Received: 26.04.2018 Received in revised form: 12.06.2018 Accepted: 26.06.2018 Tüfekçi-Can, D. (2018). Foreign language teaching anxiety among pre-service teachers during teaching practicum. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET), 5(3). 579-595. http://iojet.org/index.php/IOJET/article/view/420/255 FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING ANXIETY AMONG PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS DURING TEACHING PRACTICUM Dilek Tüfekçi Can Balıkesir University tufekci@balikesir.edu.tr Dilek Tüfekçi Can is an assistant professor at the ELT Department of Balıkesir University. She has many published research articles in international journals. Her research interests include teaching English to young language learners, pre-service teacher education, linguistics, discourse and literature. Copyright by Informascope. Material published and so copyrighted may not be published elsewhere without the written permission of IOJET. http://iojet.org/index.php/IOJET/article/view/420/255 mailto:tufekci@balikesir.edu.tr International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING ANXIETY AMONG PRE- SERVICE TEACHERS DURING TEACHING PRACTICUM Dilek Tüfekçi Can tufekci@balikesir.edu.tr Abstract Research on anxiety in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) commonly focuses on language learning and its related matrices whereas foreign language teaching anxiety (FLTA) still remains an area of research to be addressed and explored thoroughly. Accordingly, this study was carried out to fill the gap in the literature since when the literature was reviewed, it was found that the few definitions on FLTA were inadequate in covering many other aspects of the concept itself. Thus, the aim of this study was firstly to define a newly emerging concept named FLTA. Secondly, the study aimed to explore pre-service EFL teachers‟ anxiety provoking factors while they were practising teaching English to young learners at real classroom settings during teaching practicum. The main aim of this study was to make a novel classification on anxiety provoking factors, namely the sources of FLTA. The study was carried out with 25 pre-service EFL teachers studying in the ELT department at Balikesir University. A background questionnaire, interviews, reflections and essay papers were used to collect qualitative data. The results indicated that the pre-service EFL teachers experienced anxiety in teaching English to young learners at real classroom settings particularly related to cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. Keywords: English as a foreign language, pre-service teachers, teaching anxiety, teaching practicum 1. Introduction Research on anxiety has gained a growing prominence in all spheres and levels of education, particularly in the departments of English Language Teaching in the past decades. The growing concern on anxiety in the field of language learning/teaching mainly stems from the emergence of the new studies on the crucial impacts of affective factors on foreign language learning/teaching processes. Since anxiety is commonly considered as an obstacle for learners which impedes their ability to perform the language productively in foreign language learning, numerous studies have been conducted to examine the role of anxiety on foreign language learning and, its causes and effects on learning. Whereas the research on foreign language anxiety (FLA) has significantly increased in the last decades, foreign language teaching anxiety (FLTA) has remained a rather untouched area of research. As an indication to this, Tum (2012) stated that the research carried out on learning anxiety outweighed the research on FLTA in number and also revealed that the research on FLTA remained rather limited to draw satisfactory conclusions on the related subject. When the related literature was reviewed, some definitions on the anxiety in general are as noted in the following part. Anxiety is commonly defined as „something felt‟ by Freud (1924). In a more specific definition, it is a kind of unpleasant emotional state or condition that includes feelings of uneasiness, worry and a psychological excitement, and is equated with objective anxiety (Freud, 1936), an anxiety which is considered as an emotional reaction with its proportional intensity to a real danger in the external world. As an affective state, mailto:tufekci@balikesir.edu.tr 580 anxiety is classified into three types as trait, state and situation-specific anxiety. Trait anxiety, a kind of constant personality trait, is heavily dealt with an individual‟s inborn qualities, namely an aspect of personality (Scovel, 1978). State anxiety, as a transient anxiety, is regarded as an emotional reaction or response to a particular situation (Spielberg et al., 1983) such as an important test. Situation-specific anxiety is associated with explicit situations and events (Horwitz et al., 1986) such as public speaking, examinations, or class participation (Ellis, 1994). Language Anxiety is defined as „a construct of anxiety which is not general but instead is specific to the language acquisition context is related to second language achievement‟ (Gardner, 1985, p. 34). Young also states that „language anxiety is a complex psychological construct requiring investigation from a variety of perspectives and approaches‟ (1992, p. 157). However, foreign language anxiety (FLA) is described as „a distinct complex of self- perceptions, beliefs, feelings, and behaviors related to classroom language learning arising from the uniqueness of the language learning experience‟ (Horwitz et al., 1986, p. 128). Yet again, some researchers (Baltacı, 2017; Özturk, 2016) stated that there were not any identifiable definitions of FLTA in the literature. Moreover, Numrich (1996) generally defined FLTA as a part of problems experienced by language