Chapter 4. Task complexity, task features, and task anxiety at low L2 proficiency levels
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Ángela Donate
Abstract
TBLT is a growing research strand in the instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) literature. However, there is a paucity of studies on the role of individual differences (ID) such as task anxiety in L2 tasks (Baralt & Gurzynski-Weiss, 2011; Donate, 2021). Importantly, very few studies have examined this learner factor in connection with task complexity, and what features in L2 tasks contribute to learners’ anxiety during task performance. To gain a better understanding of task-related features contributing to task anxiety, two L2 oral narrative tasks with varied cognitive demands were investigated using a mixed method design. 51 early-stage learners of Spanish performed the two tasks and responded to a task anxiety scale at two points in time during the tasks. The results showed that the complex task led to more anxiety than the simple task, but the former also appeared to have led to more enjoyment. At the same time, learners in the simple task reported experiencing more anxiety after task completion than in the middle. In addition, code complexity, in particular vocabulary demands, the absence of planning time, oral task modality, and task repetition contributed to task anxiety. The potential benefits of manipulating specific task features to mitigate the effects of anxiety and increase enjoyment during oral task performance are discussed in relation to lower proficiency levels.
Abstract
TBLT is a growing research strand in the instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) literature. However, there is a paucity of studies on the role of individual differences (ID) such as task anxiety in L2 tasks (Baralt & Gurzynski-Weiss, 2011; Donate, 2021). Importantly, very few studies have examined this learner factor in connection with task complexity, and what features in L2 tasks contribute to learners’ anxiety during task performance. To gain a better understanding of task-related features contributing to task anxiety, two L2 oral narrative tasks with varied cognitive demands were investigated using a mixed method design. 51 early-stage learners of Spanish performed the two tasks and responded to a task anxiety scale at two points in time during the tasks. The results showed that the complex task led to more anxiety than the simple task, but the former also appeared to have led to more enjoyment. At the same time, learners in the simple task reported experiencing more anxiety after task completion than in the middle. In addition, code complexity, in particular vocabulary demands, the absence of planning time, oral task modality, and task repetition contributed to task anxiety. The potential benefits of manipulating specific task features to mitigate the effects of anxiety and increase enjoyment during oral task performance are discussed in relation to lower proficiency levels.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
- Table of contents v
- Series editors’ preface vii
- Foreword 1
-
Section 1. Introduction
- Chapter 1. Individual differences and task-based language teaching 10
-
Section 2. Affective differences
- Chapter 2. Anxiety in task-based language teaching 52
- Chapter 3. Understanding, measuring, and differentiating task enjoyment from foreign language enjoyment 84
- Chapter 4. Task complexity, task features, and task anxiety at low L2 proficiency levels 111
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Section 3. Cognitive differences
- Chapter 5. Written languaging, language aptitude, and L2 learning through dictogloss tasks 140
- Chapter 6. The effects of planning type, working memory, and anxiety on L2 writing performance 161
-
Section 4. Conative differences
- Chapter 7. A review of learner motivation and engagement research in task-based language teaching 198
- Chapter 8. Teachers’ and learners’ beliefs about task-based language teaching 228
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Section 5. Sociodemographic differences
- Chapter 9. Task-based language learning and teaching 262
-
Section 6. Pedagogical perspectives
- Chapter 10. Practitioners’ perspectives 288
- Chapter 11. Teacher IDs and task adaptations 313
-
Section 7. Conclusion
- Chapter 12. Conclusion 346
- List of contributors 365
- Index 371
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- 日本言語政策学会 / Japan Association for Language Policy. 言語政策 / Language Policy 10. 2014 i
- Table of contents v
- Series editors’ preface vii
- Foreword 1
-
Section 1. Introduction
- Chapter 1. Individual differences and task-based language teaching 10
-
Section 2. Affective differences
- Chapter 2. Anxiety in task-based language teaching 52
- Chapter 3. Understanding, measuring, and differentiating task enjoyment from foreign language enjoyment 84
- Chapter 4. Task complexity, task features, and task anxiety at low L2 proficiency levels 111
-
Section 3. Cognitive differences
- Chapter 5. Written languaging, language aptitude, and L2 learning through dictogloss tasks 140
- Chapter 6. The effects of planning type, working memory, and anxiety on L2 writing performance 161
-
Section 4. Conative differences
- Chapter 7. A review of learner motivation and engagement research in task-based language teaching 198
- Chapter 8. Teachers’ and learners’ beliefs about task-based language teaching 228
-
Section 5. Sociodemographic differences
- Chapter 9. Task-based language learning and teaching 262
-
Section 6. Pedagogical perspectives
- Chapter 10. Practitioners’ perspectives 288
- Chapter 11. Teacher IDs and task adaptations 313
-
Section 7. Conclusion
- Chapter 12. Conclusion 346
- List of contributors 365
- Index 371
