Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

Many people have experienced some degree of fear. Speaking anxiety, also known as

glossophobia, is the extreme fear of public speaking that can manifest as psychological tension

and physical symptoms like a racing heart, sweating, and difficulty breathing. Speaking anxiety

is a concept that describes the uneasy feeling towards expressing thoughts with an individual's

mind. It can cause anything from clammy palms to a slightly elevated heart rate, making even

the most seasoned presenters and speakers a little nervous (Montijo, 2022). This type of

shyness is characterized by a fearful emotion when speaking to others (Gaibani & Elmenfi,

2016). These abilities may pose problems when speaking or performing orally. This attitude has

made the students feel fearful of speaking with their teachers or peers; they are afraid to interact

in every learning activity, and they are anxious to participate as a whole (Bastida Jr. & Yapo,

2019).

This accentuates the critical reason to understand the phenomenon deeply by viewing it

based on the students’ ‘life world’ experiences. Speaking in front of others has been rated as

the biggest cause of anxiety-inducing reactions among them (Rumiyati & Seftika, 2018).

Speaking skills play a vital role in the communication process (Shabani, cited in El-Sakka,

2016). Therefore, inhibition is labeled as the worst-case scenario to happen when anxiety is not

addressed properly. Inhibition is what students feel every time they are fearful of criticism, of

being mocked, or of how they are being judged by others when speaking (Mufidah, 2017), to the

point of withdrawing from communication. In this context, speaking in the front of the others

becomes threatening for them. This accentuates the critical reason to understand the
phenomenon deeply by viewing it based on the students’ ‘life world’ experiences. (Asadi,2021),

has recommended some strategies to motivate the learners for speaking effectively and the

strategies included in his study were to boost the confidence of the students so that they can

participate easily in the class. With regards to the reducing learners’ anxiety considering

mistakes as a natural part of learning, creating a non-threatening atmosphere, and having a

friendly relationship with students. (Mobarak,2020), explored the reasons for the speaking

anxiety among students. The findings of the study revealed that the leading causes of the

students’ speaking anxiety were communication uneasiness, fear of being judged by the fellow,

and fear of taking oral. K & Alamelu (2020) studied the factors affecting and causing anxiety.

The results revealed the external and internal factors causing anxiety, External factors included

language, grammar, peer, pronunciation, while internal factors included stage fear, lack of

confidence, and shyness factor. The purpose of the study is to extract prevailing themes and

underlying essences of the participants’ descriptions and narratives over their speaking anxiety.

Significant works of literature (Sadiq, 2017) have further validated that speaking anxiety is highly

stimulated and provoked when students have to communicate or express in speaking in front of

the class. Not only that, other stressors like pronunciation, fear of making mistakes, unattractive

evaluation (Ansari, 2015), lack of vocabulary and grammar knowledge (Mukminin, 2015), lack of

preparedness, and even the environment contribute to the debilitating and suppressive issue of

speaking anxiety.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to explore how speaking anxiety among junior high school students is

multicified, involving various internal and external factors that significantly affect their emotional

well-being and communication abilities. Specifically, it seeks to address the following questions:
1. How often do you feel anxious when asked to speak in front of others?

2. What specific situations trigger your speaking anxiety (e.g., presentations, group

discussions)?

3. How do you feel when you make a mistake while speaking?

4.Have you ever avoided participating in class due to anxiety?

5.Do you think your peers evaluate your speaking abilities?

6.How does your anxiety affect your overall academic performance?

7.Do you experience physical symptoms (e.g., sweating, shaking) when anxious?

8.How do you prepare for speaking tasks or presentations?

9.Do you prefer speaking in small groups or larger audiences? Why?

10.Have past experiences influenced your current feelings about speaking in public?

11.Have you discussed your speaking anxiety with teachers or friends?

12.How important is it for you to improve your speaking skills?

13.Are there specific topics that make you more anxious to speak about?
14.How often do you practice speaking outside of class?

15.Do you feel more anxious when speaking than in your native language?

16.Do you think that peer support can help reduce speaking anxiety?

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to identify effective strategies to reduce speaking anxiety among junior high

school students, improving their confidence, academic performance and overall well-being.

This study aims to develop effective strategies and recommendations for educators, to relieve

speaking anxiety among junior high school students promoting improved academic

performance, confidence and overall well-being.