teachers. Furthermore, some other attempts were also made to define the FLTA as “an emotional and affective state that a teacher feels tension due to personal, perceptional, motivational and technical concerns before, during and after teaching activities” (Aydin, 2016, p. 639). However, all these definitions, which can be regarded as among the first attempts made in the literature, become rather superficial as they restrict the term into somewhat emotional and affective states, and as they confine the concept either only to the process of teaching activities or teachers themselves. Moreover, these definitions also lack cognitive and socio-cultural states of the teachers. Thus, a more comprehensive definition is suggested by the researcher of this paper. As seen, the definitions made in the literature above are commonly about FLA and FLTA has not been fairly defined in the current literature. Thus, the following definition can be regarded as another attempt to fill the gap in the literature as the emergence of this definition owes itself to the oral reassurance of the distinguished researcher Prof. Dr. Rod Ellis himself in the 4th & 5th International Conferences on New Trends in English Language Teaching and Testing which was held in Istanbul, on March 30, 2018. Foreign language teaching anxiety (FLTA), a kind of precisely situation-specific anxiety as Ellis (1994) labelled, can be defined as a psychological discomfort or apprehension which is unique for pre-service teachers, language teachers, instructors and practitioners who are responsible for teaching learners how to learn a foreign language effectively and professionally at a real classroom setting by using all skills and subskills required for teaching the target language. In other words, FLTA, which stems from cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors, can also be defined as the feeling, believing and thinking of being inadequate in teaching and practising the foreign language as well as of being incompetent in performing the language acceptably with the real students at a real teaching context. In sum, the present study was carried out to reveal some significant factors on FLTA. Firstly, anxiety in foreign language context was mainly researched in learning context, which is mostly a simulation as is the case in the study of Aydin (2016) rather than a real class setting in a teaching context. Thus, this research was carried out in a real classroom setting as a teaching context in order to reveal the role of contextualization on FLTA. Secondly, this paper was an attempt to (re)define the term FLTA in literature and to attract the attention of the researchers on making a discrimination between FLA and FLTA. Thirdly, this study also attempts to make a holistic classification rather than an atomistic one as it classifies anxiety provoking factors into subtitles such as cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. Thus, International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. this study will bring a new perspective on anxiety-provoking factors in terms of its taxonomy. Moreover, since the researcher of this paper who has been working at Foreign Languages Teaching Department, particularly at English Language Teaching Department for more than 15 years observed the pre-service EFL teachers‟ anxiety on teaching rather than learning when she was lecturing on both Teaching Experience and Teaching Practicum. With these concerns in mind, this study aimed to investigate the anxiety-provoking factors among pre- service EFL teachers while teaching English to young language learners at a real classroom setting as a part of teaching practicum. 2. Literature Review In the literature review, it must be noted that FLA, which is generally regarded as a universal phenomenon that inhibits students‟ achievement, both has a debilitating and facilitating effect on foreign language learning. For instance, whereas a number of research on FLA revealed the debilitating effect of anxiety on learning and achievement (Horwitz & Cope, 1986; MacIntyre & Gardner, 1989; MacIntrye & Gardner, 1994; Oxford, 1999; Trylong, 1987; Young, 1991), some of the others indicated the facilitating effect of anxiety in learning a foreign language (Alpert & Haber, 1960; Chastain, 1975; Scovel, 1978). Some studies (Fletcher, 1997; Hancock, 2001) also indicated that anxiety generates an adverse effect on performing foreign language. It is thought that the nonnative pre-service EFL teachers can be more prone to FLTA. Tum (2015) hypothesized that FLTA may stem from three periods. First, the pre-service EFL teachers may experience FLA themselves as language learners in the foreign language classrooms. Second, as pre-service teachers, they become more aware of the challenges and responsibilities awaiting them in their future profession as they came closer to their training course. Moreover, entering the foreign language classroom for the first time as a teacher may seem overwhelming for relatively inexperienced teachers. In the literature on FLTA, Merç (2004) found that anxiety was one of the most frequently reported problems of pre-service EFL teachers completing their teaching practicum at Anadolu University Faculty of Education. Moreover, Kim and Kim (2004) also conducted a study focusing on the most anxiety-provoking sources for pre-service teachers. The results revealed that the pre-service teachers were anxious at times when teaching English through English; teaching English to the students who had lived in English speaking countries; teaching unmotivated students; teaching speaking; teaching English listening; being asked unexpected questions; being unable to control class and lastly, being observed in classes. The study also outlined the sources of FLTA as limited English proficiency, lack of confidence, lack of knowledge about linguistics, insufficient class