Table of Contents

Abstract…………………………………………………………………….1

Introduction…………………………………………………………………2

Acknowledgement…………………………………………………………..3

I. Methodology..............................................................................................4

1.1. Introduction.........................................................................................4

1.2. Participants and instrument.................................................................4

1.3. Data analysis process..........................................................................4

II. Literature review…………………………………………………………4

2.1. Introduction........................................................................................5

2.2. Anxiety in general term and anxiety in speaking...............................5

2.3. Conceptual foundation of speaking anxiety.......................................6

2.4. Causes of speaking anxiety.................................................................8

2.5. Effects of speaking anxiety.................................................................10

2.6. Suggestions and techniques to overcome speaking anxiety...............12

III. Results and analysis …………………………………………………….13

IV. Discussion................................................................................................19

V. Suggestion for further research................................................................20

VI. Conclusion................................................................................................22

Reference.........................................................................................................23

Appendix..........................................................................................................28
 Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine in depth and to synthesize the literature on foreign

language anxiety, with specific focus on speaking anxiety. This paper reviews the definition

of anxiety in general and speaking anxiety in specific and extensive research on causes and

effects as well as some suggestions and techniques to overcome speaking anxiety for learners.

The study was conducted at Hanoi University, with the participation of 90 Freshmen from 4

classes of English Department. Data were collected through a questionnaire which is an

adapted version of the Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety Scale (FLSAS), which was

developed by Huang (2004). The analysis of the quantitative data revealed that the

participants had a moderate level of English language speaking anxiety. The quantitative data

also revealed that teaching and testing procedures, personal reasons, and fear of negative

evaluation were major anxiety provoking factors. The interview results showed that the

certain shortage of linguistic proficiency was additional source of foreign language speaking

anxiety in this EFL context.

Introduction

Owing to integration and globalization, English, nowadays, play an essential role in

international communication so English speaking ability is really crucial for human

interaction. However, among four skills in English learning, speaking anxiety has sparked a

lot of attention in recent years. Actually, students seem to face various obstacles that make

them appear reluctant English foreign language speakers. As a research conducted by

Horwitz and Cope (1986), the major obstacle that prevents students from overcoming in

speaking learning is anxiety. It can be obviously seen the close relationship between speaking

and anxiety (Wu, 2010). Therefore, what essential certain is that identifying what factors

causing the anxiety that affects speaking ability and how to deal with these to encourage

learners to speak in classrooms has long been our concern. According to Subasi (2010) and

Mak (2011), a numerous number of studies have been conducted to investigate the level of

speaking anxiety experienced by students as well as to address the question why some people

are more successful at learning speaking a new language than the others. However, the

purpose of this paper is to find out causes of anxiety affecting English speaking skill and to

provide students in general and freshmen of English Department at Hanoi University in

particular with a range of suggestions and techniques in dealing with this problem.

Acknowledgement

I would like to show my sincere appreciation to many people who supported me to complete

this present study.

Firstly, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my respectful supervisor Ms.Tran

Huyen Trang, who provided me with a lot of professional advice on the thesis writing. I am

really grateful to her kind consideration, tender guidance, and insightful suggestions. Without

her care, I could not have been able to finish this study.
Secondly, I also want to thanks the participants of this study: the freshmen of English

Department at Hanoi University. Without their willingness to complete the questionnaires

and participate in the interviews, this study could not have been conducted.

Thirdly, I would like to show my appreciation to my friends Nguyen Mai Anh for her

precious suggestions,encouragement, and technical support to help me overcome the

obstacles that I encountered when conducting this research.

Fourthly, I am thankful to teachers at English Department– for always being a great source of

inspiration and encouragement for me. Their passion for teaching as well as their love and

care for their students nurtured in me the strong belief that “as teachers we can exert an

influence both on the performance and well-being of our students” (Whitaker, 1995, cited in

Andres, 2002).Therefore, I have been always interested in the affective side of the learners

and in what the instructors can do to minimize its negative influence and maximize its

positive impact on their students. This current study on speaking anxiety was prompted by

such beliefs and interests.

Last but not least, I am grateful to my beloved family and my friends in Vietnam for

supporting me whole heartedly during the time I carried out this study. Their support and love

gave me strength and confidence to go through the difficult times, so I was able to complete

this research paper.

