Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.32728/tab.16.2019.7
Foreign Language Anxiety in the Case of Croatian University Learners of Japanese: Implications for Speaking Activity Design
Kamelija Kauzlarić
Abstract
The aims of this study are (1) to investigate the frequency, sources, and characteristics of foreign language anxiety regarding speaking activities in the case of learners of the Japanese language at two Croatian institutions of higher education, and (2) to determine which speaking activities anxious learners of Japanese in Croatia would willingly participate in, while remaining sufficiently challenged by the tasks to gain new or reinforce previously acquired linguistic knowledge. A questionnaire was distributed to 65 students at the University of Pula bachelor’s program in Japanese language and culture and the University of Zagreb’s Japanese studies program in February and March of 2018. The results point to lower than expected self-assessment of Japanese speaking competence and high levels of Japanese speaking anxiety, particularly due to the fear of making mistakes, the presence of other individuals relevant to the learning process (classmates, teachers, other native speakers of Japanese), and a lack of activities focused on meaningful interaction. Participant experiences with various learning methods point to their willingness to participate in non-structured, improvisational pair conversation exercises and the potential of these activities to help learners overcome debilitating language anxiety.
Keywords
Japanese language learning; Croatian higher education; foreign language anxiety; speaking activities; interaction; fear of making mistakes; focus on meaning; activity design
Hrčak ID:
228769
URI
Publication date:
29.11.2019.
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