Measuring EFL teachers’ teaching anxiety in the online teaching environment

ABSTRACT

The shift towards online teaching has sparked significant discussions on how to manage teachers’ emotions while delivering instruction online effectively. Through three rounds of investigation with EFL teachers, this study developed and validated a self-report scale – EFL teachers’ online teaching anxiety. A total of 524 Chinese full-time college EFL teachers participated in this self-designed questionnaire survey comprising 25 items, complemented by face-to-face interviews with 10 participants. The findings reveal that the revised scale is reliable and valid for measuring EFL teachers’ online teaching anxiety. Moreover, the findings also suggest that EFL teachers commonly experience moderate levels of anxiety while teaching online, stemming from factors such as fear of negative evaluation, technophobia, lack of confidence in online teaching, worry about teaching outcomes, and feelings of separation from students. Notably, the study identifies significant and positive relationships among these sources, with the fear of negative evaluation emerging as the most explanatory one. It concludes with recommendations for mitigating teachers’ online anxiety, emphasizing the importance of fostering a supportive evaluation culture. This study offers valuable insights for understanding EFL teachers’ online teaching anxiety and provides empirical support for the structural model of EFL teachers’ online teaching anxiety.

KEYWORDS:

• EFL teacher
• online teaching anxiety scale
• sources of teaching anxiety
• online teaching environment
• structural equation modelling

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, HUST. [2023WKFZZX103].

Notes on contributors

Renzhong Peng

Renzhong Peng serves as a doctoral supervisor and holds the esteemed position of professor at the School of Foreign Languages, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. He earned his M.A. degree in Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China. Then he completed his Ph.D. degree in business administration at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China. His research interests encompass a broad spectrum of topics, including intercultural communication, intercultural pedagogy, Foreign Language teachers’ professional development, and technology-enhanced foreign language teaching. He has published articles in many peer-review journals including International Journal of Intercultural Relations and Australasian Journal of Educational Technology. This following webpage contains detailed information about Professor Peng’s educational background and academic achievements. http://sfl.hust.edu.cn/info/1104/6597.htm

Qiqin Hu

Qiqin Hu is a dedicated Ph.D student in the field of FL education. She earned her M.A. degree in Education from Central South University in Changsha. Currently, she diligently works towards the completion of her Ph.D. degree in Foreign Linguistics and Applied Linguistics at the School of Foreign Languages, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. She has also been a college English teacher at Anshun University in China for an impressive seven years. Her research interests focus on Foreign Language teachers’ emotion, FL teachers’ professional development, and language teaching strategies. Her pursuit of knowledge and dedication to language education make her believe that she can contribute her efforts to drive innovation and improvement in foreign language teaching.