Are there any specific (successful) techniques from your personal experiences?
An outdated but pretty interesting theory is that developed by Krashen in the 70s. He elaborated the idea that students have "affective filters", that is, some pshychological filters that may halt language acquisition. This means, in practical terms, that students may face anxiety, low esteem, extreme shyness in their learning process. This may be particularly true in contexts where there may be situations that are face-threatening, for example being forced to talk in a language that they feel they don't master enough to feel confident.
I personally don't find the theory of language acquisition particularly convincing (I prefer Halliday's views of language development, a process that is more linked to social interactions and personal transformations), but in any case I understand that personal feelings have a strong impact on learning.
Some ideas for teaching practice are:
1) avoid direct correction and leave students interacting with one another. Then give indications at the end of the speaking activity without directly engaging the student who made the mistake. This creates a more relaxed atmosphere;
2) don't insist if the student doesn't want to join the activity or talk in front of the whole class. Be respectful of different personalities;
3) encourage students to communicate their thoughts without putting too much pressure on grammar accuracy when they are low/elementary level: sanctioning increases anxiety.
Then please have a look at this framework, in particular pages 60, 77-80 and 95-97. You will find descriptors that have been developed within a project I coordinated about "soft skills", including anxiety management
https://www.eumade4ll.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/cfridil-framework-MG3_IM_4-compresso.pdf
Dear Bilal and Maria,
Thanks for your valuable contributions to my question
I am looking for some new techniques that can help in reducing anxiety and encourage students to speak confidently.
Exposure in early childhood seems to be extremely useful. - at an age when kids are not yet as self-conscious as adolescents or grown-ups. The teacher / educator should irradiate competence and normality in the foreign language. Kids should participate actively in the interaction.
At school, the same holds for the teacher's qualification: kids have finely tuned antennas for picking up when the teacher isn't at ease with the language himself.
What is extremely important at a certain stage if proficiency is contact with actual native speakers in a communicative situation in which pupils will actually have to use the foreign language to interact with peers from anither country. This has the power of turning a school subject (boring!!!) into a potentially interesting facet of the pupils' individuality ("By the way, I'm also fluent in xyz!").
The anxiety you mention is bound to the following factors:
The rest of your peers think that foreign languages suck because everybody speaks English anyway and there's no need to go "ethnic"; so you feel self-conscious in front of them.
You started your first foreign language to late in life; niw you've lost you innocence and feel stupid uttering strange sounds
Your teachers failed to irradiate self assurance and contaminated you with their linguistic insecurity.
You never had the experience of successfully using the foreign language outside school.
From personal experience I have found out that praising students for every little step they have the courage to take and even more so for their personal achievements in speaking turns out to be one of the best techniques for reducing anxiety. Infusing students with self-confidence is also a step that also proves to make a great difference.
I have had a lot of students who in the beginning, when we were getting acquainted, told me "they didn't speak English". All it takes is to smile warmly and show them this is really not a big deal. For example, in such circumstances I say "OK, no problem then, let's try this: I ask a (simple) question in English and you can answer it in whatever language you want." This approach has the role to make students relax and gain confidence also in making sure that no one is judging.
I can go on and on with examples, yet basically, in my opinion is that you:
- be close to them,
- increase their self-confidence,
- praise them whenever they say something correctly,
- show your availability to them and be there whenever they need help
- create a relaxed, non-judgmental environment in class at least on your side.
As I said, I have applied these techniques for years and they have never failed.
Oh, and don't forget to smile, just like their parents would do when encouraging them and then show them you are proud of their achievements.
Good luck!
Dear Anca Sirbu ,
Thank you very much for your interesting contribution to my question. I totally agree with you in terms of building students' self-confidence through encouraging and praising. This will surely help them get less anxious.
Create activities and materials which are intrinsically motivating. Those must be meaningful (connected to real life), using interesting media, and pleasing.
Dear Sojuangon Rambe ,
I also agree with you
Creating such activities can surely motivate and encourage them to speak.
The first step is to find out what it is that makes your students anxious about speaking in an L2.
By encouraging risk-taking and providing feedback/correction at the end since it hinders communication/interaction.
Foreign language learning requires positive classroom environment to reduce anxiety and to increase risk-taking and engagement.
The most effective way to learn a foreign language is via immersion learning. This involves living in an area where one speaks only the language that you are trying to learn. You interact with people on a daily basis - on the bus, in the market place, etc. and despite the struggle you are learning rapidly. Others will only be helpful and there is no fear that they are judging you. In fact they appreciate the effort that you are trying to communicate with them in their own language.
Thanks dear Srini
Sometimes culture plays an essential role in this regard.
Thanks dear Anastas
I agree with you that practice is the magical key to reduce anxiety and it surely needs time to be eliminated.
Thanks, dear Hassan
I can understand that you are talking about encouragement and motivation. This is what we always do.
Yes ,although in early stages of foreign language speaking there is some sort of anxiety and even stress but from my opnion I think that this problems could be minimized and even disappeared with time and with experience and person should repeat and read the subject of foriegn language many times before being presented infront foriegn persons till the reading is exactly and correctly being done..
Thanks Dear Enass for sharing your answer. I do also agree with you that such kind of anxiety should be minimised with time. However, learners need as much exposure as possible to the TL.
By creating positive climate for students in the classroom, encouraging them, and be guider, partner and friend.
Thanks Liqaa and Hassan for sharing your answers. I agree with your comments.
I always try to lessen my students' anxiety by telling them it is o.k. to commit mistakes; I even ask them, sometimes I intend to it, to correct a spelling or a pronunciation. This will make them think it is o.k. if they commit errors, since their own teacher does that someimes.
