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DOI :10.26650/sdsl2020-0019   IUP :10.26650/sdsl2020-0019    Full Text (PDF)

Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University)

Şengül Balkaya, Behiye Arabacıoğlu, Mustafa Çakır

This study aimed to assess students’ anxiety levels at the Department of German Language Teaching Program at Anadolu University and examine foreign-language teaching conditions based on various variables. It adopted a survey model and recruited a sample of 70 students from the said department. Quantitative data were obtained using the Questionnaire of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety developed by Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986) and adapted to Turkish by Aydın and Zengin (2008). Qualitative data, on the other hand, were collected from semistructured interviews. For data analysis, this study applied descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and content analysis. The results showed that students have a medium level of anxiety in foreign languages, and while they receive foreign language lessons, they do not consider themselves competent enough. In addition, students’ gender, type of high school attended, and language level did not influence their anxiety whereas their stay and study abroad and their preparatory year at a university significantly affected it. External factors, such as peer pressure, and internal factors, such as fear of wrongdoing, lack of self-confidence, and embarrassment regarding grammar, word choice, and pronunciation, were also found to contribute to student anxiety.

Keywords: Anxiety, foreign language classroom anxiety, foreign language, German as a foreign language, foreign language teaching program
DOI :10.26650/sdsl2020-0019   IUP :10.26650/sdsl2020-0019    Full Text (PDF)

Angstzustände im Fremdsprachenunterricht von Studierenden der Abteilung Deutsch als Fremdsprache auf Lehramt (Am Beispiel Anadolu Universität)

Şengül Balkaya, Behiye Arabacıoğlu, Mustafa Çakır

Die vorliegende Studie wurde durchgeführt, um die Angstzustände im Fremdsprachenunterricht von Studierenden der Abteilung Deutsch als Fremdsprache auf Lehramt zu ermitteln und die genannten Zustände im Fremdsprachenunterricht anhand verschiedener Variablen zu untersuchen. In der Untersuchung wurde das Survey-Modell verwendet. Insgesamt 70 Studierende, die an der Anadolu Universität Deutsch als Fremdsprache studieren, bilden die Stichprobe der Untersuchung. Die aus der Studie erhaltenen quantitativen Daten wurden mit der „Befragung zur Angst im Fremdsprachenunterricht“ von Horwitz gesammelt, die er mit Horwitz und Cope zusammen (1986) entwickelt hat und die von Aydın und Zengin (2008) ins Türkische übertragen wurde. Die qualitativen Daten dagegen wurden mit einem halbstrukturierten Interviewformular gesammelt. Zur Analyse der Daten wurden deskriptive Statistiken, eine EinwegVarianzanalyse (One-Way-ANOVA) und eine Inhaltsanalyse verwendet. Aus den Ergebnissen der Studie geht hervor, dass die Fremdsprachenangst der Studierenden auf einem mittleren Niveau liegt. Darüber hinaus wurde der Entschluss gezogen, dass sich das Geschlecht der Studierenden, die Art des besuchten Gymnasiums und das Sprachniveau nicht auf die Angstzustände auswirkt, wohingegen ein Aufenthalt im Ausland, ein Auslandssemester und ein Vorbereitungsjahr an einer Universität erhebliche Auswirkungen auf die Angstzustände aufzeigt. Außerdem wurde festgestellt, dass die Gründe für die Angst der Studierenden durch externe Faktoren wie Gruppenzwang sowie interne Faktoren wie Angst vor Fehlverhalten, mangelndem Selbstvertrauen und Scham in Bezug auf Grammatik, Wortauswahl und Aussprache verursacht wurden. 

Keywords: Angst, Angstzustände im Fremdsprachenunterricht, Fremdsprache, Deutsch als Fremdsprache, Fremdsprache auf Lehramt

EXTENDED ABSTRACT


Modern times bring about many innovations that make life easier for society; along with these, other factors emerge that negatively affect life. It has also been established that people’s intense work pace, economic conditions, and goals trigger a host of negative emotions such as stress, fear, anxiety, and concern. Research has also shown that these problems, which arise at life’s every moment, adversely affect individuals by impeding their work and even their success. While this study views “Emotions in foreignlanguage lessons” as an overall topic, it specifically examines anxiety in the context of foreign-language lessons. The anxiety we encounter in different areas of life has now become an important issue in foreign-language courses, which necessitates an investigation of the negative factors that shape an individual from primary to higher education and, in this regard, the necessary measures for future foreign-language courses. Hence, this study was conducted to evaluate the anxiety levels of students at the Department of German Language Teaching Program and examine foreign-language teaching conditions using different variables. For this purpose, the following questions were asked: 

1. What is the anxiety level regarding foreign-language teaching among students in the Department of German Language Teaching?

