A Study On English Learning Anxiety Of Non-english Majors In A Vocational College

Since 1970 s, anxiety, as one of emotional factors in foreign language learning, has been paid much attention to by the researchers abroad and home. Based on a rich literature on learning anxiety theories, classifications and empirical studies, this research aims to reveal the state and reasons of English learning anxiety among Chinese non-English major students in a higher vocational college.The researcher takes the 134 non-English major students, 65 boys and 69 girls included as the subject. They are from Hebei Chemical & Pharmaceutical College. The researcher adopts Horwitz’s(1986:70) ‘foreign language classroom anxiety scale’ and interviews the students. The research aims to find the general state of the non-English major students’ English learning anxiety in higher vocational college; the English learning anxiety of gender differences; and the factors affecting students’ English learning anxiety. All the data collected is put into SPSS13.0 for analysis.The research results show that: 1) the higher vocational non-English major students’ English learning anxiety is on the moderate level, among the three different types of anxiety, communication anxiety is the most obvious; 2) boys and girls all experience English learning anxiety to some extent, but there are not significant differences between them; 3) factors influencing English learning anxiety include: the role of teachers, classroom activities and tests, etc.