preparation, being compared to native teachers, fear of negative evaluation, and lack of teaching experience. Furthermore, İpek (2007) revealed six categories of sources of anxiety: making mistakes, teaching a particular language area, using the native language, teaching students at particular language levels, fear of failure, and being compared to fellow teachers. Merç (2011) also conducted another study on the sources of anxiety experienced by pre-service EFL teachers throughout teaching practicum and categorized the sources of FLTA as students and class profiles; classroom management; teaching procedures; being observed; mentors and miscellaneous. Horwitz (1996) claimed that foreign language teaching anxiety can deter teachers from using target language productively, interacting with the students and being a positive role model as a language learner. In a similar vein, Öztürk (2016) revealed that teachers possess a mediocre level of teaching anxiety while teaching a specific skill in which they feel themselves incompetent. The factors causing teaching anxiety were classified into three titles as knowledge of target language items, students‟ manners, and knowledge of target culture. 582 Like Öztürk‟s (2016) study, the study of Fish and Fraser (2001) showed that the activities related to teaching were the sources of the highest levels of teaching anxiety. Similarly, the study of İpek (2016) revealed that non-native EFL teachers experienced anxiety specific to teaching the target language when they made mistakes; felt inadequate in teaching grammar; used the native language; taught students at particular language proficiency levels; had a fear of failure. Among the studies conducted on the sources of FLTA, the study of Na (2007) indicated the variables of anxiety provoking factors as communication apprehension, fear of negative evaluation, test anxiety, anxiety of English classes and English classroom anxiety. Whereas the study of Gardner and Leak (1994) specified the sources of teaching anxiety in relation to academic rank and teaching experience, Yoon (2012) identified the sources as the use of target language, lack of self-confidence and lack of preparation. Paradoxically, Aslrasouli and Vahid (2014) examined anxiety among EFL teachers in the Iranian context and revealed different sources of anxiety among female and male teachers such as interpersonal relations, employment structure, language proficiency and knowledge, facilities and resources, and other factors. In another research (Thomson & Lee, 2013), the effect of language anxiety on achievement was examined and an intriguing new factor, namely the fear of ambiguity in English emerged as a new factor in terms of language anxiety. In a study conducted in Turkish context (Tum, 2015), the results indicated that anxious pre-service teachers experienced significant levels of language anxiety to a degree that may cause them to avoid using the target language and language-intensive teaching practices in their classrooms. FLTA also stems from some of the other factors such as the identity-based anxiety (Stroud & Wee, 2006), the causes of which are fear, shyness and discomfort (Anandari, 2015); the students‟ indifference in taking risk using/speaking English in class, the students‟ fear of being negatively evaluated and being apprehensive about public speaking and tests; the students‟ unwillingness to communicate (Liu & Jackson, 2008); the teachers‟ inadequate attention to anxiety (Trang, Baldauf, & Moni, 2013); the fear of ambiguity in English (Thomson & Lee, 2013) and the students‟ country of origin (Lim, 2009). In sum, the classifications made on anxiety provoking factors are rather specific classifications than a general one. In contrast to atomistic approach, this research on anxiety provoking factors or the sources of teaching anxiety mainly bases its premises on holistic approach and specifically attempts to make a general classification on FLTA such as cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. 3. Methodology 3.1. Research Design The present study employed qualitative research design, which included data collection procedures that generally resulted in open-ended and non-numerical data (Dörnyei, 2007). It used strategies of inquiry such as narratives, phenomenology, and case studies (Creswell, 2003). As a case study, this research used a descriptive method as it focused on anxiety provoking factors experienced by pre-service EFL teachers. The research aimed at answering the following research questions: 1. What are the pre-service teachers‟ opinions on teaching practicum in general? 2. Do the pre-service EFL teachers feel teaching anxiety during teaching practicum? 3. What are the anxiety-provoking factors during teaching practicum? 3.2. Participants International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. The sample group in the study consisted of 25 pre-service EFL teachers, 7 males and 18 females. All participants were fourth year students at the ELT department. The mean age was 23.6, in the range of 21 to 41. Of the participants, 28% (7) were males whereas 72% (18) were females. They were enrolled in the Teaching Practicum course as a requirement for their graduation in 2016-2017. The research lasted 14 weeks in English Language Teaching Department at Balikesir University in Turkey. During the research, the pre-service EFL teachers were observed by the practice teachers particularly when they delivered their lessons. They were also observed and assessed by the university supervisors at least two times during their performances. 