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Journal of Teaching and Education, CD-ROM. ISSN: 2165-6266 :: 03(03):421–427 (2014)

MARITIME STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION TOWARDS DRAMA AS A WAY TO REDUCE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASSROOM ANXIETY Puteri Zarina M.K. Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Institute of Marine Engineering Technology, Malaysia Speaking in English is normally a difficult feat for the non-native speakers (NNS). Among the most common cause of this difficulty is the anxiety expressing oneself in a foreign language. Foreign language anxiety or FLA can be considered a form of communication apprehension which refers to “an individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with real or anticipated communication with one person or persons” (Richmond &McCroskey, 1998: 37). This study aims to investigate the perception of maritime students towards the use of drama as a way to reduce their level of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety (FLCA). The study involved 80 students who enrolled in two diploma marine-related programmes at a maritime university in Malaysia. The data were collected through an administration of survey questionnaire. The findings suggested that the students regarded drama as a fun activity. They were also relieved of the unnecessary anxiety during the drama activity. In addition, they also felt that they were more relaxed when asked to speak in English in public after weeks of training for the drama. Keywords: Anxiety, FLCA, Drama, Maritime students.

Introduction Non-native speakers of English (NNS) are often plagued with numerous problems communicating in the target language for academic purposes (Berman and Cheng, 2001). Chacon (1998) found that NNS students across disciplines normally have problems in the two productive language skills namely writing and speaking. At the workplace, general maritime practice shows that one’s career development in the field is connected with work for foreign companies and on international projects. Hence, one’s language competence is crucial in order to handle issues related to the specialised subject matter (Karastateva, 2011).Such requirements would surely be disadvantageous to those NNS who have troubles communicating in English as lack of proficiency in the language will be detrimental to their career advancement. Rachman (1998) defined anxiety, one of the most prominent and pervasive emotions, as a feeling of uneasy suspense. This particular emotional mal-condition has been a focus of research in foreign language education since early 1970s. Among situation-specific anxieties, foreign language classroom anxiety has been extensively researched (Abdullah and Ng, 2011; Liu and Jackson, 2008) since Horwitz et al. (1986) proposed a theory of foreign language classroom. They attributed students’ negative emotional reactions to language learning to foreign language anxiety as the latter had to deal with a totally foreign language and culture. Horwitz et al. (1986) identified three components of foreign language classroom anxiety: communication apprehension, fear of negative evaluation, and test anxiety. To measure the anxiety, they

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designed the 33-item Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS). Adapting this anxiety scale to solicit students’ responses, this study is aimed at identifying the perception of tertiary students at a maritime university towards drama-related activities in class. Another aim of this research is to determine the effectiveness of using drama in reducing these students’ anxiety in using the spoken English. The research aims generated the following research objectives which are to: 1. Identify maritime students’ perception towards the use of drama in their English Language learning classroom. 2. Gauge the effectiveness of drama as a way to reduce these students’ anxiety in speaking. Literature Review It is found that learners with high levels of Foreign Language Anxiety (FLA) are observed to display less willingness to communicate in L2 (MacIntyre, Noels & Clement, 1997). FLA is specific to language learning classrooms (Young, 1992), because the FL classroom imposes serious threats on learners. Beck & Emery (1985) state that anxiety generally stems from a perception of threat due to several factors such as the risk of being humiliated by other learners, being scorned by teachers in making mistakes and a mere fear of speaking in public. MacIntyre & Gardner (1989) claim that although FLA poses insignificant threat at the early stage of a learning process, it will develop into a perpetual phenomenon due to learners’ repeated negative experiences with anxiety in the language classroom. Various strategies or activities have been constructed and designed to alleviate or minimise the effects of anxiety on NNS English Language learners. One possible way to reduce anxiety and increase confidence and motivation is to utilize drama in the English Language Learning (ELL) classroom. Wagner (1998) states, “Drama is powerful because of its unique balance of thought and feeling making learning exciting, challenging, relevant to real life concerns, and enjoyable” (p. 9). Drama has the potential to provide ELLs an opportunity to practise their English in a setting where they feel safe. Research suggests that drama holds the potential to lower anxiety and increase motivation for ELL students. A study of English as Foreign Language (EFL) students in Singapore by Stinson and Freebody (2006) also indicated that students felt much more confident speaking English as a result of participating in an English speaking drama program, and most of them expressed a desire to continue to participate in a drama program. Baren et al. (2013) found that drama activities can have an immediate positive effect on students’ feelings about using English in a variety of lower-level classrooms. The effectiveness of drama in reducing students’ FLCA is also supported by the findings by Bundith (2011) who investigated the effects of drama on non-English majored Thai EFL university students. Ratchadaporn and Punchalee (2009) examine the benefits of drama and questioning techniques to enhance verbal communicative skills among 15 non-native undergraduate students whose major was not English. The findings provided the evidence which showed students’ positive attitudes towards English instruction delivered through drama. A similar finding was achieved by Shand (2008) who found that drama was indeed helpful in considerably reducing the third grade participants’ anxiety and increasing their confidence and motivation towards speaking English. Based on this research of the literature, the language lessons which incorporated the drama activity were created for maritime students to further investigate the potential value of drama in reducing the students’ anxiety towards learning a second language. The analysis of