I. Methodology
1.1. Introduction

This study is a survey study, which aims to examine the level, causes and effects of speaking

anxiety, and further research on some suggestions and techniques to help learners overcome

speaking anxiety. The study was conducted to investigate the following research questions:

1. What is the degree of speaking anxiety among the freshmen of English Department at

Hanoi University?

2. What are some factors contributing to speaking anxiety as perceived by freshmen?

3. What are some effects of speaking anxiety on freshmen' performance and language

achievement?

4. Which suggestions and techniques to help freshmen overcome speaking anxiety are more

effective in their own perspectives?

1.2. Participants and instrument

The study was conducted at Hanoi University with the participation of 90 freshmen of

English.The set of data was collected through the questionnaire – the Foreign Language

Speaking Anxiety Scale (FLSAS) which was adapted to accord with the purposes of the

present study. The participants were asked to respond to five questions on their speaking skill

difficulty evaluation, their speaking ability evaluation. Moreover, students were asked to

respond to 11 statements on speaking anxiety. It was in the form of a five-point Scale, in

which the responses ranged from one -strongly disagree to five -strongly agree. Last but not

least, two more questions equivalently aims to investigate the effects of speaking anxiety that

freshmen suffer from and their evaluation on the effectiveness of suggestions and techniques

to help them overcome speaking anxiety.

In order to pilot the questionnaire (FLSAS), six random freshmen of English Department

were invited to fill out the questionnaire so as to eliminate possible misunderstandings on the

part of the participants. After the answers had been analyzed by the researcher, some of the

items were revised and modified. It took the participants around 15 minutes to complete the

questionnaire.

1.3. Data analysis process

In this survey study, the researcher analyzed the data quantitatively. First, in order to analyze

the frequency distribution of the participants' answers for each item of English speaking

anxiety scale . At the end of this procedure a theory is grounded based on the data. After the

participants' comments were transcribed verbatim by the researcher, they were put into

categories on the basis of common themes. These themes were further combined into more
general categories. By means of these categories (the theory grounded based on the data), the

sources, effects and the suggestions to tackle English speaking anxiety.

II. Literature review

2.1. Introduction

In this chapter, the theoretical background and various empirical studies related to the

speaking anxiety are surveyed. To begin with, anxiety will be considered from general term to

specific kind of anxiety related to speaking. I will also present what numerous researchers

have written about various personal and instructional factors contributing to speaking anxiety,

some effects of speaking anxiety on the three stagesof the learning process and on language

achievement, its physiological, psychological, and behavioral manifestations, as well as

students’ ccoping strategies and teachers’ classroom interventions aiming to alleviate

speaking anxiety.

2.2. Anxiety in general term and anxiety in speaking

Much of previous literature pays particular attention to anxiety. Generally speaking,

according to Richards & Schmidt (2013, p.331), anxiety can be defined as " a cause or an

effect of poor achievements, anxiety under instructional conditions and the relationship of

general language anxiety to more specific kind of anxiety associated with speaking".

However, in attempting to define what language anxiety is, it should be born in mind that

although we all know what language anxiety and we all have experienced feelings of

uneasiness, frustration, self-doubt and apprehension (Scovel, 1978). To put it in another word,

this view is also supported by Woodrow (2006) who writes that anxiety is an obviously

concern in language learning and has a debilitating effect on English speaking.

More specifically, speaking anxiety can be defined as the fear of using language orally

(Balemir, 2009). According to Ozturk & Gurbuz, 2013, speaking has been cited as the most

anxiety-inducing skill in language learning as well as the most conspicuous source of anxiety

in language classroom. Moreover, the most anxiety from students' perspective stems from
speaking activities requiring in front of class and on spot performance and learners have

tendency to experience more anxiety over speaking than other language skills (Young, 1990).

In case of conducted studies on foreign language anxiety, a review of literature review has

shown that foreign language anxiety is negatively related to foreign language learning,

especially speaking skill.

2.4. Conceptual foundations of speaking anxiety

It is irrefutable that there many factors leading to speaking anxiety among students in general

and freshmen of English Department at Hanoi University in specific. However, according to

Horowitz (1986) and Spitspergen (2010), the components of language learning anxiety have

been identified to narrow down this concept into three main researchable issues including (1)

Communication apprehension or anxiety; (2) Fear of negative evaluation and (3) Test

anxiety. The consolidation of these factors just led to the serious anxiety in speaking learning

among students.

To begin with, Communication apprehension is generally defined as a type of shyness

characterized by fear of any anxiety about communicating with others (McCroskey, 2001).

