chosen students are asked to write reflective journals weekly for several successive weeks with a focus on their participation in speaking activities. In addition to the items and topics advised， they can also write about feelings related to their language learning experience. Considering their English level， they are allowed to write the journals in Chinese.

3.2.3 Semi-structured Interviews

To obtain comprehensive view of students techniques that they use to cope with their speaking anxiety， students are invited to participate in the semi-structured interviews and this is completely based on their willingness. The questions of the semi-structured interviews encompass aspects such as educational experience， self-evaluated oral English proficiency， reasons for speaking anxiety in class and coping strategies. Meanwhile， in order to complement students views， English teachers from the chosen classes are also invited to participate in this stage and questions for them includes aspects like their identification of low/high anxious students in class， general reasons of students speaking anxiety and possible effective classroom activities that can reduce anxiety.

3.3 Data analysis

Statistical package SPSS will be used to compute descriptive data collected by FLCAS survey. Statistics such as the percentage and the frequency of each item， the mean， standard deviation and range for the scale will be gained as an indication of the degree of speaking anxiety existing in high school English classrooms in the two areas.

The reflective journals and transcribed interviews will be subjected to a thematic coding analysis with predetermined codes or themes （Robson， 2011）. To be specific， the research should be familiar with the data and generate initial codes in this stage with a fixed theoretical framework in mind. Next， with the purpose to construct thematic networks， the research should identify different themes and their relationship between each other. Finally， the integration and interpretation of the qualitative data can be achieved （ibid， p. 476）.

3.4 Potential implication

The potential implications of this study can be summarised as follows： Firstly， as Krashen （1982） stated， stressful classroom atmosphere can cause a “filter” blocking efficient acquisition of foreign languages， thus， it is important to create a low-anxiety and less stressful classroom for efficient foreign language acquisition. The analysis of speaking anxiety of high school students can inspire teachers to think about how to develop less anxiety-provoking learning atmosphere for students.

This study can also provide suggestions about activities that may help students cope with their speaking anxiety. As supported by previous researchers in this field， teachers should be aware of the effective methods to alleviate individuals speaking anxiety. Besides， training on teachers can also be organised to enrich their knowledge on speaking anxiety. From this study， teachers and students can not only be aware of the existence of speaking anxiety in the English classrooms， but also know the factors and coping strategies. More importantly， their responses collected in the qualitative approach can provide specific suggestions that can used in the chosen regions.