2. How do the students’ anxiety levels change depending on

a. gender?

b. type of high school attended?

c. their stay abroad?

d. their study abroad?

e. their attendance at the preparatory class at university?

f. their proficiency in German as a foreign language in high school?

3. What factors influence students’ anxious states regarding foreign-language teaching in the Department of German Language Teaching?

4. What activities can be implemented to mitigate students’ anxiety in the Department of German Language Teaching Program?

To establish the study’s validity and reliability, a survey model was carried out. A total of 70 students studying at the Department of German Language Teaching Program at Anadolu University were recruited for the study. Quantitative data were gathered using the Questionnaire of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety, which was developed by Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986) and adapted into Turkish by Aydın and Zengin (2008). Meanwhile, qualitative data were collected from semistructured interview sessions, which were organized by the authors and included the following questions: 

1. Do you feel anxiety while speaking in a foreign-language classroom? Please explain.

2. What are the reasons for the negative effect of anxiety on your language learning?

3. Are there any measures taken in your foreign-language courses that mitigate your language anxiety? If yes, what are they?

4. What are the factors that positively affect your foreign-language learning?

The data analysis applied descriptive statistics and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) for the quantitative data and content analysis for the qualitative data. The results showed that students’ anxiety in foreign languages is at a medium level, and although they receive foreign language lessons, they do not consider themselves sufficiently competent. Also, the participants’ gender, type of high school attended, and language level did not affect their anxiety; meanwhile, their stay and study abroad and their preparatory year at a university had significant effects on their anxious states. In addition, student anxiety was caused by external factors, such as peer pressure, and internal factors, such as fear of wrongdoing, lack of self-confidence, and embarrassment regarding grammar, word choice, and pronunciation. After a general assessment of the research results, it became clear that education faculties need to be redesigned and improved so that the anxiety states of intermediate-level students in the Department of German Language Teaching Program are reduced to a minimum.


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APA

Balkaya, Ş., Arabacıoğlu, B., & Çakır, M. (2020). Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University). Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur, 0(44), 111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


AMA

Balkaya Ş, Arabacıoğlu B, Çakır M. Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University). Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur. 2020;0(44):111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


ABNT

Balkaya, Ş.; Arabacıoğlu, B.; Çakır, M. Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University). Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur, [Publisher Location], v. 0, n. 44, p. 111-134, 2020.


Chicago: Author-Date Style

Balkaya, Şengül, and Behiye Arabacıoğlu and Mustafa Çakır. 2020. “Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University).” Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur 0, no. 44: 111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


Chicago: Humanities Style

Balkaya, Şengül, and Behiye Arabacıoğlu and Mustafa Çakır. “Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University).” Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur 0, no. 44 (Apr. 2024): 111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


Harvard: Australian Style

Balkaya, Ş & Arabacıoğlu, B & Çakır, M 2020, 'Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University)', Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur, vol. 0, no. 44, pp. 111-134, viewed 23 Apr. 2024, https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


Harvard: Author-Date Style

Balkaya, Ş. and Arabacıoğlu, B. and Çakır, M. (2020) ‘Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University)’, Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur, 0(44), pp. 111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019 (23 Apr. 2024).


MLA

Balkaya, Şengül, and Behiye Arabacıoğlu and Mustafa Çakır. “Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University).” Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur, vol. 0, no. 44, 2020, pp. 111-134. [Database Container], https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


Vancouver

Balkaya Ş, Arabacıoğlu B, Çakır M. Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University). Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur [Internet]. 23 Apr. 2024 [cited 23 Apr. 2024];0(44):111-134. Available from: https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019 doi: 10.26650/sdsl2020-0019


ISNAD

Balkaya, Şengül - Arabacıoğlu, Behiye - Çakır, Mustafa. “Students’ Foreign-Language Classroom Anxiety at the Department of German Language Teaching Program (a Sample from Anadolu University)”. Studien zur deutschen Sprache und Literatur 0/44 (Apr. 2024): 111-134. https://doi.org/10.26650/sdsl2020-0019



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Submitted21.08.2020
Accepted06.11.2020
Published Online26.12.2020

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