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d. Affective Factors
The affective side of the learner is probably one of the most
important influences on language learning success or failure. The
affective factors related to foreign language learning emotions,
self-esteem, empathy, anxiety, attitude and motivation. Foreign
language learning is a complex task that is susceptible to human
anxiety which is associated with feeling of uneasiness,
frustration, self-doubt and apprehension. Speaking a foreign
language in public, especially in front of native speakers, is often
anxiety-provoking.
12. Assessing Speaking
When “Oral production assessment” is mentioned, the first
thing that comes to mind is an oral interview where a test
administrator and a test-taker sit down in a direct face-to-face
exchange and proceed through a protocol of questions and
directives. The interview, which may be tape-recorded for re-
listening, is then scored on one or more parameters such as
accuracy in pronunciation and/or grammar, vocabulary usage,
fluency, sociolinguistics/pragmatic appropriateness, task
accomplishment, and even comprehension (Brown, 2001: 167).
As most people say that testing speaking is the most
difficult and complex to assess above all skills with precision,
many teachers often feel uncomfortable when handling a
speaking test since it is often difficult to be objective and
consistent when testing a large number of students, especially in
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