English Language Anxiety and Proficiency Among Secondary Students: A Correlational Study in West Bengal

Proficiency in English is required for both academic and professional success but many students generally experience anxiety when learning English as a second language. With an emphasis on demographic factors including gender and location, the current study explored the interplay between English Language Proficiency (ELP) and English Language Anxiety (ELA) among students in secondary education of West Bengal. This study incorporates a quantitative descriptive survey method to determine the relationship between secondary students’ English language proficiency and anxiety in West Bengal accumulating data from 400 student sample by administering the standardised English Language Anxiety Scale and the English Language Proficiency Test. The findings revealed that anxiety and proficiency were significantly negatively correlated with each other as lower proficiency being linked with higher anxiety levels. Rural students experienced comparatively more anxiety than urban, even though urban females had better proficiency levels among the other groups. Differences between genders were also obvious as rural females exhibiting greater amount of anxiety than rural males whereas urban females displayed lower anxiety compared to urban males. Surprisingly, rural females were somewhat more proficient than rural male, despite feeling more anxious. This might be attributed to contextual factors or increased motivation. The study draws attention to the adverse impacts of anxiety on language learning, especially among female and rural students. The implementation with particular treatments such as mindful practices and collaborative language exercises can reduce anxiety and improve language proficiency. Policymakers and educators should consider demographic variances while developing strategies for language education to provide an enjoyable learning atmosphere.