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the literature and my own classroom experience suggests students would enjoy the learning experience and would benefit tremendously from the experience with minimal threats such as anxiety. Significance of the study

This study was significant as no similar studies have ever been conducted on investigating maritime learners’ perceptions towards drama activities as a way to reduce their anxiety in a language learning classroom. In addition, no other studies had been carried out to identify the positive effects of drama in an English learning classroom in reducing these students’ FLCA. The findings of the current research would hopefully shed some lights into how these technical students perceive the role of this drama activity in reducing their FLCA. Limitations of the study

This study does have its limitations. As this study focused only on the diploma students majoring in Marine Engineering and related programmes at UniKL MIMET, the findings are thus not generalise able to students in other programmes in other tertiary institutions. Methodology This study employed a quantitative survey research method. The respondents in this study were 80 diploma students from a maritime university who registered for a compulsory English course called ‘Foundation English’ for the completion of their diploma programmes. These students were non-native speakers of English who came from four different diploma programmes specialising in various marine engineering-related fields. Apart from this, no particular parameter such as age group and gender was set for respondent selection. Procedures Teaching steps

The procedures involving the steps in the teaching of drama were adapted from Ratchadaporn and Punchalee (2009). The teaching steps were divided into four steps consisting of (1) working on a drama script, (2) drama rehearsal, (3) drama production, and (4) drama evaluation, each of which is detailed as follows: (1) Working on a drama script

The first step involved the explication of the background knowledge concerning a play which students were required to stage. To facilitate the students’ acquisition of the target language and to make interaction more meaningful to them, the students need to understand their role in that particular context, the characters they interact with, and the reason for the interaction. Students’ background knowledge of the play was established by means of class discussion of the play’s characters, their natures, their relationship with other characters, or their problems. Through the establishment of background knowledge about the play, students could understand more about

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the crucial elements of communication in addition to linguistic forms. Additionally, students had opportunities to practise expressing their thoughts, opinions, and feelings. (2) Drama rehearsal

In this phase, students were guided to engage themselves in the drama physically and emotionally. Students were divided into groups or pairs, and they were assigned to play each character’s role. The engagement was facilitated by the background knowledge acquired in the previous step. The language input through the scripted dialogue is applied according to the context of the play and this assists students’ learning of the language forms. Close monitoring and interventions by the teacher were required in this step in order to correct students’ pronunciation, enhance their understanding of their roles, and to ensure that students delivered a dialogue from their understanding of the context rather than regurgitating the script as mere rote recitation. (3) Drama production

This step provided students with the avenue to engage in a performance to experience authentic, lifelike situations without teacher’s interference. Through a performance, students could practise appropriate facial expressions, intonations, and gestures to convey the intended meaning of each character, in addition to delivering a dialogue. This helped enhance students’ internationalisation process of both linguistic and non-linguistic components of the speaking ability. A full-scale performance of the whole play was staged at the end of the semester. Students’ performance was videotaped for evaluation with the purpose of providing the students to improve their performance and learn from their mistake. Data Collection Method The data for this research were collected through the administration of a survey questionnaire administered to the participating students. The 23-item questionnaire was constructed according to the Likert Scale and administered during the last class of the semester which was directly after the drama presentation. The purpose of the questionnaire was to elicit the learners’ attitude and perception towards the drama activity in helping them overcome their foreign language classroom anxiety. Data Analysis Data obtained through the questionnaire were analysed using descriptive statistics of mean and percentage. Results and Discussion The research findings are presented in two sections: attitude towards the drama activity in their English lessons and the impacts of using drama presentations on students’ foreign language classroom anxiety level.

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Attitude towards the drama activity in their English lessons. From the survey conducted, it was found that generally, the students perceived drama as enjoyable, fun and interesting as it was different from other oral activities. 75% of the participants strongly agreed to the statement ‘Overall, I have really enjoyed my Foundation English course this semester’. 85% strongly agreed to the statement ‘It is fun to participate in the making of an English drama in this course’ while 75% strongly believed that the drama activity was different from other oral activities because it was more interesting.81.2% of the participants also strongly felt that the drama activity was enjoyable because they had the chance to speak in English. 64 of the 80 participants also strongly agreed to the statement ‘I believe that drama is a good way to improve my English speaking skills’. Table 1. The results of students’ attitude towards the drama activity in their English lessons. Items

1) It is fun to participate in the making of an English drama in this course.