3.3. Data Collection Instruments The data collection instruments of this qualitative study consisted of a background questionnaire, interviews, reflection and essay papers. The background questionnaire was composed of open-ended questions about the pre-service EFL teachers‟ opinions on anxiety- provoking factors. The open-ended questions, which were an important part of semi- structured interviews in order to obtain responses from the participants who were using their own words, rather than the pre-defined ones by the researcher or past findings (Yin, 2010), were instantaneously raised in connection with the study. Thus, the questionnaire centered on examining pre-service EFL teachers‟ opinions developed along the interaction with the process of teaching. Secondly, in the interviews, as a qualitative research technique, depth- interviewing was applied since this research also involved „conducting intensive individual interviews when „detailed information about a person‟s thoughts and behaviors‟ (Boyce & Neale, 2006, p. 3) were to be explored. Thirdly, the written reflection of the pre-service EFL teachers as self-report methods was also used as the data collection instrument since the “reflection is the process through which teachers become aware of the complexity of their work and are able to take actions which impact positively on this” (Pollard, et al., 2008, p. 476). Last of all, as the EFL pre-service teachers were required to write a critical essay paper on the evaluation of their attendance and contribution to teaching practicum as a whole process at the end of the term, their reflection was also used as the data in the research. However, as Ellis and Barkhuizen stated that “Because of the doubts that exist about validity and reliability of self-report methods, it is advisable to combine two or more self-report methods” (2016, 47), a combination of questionnaire, interviews and written reflections were used in order to provide more reliability and validity in this study. 3.4. Procedure A research proposal, which included the whole procedure in detail in terms of its significance, purpose, methodology and tool of research, was presented to the dean of Necatibey Education Faculty of Balikesir University, Turkey in order to carry out this research. Soon after the proposal was considered and accepted, the researcher informed the participants about the procedure. Since this study involved four different data collection instruments such as background questionnaire, interview, reflection and essay paper on the research subject, each of the participants were informed about the fact that their rights would be protected in each process and that they would be also informed about the results of the research. The study used a four-step procedure: instruction, practice, data collection and data analysis. 3.4.1. Instruction In the instruction part, the researcher introduced the whole procedure on teaching practicum giving some information on the theoretical aspects of teaching practicum and on how the teaching practicum could best be carried out. The researcher also made some 584 notifications on the preparation of the teaching practicum files as it was under the responsibility of pre-service EFL teachers in order to get a passing grade at the end of the process. After the introduction about the course content, the researcher made a clear explanation on the research and attempted to describe the whole process in detail. When the preservice EFL teachers gave their both oral and written consents on agreeing to be a part of the research, the researcher began her research legally. 3.4.2. Practice In the practice part, after giving prerequisite information about the research, the preservice teachers were grouped in five-person groups, which means that there were five groups, each of which has a different time schedule in relation to their participation and contribution to the study. The timetable of the schedule, which showed each of the groups‟ participation weekly, was shared with the participants. However, they were also informed about if there had been something unusual about their experience at the teaching practicum course, they could reach the researcher by trying any type of social media accounts of her and her e-mail, even from her mobile phone. The reason why the researcher wanted the participants to share any kind of information by using any communication means was to make the participants feel secure and feel free as they were the main source of data. Accordingly, after a background questionnaire was employed in the first week, each group member visited and interviewed with the researcher weekly. Then, the participants handed their written reflections in fortnight intervals, which accounts for a seven-week written reflection in total within a 14 week of study. At the end of the process, the participants wrote a critical essay paper on the evaluation of their full attendance to teaching practicum courses as a whole process. 3.4.3. Data Collection The data collection instruments including a background questionnaire, interviews, reflection and essay papers were used in order to ensure data triangulation, trustworthiness and validity of the data. The main purpose of using a background questionnaire was to obtain information about the participants‟ age and gender. Firstly, all participants were asked to fill a background questionnaire about their age, gender and educational background. Secondly, the data were collected through interviews. In the interviews, the pre-service EFL teachers were grouped in pairs and the researcher carried out the process by presenting some open- ended questions to the participants such as how they felt when they were at the practice school; what made them feel happy, upset, stressful, disappointed, etc.; whether they became anxious or not when they were at some of the intervals of teaching process; if they were anxious, when, why and how they felt such feelings of discomfort; what the anxiety- provoking factors were and personally what they did to overcome these problems. It must be noted that the interviews were conducted individually in order not to make the other