The relationship between EFL learners' proficiency and speaking anxiety

master's thesis

• Title (croatian): Povezanost stupnja znanja jezika i straha od govorenja na stranom jeziku u učenika engleskog kao stranog jezika
• Author: Helena Soldan
• Mentor: Renata Geld (mentor)
• Committee member: Stela Letica Krevelj (predsjednik povjerenstva)
• Committee member: Jasenka Čengić (član povjerenstva)
• Committee member: Renata Geld (član povjerenstva)
• Granter: University of Zagreb; Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; (Department of English language and literature); Zagreb
• Defense date and country: 2023-09-29, Croatia
• Scientific / art field, discipline and subdiscipline: HUMANISTIC SCIENCES; Philology; Anglistics

Abstract

This thesis investigates the relationship between EFL learners’ proficiency and speaking anxiety. Foreign language speaking anxiety is a complex phenomenon that has attracted a lot of attention, especially its relation to proficiency levels. The purpose of this research was to measure Croatian high school students’ levels of foreign language speaking anxiety and to examine whether proficiency levels would have any effect on them. Moreover, this study aimed to investigate which of the indicators of proficiency level would correlate the most with students’ speaking anxiety. The results show that Croatian high school learners of English experience moderate levels of speaking anxiety, and that proficiency can either decrease or increase these levels. Furthermore, the indicator of proficiency that correlates the most is the score on the proficiency test, followed by self-perceived proficiency levels and teachers’ evaluation of students’ speaking skills. However, English GPA does not seem to have a linear relationship with speaking anxiety.

• Keywords: foreign language speaking anxiety; proficiency; self-perceived proficiency; Croatian high school students; English as a foreign language
• Language: english
• URN:NBN: urn:nbn:hr:131:853874
• Study programme: Title: English Language and Literature (double major); specializations in: Linguistics, Literature and Culture, Translation, TEFL; Course: TEFL; Study programme type: university; Study level: graduate; Academic / professional title: magistar/magistra edukacije engleskog jezika i književnosti (magistar/magistra edukacije engleskog jezika i književnosti)
• Type of resource: Text
• File origin: Born digital
• Access conditions: Open access
• Created on: 2023-10-03 11:15:53