FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING ANXIETY AMONG 1ST-YEAR STUDENTS AT FELTE, ULIS

Abstract

In her review of the role of affective factors in EFL/ESL learning and teaching, Andres (2002) asserted that “If we want our students to develop their inherent potential to learn, the affective variables such as anxiety, motivation, self-esteem and inhibition can no longer be denied, the inner needs of the learners can no longer be neglected.” This current research, therefore, was conducted with the aim to investigate the anxiety phenomenon in 1st-year English-major classes at the University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS), Hanoi. The study involved 135 students from 6 first-year classes and 21 teachers at the Faculty of English Language Teacher Education (FELTE). It employed both quantitative (questionnaires) and qualitative (semi-structured interviews) methods to examine the pervasiveness and the degree of English language learning anxiety, as well as to explore the teachers’ and students’ viewpoints on this affective factor. The findings suggested that language anxiety was pervasive among 1st-year classes at FELTE, ULIS; the surveyed students experienced moderate or higher levels of anxiety, and their tension and apprehension in the language classroom appeared to mostly stem from learner characteristics such as negative social comparisons with peers and low self-esteem. Some factors believed to contribute to the alleviation of anxiety were also identified, among which the teacher-related factors, especially a positive teacher-student relationship, seemed to be most highly regarded by the students. Several pedagogical strategies of these findings were offered to assist instructors in helping learners acknowledge, cope with, and reduce anxiety, as well as to encourage them to make the learning context less stressful to their students.