This study sought eight grade students’ experiences of verbal production in the English classroom. From the perspectives of foreign language anxiety (FLA) and willingness to communicate (WTC), what are the students' experiences of verbal production, in what situations are students willing to communicate and in what situations are they not? A quantitative study was conducted using a self-report paper questionnaire, consisting of Nilsson’s (2019) modified version of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) in conjunction with open-ended questions. The result indicates that verbal production causes a high level of foreign language anxiety, and that the students' willingness to communicate increases and decreases depending on stable and situational variables that influence a student's willingness to use their L2. The findings of this study are beneficial to English teachers by raising awareness of FLA and WTC and their presence in our classrooms. The greatest beneficiary of this study is L2 language teachers, who will be inspired to create a classroom environment where the students seek opportunities to engage in verbal production.

Many pupils all over the world might experience foreign language anxiety which has a majorimpact on pupils’ development. Because of this, and because of personal experiences of thesubject, the aim of this thesis was to investigate teachers’ experience of foreign languageanxiety and motivational factors regarding Swedish pupils in grade 1-3. This study investigatedhow the teachers notice pupils who have foreign language anxiety and how they manage towork with them to make them motivated. The focus has been on the oral parts of the Englishsubject. The study was conducted by interviewing six teachers from different schools inSweden. Semi-structured interviews were made with teachers who had experience of the subjectto develop a deeper understanding of their experience and working methods. To analyze theresults, cognitive motivation theory and Skinners behavioristic theory have been used assupport. The results showed that foreign language anxiety is a common challenge in school andthat it can depend on what grade the pupils were in. Some of the participating teachers find itdifficult to manage to work with these pupils since they do not specifically know how to adaptthe teaching to the pupils so they will be able to overcome their anxiety. However, the resultshave showed that the teacher-pupil relationship and the classroom environment play a big rolewhen it comes to foreign language anxiety. / <p>Engelska</p>

Son escasos los estudios enfocados en la ansiedad lingüística con respecto de las habilidades de escritura y lectura durante la formación de traductores. Asimismo, existe falta de conocimiento en la carrera de Traducción e Interpretación Profesional sobre la ansiedad lectora y escritora que se produce en los estudiantes durante el proceso de traducción en los talleres de traducción francés en la lengua extranjera. La presente investigación se centra en conocer las experiencias de ansiedad ante la lectura y escritura en francés durante el proceso de traducción en estudiantes de los cursos Traducción Directa 1 (Francés), Traducción Directa 2 (Francés) y Traducción Inversa (Francés). Para ello, se propone obtener información de los estudiantes mediante guías de grupo focal e inventarios (FLRAI y SLWAI). Se realizará la traducción de estos inventarios a partir del proceso de traducción y adaptación de la Organización Mundial de la Salud para adaptarlos al público objetivo. / There are few studies that focus on foreign language anxiety towards writing and reading skills during translator training. There is also lack of knowledge in the Professional Translation and Interpretation program regarding students’ reading and writing anxiety during the translation process in French translation workshops. This research focuses on understanding the experiences of reading and writing anxiety in French during the translation process in students of the courses French into Spanish Translation 1, French into Spanish Translation 2 and Spanish into French Translation. Therefore, we propose focus group guides and inventories such as FLRAI and SLWAI to obtain information from the students. These inventories will be translated based on the World Health Organization's process of translation and adaptation of instruments to suit the target audience. / Trabajo de investigación