participants interact with each other and to guarantee freedom of thought. In order to triangulate the data collection, and to provide further validation to the collected data, semi- structured interviews were conducted with each of the participants. In the study, the data were collected through reflections of pre-service EFL teachers in each week since the reflection was considered as „a process that can facilitate both learning and understanding and plays a central role in several recent models of teacher development‟ (Richards, 1998, p. 21). Moreover, “Reflection is viewed as the process of critical examination of experiences, a process that can lead to a better understanding of one‟s teaching practices and routines” (Richards & Farrell, 2005, p. 7). It must be noted that the reflection was purposefully chosen to collect data as it is functional in teacher education particularly in improving the teaching skills of English student teachers. And lastly, at the end of the teaching practicum, the participants were asked to write an essay paper which clearly elucidate the whole procedure International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. they had experienced and their performance on teaching practicum. They also commented on a number of interesting experiences that they had gained during teaching practicum. 3.4.4. Data Analysis The data collected from each source, namely a background questionnaire, interviews, reflection and essay papers were analyzed individually and the statements on anxiety- provoking factors among pre-service EFL teachers were coded by using descriptive and content analyses. The statements of the participants were coded under certain themes as coding is the paramount activity of the analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1994) in a qualitative research. In the data analysis process, similar statements were classified into specific themes under such as cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. In other words, the data collected from each source were transferred into concept maps in which the statements were classified. After the comparison of the statements and numbers in concept maps and codification of themes, it was found that the data on anxiety provoking factors among pre- service teachers seemed similar. The percentages of these codifications were determined and the related tables were created. In other words, the data were combined and the numbers and frequencies were given, which can be seen in the following sections. Figure 1. Sample concept map 4. Findings As this study attempted to explore what the pre-service teachers‟ opinions on teaching practicum were in general, a number of excerpts taken from preservice EFL teachers‟ reflections were given in the following part. Among the 25 pre-service EFL teachers, 22 of them were of the opinion that teaching practicum was very important, effective and a well-designed course theoretically. They stated that they had a valuable experience on the practices of teaching itself. They also revealed that if the course was applied both theoretically and practically as it was indicated in the procedure, it would certainly be the best of the courses ever in English Language Teaching departments. Among the positive reflections, one of the participants stated that “Teaching practicum is a constructive and accommodating course, but when applied properly. However, it is also debatable to what extent it is applied appropriately. Teaching practicum is very important in Socio-cultural Factors N=24 Affective Factors N= 24 Cognitive Factors N=22 The Reflections of Pre-service EFL Teachers (Data from Essays) N=25 586 the process of language teaching as it helps us gain tolerable amount of experience” (Recorded Interview, 2). Among 25 pre-service ELT teachers 18 of them stated negative opinions on teaching practicum as the practice time of the year and duration were not suitable for the 4th class students because of their KPSS preparation; as no information was given by the practice teacher about in-class discourse and attitude of the teachers, and also about the procedure of school administration; as being introduced by practice teachers as „stajer öğretmen‟ (novice teacher); as the students do not show respect to them; as practice teachers have hardly any idea on how to carry out this course; as the practice schools are far away from their houses and faculty of education; as the pre-service EFL teachers are not paid by the government. One of the participants stated that “My point of view on teaching practicum is completely negative as it involves many-sided deficiencies, one of which is related with the lack of coordination between practice teachers and teacher trainers. Moreover, as the teaching practice course is in the last year in the faculty of education, I do not believe that it reaches its target. I can easily show the increased responsibility on us because of KPSS exam as the reason of this” (Recorded Interview, 11). This study also attempted to explore whether the pre-service EFL teachers felt teaching anxiety before and during teaching practicum or not, a number of excerpts taken from pre- service EFL teachers‟ reflections were given in the following part. However, the responses of the participants were evaluated as „before the teaching practicum‟ and „during the teaching practicum‟. As for „before the teaching practicum‟, among 25 pre-service EFL teachers, 20 of them stated that they felt anxious before teaching practicum. The main factor of the increase of their anxiety was that they had never had the chance to practise their English in a real classroom setting. They were also anxious before teaching practicum whether the practice teachers and directors of the practice schools would behave them kindly or not; whether the level of the students in the practice school would be sufficient