Percentage of responses (upon 80 students) 85%

2) Acting out my role in English in the drama is not really difficult.

73.8%

3) I enjoy the drama activity very much because I have a chance to speak

81.2%

4) I feel more confident to express myself in English.

76.3%

5) The drama activity is different from other oral activities because it is more interesting.

75%

6) Although I have to memorise my script, I do not feel stressed to do so.

73%

7) I believe that drama is a good way to improve my English speaking skills.

80%

8) I am keen to learn about English through the drama presentation.

93%

9) I feel motivated to explore the various expressions in English through the drama presentation. 10) Overall, I have really enjoyed my Foundation English course this semester.

88.8% 75%

The impacts of using drama presentations on students’ foreign language classroom anxiety level. Generally, the participants agreed that drama has a positive impact on their language learning anxiety. The only statement that received positive response from less than half of the 80 participants is ‘I do not feel my heart pounding any more when I get called to present my speech in class.’ This probably means that despite feeling that drama is fun and helpful to improve their speaking skills, some form of nervousness or anxiety in performing the drama still pervades the students. 83% of the entire group, however, strongly agreed that drama did help enhance their confidence level when speaking in public. 71% of them also agreed that they were now more aware of the need to use appropriate language expressions in various situations and that they did not feel self-conscious when speaking in English before the class.

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70% also felt that they had better control of their fears of failure when speaking in English after engaging in the drama activity. 66% or 53 out of the 80 participants did not experience nervousness to make mistakes when speaking in public. The findings obtained from the survey questionnaire showed that the maritime students had a positive experience with the drama activity in their language classroom. They also felt that their engagement in the drama managed to reduce their anxiety level in practising the speaking skills in English. Increased self-confidence can be said to be an additional benefit of the drama activity in the language classroom as the students’ anxiety level got reduced. In addition, upon evaluation (discussion) performed after the presentation, the students admitted that they did not feel the embarrassment of having their mistakes identified by their friends as they normally did before the exposure to drama in the classroom. Table 2. The results of students’ perception towards the impacts of using drama presentations on students’ Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety level. Items

1)I am now more aware of the need to use appropriate expressions in various situations.

Percentage of responses (upon 80 students) 71%

2) My pronunciation of English words has also improved.

71.3%

3) I am now more confident with myself when speaking in public.

78.8%

4) I do not feel nervous of making mistakes when speaking in public.

66%

5) I am now not reluctant anymore to express my opinions in public.

66%

6) I do not panic anymore if I have to speak in public without any preparation. 7) I do not feel my heart pounding any more when I get called to present my speech in class. 8) I do not feel self-conscious when speaking in English before my classmates.

86.3% 80% 78.8%

9) I am not afraid of being laughed at by my friends for speaking in English.

75%

10) Overall, I have a better control of my fears of failure now when speaking in English.

70%

Conclusion and Recommendations Drawing from the findings of this study, it could be concluded that drama was perceived by the maritime students who participated in this study as an effective tool to help reduce their anxiety when speaking in English in public. The students also admitted that drama was a generally fun activity which provided them the opportunity to improve their speaking skills in an interesting way. For this reason, drama is worth implementing in an actual ESL learning environment with an aim to enhance the speaking skills of students. The findings also gave the implications that it is of paramount importance for learners to be given extensive opportunities to undergo active experience in simulated lifelike conversations or dialogues with the purpose of developing their speaking abilities. Drama enables the creation of an enjoyable and relaxing atmosphere to help learners build their self-confidence in expressing themselves in public in a language other than their mother tongue. To optimise learning, grammatical mistakes committed by learners in using the target language should not be penalised. Instead, the emphasis should be placed on their

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ability to convey comprehensible meaning, albeit with flaws. Through the application of this pedagogical technique, teachers should facilitate learners in their language learning process by designing effective and enjoyable learning situations with engaging activities with the aim to enhance learners’ internalisation process of the targeted skills. References 1.

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2.

Baren, A.M. van, Goodnight, K.L.&Wardt, L.M. van de. (2013). Lights! Camera! English! Drama-based exercises as confidence-building tools in Dutch lower-level secondary school English classes.(Unpublished master’s dissertation). Utrecht University.

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Berman, R. & Cheng, L. (2001). English academic language skills:Perceived difficulties by undergraduate andgraduate students, and their academic achievement. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(1-2), 2540.

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Bundith, P. (2011). The effectiveness of drama techniques on foreign language classroom anxiety reduction of Thai EFL students. (Unpublished master’s dissertation).Srinakharinwirot University, Thailand.

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and motivation towards speaking English with two groups of English language learners. (Unpublished master’s dissertation). The University of Arizona.

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