The Dissonance between Teachers‘ and Students‘ Views on Speaking Anxiety in Foreign Languages for Specific Purposes

The study identifies the perceptions of the reasons for speaking anxiety in foreign languages for specific purposes (FLSP) by Slovenian students and their teachers. A survey was carried out with 335 students and 24 teachers of FLSP from Slovenian higher education institutions. The results show discrepancies between students’ and teachers’ perspectives regarding the reasons for FLSP speaking anxiety. The students emphasized a  lack of the knowledge of the carrier content in FLSP, whereas the teachers stated as reasons oral tests, failure to speak fluently and a worry about being looked down on for making mistakes in real and carrier contents.

REFERENCES:

• Boyce, J.S., Alber-Morgan S.R. & Riley, J.G. (2007). Fearless public peaking. Childhood Education, 83, 1-11. doi: 10.1080/00094056.2007.10522899.
• Čepon, S. (2015). Coping strategies for reducing English language speaking anxiety in the Balkans. Didactica Slovenica, 30, 50-62.
• Čepon, S. (2016). Causes of business English speaking anxiety in the Balkans. Journal of English Studies, 13, (in press).
• Dudley-Evans T. & St. John, M.J. (1998). Developments in English for Specific Purposes.
• Cambridge: CUP.
• Fish, L.J. (1988). Why multivariate methods are usually vital. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 21, 130-137.
• He, D. (2013). What makes learners anxious while speaking English. Education Studies, 39, 338-350. doi: 10.1080/03055698.2013.764819.
• Horwitz, E.K., Horwitz, M.B. & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The Modern Language Journal, 70, 125-132.
• Horwitz, E.K., Horwitz, M.B. & Cope, J. (1991). Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety. In E.K. Horwitz & D.J. Young (Eds.), Language Anxiety (pp. 27-36). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
• Johnson, A. (2016). English becomes Esperanto. The Economist. Retrieved 5/07/2016, from http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21697210-institutions-europeanunion-will-still-speak-kind-english-if-britain
• MacIntyre, P.D. & Gardner, R.C. (1994). The subtle effects of language anxiety on cognitive processing in the second language. Language Learning, 44, 283-305.
• Subaşı, G. (2010). What are the main sources of Turkish EFL students’ anxiety in oral practice? Turkish online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 1, 29-49. doi: 10.17569/tojqi.29608. Yan Xiu, J. & Horwitz, K.E. (2008). Learners’ Perceptions of How Anxiety Interacts with Personal and Instructional Factors to Influence Their Achievement in English. Language Learning, 58, 151-183. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9922.2007.00437.x.
• Young, D.J. (1990). An investigation of students’ perspectives on anxiety and speaking. Foreign Language Annals, 23, 539-553. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-4781.2008.00687.x.
• Widdowson, H.G. (1984). Learning purpose and language use. Oxford: OUP.
• Zhang, R. & Zhong, J. (2012). The Hindrance of Doubt: Cause of Language Anxiety. Inter national Journal of English Linguistics, 2, 27-33.
• Zientek, L.R., & Thompson, B. (2009). Matrix summaries improve research reports. Edu cational Researcher, 38, 343-352. doi.10.3/02/0013189X09339056.