enough to show their own teaching ability; whether they would be unable to teach or to remember any kind of rules in English language teaching; whether they would have some difficulty in establishing a good rapport between the students; whether they would be able to manage the class; whether the class would be effective; whether the process of getting used to teaching would be long; whether the practice teachers would be intolerant about attendance. In addition to all these, some of the negative experiences told by previous pre-service EFL teachers; the feelings of inability about a particular subject in English and obscurity of the process of teaching practicum were also the sources of anxiety among them. One of the participants stated that “I felt extremely anxious before the teaching practicum. Because I was afraid of being responsible for a whole class. As I did not have any experience on teaching in a real class setting, I was doubtful that I would not be able to transfer the knowledge I have already had. Furthermore, I thought that even the rest of the teachers at the practice school did not consider us as a prospective teacher and they never show respect to us. Then I felt discouraged as I could not find a way to identify myself” (Recorded Interview, 18). Among 25 pre-service EFL students, 5 of them stated that they did not feel anxious before teaching practicum, as they had the chance of practicing teaching at real classroom settings either at a private school as a tutor or at homes as a private teacher. And one of the participants stated that “I did not feel anxious before the teaching practicum. Because we had teaching practice course in the first semester and I thought that teaching practice in the International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. second semester would be much or less similar to the one in the first semester. And I have already had a chance to practice teaching at a private school” (Recorded Interview, 24). As for „during the teaching practicum‟, among 25 pre-service EFL students, 23 of them reported that they felt anxious in the process of teaching practicum, particularly when they were unable to attract the students‟ attention; when they were unprepared and unplanned; when something unexpected happened in the class; when an unpredicted question was directed; when confronted with the misdeeds and mischievousness of the students; when being unsure on whether the students understood the subject or not. Most of the pre-service EFL teachers revealed that they were anxious on making pronunciation mistakes, on making errors of any kind, on forgetting something important and on not having adequate information on the process of teaching practicum. And additionally, one of the participants stated that “I felt anxious in the process of teaching practicum as the practice teacher introduced us all to the students as ‘stajer öğrenci’ not even as a teacher. So, all the students in the class were doubtful about our knowledge, competency and teaching performance. It made me feel anxious from the beginning to the end of the process” (Recorded Interview, 6). Among 25 pre-service EFL students, only 2 of them revealed that they did not feel anxious in the process of teaching practicum. And, one of the participants stated that “I felt very comfortable in the class as I have already had teaching experience in my life” (Recorded Interview, 5). Moreover, among 25 pre-service EFL students, 20 of them stated that they felt anxious while they were practicing at a real class setting particularly while trying to take the attention of the whole class; while balancing the level of noise in the class; while trying to communicate with the students; while using the time allowed properly, while trying to motive the students; while pronouncing some certain words; while planning the course. Some of the pre-service EFL teachers were also anxious as they had the fear of being unable to make the students understand the activities and the materials prepared. Interestingly enough, a pre- service EFL teacher experienced anxiety because of length. As she was short as a person, she believed that the students did not take her seriously. She revealed that physical characteristics affect psychological situations of the individuals very much. In addition, one of the participants stated that “To what extent I am good at teaching the subject does not make any sense in some particular situations. Experience and practice make perfect! If something unexpected happens in the class, I am stunned and shocked. For instance, at a time, one boy started to kick out at another boy during the course. At first, I did not know what to do. But after a while, I made up my mind and tried to control the boys and the class” (Recorded Interview, 21). Among 25 pre-service EFL teachers, 5 of them stated that they did not feel anxious while they were practicing at a real classroom setting as they were able to answer the students‟ questions, as they were experienced and as they had given the impression of a real teacher to the students. One of the participants reported that “As my practice teacher has already had the authority on the students, I did not have to worry about the classroom management in the class while practicing. Moreover, I have been working as a tutor since the first year of my university education. Thus, I am much more relaxed than the rest of the classmates” (Recorded Interview, 17). This study lastly attempted to explore what the anxiety-provoking factors during teaching practicum were. Thus, the research concluded that the anxiety-provoking factors among the pre-service EFL teachers were classified into three as cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. 