AN INVETIGATION OF ENGLISH LANGUAGETEACHING ANXIETY OF PAKISTANI ESL TEACHERSAND THEIR SELF-EFFICACY BELIEFS AT COLLEGE LEVEL

Abstract

Language anxiety is frequently studied in regard to language learners only; however anxiety in the second language
classroom affects more than just the students. Teachers, being active participants in classroom process, also
experience anxiety while presenting a lesson. One of the research areas looking at the emotional state of teachers,
particularly those who must teach a language that is not their native language, is language teaching anxiety. The
overall objective of this study is to investigate the relationship of teaching anxiety and self-efficacy beliefs of
Pakistani ESL teachers. Mixed method approach is employed in this study i.e. both questionnaires and semistructured interviews have been conducted to collect data from four private colleges of Kohat KPK. A Foreign
Language Teaching Anxiety Scale (FLTAS) and a Teachers’ Self-Efficacy Scale (TSES) and semi-structured
interviews were used as research instruments. The questionnaires were completed by 20 Pakistani ESL teachers. In
order to get deep understanding, semi-structure interviews were conducted with 8 teachers. Quantitative data were
analyzed through SPSS to obtain percentage and frequencies. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic content
analysis. The results of the analyses revealed that teachers experience a comparatively low level of anxiety in
general and their perceived self-efficacy was high in their on the whole scores. Findings also highlight the
substantial negative relation between teaching anxiety and self-efficacy of Pakistani ESL Teachers, indicating that
teachers with high self-efficacy have low anxiety level and can use their efficacy beliefs to overcome their anxiety.