Att som elev delta muntligt i engelskundervisningen kan vara spännande för många elever men för en del elever uppstår talängslan. Talängslan innebär att man vid specifika situationer upplever ångest för att tala. Den här studien har genomförts utifrån intresset att undersöka huruvida lärare ser några negativa följder för elevers kommunikativa förmåga i engelska till följd av talängslan. Vidare har även läraresstöttning och motivation för att elever ska våga tala engelska i klassrummet undersökts. Studien är genomförd utifrån ett lärarperspektiv genom metodtriangulering där webbenkäter och semistrukturerade intervjuer har använts. All insamlad empiri har koncentrerats, kategoriserats och tolkats utifrån en induktiv ansats samt teorin WTC och det sociokulturella perspektivet. Informanterna i denna studie var 25 lärare med behörighet att undervisa engelska i årskurs 1–3 samt fyra undervisande lärare i engelska, utan behörighet. Resultatet visar att talängslan riskerar att påverka elevers kommunikativa förmåga i engelskundervisningen, bland annat genom att elever som saknar en god relation till sin lärare saknar grundtryggheten för att våga tala engelska i klassrummet och väljer att förbli tyst. Resultatet visar att lärarna i studien stöttar och motiverar sina elever genom att elevernas intressen tas tillvara, genom bland annat spel och lekar samt positiv förstärkning. / Learning to speak English can be exciting for many pupils, but it can cause language anxiety for others. Language anxiety refers to the fear of speaking in certain situations. This study was conducted to determine whether teachers see any negative consequences for their pupils’ communicative ability in English because of language anxiety. The study also investigated how the teachers motivate and support their pupils to speak English in the classroom. This study is based on a teacher’s perspective with method triangulation where web surveys and semi-structured interviews were used. All collected data was compiled, classified, and interpreted based on an inductive approach, as well as the WTC theory and the socio-cultural perspective. The informants in this study were 25 teachers with authorization to teach English in grades 1–3 and four teachers without authoraization. Language anxiety is at risk of affecting pupils’ communicative ability in English, according to the findings, because those pupils who do not have a good relationship with their teacher lack the basic confidence speak English in the classroom and therefor choose to remain silent. The teachers in this study believe they have the right tools to push and motivate their pupils. This study discovered that teachers who use pupils’ interests, positive and reasonably high expectations, positive reinforcement, and a playful approach to teaching can help pupils with language anxiety.

The aim of this study is to explore how outdoor education (OE) can influence foreign language anxiety (FLA) and foreign language enjoyment (FLE) when primary students are learning English as a foreign language (EFL). The design was a pre-post intervention study with two experimental groups of 3rd graders of a Catalan state school that participated in an outdoor English session. The research has followed a mixed-methods approach, consisting of a pre- and post-test, group interviews with the students and individual interviews to their main teachers. Statistical analyses indicated a significant decrease in the FLA levels after the outdoor session, especially in girls. Regarding the FLE levels, even if there was an increase for both boys and girls, the difference was not significant. The statistical power was too low and the lack of a control group makes it difficult to claim that the differences where due to the outdoor setting. The qualitative data revealed positive feelings regarding the outdoor English session. Both students and teachers mentioned numerous benefits such as the increase of motivation, active learning or interaction with nature. However, the teachers pinpointed some challenges that need to be taken into account when applying this method. Even if FLA and FLE have been widely investigated, studies on how the outdoors can influence these emotions, and its effect in primary students are new fields of research. This study has provided an overview on how learning English outdoors can be linked with FLA and FLE levels and the differences presented between genders.

No description available.

The aim of the present study was to explore teachers’ experiences of student anxiety in the subject of English in Swedish upper secondary schools. Five teachers were interviewed to find out about their experiences of what causes anxiety in their students and what strategies they have found work best in order to decrease speaking anxiety. The results showed that the anxious students are usually those with a high performance level and good English knowledge. All participants agreed that the reason for anxiety is that performing in speech is perceived as embarrassing. Students tend to see all speaking activities as tests of their knowledge and are afraid of what reactions they may receive. The most distinct way to identify anxiety turned out to spot students’ withdrawal from all speaking activities in English. The best strategy to reduce speaking anxiety according to all participants was careful formation of groups, since smaller groups with only the closest friends is the best way to work for these students. Interestingly, while all teachers mentioned the benefits of recordings and podcasts, only one teacher used this method exclusively instead of oral presentations. / Syftet med denna studie var att ta reda på lärares erfarenheter av elevers oro inför att tala engelska i svenska gymnasieskolor. Fem lärare intervjuades för att få reda på deras erfarenheter av vad det är som gör eleverna oroliga och vilka strategier som de har märkt fungerar bäst för att minska oron över att tala. Resultaten visade att de oroliga eleverna oftast är de som är högpresterande och har goda engelskakunskaper. Alla deltagare var överens om att anledningen till oron är att det uppfattas som pinsamt att tala. Elever ser alla muntliga övningar som prov på sina kunskaper och är oroliga över hur de andra ska reagera. Tydligaste sättet att identifiera oro visade sig vara att vara uppmärksam på undvikande-strategier från engelskaktiviteter. Den bästa strategin för att minska oron enligt alla lärare var att kontrollera hur grupperna formas, eftersom mindre grupper med bara de närmsta vännerna är det bästa sättet att jobba för dessa elever. Intressant var det även att se att, trots att alla lärare nämnde fördelar med att spela in muntliga diskussioner, var det bara en lärare som valt att använda sig av denna metod istället för muntliga redovisningar.

