The positive impact of role-playing on higher education students

This study examined the reasons for foreign language speaking anxiety, the impact of role-playing on proficiency level, and speaking anxiety. The study was carried out at İstanbul Kent University, with the participation of 9 B2 level students from Preparatory school in role-playing as extracurricular activity. In this study, three scales were utilised: observation, questionnaire and proficiency exam results. The questionnaire, the Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety (FLSA), developed by Huang (2004) was adapted and utilised via Microsoft Forms. The proficiency exam was prepared by İstanbul Kent University Testing Unit in accordance with The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) requirements. Finally, the observations during role-playing sessions were made by the researcher. In light of the results of the survey, the level of foreign language speaking anxiety of the participants was temperate, personal reasons and teaching materials and assessment were noted as the major anxiety triggering factors. In conclusion, this study revealed that the use of role-playing as an extracurricular activity has positive impacts on students, reduces students' speaking anxiety and improves their speaking skills.