| Anxiety in language classroom is found to be one of the affective factors that most pervasively obstruct the learning process. And foreign language anxiety is one of the strongest predictors of foreign language performance. It is a frequent case for language students to experience high level of anxiety, especially in college oral classroom. Actually, anxiety that students feel in oral English class is more overwhelming which make speaking in English classroom a forbidding experience for many students. Research has indicated that language learning anxiety have detrimental effects on the output of speaking in the target language. It is reasonable to say that how to reduce students'anxiety and motivate them in opening their mouth so as to get their oral English improved is an urgent task for language teachers to consider.The present study explores the effect of foreign language anxiety on students'oral performance, by using Krashen and Swain's theories as a research framework. The purpose of writing this thesis is to bridge the gap between research findings and classroom practice by enabling teachers to identify the sources and manifestations of their students' foreign language anxiety (FLA). This thesis is also aimed at helping language instructors to find effective and suitable ways to deal with this educational problem within the limits of their classrooms. This research is going to investigate the perceived levels of anxiety experienced by a sample of English students in a regular university setting, and focuses on the investigation of the correlation between foreign language classroom anxiety and college students' oral performance.62 non-English majors form Southwest University have participated in the study. Data of the study has been obtained from Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale, questionnaire and students grades in the oral English test. The quantitative component of the study first examines the existence of anxiety in English class and then identifies the impact of foreign language anxiety on students'speaking proficiency. It is through questionnaire that qualitative analysis has been made, which explores the possible sources of learners' anxiety.The result indicates the presence of anxiety in oral classroom. Correlation analysis reveals that English classroom anxiety has a negative impact on students' oral performance. Implications of the findings for anxiety reduction programs are also discussed.The significance of the study lies in that the finding that language anxiety is one of the best predictors in accounting for language outcomes provides evidence on the pervasiveness of language anxiety. On the other hand, by posing construct problems that arouse controversies the present study provides research orientation for future exploration in the area. |