588 4.1. Cognitive Factors The following table indicated the anxiety provoking factors among pre-service EFL teachers in relation to cognitive factors. Table 1. Anxiety Provoking Factors among Pre-Service EFL Teachers in relation to Cognitive Factors Cognitive Factors f % 1. Being unable to teach the subject properly 8 27.59 2. Being academically assessed by practice teachers 4 13.78 3. Making grammar and vocabulary mistakes 4 13.78 4. Using the allowed time unwisely and inefficiently 2 6.90 5. Using the inappropriate materials 2 6.90 6. Being unable to practise at a heterogeneous class 2 6.90 7. Being unable to use interactive board 2 6.90 8. Being unable to answer students‟ questions 2 6.90 9. Being unable to transfer the knowledge 2 6.90 10. Being unable to know the content of the course book 1 3.45 Total 29 100 In terms of cognitive factors, the results revealed that the pre-service EFL teachers experienced anxiety when they thought and believed that they were unable to teach the subject properly; they were academically assessed by practice teachers; they made grammar and vocabulary mistakes; they used the allowed time unwisely and inefficiently; they used the inappropriate materials; they were unable to practise at a heterogeneous class as they could not think properly what to do systematically; they were unable to use the interactive board; they were unable to transfer the knowledge; they were unable to answer students‟ questions; they were unable to know the content of course book. 4.2. Affective Factors The following table indicated the anxiety provoking factors among pre-service EFL teachers in relation to affective factors. Table 2. Anxiety Provoking Factors among Pre-Service EFL Teachers in relation to Affective Factors Affective Factors f % 1. Fear of losing class management while teaching 9 27.28 International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. 2. Fear of being negatively evaluated by practice teacher 4 12.12 3. The intolerance/indifference of practice teachers 4 12.12 4. The observation of practice teachers 3 9.09 5. Difficulty of accepting a new identity as a teacher 3 9.09 6. Fear of speaking before the public 3 9.09 7. Low self-confidence/self-esteem 2 6.06 8. Fear of being unprepared for the class 2 6.06 9. The practice teachers‟ unwillingness to the course 1 3.03 10. The lack of concession between the coterie teachers 1 3.03 Total 33 100 In terms of affective factors, the results revealed that the pre-service EFL teachers experienced anxiety when felt that they lost class control; they would be negatively evaluated by the practice teachers; they were mistreated or neglected by the practice teachers who showed signs of intolerance and indifference; they were observed by the practice teachers; they had difficulty in accepting a new identity as a teacher and in speaking before the public; they had low self-confidence and self-esteem; they were unprepared for the class; they caught the signs of practice teachers‟ unwillingness to the course; they realized the lack of concession between the coterie teachers as they knew that their friends were treated differently as some of the practice teachers were strict, some were tolerant and some were indifferent etc.; they realized that coterie teachers presented competing attitudes among each other in order to be more successful or to be more reputable and respectable among the parents. 4.3. Socio-cultural factors The following table indicated the anxiety provoking factors among pre-service EFL teachers in relation to socio-cultural factors. Table 3. Anxiety Provoking Factors among Pre-Service EFL Teachers in relation to Socio- Cultural Factors Socio-cultural Factors f % 1. Negative attitudes of the students 6 22.22 2. The crowded classroom settings 4 14.82 3. The ecocultural setting of the schools 3 11.11 4. The excessive noise in class settings 3 11.11 5. The indifference of the students 3 11.11 590 6. The separation of the students as girls and boys 3 11.11 7. Difficulty in organizing group/ pair work 2 7.41 8. Difficulty in communicating with the coterie teachers 2 7.41 9. Being under surveillance by the other teachers 1 3.70 Total 27 100 In terms of socio-cultural factors, the results revealed that the pre-service EFL teachers experienced anxiety when felt and thought that the students in the class behaved them negatively; they had to overcome crowded classroom settings; they did not like the ecocultural settings of the schools; they could not cope with excessive noise; they came across with the indifference attitudes of the students; they could not discriminate the gender roles of the students; they had difficulty in organizing group/pair work; they had to communicate with the coterie teachers in the teachers‟ room; they felt they were under surveillance by the other teachers in the teachers‟ room. In sum, the findings of this study revealed that the teaching practicum was one of the most significant courses in ELT departments according to pre-service EFL teachers. Whereas most of the pre-service (N= 22) teachers revealed their positive reflections on teaching practicum, some of them (N=18) stated their negative reflections. The findings also indicated that the participants experienced teaching anxiety before and during teaching practicum. While most of the participants (N=20) felt anxious before the teaching practicum, nearly all participants (N=23) were anxious during the teaching practicum. As the findings suggested a novel classification on the anxiety-provoking factors among pre-service EFL teachers, namely a kind of holistic classification rather than an atomistic one, this study concluded that anxiety- provoking factors can be classified into cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. 