Difficulty in speaking in public and learning a spoken message is the typical manifestation of

communicative comprehension. People who possess high communication apprehension tend

to encounter greater difficulty in communicating in a foreign language class where they have

less control of communicative situations (Horwitz, 1986; Gregersen & Horwitz,2002, p.

562). The inability to express oneself fully or to understand others not only lead to frustration

and apprehension in typical apprehensive

communicators but also make many otherwise talkative people become silent in

a foreign language class (Horwitz, 1986, p. 127)

Regarding fear of negative evaluation which is an "apprehension about other's evaluation,

avoidance of evaluative situations and the expectation that others would evaluate oneself

negatively" (Horwitz, 1986). Actually, using a second language is regarded as a case of

being evaluated by other learners. According to Aydin (2001), learners are concerned about

portraying improper social impression about themselves especially when they have

awareness of their shortage of necessary linguistics competence to produce the language.

Consequently, learners who are with high fear of the impressions that others are forming of

them tend to behave in ways that minimize the possibility of negative evaluations (Gregersen

& Horwitz, 2002, p. 562). In foreign language classrooms, students who are highly concerned

of negative evaluations have the tendency to sit quietly and passively in the classroom,

withdraw from classroom activities that could otherwise enhance their improvement of the

language skills or even cut class or play truant to avoid anxiety situations (Aida, 1994, P.157)

Last but not least, speaking test anxiety really contributes to the speaking anxiety among

freshmen of English Department at Hanoi University. In today’s language classrooms,

freshmen try to improve speaking skill in many ways such as performing orally in front of a

group, making oral presentations or participating in group discussion. They are sometimes

called on to speak by their teacher in the target language. All these challenging speaking tasks

may sometimes influence the learners and cause such sentences uttered by the learners:

“I always feel nervous when speaking English”.

“I feel bad in my mind because I wonder why I can’t speak English very well.”

“My English appear is not good enough; I can’t express very well.”

“Sometimes I feel stupid, some people look at me, a strange man, cannot speak good.”

(Tanveer, 2007, p. 1)

Moreover, Koch and Terrell (1991) claimed that activities examined in the Natural Approach

such as oral presentations, role-playing, defining words are the most anxiety producing.

Daikilic's (2001) and Huang's (2004) studies also depicted the same result that learners

did experienced test anxiety in speaking class. The fear of exams creates an intimidating

atmosphere for
the learners (Kayaoglu & Saglamel, 2013) and it can impede learners' performance (Horwitz

et al., 1986).

2.4. Sources of speaking anxiety

Wu (2010), Liu (2006) and Turala (2006) shows that the fear of making mistakes and losing

face is probably the most commonly discussed source of language anxiety and considered as a

major contributor to language anxiety in most studies. Tsui in Nunan (1999); Yi Htwe (2007)

and Robby (2010) also share the similar opinion that fear of making mistakes becomes one of

the main factors of students’ reluctance to speak in English in the classroom. With respect to

the fear of making mistake issue, Aftat (2008) adds that this fear is linked to the issue of

correction and negative evaluation. Moreover, this is also much influenced by the students’

fear of being laughed at by other students or being criticized by the teacher. As a result,

students commonly stop participating in the speaking activity (Hieu, 2011). Therefore, it is

important for teachers to convince their students that making mistakes is not a wrong or bad

thing because students can learn from their mistakes. However, students are afraid of looking

foolish in front of other people and they are concerned about how other will see them when

they make mistakes in speaking English (Kurtus, 2001). In addition, Hieu (2011) and Zang

(2006) cited in He and Chen (2010) explain that students feel afraid of the idea of making

mistakes as they are worried that their friends will laugh at them and receive negative

evaluations from their peers. Students’ fear of making mistakes in speaking English has been

a common issue especially in an EFL context. As argued by Middleton (2009), most EFL

students are afraid to try and to speak in a foreign language they learn. In this context, as he

adds, students do not want to look foolish in front of the class and in some other cases,

learners also worry about how they will sound as well as are scared of sounding silly.

Other studies have also helped us in understanding the causes of language anxiety. As a

matter of fact, Turala (2006) proves that anxiety can stem from learning environment. It can
be seen obviously that classroom atmosphere can affect language learning, especially

speaking class. According to Horwitz (1986), learners' anxiety levels can be increased by the

threatening atmosphere in speaking classroom. This cause may impede learners' chances to

succeed in an oral English foreign language class. In fact, Wu (2010) claims that learners can

express their opinions and feel that they do not run the risk of being ridiculed in a safe

classroom climate.

