This poster will first focus on the gap in the literature of Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety (FLSA) and Virtual-mediated Communication Technology, specifically FLSA in English as a foreign language learning (EFL) and immersive Virtual Reality (VR) technology; and then move to provide an account of the research design. It aims to investigate the effects of immersive VR on FLSA in EFL learning in order to seek for approaches to reduce FLSA among EFL learners. FLSA refers to specific anxiety associated with either real or anticipated oral communication in foreign language with other people (He, 2018).

Language anxiety is claimed to be negatively related to language achievement (Hewitt & Stephenson, 2012; Woodrow, 2006), and speaking is seen as the most anxiety-provoking activity in foreign language learning (Pichette, 2009). Virtual Worlds (VWs),  which is a type of non-immersive desktop-based Virtual Reality (VR) is claimed to be an anxiety-free space that could foster oral interaction (Dickey, 2005). VWs has also been studied on its effects on Foreign Language Anxiety, and positive results are found (Kruk, 2016; Kruk, 2019; Melchor-Couto, 2017). The experience of learning a foreign language in VWs is often seen as relaxing, like playing games, and comfortable as learners stated. Immersive VR, as a cutting-edge technology, is garnering increasing attention among researchers in the field of mental health and second language learning, but it seems no study investigating its effects on FLSA. Head-Mounted Display (HMD) and hand-hold motion controller (some use eye controller) constitute the hardware of immersive VR. HMD providing users with the sense of presence without the distraction of outside world benefits autistic people for feeling calm  (Newbutt, Bradley, & Conley, 2019) and helps with reducing social stress in interaction (e.g., longer utterances are produced) (Hartanto et al., 2014). On other aspects of anxiety, such as social anxiety disorders (e.g., anxiety in conversations, meeting new people, and public speaking) and test anxiety, immersive VR shows its positive influence (Alsina-Jurnet, Carvallo-Beciu, & Gutiérrez-Maldonado, 2007; Harris, Kemmerling, & North, 2002). In terms of second language learning, benefits of immersive VR are often illustrated on linguistic competence learning in previous literature, such as words learning (Vázquez et al., 2018), cultural knowledge learning (Cheng, Yang, & Andersen, 2017), and expressions learning (Sakamoto & Sakata, 2018). According to the above evidence, FLSA as a skill-specific anxiety, unearthing the effects of immersive VR on its level would broaden our understanding of the emerging technology as well as the approaches to help with anxious students in foreign language learning.

The poster will then outline the research design of the present study. Its sample is one hundred and twenty second-year Chinese university students who have no experience studying or living in English-speaking countries. They will be divided into four groups (thirty students each) with different teaching methods and environment as below. G1: immersive VR and learning designs based on situated learning principles G2: immersive VR and traditional teaching methods G3: traditional classrooms and learning designs based on situated learning principles G4: traditional classrooms and traditional teaching methods The intervention for the VR group will be twelve VR-based English learning sessions, 20-minute task each session, which will be developed with a technical company based in China. The learning content for G1 will be different communicative activities designed based on situated learning principles. Audio communication and interaction with the environment will be allowed in the system. The same activities designs will be used for the G3, but without VR. For G4, students will be taught with traditional teaching approach, with which teachers are the knowledge providers and memorisation of concepts and mastering quizzes are the focus of instruction to meet the examination requirement (Chen, 2015). The same teaching method will be applied for G2, and the difference is students will wear the VR headsets and enter the virtual real-life scenarios. The frequency of student’s attendance to both VR-based and classroom-based sessions is twice a week, so the duration of data collection will be six weeks. For equality, students in the classroom-based group will also be given the opportunity to explore VR-based sessions after finishing all the classroom-based sessions. Data will be collected through both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative instruments will be a scale for FLSA and English speaking tests. An overview of the scale and English speaking tests will be presented in the poster. The qualitative instrument will be semi-structured interviews, which asking for students’ reflections of using immersive VR for foreign language interactions. The analysis method will also be provided including how to analyse the FLSA level changes before, during, and after the intervention, and interview transcriptions.

It is expected that the learning activities created within immersive VR technology with situated learning principles will reduce EFL learners’ FLSA the most, that is a decrease of FLSA level will be shown after the intervention or students experience the lowest levels of FLSA compared to the other three groups. Moreover, the FLSA levels of students who are engaged with learning activities based on situated learning principles (G1 and G3) will reduce more than those who are instructed with traditional teaching approach (G2 and G4) both in total and respectively. The FLSA levels of students who employ immersive VR (G1 and G2) in learning will reduce more than those who are taught in traditional classrooms (G3 and G4) both in total and respectively. In addition, students’ perceptions on VR-based sessions will be positive, such as VR-based sessions are enjoyable and relaxing, and helpful in reducing FLSA levels. As a result, suggestions for relevant activities designs will be reflected from the experiment. Hopefully, the findings will bring us to a clearer picture of the impacts of immersive VR on FLSA and how could it be used to enhance foreign language learning.

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