5. Discussion and Conclusions Since the existing research has provided very limited insights into FLTA from the teachers‟ or pre-service teachers‟ perspectives, the research on FLTA remains rather vague and it requires further studies from a wide variety of perspectives and approaches as well. In other words, as an area of research to be addressed and explored thoroughly, FLTA deserves the attention of the researchers as FLTA has not been defined properly and it has been used in many research papers in lieu of FLA. Thus, in this study, firstly FLTA as an ill-defined concept is attempted to (re)define in language teaching. Foreign language teaching anxiety (FLTA), a kind of precisely situation-specific anxiety as Ellis (1994) labelled, can be defined as a psychological discomfort or apprehension which is unique for pre-service teachers, language teachers, instructors and practitioners who are responsible for teaching learners how to learn a foreign language effectively and professionally at a real classroom setting by using all skills and subskills required for teaching the target language. In other words, FLTA, which stems from cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors, can also be defined as the feeling, believing and thinking of being inadequate in teaching and practising the foreign language as well as of being incompetent in performing the language acceptably with the real students at a real teaching context. In this study, as the interview results clearly indicated, the accounts from the participants seemed to verify some of the findings offered by previous research on FLTA. For instance, International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(3), 579-595. this study was similar to that of Merç (2004) as anxiety was among the most frequently reported problems among pre-service EFL teachers during teaching practicum. It was also similar to those of Gardner and Leak (1994) and Aydin (2016) as both of the studies revealed teaching experience and being inexperience was among the anxiety provoking factors. Similarly, it also corresponded with the study of Kim and Kim (2004) as some of the results such as being asked unexpected questions, being unable to control the class and being observed in the class showed similarity with the results of this study. Moreover, this study also produced almost identical results with those of Öztürk (2016) as teaching a specific skill in which the pre-service teachers feel incompetent can be a source of anxiety. It was also similar to that of Na (2007) as the results of the both studies indicated communication apprehension and fear of evaluation as anxiety-provoking factors. Moreover, it was comparable to those of Fletcher (1997) and Hancock (2001) studies as the results concluded in both studies that anxiety generates an adverse effect on performing foreign language. As a last point, this study also suggested low-self confidence and self-esteem were factors similar to those found by Yoon (2012). Contrastively, the result of this study revealed some different results from those found in the literature. For instance, when the literature was reviewed, among the factors that caused teaching anxiety there existed personality or identity-based anxiety (Anandari, 2015; Aydin, 2016; Stroud & Wee, 2006). However, in this study, none of the participants mentioned personality or identity-based anxiety as an obstacle on FLTA. This study was also different from that of Thomson and Lee (2013) as the fear of ambiguity was not found to be as an anxiety provoking factor. Moreover, this study did not correspond to the study of Tum (2015) as the pre-service teachers did not mention that they refrained from using the target language and language intensive teaching practices when their anxiety level increased. Speaking specifically, this research on the sources of teaching anxiety mainly bases its premises on holistic classification rather than atomistic one. Thus, it attempts to suggest a more general classification on the sources of FLTA. Accordingly, the results obtained from the study indicated that pre-service EFL teachers experienced anxiety before and during teaching practicum and that the sources of anxiety-provoking factors are classified under cognitive, affective and socio-cultural factors. Some practical recommendations can be noted. FLTA can be included in the curriculum by adopting some concrete resolutions to overcome anxiety-provoking factors. In other words, pre-service EFL teachers should be trained cognitively, affectively and socio- culturally on how to overcome FLTA. Only under these circumstances, the pre-service EFL teachers may be trained and familiarized with the FLTA in order to carry out teaching practicum effectively. As teaching practicum is the last phase of being a teacher, the pre- service EFL teachers should be informed on many sources of teaching aspects either by the practice teachers or by the faculty members. Moreover, governmental precautions should be taken urgently and every practice teacher who is responsible for pre-service teachers should be trained pedagogically, administratively and theoretically. As this study was restricted to 25 pre-service EFL teachers at a state university and was confined to the qualitative data obtained from interviews, reflections and essay papers, it must be noted that the data obtained from this study was rather limited. Acknowledgements: This paper is one of three segments of a Scientific Research Project which is funded by Balıkesir University with the ID of 2017/175 entitled A Qualitative Research: On Foreign Language Teaching Anxiety among Pre-service Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). This paper is also an extended and revised version of a paper presented at the 1st International Congress on Social Sciences, Humanities and Education by 592 the Association of Istanbul Science and Academicians in Istanbul, on 22/23 December, 2017. Moreover, I would like to show my gratitude to the anonymous reviewers who provided insights and expertise that greatly assisted the research. 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