Foreign language learning anxiety in China: theories and applications in English language teaching

摘要

Research on Foreign Language Learning Anxiety (FLLA) had not caught attention from Chinese researchers until the late 1990s although it has remained a popular topic among scholars in Western countries. This occurred against the background that FLLA was believed to be one important reason for Chinese students' 'dumb English' (vii) that the Chinese government was intent upon stamping out. As such, He, who had taught college English for more than 10 years in China, opted to take Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety (FLSA) as a specific case to study FLLA as a whole. Overall, this book is of a great value to scholars having an interest in the field of FLSA, particularly research students in terms of helping them orientate their research direction and arrive at their methodological approaches. It is useful for ELT practitioners who seek to understand Chinese students' behavior (e.g. reticence) in English language classrooms. While this book provides a fertile ground for further research, the reviewer identified a few omissions or gaps probably resulting from the author's identity as an 'insider' researcher, which poses a potential risk of narrowing down issues and interpretations that might be of great interest to outsider researchers.