Foreign Language Anxiety

Dear friends and colleagues,
I would like to start our first discussion on language learning anxiety. Please feel free to write your comments and suggestions. You are welcome to write in Turkish or English. However, writing comments in English can increase the chance of sharing our experience with more people.


1. Have you ever experienced anxiety when learning English/any other language? When and under what conditions did you feel most anxious in the language classroom? What did you do to cope with it?

2. (To language teachers)Do you think your learners experience anxiety in the language classrooms?
If yes, when do they usually experience it? Do you take any particular precaution(s) to help them lower their anxiety in your classroom? What kind of strategies do you use to help them cope with anxiety?

Brief comment on Foreign Language anxiety:
Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA), introduced by Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986), is identified as a “situation-specific” anxiety and described as a type of reaction which is unique in foreign language learning situations (Horwitz et. al. 1986; Horwitz, 1986). MacIntyre and Gardner (1994) described FLA as “the feeling of tension and apprehension specifically associated with second/foreign language contexts, including speaking, listening, and learning”. Language anxiety can affect learning and learner at different levels: academic, affective, and social level. Primarily, Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA) influences language skill development at the academic level. Secondly, FLA influences learner at affective level, and their perceptions of their abilities or their expectations are found to be influenced by the anxiety they experience. MacIntyre, Noels, and Clement (1997) found that high anxious learners had lower self-ratings of language performance. Finally, foreign language anxiety affects learners’ social skills. Anxiety is found to affect learners’ choice of when and where to communicate in the foreign language. Typically, anxious learners have a tendency not to communicate very often (MacIntyre &Gardner, 1991a, 1991b; MacIntyre &Charos, 1995).

WELCOME!

Dear friends, students and colleagues,
I would like to welcome you all! The purpose of this blog is to form a common ground for us - language learners and language teachers- to share our experiences and thoughts on how to become better language learners and/or guide learners to improve their language learning skills. Efl2go is inspired by the concept "to-go or take away" because this blog is aimed at providing opportunities to users to take away any useful information or knowledge offered here to their homes or classrooms.

I would appreciate your valuable comments and suggestions.

Enjoy our virtual classroom!

D.