Moreover, personal reasons also contribute to speaking anxiety among students. As a matter

of fact, personal factors are related to a learner's self-assessment of ability and selfcomparison

to others. Learners usually evaluate their own capabilities which might be positive or

negative. Research shows that learners' negative evaluations promote anxiety (Price, 1991).

On the contrary, if this evaluation is positive, it helps learners to develop their language skills

(MacIntyre, Gardner, & Clément, 1997). In the case of speaking, self-assessment of ability

refers to self-perception of speaking ability, and it is considered to be a significant anxiety-

provoking factor (Kitano, 2001). 24 In a qualitative study conducted by Price (1991),

participants were interviewed to investigate the problem of foreign language anxiety from the

learners‟ point of view. The interviews revealed that the anxious students thought they lacked

the necessary language aptitude as well as were not satisfied by their performances in the

class. This really contributes to speaking anxiety for learners.

Last but not least, teachers' manners also lead to speaking anxiety. According to Aydın (2001)

and Bekleyen (2004), the methods of error correction and the teachers' attitudes to students

may promote anxiety. In fact, errors are a natural part of the language learning process so the

way the teacher deals with the learners' errors is important because research has shown that

learners' sense of self-efficacy in language learning and their motivation are seriously affected

by the kind and amount of feedback (positive or negative) they receive (Williams & Burden,

1997, cited in Aydın, 2001). The contribution of the teacher's harsh manner of error

correction has been assumed to be an anxiety-provoking factor, and the studies indicate

consistent evidence for this assumption. For instance, Aydın (2001) found that the teacher's

interruption to correct mistakes was a major concern among Turkish EFL learners. The
following statements show how two highly anxious students reported their reactions: "I don't

like speaking classes because the teacher interrupts while I am speaking and corrects my

mistakes", " When I am interrupted I don't want to talk anymore" or "In speaking classes, if

the teacher interrupts to correct my mistakes or to ask what I mean, I get confused, and forget

everything I know" (Aydın, 2001, p. 103)

2.5. Effects of speaking anxiety

According to Young (1991), until recently, the effects of anxiety on language learning have

been difficult to demonstrate succinctly. In the past, more researchers have attempted to

quantify the effects of anxiety on foreign language learning, but results were mixed (Horwitz

& Cope 1986). Some previous researchers demonstrate that “anxiety provoking (i.e.,

threatening) situations produce self-related cognition that influence eventual success,

especially on difficult tasks.”(cited in MacIntyre, Noels, and Cle’ment, 1997: 269).

First of all, the existence of anxiety among students can have negative impact on learners'

performance. It was believed that language learning anxiety can influence the fluency of the

speech. Similarly, the researchers hold the view that learners who feel anxious may have

problems such as reduced word production and difficulty in understanding spoken instruction.

They also contented that anxiety exerts a strong influence on individuals’ perceived

competence, which will in turn negatively affect their willingness to communicate in

language classroom.

Secondly, the anxiety which caused by the classroom atmosphere can either facilitate or

hinder learners’ participation. Scovel (1978) proves that in a relaxing environment, learners

feel secure enough to express themselves and are not afraid of making mistakes and then

being ridiculed .They tend to speak more in an environment which is friendly enough so that

they feel secure and relaxed. One reason could be the fact that in a relaxing and friendly

environment, learners get to know and trust each other better.

2.6. Suggestions and techniques to help learners to overcome the anxiety

As a matter of fact, while there have been some studies that have investigated the issue in

terms of foreign language speaking anxiety, there have been a limited number of studies

suggesting the ways and techniques to help learners overcome the speaking anxiety. On the

contrary, our research shows some suggestions to help students tackle this problem and get

high English proficiency. From a careful review of general causes of language anxiety,

numerous suggestions for reducing them will be identified. Learners who have positive

attitudes towards language learning are less likely to suffer from language learning anxiety

and more likely to participate actively in learning tasks Tsiplakides and Keramida (2010). The

suggestions below can help teachers create positive attitudes among learners to deal with

their’ fear of making mistakes and derision.

First and foremost, changing learners’ attitudes toward mistakes is one among several ways to

overcome fear of making mistakes. Depending on the learners’ attitude, learning a second

language can be a source of enrichment or source of resentment. A number of studies have

found the way to reduce anxieties based on learners’ beliefs Turala (2006). They argue that if

learners can recognize their irrational beliefs or fears, they will be able to interpret anxiety-

provoking situations in more realistic ways eventually choose to approach rather than avoid

an anxiety-evoking situation.

