A Study Of English Learning Anxiety Of Students In Senior High Schools

Anxiety is a complicated psychological phenomenon in the foreign language learning process. Therefore, how to alleviate learning anxiety and promote learners'foreign language learning aptitude appears to be an urgent and important issue. There have been many studies investigating learners'anxiety in our country, yet little research has been focused on English learning anxiety of the students in senior high schools, or studies only make research on the correlation of language anxiety to one of the English skills, as reading, speaking, listening, etc. This study tries to treat English learning as a whole and analyze the English learning anxiety level of the students in senior high schools, the relationship between English learning anxiety and English proficiency, and the influences of factors on to English learning anxiety. The present study tries to answer the following research questions:1. What's the current situation of English learning anxiety in senior-high-school students? What factors in the FLCAS (Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale) can cause English learning anxiety most?2. Which English skill the students worry about most?3. Is there any correlation between English learning anxiety and proficiency? Is it positive or negative?4. Do the students with individual difference, such as different genders and self-esteems experience different English learning anxieties?5. What are underlying factors responsible for English learning anxiety?6. What should teachers do to reduce English learning anxiety?The study includes both questionnaires and interviews. It utilizes the software SPSS13.0, the FLCAS designed by Horwitz et al as research frameworks and open interviews as an elementary to explore English learning anxiety among 60 students in the senior high schools in Changchun, Jilin province. The results are:1. 36.7% students are highly anxious. The overall FLCAS presents considerable strong correlations with its subcategories. English learning anxiety is positively related to these subcategories. Among the four aspects of English classroom anxiety, communication apprehension anxiety is supposed to be reflective on one of the obvious barriers to English learning, followed by general uneasiness, fear of negative evaluation and test anxiety.2. The students in the senior high schools worry about speaking and listening most.3. The students of low proficiency are generally more anxious than the ones of high proficiency. There is a negative correlation between learner's English learning anxiety and their proficiency.4. The male students have higher level of English learning anxiety than the females. It is conflict with the previous ones: the females are in higher anxiety than the males.5. The students with low self-esteem are more anxious than those with high self-esteem and have lower English proficiency than those with high self-esteem.6. In the qualitative study, the potential sources of English learning anxiety of the Chinese students in the senior high schools are probed. Over-expectations and school loads, frequent tests, serious learning atmosphere are social factors which can cause English anxiety. Weak knowledge foundation, lacking of risk-taking, tolerance of ambiguity are individual learners'factors that lead to English learning anxiety to a greater level.Basing on the findings, the writer puts forward some suggestions to reduce English learning anxiety: reducing speaking and listening anxiety; making students recognize the anxiety; creating lively and relaxing learning atmosphere; giving proper evaluation; helping students raise their self-confidence.The study aims at employing anxiety influences on the students in the senior high schools in order to search for anxiety sources, and help them diminish and reduce language learning anxiety. Thus, suggestions for pedagogical practices are made to promote more effective English teaching.