This study seeks to investigate the relationship between speaking anxiety and student

engagement, motivation, and self-efficacy among junior high school students, providing insights

for targeted interventions.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study "Exploring the Causes and Emotional Impact of Speaking Anxiety Among Junior High

School Students" is significant for several reasons this can include:

Understanding Causes of Anxiety: It helps identify the various factors contributing to

speaking anxiety, such as past experiences, negative self-perception, and lack of confidence

Understanding these causes can guide educators and parents in addressing them effectively.
Emotional impact: The study highlights the emotional consequences of speaking anxiety,

including feelings of nervousness, embarrassment, and avoidance of public speaking

opportunities. This awareness can lead to better support systems for students experiencing

these emotions.

SCOPE OF LIMITATIONS

Scope of Limitation

The primary focus of this study are the junior high school students, typically aged 13-15,this

study explores speaking anxiety among Junior High School students, examining causes,

emotional impact and academic effects while acknowledging limitations in sample size,

geographical scope and methodology.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Speaking anxiety: refers to as glossophobia, is the extreme fear of public speaking that can

manifest as psychological tension and physical symptoms like a racing heart, sweating, and

difficulty breathing.

Uneasy Feelings: refers to speaking anxiety is a concept that describes the uneasy feeling

towards expressing thoughts with an individual's mind. Speaking skills play a vital role in the

communication process.

Fearful of Speaking: refers to with their teachers or peers; they are afraid to interact in every

learning activity; and they are anxious to participate as a whole. This accentuates the critical

reason to understand the phenomenon deeply by viewing it based on the students’ ‘life world’

experiences. Not only that, other stressors like pronunciation, fear of making mistakes,

unattractive, lack of vocabulary and grammar knowledge, lack of preparedness, and even the
environment contribute to the debilitating and suppressive issue of speaking anxiety. Speaking

in front of others has been rated as the biggest cause of anxiety-inducing reactions from them.

Speaking skills: refers to play a vital role in the communication process.

Factors affecting and causes Anxiety: refers the results revealed the external and internal

factors causing anxiety, External factors included language, grammar, peer, pronunciation,

while internal factors included stage fear, lack of confidence, and shyness factor.

Speaking effectively and the strategies: refers to, included in study were to boost the

confidence of the students so that they can participate easily in the class.

Speaking in front of others: refers to biggest cause of anxiety-inducing reactions among

them.

External Factors: refers to included language, grammar, peer, pronunciation, while internal

factors included stage fear, lack of confidence, and shyness factor.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter discusses all relevant literature and studies with an interest in current studies and

provides the researcher with insights into executing the proposed analysis. Researchers

interested in finding important information on the thesis have done further work in various

sources, searching for related studies and literature similar to current research.

Normal life includes some anxiety and fear. In a stressful situation, your brain

triggers a flood of chemicals into the bloodstream. Your heart beats faster; your

breath becomes shallow and rapid; muscles tense; your mind goes on full alert.
It's all part of the human's innate reaction to a threat: You're ready to flee or

fight (Bhandari, 2023) Sometimes anxiety and fear linger on and on. The

feelings can be overwhelming. When they interfere with normal activities,

there's a problem. Doctors call this kind of problem a disorder. Normal life includes

some anxiety and fear. In a stressful situation, your brain triggers a flood of chemicals into the

bloodstream. Your heart beats faster; your breath becomes shallow and rapid; muscles tense;

your mind goes on full alert. It's all part of the human's innate reaction to a threat: You're ready

to flee or fight (Bhandari, 2023)

Sometimes anxiety and fear linger on and on. The feelings can be overwhelming. When they

interfere with normal activities, there's a problem. Doctors call this kind of problem a disorder.

Millions of Americans suffer from anxiety disorders. There are several different kinds.

A person who worries excessively and unrealistically about most things for six months or more

may have GAD. It's not the worries themselves that are unrealistic, but the extent of

the worrying. For example, it may not be unrealistic to worry that if your spouse is a few minutes

late getting home, there may have been an accident. But it's a problem if this causes a rising

sense of terror and an inability to stop fretting and thinking about awful possibilities (Bhandari,

2023).

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is when you worry a lot and have a hard time controlling it.

When you have GAD, you tend to expect disaster and can't stop worrying about health, money,

family, work, school, or other things.

Everyone feels anxiety now and then—and there can be good reasons why. But with GAD, your

worry is often constant. Daily life becomes a never-ending state of worry, fear, and dread.

