An investigation of foreign language writing anxiety of voluntary-based English preparatory class students

The aim of this study is to investigate the English writing anxiety of voluntary-based English preparatory school students studying at Düzce University. For this main purpose, gender, type of education, classes of students, self-perceived language proficiency level, type of accommodation, socio-economic level, parental education status, parental profession and number of siblings of the students are discussed and the relationship of these variables with writing anxiety in foreign language examined. In addition to this, it is also aimed to investigate causes and results of their English writing anxiety and possible solutions suggested by participants in the research. In the current study, mixed method (embedded design) was used as a research method. Within this framework, quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques were used. In the study, since all the participants were accessed, no sampling was conducted. The participants of the study are 182 English preparatory class students at Hakime Erciyas School of Foreign Languages at Düzce University. Students completed the Second Language Writing Anxiety Inventory (SLWAI) developed by Cheng (2004) and adapted into Turkish by Öztürk and Saydam (2014) to determine the level of English writing anxiety of the participants and Personal Information Form that was created by the researcher. Afterwards, 60 volunteer students and 11 volunteer reading-writing teachers completed structured interview forms. The findings of the research are as follows: 1. Students mostly have moderate level of English writing anxiety which is followed by high and low level anxiety respectively. 2. Male students' anxiety level of writing is statistically significantly lower than female students, anxiety level of students of daytime education is lower than students of evening education, but this difference is not statistically significant, anxiety levels of students in A classes is statistically significantly higher than in B classes and there was a statistically significant difference between students with low self-perceived language proficiency level and other participants. 3. There is no significant difference between the level of English writing anxiety and type of accommodation, socio-economic level, parental education level, parental profession and number of siblings, and there is no significant difference between the students' level of English writing anxiety and their reading-writing attendance. 4. According to both students and teaching staff, linguistic difficulties, inability to produce any ideas, inability to organize ideas were the most worrisome reasons for students. 5. According to both students and teaching staff, people around the students and environment itself affect students' English writing anxiety both positively and negatively. 6. Both students and the teaching staff state that English writing anxiety affects students' writing performance both positively and negatively. Moreover, teaching staff report that English writing anxiety affects the attendance of the students to the lessons, writing activities and other activities in class and the achievement in both ways. 7. Suggestions provided by both sides to reduce writing anxiety are mostly related to time pressure, writing topic, teaching of the course, writing environment and feedback. Keywords: Foreign Language, English, Language Learning, Anxiety, Writing, Preparatory Class, Student.