Teachers need to encourage learners to recognize their language learning fears and situations

that make anxiety for them. In addition, teachers should help them not only create a positive

attitude towards mistakes by telling them that mistakes are inevitable part of the language

learning process and that mistakes will be made by everyone Wu (2010) but also help them

understand that they can learn through mistakes.

Furthermore, “giving students more positive reinforcement, helping them to develop more

realistic expectations of themselves by letting them know that they weren’t supposed to be

fluent or have a perfect accent” Young (1991). When learners are encouraged to be proud of

them and rewarded for conveying a message successfully, they will gradually change their

perceptions about mistakes and language use. Finally, teachers need to tolerate learners’

mistakes because there is no point in trying to change learners’ attitudes when teachers still

keep them.

To decrease anxieties related to classroom environment, a number of studies have found that

supportive learning environment can reduce English foreign language learners’ anxiety

(Young, 1991). Thus, teachers need to be sensitized in creating a supportive learning

environment in which learners are praised for talking and encouraged to talk in English.

Numerous suggestions for making the less stressful learning environment, such as Tsiplakides

& Keramida (2010) suggest that teachers should attempt to be more intimate domain

commonly associated with friends, family. Moreover, teachers who have a good sense of

humor and are friendly, relaxed and patient, who make learners feel comfortable, and who

encourage learners to speak out are helpful in reducing foreign language class anxiety

(Young, 1991). Another way to build a supportive learning environment is teacher’s tolerance

of using L1(mother tongue) when appropriate to make sure that learners are not humiliated.

According to Horwitz (1986) using the first language can help learning in many cases. For

some learners who feel difficult to convey their thought, they use the L1 to assist L2

development in speaking activities.

In conclusion, it is believed that English language speaking anxiety could obstruct the

performance of learners in speaking the target language. The findings from this research can

serve as a guidance for both instructors and learners to further improve their speaking skill

and to tackle the issue of speaking anxiety in English classroom.

III. Results and analysis

The two tables below show the level of speaking anxiety among the first- year English majors

of English Department at Hanoi University through their self-evaluation on their English

speaking skill and the difficulty of English speaking skill.

Table 1. The self-evaluation of freshmen on their English speaking skill

Number of Very poor Poor Satisfactory Good Very good

investigated

freshmen

90 (100%) 11.1% 21.1% 47.7% 11.1% 9%

A glance at this table reveals the self-evaluation of 90 freshmen of English Department on

their English speaking skill. It can be seen obviously that the majority of the participants

(47%) felt satisfactory about their English speaking skill which can refer that the overall level

of foreign language speaking anxiety is moderate. Balem (2009) shows the similar result that

the majority of students fall into the moderate speaking anxiety level. However, these

statistics indicate that quite few learners (21.1%) are confident about their speaking skill

while 32% of learners said that they were poor or very poor at English speaking skill. This

result shows that the speaking anxiety level among the freshmen is still quite high.

Table 2. The self-evaluation of freshmen on the difficulty level of English speaking skill

Number of investigated freshmen The difficulty level of English speaking skill

Very easy Easy Neutral Difficult Very difficult

90 (100%) 5.5% 6.6% 38.5% 30% 19.4%

This table indicates the self-evaluation of freshmen on the difficulty level of English speaking

skill. Generally speaking, there is nearly a half number of freshmen (49.4%) choosing that

English speaking skill is difficult and even very difficult which means that their speaking

anxiety is moderately high. About one-third of freshmen suppose that English speaking skill

is just neutral. As a matter of fact, a very small number of freshmen (12.1%) feel English

speaking skill easy or very easy which indicates that a few learners are confident about their

speaking skill. In conclusion, to some extent, the self-evaluation of freshmen on English

speaking difficulty level shows the speaking anxiety level among them.

These bar charts below show the freshmen’ opinion about sources of English speaking

anxiety corresponding to the degree of agreement or disagreement.

Bar chart 3.1 and 3.2. The freshmen' choices correspond to the degree of agreement or

disagreement about the sources of English speaking anxiety.

1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neither disagree nor agree, 4 = Agree, 5 = Strongly

agree
 The freshmen' choices correspond to the degree of agreement or
disagreement about the sources of English speaking anxiety.