Eventually, anxiety can dominate your thinking so much that you find it hard to do routine things

at work or school, socially, and in your relationships. But there are treatments that can help

(Shiekh, 2013).
Strategies for Easing Anxiety

While many students dislike public speaking, some find themselves completely unable to speak

in front of their peers. Public speaking is “not something that one develops naturally, rather it is

a learned skill. However, before we can assess what students have learned, teachers must help

students overcome anxiety that may impede their ability to showcase what they have learned

about public speaking. Studies show that when it comes to speaking anxiety, teachers need to

understand that the “more anxious or fearful a student feels, the less goal-orientated and

academically motivated they become” (Nash et al., 2016, p. 595). As educators, it is imperative

that we address public speaking anxiety so that students who suffer from it are not penalized,

but rather supported. Teachers can help students by creating a positive classroom community,

exposure therapy, and cognitive modification techniques.

Classroom Community

Public speaking causes more anxiety than most other assessments because of the audience. If

a student does poorly on a paper or a test it can remain private. However, if a student does

poorly on a class presentation, it is public. The possibility of public failure causes stress for high

school students and in some cases hinders their ability to perform. In their study, van den Bos et

al found that in the anticipation phase, before the delivery of the speech, student stress levels

were high as indicated by cortisol and alpha-amylase in saliva samples. In students who were

more developmentally mature, stress levels actually peaked during the anticipation phase and

were higher than they were during the speech itself. Additionally, teenagers “try to present

themselves as socially competent, intelligent, and assertive; they want to satisfy their need for
belonging and self promotion being constantly aware of social reactions. Students who are

socially anxious tend to “perceive themselves as less accepted by their classmates. These

factors all play a role in creating an anxiety inducing situation.

Creating a positive classroom atmosphere is essential in limiting the amount of anxiety students

feel when expected to complete a public speaking assessment. Laura O. Gallardo and Angel

Barrasa’s study on adolescent friendships in connection with academic achievement found that

“peer acceptance positively predicted subsequent academic achievement” (Gallardo & Barrasa,

2016, p. 1637). The study argued that “young people who can count on social support […] will

be able to cope with the stressors present in the school settingc Public speaking, for most

students, is a likely stressor. Those who feel a debilitating level of anxiety will feel more enabled

to speak in front of their peers when they feel comfortable and socially accepted in class. This is

especially important for students who are typically less accepted by their peers. Puklek

Levpuscek and Berce found that students who are not as readily accepted by their peers report

higher levels of social anxiety than their classmates. Creating a positive, supportive environment

is crucial when attempting to reduce public speaking anxiety. Playing ice breaker games, pairing

or grouping students with new people, incorporating teamwork are all relatively easy ways to

introduce students to each other and get them to feel more comfortable around their

classmates. Another 12 way to create a positive classroom climate is to establish rules of

acceptable behavior. Students feel more secure if they know that all students are expected to

treat everyone with respect. If students feel more accepted socially, they will be more motivated

and willing to risk speaking in front of the supportive peers resulting in fewer students taking part

in avoidant behaviors.

Exposure Therapy
Exposure therapy is commonly recommended for public speaking anxiety (“Common mental

health problems: Identification and pathways to care”, 2011). Exposure therapy relies on

repeated experiences with the stressor as a means of diminishing the threat. Authors Smiti

Kahlon, Philip Lindner, and Tine Nordgreen explained that while exposure therapy is effective, it

can sometimes be a challenge to find an audience for students to present to. Their study

employed the use of virtual reality to expose anxious speakers to a controlled audience during a

90 minute session. Students were given a series of impromptu speech topics they were to talk

about for a given period of time in front of a virtual reality audience that looked like a typical

classroom. Before each impromptu speech, the student left the classroom to talk to a

psychotherapist and note their level of distress. After the impromptu speech, the student

evaluated his or her performance with the therapist and rated the “subjective level of discomfort”

experienced while speaking (Kahlon, et al., 2019, p. 6). Then, the student listened to an audio

recording of the speech they delivered and were instructed to imagine themselves as an

audience member. After listening, the student rated his or her own performance again.

