EFL Effective Factors: Anxiety and Motivation and their Effect on Saudi College Student’s Achievement

Abstract

Before I have joined Yobe State University this year, I was teaching English in Saudi Arabia for more than ten years. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine the anxiety level and the motivational patterns of Saudi college students of English and consider how motivational patterns and anxiety effect on language learning. The study arise two main questions. They are " What is the relationship between students' anxiety and students' learning achievement? " and " Is there any relationship between the students' desired level of proficiency and the types of motivation they show? " The subjects include 75 students randomly selected from Community College and Faculty of Education, Shaqra University. The APA style, descriptive analytical approach have been adopted in this study. SPSS programme is used to elicit the results. The results showed that Saudi students were found out to be very anxious towards learning EFL. This has resulted from their social, environmental, cultural, religious beliefs, teachers' role and tests. Concurrently, the results have revealed that they are demotivated students. However, they can be motivated instrumentally more than integratively. It is recommended that the level of students' anxiety can be lowered through creating effective and positive environment conducive to EFL teaching and learning. Correspondingly, the research suggests that relative investigations should be better conducted to lessen Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) and strengthen instrumental dimensions of Saudi learners.