The way my teacher behaves during classes makes

me afraid of speaking

I get nervous when the teacher corrects my errors

while or after my speaking English

I am afraid of what my teacher will think about me

when she/he hears me speaking English

I feel nervous when I am laughed at by classmates

I feel nervous when I make mistakes in speaking

activities or speaking tests

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

5 4 3 2 1

The freshmen' choices correspond to the degree of agreement or

disagreement about the sources of English speaking anxiety.

I am fear of difficult oral tests

Poor pronunciation makes me nervous in speaking

class

I am nervous because of the lack of vocabulary to

use in speaking class

I have lack of confidence in speaking class

I am afraid of speaking during classes as I fear what

others will think about me

The way my teacher reacts to the errors I make while

speaking makes me afraid of speaking

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

5 4 3 2 1
These bar charts clearly illustrate the freshmen' opinions corresponding to the degree of

agreement or disagreement about the sources of English speaking anxiety. In general, the

"strongly agree" and "agree" took the highest part of freshmen' answers which means that all

of the above sources play an important role in their speaking anxiety. In fact, 57% of

freshmen of English Department strongly agreed that they felt really nervous when making

mistakes in speaking activities or speaking tests while respectively 1% of them strongly

disagreed and 3% of them disagreed. Sharing the similar result, Sarah (2017) shows that

learners do worry about making mistakes while speaking and more than that this feeling

makes them always in nervous situation. It is witnessed that respectively 45% and 26%

agreed and strongly agreed that they felt nervous when they were laughed at in class which

means learners do fear of getting criticized or being laughed at by their classmates. The

proportion of freshmen did not agree or disagree with the opinion that what teachers think or

others think about them while they were speaking made them nervous accounting for 55%

and 50%. This result indicates that learners do not care about what others think about their

speaking performance which is quite contradictory with the former result of the fear of being

criticized and laughed at in class. There is high percentage of freshmen (60%) strongly

disagreed and disagreed that they were not confident enough in speaking class which means

the speaking anxiety does not much stem from the personal characteristic. Similarly, the

sources of anxiety which are the lack of vocabulary and poor pronunciation witnessed the

high percentage of freshmen strongly disagreed and disagreed ( both of them account for

80%).Therefore, pronunciation and vocabulary which are categorized as linguistic difficulties

do not contribute much to speaking anxiety among freshmen of English Department at Hanoi

University. On the contrary, a research conducted by Balem (2009) indicates that

pronunciation and vocabulary are weaknesses of learners which highly contribute to English

speaking anxiety. On the contrary, a research conducted by Balem (2009) indicates that

pronunciation and vocabulary are weaknesses of learners which highly contribute to English

speaking anxiety. Last but not least, the majority of freshmen strongly agreed and agreed

(83%) that difficult oral tests really impede freshmen' learning process leading to their serious
speaking anxiety. To sum up, as a result of the analysis of the responses to the FLSAS, fear of

making mistakes and difficult oral tests, fear of getting negative evaluation and being laughed

at are identified as the common sources of speaking anxiety among the freshmen of English

Department at Hanoi University.

This table below indicates the effects of speaking anxiety that the freshmen of English

Department at Hanoi University suffer from.

Table 4. The effects of speaking anxiety that the freshmen of English Department suffer from

The effects of speaking anxiety The proportion of freshmen' choices

Speaking anxiety negatively influences my 53%

speaking performance in class

Speaking anxiety hinders my speaking class 4%

participation

Speaking anxiety negatively influences my 43%

test results

Others 0

An observation at table 4 shows the choices of freshmen to the effects of speaking anxiety

that they suffer from. It can be seen obviously that speaking anxiety quite negatively

influences the first year English majors' speaking performance in class and their test results.

In details, 53% of freshmen supposed that their speaking performance in class was affected

with speaking anxiety which means the higher anxiety is, the worse speaking performance is.

Sharing the similar result, Sutarsyah (2017) points out that anxiety gives quite contribution to

learners' performance and students who get lower anxiety tend to have better speaking

performance. In terms of test results, 43% of freshmen chose speaking anxiety negatively

influenced their test results. Similarly, Sutarsyah's research (2017) showed that students with
lower level of anxiety gave a better result with their speaking test than those who have higher

level of anxiety. However, the descriptive statistic above indicates that freshmen' speaking

class participation is just slightly affected by speaking anxiety (4%). In conclusion, the

majority of freshmen of English Department identified speaking anxiety as the provoking

factor influencing their speaking performance in class as well as their speaking test results.

