Leila Shobeiry
Abstract
Introduction: In the present study, we investigated how the type of teaching method can affect the level of language anxiety of foreign language students. The purpose of this research is to find the answer to the basic question of how to use the best teaching method in the language class by controlling ...
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Introduction: In the present study, we investigated how the type of teaching method can affect the level of language anxiety of foreign language students. The purpose of this research is to find the answer to the basic question of how to use the best teaching method in the language class by controlling anxiety. Background of the Study: According to MacIntyre and Gardner (1994), "Language anxiety is a feeling of tension and fear that is specifically related to the context of the foreign language, including speaking, reading, listening comprehension, and learning." In 1978, Scovel decided to review all the studies on anxiety and its effect on learning a foreign language. His studies have shown that the effects of anxiety on learning a foreign language have long remained unclear. While some researchers have argued that there is no relationship between anxiety and performance in a modern language classroom setting, others have argued the opposite, that there is both crippling anxiety and beneficial anxiety. This argument was advanced by Tobias in 1979 and 1986, followed by McIntyre and Gardner (1994) who stated that disabling anxiety negatively affects learner learning and performance in the classroom.Methodology: For this purpose, a group of 40 male and female students at the pre-university level (beginner level) were selected as the statistical population. Sampling was done randomly. To begin with, French language training was conducted for two weeks (the first two weeks) with this group through the (traditional) grammar-translation method. At the end of two weeks, the FLCAS (Foreign Language Class Anxiety Scale) questionnaire was administered to this group. In the next two weeks (the second two weeks), the type of teaching method was changed from grammar-translation to the action approach, in accordance with the educational process completed in the previous two weeks, and after the end of these two weeks, the students were again tested for anxiety. The results show the fact that there is a significant relationship between the type of educational method and the level of stress of language learners and the level of anxiety of language learners during learning with an active approach is high (pre-test). In the third two weeks, we continued to teach the learners using the action approach and with the support and intervention of the empowerment course of anxiety control, and once again we took the anxiety test from the learners (post-test). Conclusion: Based on the results of this research, in general, the grammar-translation method significantly reduces the anxiety of learning a foreign language due to the use of the mother tongue in language teaching, and the action approach, despite all the advantages listed in the book Integrated Reference Framework for Languages, increases the level of anxiety in language learners. This is where strategic courses such as empowering anxiety control using a cognitive psychological method based on improving the mindset of language learners can help them change their behaviors and beliefs and thus deal with their anxiety while learning with communicative and action approaches which are among the best methods of language learning), to deal with anxiety. The results of the descriptive statistics of the students in the pre-test and post-test showed that in the pre-test of language anxiety (mean = 130.55) the students had a higher anxiety average than in the post-test (mean = 65.10). Also, based on the results of paired t-test, (t (39) = 14.14, probability = 0.000) it was concluded that the students had a significantly lower mean in the language anxiety post-test. The effect size index of the T-statistic is 14.17 equal to 0.940, which shows a large effect size. The results of this research provide a new look at the role of language education, which aims at comprehensive education. This means that education should pay attention to the mind and heart in the classroom and in addition to language content, content related to emotional-cultural and social strategies should be included in it.