Test Anxiety among Foreign Language Learners: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Test anxiety is a strong predictor of achievement in English as a foreign language (EFL) learning process and has considerable influences on proficiency in the target language. Research also has not reached a consensus on the sources and the effects of test anxiety. This study aims to examine the sources of test anxiety among foreign language learners, to find the effects of test anxiety on EFL learners, and explore the strategies used by learners to overcome test anxiety. The sample group of the study consisted of 57 students studying EFL at a preparatory school of a state university in Turkey. A background questionnaire, focus groups, essay papers, and interviews were used to collect qualitative data. The findings reached in the study show that EFL learners suffer from test anxiety due to several reasons and that they experience physical problems, problems related to tests, and affective problems, whereas they use a limited number of strategies to decrease the level of test anxiety. The study suggests that EFL teachers should raise their awareness of anxiety-provoking issues, their effects on learners, and the strategies to decrease their levels.