Pie chart 5. The choice of freshmen to the most effective suggestion and technique to

overcome speaking anxiety in their own opinion

Choices of freshmen
0%

14%
Teachers help learners to create
positive attitudes toward mistakes

Teachers give learners more

positive reinforcement
53%
33%
Teachers encourage learners to
learn through mistakes

Others

The pie chart above indicates the proportion of freshmen' choices on the most effective

suggestion and technique in their own opinion. It is clearly seen that the majority of learners

(53%) want their teachers to help them change attitudes toward mistakes. Many freshmen

consider making mistakes as a provoking factor leading to their speaking anxiety. However,

mistakes are an inevitable part of the language learning process and that mistakes will be

made by everyone Wu (2010). About one-third of freshmen (30%) desire their teachers to

give them positive reinforcement which means positive reinforcement plays an important role

to help freshmen tackle speaking anxiety. Sharing the similar idea, Young (1991) shows that
“giving students more positive reinforcement, helping them to develop more realistic

expectations of themselves by letting them know that they weren’t supposed to be fluent or

have a perfect accent”. Only 14% of freshmen supposed the encouragement to learn through

mistakes was the most effective suggestion.

IV. Discussion

The first and the second question of this research investigate the level of speaking anxiety

among freshmen of English Department at Hanoi University. It is obviously seen that

speaking skill is still identified as the most anxiety-provoking skill. This research reveals that

the majority of freshmen of English Department at Hanoi University feel moderately anxious

of speaking skill.

On the third question of which the causes of language anxiety are by no means inclusive.

There is no doubt that teachers and learners can identify others causes of language anxiety.

However, among many sources of speaking anxiety, freshmen of English Department

supposed that the fear of making mistakes, negative evaluation, being laughed at and difficult

oral tests are the main provoking factors contributing to their English speaking anxiety.

The fourth question in this research is the components of the effect of anxiety on learners’

speaking in classroom. In general, teachers are the most powerful individuals in the classroom

in order to encourage the reluctant language learners. The teacher should organize, motivate,

instruct, inform, give feedback and evaluate the language learners. The language learners

should own high motivation, positive attitude, self confidence, being prepared to risk of

making mistake, good interest toward English. Therefore, there are obviously many other

factors that might affect learners’ reluctant progress in speaking.

Relating to the last research question from the above principles, some suggestions and

techniques are mentioned to cope with speaking anxiety. It is worth mentioning that fostering

learners speaking English as a foreign language is a dynamic process. The foreign language

teachers had better to note that the suggestions and techniques above are general so they need

to adapt them according to their learners’ needs and specific teaching context. In addition,

teachers should be constantly observing their classroom and their learners.

In a nutshell, it is hoped that the present paper will be able to identify other sources of

reluctance, recognize the reasons why foreign language learners are unwilling to participate

speaking activities, have low performance and can find out rich other solutions that are

suitable to their learners.

V. Suggestions for further research

Considering the findings of the study, some suggestions can be made for further research.

First, this study investigated the level, sources and effects of foreign language speaking

anxiety from the perspectives of the learners. Therefore, another study can be conducted to

investigate both teachers' and learners' perspectives on the level, sources and effects of

foreign language speaking anxiety by using both quantitative and qualitative methods, and the

results can be compared. Second, this study can be replicated with a larger number of learners

from different ages and occupations in a different EFL context in order to get a detailed

analysis of the level, sources and effects of foreign language speaking anxiety. Third, since

this study was conducted in a limited period of time, another longitudinal study can be carried

out with a lower level group of participants to investigate how the sources and level of

speaking anxiety change over time, and the study can be continued with the same group of

participants as they become more proficient. Fourth, this study did not concern the

relationship between foreign language speaking anxiety and proficiency level so a nation-

wide study can be conducted to investigate how foreign language speaking anxiety and
proficiency level relate to each other. Next, since it was revealed in the present study that

there are still a limited number of suggestions and techniques to help learners overcome

speaking anxiety therefore , another study can be conducted to investigate as well as find out

more effective way to cope with English speaking anxiety. Finally, further research into the

relationship between listening and English learning anxiety (sources of listening anxiety) may

contribute a great deal to the literature as listening and speaking are two interrelated skills.