This study examines the beliefs of foreign language teachers regarding the relative positions of native and nonnative speakers in foreign and second language education. In particular, I am concerned with the idealization of the native speaker in this context and the foreign language anxiety that may occur in nonnative speaker language teachers if they internalize this idealization. I collected data from 29 college-level Arabic and Hebrew teachers using four methods: (1) a questionnaire on their background and beliefs regarding native and nonnative speaker language teachers, (2) a version of the Teacher Foreign Language Anxiety Scale (Horwitz, 2007), (3) a one-on-one interview, and (4) class observation. By and large, study participants believed that native speakers, because of their nativity, have reached higher levels of linguistic and cultural proficiency with relative ease, and as a result are more readily granted credibility as teachers of their native language. Participants believed that nonnative speakers are more empathetic and understanding of their students' problems because of their own experience and efforts as students of the language. With regard to foreign language anxiety, the main sources of anxiety among the nonnative speaker participants were the fear of making mistakes (and losing credibility as a result), of not having the authority to speak on cultural issues, of not being hired when competing with native speakers, and of addressing professional audiences. Native speakers feared that they cannot anticipate or understand as easily as nonnative speaker teachers the difficulties their students have in learning their language, because they cannot relate to their experiences in the same way. Neither group, however, reported feeling particularly anxious overall. I argue that anxiety was minimal for both groups because of specific steps that participants have taken to overcome the perceived disadvantages of their group and thereby bolster their confidence. Participants reported gaining confidence through some combination of the following factors: (1) gaining experience and education, (2) improving their linguistic and cultural proficiency, (3) presenting the persona of a credible language teacher through extra preparation and language choices, (4) receiving external validation, and (5) realizing that everyone can learn from and teach others. / text

This study aims to investigate the foreign language anxieties Japanese international students at American universities have and the relationship between these anxieties and length of stay in the U.S. 151 Japanese international students answered a modified version of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (Horwitz, Horwitz & Cope, 1986) followed by demographic questions. The findings from the questionnaire were analyzed through SPSS 21 software. Results indicated a statistically significant relationship between students’ level of anxieties and the length of stay in the U.S. Implications for teachers and government officials in Japan, as well as for teachers and university administrators in the U.S., are discussed.

El objetivo de este trabajo es identificar qué competencias generales y qué competencias comunicativas, según el enfoque comunicativo, se promueven en tres libros de texto de español como lengua extranjera y determinar su relación con la variable afectiva de la ansiedad. Para alcanzar los planteamientos de nuestra investigación utilizamos una aproximación cualitativa, empleando el cuestionario de análisis NAKIBAR 2004 perteneciente al trabajo de investigación realizado por Joseba Ezeiza Ramos (2004). Los resultados muestran que los tres materiales didácticos satisfacen cada criterio del enfoque comunicativo en diversos grados. Sin embargo, ambos libros constituyen la exteriorización de dicho método, con el fin preciso de apoyar al estudiante en desarrollar la habilidad de poner en función los procesos de comunicación. Es por esto por lo que este tipo de actividades podrían potencialmente activar sentimientos de aprensión / The aim of this study is to identify the construct of communicative competence promoted in three textbooks of Spanish as a foreign language and to determine its relationship with the emotional variable of anxiety. To achieve our research approaches, we conduct a qualitative investigation, employing the questionnaire analysis NAKIBAR 2004 developed by Joseba Ezeiza Ramos (2004). The results show that the three teaching materials analyzed satisfy the communicative teaching approach in various degrees. However, all three books are the externalization of the communicative model, with the specific purpose of supporting students to develop the ability to put in function communication processes. This strong tendency to use oral language can in some cases lead to feelings of anxiety.