1. Practice, practice and practice...!
2. Don't feel shy...!
3. Mistakes are Okay...!!!
We can do alot to eliminate such negative sense; firstly,we have to create real situations with a lot of communication and practice.Second,we have to accept the mistakes committed by the learners.Last but not least, We have to encourage them with some sort of motivation and feedback.
The way to reduce anxiety in foreign language speaking is to help students achieve successful interactions.
It is clear from the research that confidence in language use results in higher motivation, which over time yields better outcomes. The way to build student confidence is to help them have successful interactions in the language. Real-world situations that challenge them but are not TOO hard makes for successful communication, improving confidence, thus resulting in higher learning motivation and stronger higher ability. Here is an example of the research in this area:
Article Using Online EFL Interaction to Increase Confidence, Motivat...
When you speak to a foreigner, he knowledge that you are speaking a foreign language . You can be expert by reading speaking and listening thee language.
You should try to speak and express yourself freely regardless of the mistakes you will commit.
Thank you Dear Dalia for your contribution to my question.
If you want to speak with confidence, put the rules of grammar away. At least don't worry about it, even native speaker doesn't always follow the grammar.
By engaging them in communicative tasks like role plays, conversations, classroom discussion, oral presentations...etc
Personally I encourage risk-taking and being extroverts. Interpretative debates + interesting topics also may help enormously
I believe that classroom learning is not suitable for speaking and its anxiety. A learner is best travel to the native country speaking the language and mingle with native speakers. It is to live the experience in its nature not a classroom environment.
By encouraging risk-taking and avoiding the teachers' negative feedback about accuracy.
Thank you all for your contributions to my question
I agree with all of you in terms of encouraging students to speak freely without paying much attention to their mistakes. I also agree that CLT approach is quite useful.
Check https://blog.chatterbug.com/en/how-to-overcome-your-foreign-language-anxiety/amp/
Also check https://www.babbel.com/en/magazine/reduce-foreign-language-anxiety
Continuous practice is the key and as a matter of fact the it introduces flavour to the language which is unique. There are different types of English like British, Australian, American and so on.
I agree with you that travelling to countries where the target language one is spoken by native speakers, and hence there is much exposure to naturalistic input. However, not every language learner can afford travelling abroad. ln this respect, speaking anxiety could be minimized by means of ongoing practice in the classroom and elsewhere. Learners themselves should be aware of how to reduce anxiety by seeking further opportunities to practice their second or foreign language.
To reach resilience and cast away anxiety, learners should be taught within their immediate context, such as use of technology, as far as technical material is concerned.
Also we have to expose them to immédiates topics depending on their âge, like gaming and reality for the adolescents, besides introducing them to project based learning.
This latter combines both language learning and developing skills of critical thinking.
Dears Bendaoud & Fatiha,
Thank you for your valuable contributions.
Even after many years of speaking English, not my native tongue, I don't worry about making mistakes or people have hard time to understand me.
I tought at university and I thought I was bad enough at the start. later on I met students who thought I was good compared to some others who they could NOT understand at all. But they could understand me!
If you make the effort, be happy. You are not the worst. Some people are unable to learn to speak due to their mouth "construction". I feel sorry for them, but I know in the end they will be heard and understood by most.
Resilience & commitment! I often tell my students that not all the people in the world are given the opportunity to travel and reside in the foreign country they intend to master its language. And not are those who do have the chance to travel & stay for years would come back with exceptional mastery. Great examples I have had of students descending from humble if not impoverished backgrounds yet with strong will and determination, showed excellence and overcame obstacles and ended speaking with semi-native accents that surpass, at times, the accents of their own professors who often boast of being U.K. & U.S. graduates.
When there is a will, there is a way!
Engage them in classroom communicative activities, motivate them to speak regardless of their errors, don't comment on their errors unless they interrupt meaning, and make them feel that foreign language is a means of communication, not a classroom subject.
I've found that it boosts learners' confidence if you compliment them on their knowledge of the language. Many of them underestimate their abilities in the foreign language, so it's good to hear that people appreciate their efforts.
We can help foreign language learners overcome speaking anxiety by making them confidential and natural when they are learning and speaking the foreign language. To be confident and natural they have to practice the language inside and outside the classroom.
In order to help learners overcome their initial hesitation and anxiety, one needs to utilize culturally-responsive pedagogy by providing them enough opportunities to project their distinct cultural identity. Learners can be asked to talk about their culture by sharing the rituals and customs that make their culture unique. Besides this, in the beginning instead of forcing them to give individual presentation, they should be engaged in group and pair discussions. There is a need to avoid overt correction in the beginning as it can hamper their fluency and can lead to debilitative anxiety.
Teaching public speaking (that would entail tone, pace, pitch, volume, timber, speaking fear and anxiety, facing the audience, body language, etc.) should be a course to be considered in our classes. Besides teaching metalanguage and speaking, going through the psychology of speaking would definitly fix many problems. In a fight-freeze-or-flight response that causes and is caused by anxiety, the psychological approach to public speaking would suggest to show the student that the solution is not to negate it but to challenge it, because speaking anxiety is an ultimate fear of judging, and hence, interferes with effective communication. Learners can overcome speaking anxiety by stressing the importance of speaking to inspire not to impress.
In my experience one always has to find out what the participants are interested in. This will ensure that the participants have background knowledge in what they are going to speak about in the target language. Their enthusiasm about the topic will spark their motivation to learn how to speak and share their interests in the target language.
It is not an isolated phenomenon to learn another language (actually is very common nowadays), so you are not "in trouble" or you think you are in trouble if you can't speak "perfect".