This study has revealed that the level of foreign language speaking anxiety of the participants

is moderately high. It has also revealed that the sources of speaking anxiety have been

identified as difficult oral exams, fear of making mistakes, fear of being laughed at and

negative evaluation. Moreover, this study also points out some typical negative effects that

freshmen suffer from such as poor speaking performance and test result. In light of these

findings and the pedagogical implications presented in this chapter, learners might be

provided with assistance of teachers in reducing their foreign language speaking anxiety such

as create more positive reinforcement and help them to have positive attitude toward mistakes

which are normal things in foreign language learning process.

VI. Conclusion

The present study had an aim to investigate the level, sources and effects of speaking anxiety

as well as giving suggestions and techniques to cope with English speaking anxiety for the

first year English majors of English Department at Hanoi University.

According to the findings, it became apparent that freshmen suffer form at a moderately high

level and there are typical factors contributing to that situation. First of all, freshmen' self-

assessment of speaking ability determines their doubt or level of speaking anxiety among

them. Moreover, the first year English majors are also under pressure when they make

mistakes or are negatively evaluated by their peers and teachers. Actually, it can be

understood that teacher plays a very essential role in creating a friendly and collaborative
atmosphere rather than a stressful one. According to Gregerson & Horwitz (2002), teacher

needs to take necessary precautions to decrease learners' anxiety level. Through the findings

of this research, to overcome anxiety, students believe that teachers should instill their

confidence through creating positive reinforcement or let them acknowledge that mistakes

during speaking learning process are unavoidable and they can get experience thanks to their

mistakes. Briefly, it is vital that both teachers and learners need to be aware of that speaking

anxiety is crucial phenomenon with its sources and effect on learners while learning and using

language. Therefore, they need to search for more alternative ways to deal with this obstacle

in a collaborative manner with learners due to the fact that "anxiety-provoking factors may

vary from context to context" (Subasi, 2010, p.47)

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proficiency and secondary variables influencing pronunciation ability. Unpublished

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 Research Questionnaire
English speaking Anxiety Scale among the first year English majors of

English Department at Hanoi University

Dear Student,

I am Bui Thi Khanh Nhan- a student in class 12A15. I have been working at

English Department in Hanoi University. The purpose of this study is to

investigate English speaking anxiety of freshmen at English Department. As

part of the study a proficiency exam and a questionnaire will be administered.

You are required to fill in your name and all responses will be kept strictly

confidential. By taking the proficiency exam and completing the questionnaire,

it is assumed that you give permission to use your answers in this study. I would

like to thank you in advance for your cooperation and contribution.

Best regard.

Class:

1. How do you assess your English speaking skill? (Circle your answer)

A. Very poor

B. Poor

C. Satisfactory

D. Good

E. Very good
2. In your perspective, please assess how difficult English speaking is (Tick to

your choice)

 English speaking skill is very easy

 English speaking skill is easy

 English speaking skill is neutral

 English speaking skill is difficult

 English speaking skill is very difficult

3. The following statements are about sources of foreign language speaking

anxiety. There is no wrong or right answer. Please read the statements carefully

and select (√ ) the choice corresponding to the degree of your agreement or

disagreement.

1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Neither disagree nor agree, 4 = Agree,

5 = Strongly agree

Statements 1 2 3 4 5

I feel nervous when I make mistakes in speaking

activities or speaking tests
I feel nervous when I am laughed at by
classmates
I am afraid of what my teacher will think about
me when she/he hears me speaking English
I get nervous when the teacher corrects my
errors while or after my speaking English
The way my teacher behaves during classes
makes me afraid of speaking
The way my teacher reacts to the errors I make
while speaking makes me afraid of speaking
I am afraid of speaking during classes as I fear
what others will think about me
I have lack of confidence in speaking class
I have lack of vocabulary to use in speaking class
Poor pronunciation makes me nervous in
speaking class
I am fear of difficult oral tests

4. What are following effects of speaking anxiety that you suffer from?

(Please select √ on your choice and you can choose more than one)

 Speaking anxiety negatively influences my speaking performance in class

 Speaking anxiety hinders my speaking class participation

 Speaking anxiety negatively influences my test results

 Others: ____________________________________________________

5. Among these following suggestions and techniques to help learners to

overcome the anxiety, which one in your opinion is the most effective?

(Tick to your choice)

 Teachers help learners to create positive attitudes toward mistakes

 Teachers encourage learners to learn through mistakes

 Teachers give learners more positive reinforcement

 Teachers create a supportive learning environment which is more

comfortable and relaxed for their learners

 Others:______________________________________________