Classroom foreign language anxiety among Turkish primary school students

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Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans

Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Bursa Uludağ Üniversitesi, SOSYAL BİLİMLER ENSTİTÜSÜ, Türkiye

Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2006

Tezin Dili: İngilizce

Öğrenci: Aydan Sertçetin

Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu

Özet:

This study aims to look into Classroom Foreign Language Anxiety of Turkish Primary School Students, in Bursa,Turkey. The effect of gender factor to the type and level of anxiety has also been analysed. For collecting the data needed, 5th class and 8th class students were given a widely accepted questonnaire about Classroom Foreign Language Anxiety, which is prepared by Horwitz, Horwitz & Cope in 1986. This questionnaire was simplified and translated into Turkish in order for the young learners to understand better. Together with the questionnaire, the researcher used some informal interviews carried out with the participants. 87 8th class students, 97 5th class students were given the questionnaire and the results were classified into four groups. Firstly, all the 5th and 8th class students were compared. Then; girls and boys in total were analysed. Thirdly; girls and boys in 5th classes, lastly; girls and boys in 8th classes were analysed and computed according to scales. After discussing the results gained through the questionnaire, some remarkable results emerged. In the comparison of young learners and teenagers, about most of the feelings including Test Anxiety, Communication Apprehension and Fear of Negative Evaluation young learners scored significantly higher than teenagers. In the comparison of girls and boys in general and in specific in both classes; girls tend to worry about the opinions of their peers, and thus; experience more fear of negative evaluation than boys. While the situation is the opposite in test anxiety and attitudes. Boys tend to overestimate their friends’performances and underestimate their own competence. Therefore; they develop more negative attitudes towards English. As a result; they experience more test anxiety, due to their assumptions about themselves and negative attitudes. In conclusion; this study shows that, it is also possible that young learners may experience foreign language anxiety. It also increased awareness for the foreign language anxiety among young learners. Suggestions for further research about the reasons of this anxiety and some limitations of the study are also included in the last chapter.