The study found that there was a significant decrease in participants’ speaking anxiety after

completing the program and those improvements were consistent throughout the follow-up

period of 1-3 months. For many of the participants, their feelings of distress decreased after

each challenge task. The results suggest that students become more comfortable with public

speaking 13 with increased exposure. There are several ways that teachers could replicate this

in their own classrooms. One option is to ease students into speaking by completing a series of

impromptu speeches to their classmates. During a weeklong mini unit, students would begin in

groups of four in which each student would deliver a minute-long impromptu speech. Before and

after each impromptu speech, students record their anxiety levels. On the following day, the

groups double in size and students each deliver a new impromptu speech to their new group.

Again, students record their anxiety levels both before and after they deliver their impromptu
speech. This cycle is repeated and by the end of the week students are required to present to

the entire class. This method exposes students to public speaking in a way that slowly

acclimates them. By exposing students to speaking in front of groups slowly and safely,

students will gain the confidence to speak in front of the entire class.

However, for students with high levels of anxiety, the idea of exposure itself can be debilitating

and many students refuse to take part (Landkroon, et al., 2022). Teachers can help students

who are in this position through positive mental imagery. This strategy requires students to

imagine themselves delivering a speech and visualizing it in a positive manner. In their study,

Landkroon, et al. found that through the use of positive mental imagery, socially anxious

students “indicated that they experience a positive change regarding their view of giving a

presentation” (Landkroon, et al., 2022, p. 84). With this method, students felt less distress

during the anticipatory phase as well as during speech delivery (Landkroon, et al., 2022).

Educators have many options when it comes to positive mental imagery: mindful meditation

practices, journal writing, or artistic expression are all ways in which to help students positively

imagine their delivery of a speech. Positive mental imagery alone will not leave students

anxiety-free, but it is a strategy that teachers can use with students, especially those with high

levels of anxiety, to 14 reduce avoidant behaviors. Together, exposure therapy and positive

mental imagery alleviates negative emotions for students who are anxious public speakers. This

approach prevents students from engaging in avoidant behaviors when it comes to public

speaking.

Best Practices in Public Speaking Education

Teachers at all levels must include public speaking assessments in their classes so their

students are given the opportunities to gain these skills. However, teachers must do more than
simply assign a speech and leave kids to figure out how to be successful. There are strategies

teachers can utilize to make public speaking more manageable and approachable for students.

Engage Students and Allow Collaboration

Getting students engaged and excited about a presentation is important when requiring

students to complete a speaking assessment. Experts agree that “interaction with teachers and

other students is essential for developing positive self-esteem, self-confidence, and also

improving students’ ability to work collaboratively and productively with peers” (Walters, et al.,

2022, p. 844). One creative way to encourage collaboration is to gamify the presentation. In his

article, Davide Girardelli presented an activity to engage learners. The activity is set up as a

gameshow with the teacher as the host and the students split up into teams. The teams are

presented with a story scenario, for example a superhero and the enemy. Each team member is

then assigned a part of the story to tell. Students are given a limited time to prepare before they

present their part of the story to the class. While they are presenting, a designated judge ranks

each team (Girardelli, 2017). This activity is an effective way to ease students into speaking

publicly. By telling a story, students find it easier to improvise than they would in a traditional

speech assessment. The collaborative work required for this activity creates a sense of

community as well which helps ease anxiety students may feel.

Another creative and engaging activity presented by Elnaz Parviz helps students “gain

awareness of organization in [a] persuasive speech, write speeches effectively using clear and

descriptive language, [and] notice the role of teamwork” (Parviz, 2020, p. 41). With this activity,

students are put in a hypothetical situation: there is a zombie apocalypse and only one

remaining town that can only accept one group. Students are put into teams and told to create a

persuasive pitch for the town’s city council. Each student is given a part of the pitch with

directions and explanations of what should be included in their portion. Once all teams have
presented to city council—the class—students vote on which team was the most persuasive,

however they are not 18 allowed to vote for their own team. This activity creates classroom

community and allows students to practice organizing and presenting persuasively—a speaking

genre typically required in academic speaking. This activity also requires students to think about

their audience and adjust accordingly. Most significantly, this activity engages students and

leaves them with a positive speaking experience.

In order to carry out both of these activities, teachers must allow collaboration. This strategy

also lines up with Minnesota State Standard. “Initiate and participate effectively in a range of

collaborative discussions” (Minnesota Academic Standards English Language Arts K-12, 2010,

p. 70). Collaboration can occur at points throughout the project (for example only during

preparation and practice), or throughout the entire presentation. According to Hsiang-Ann Liao,

students like preparation sessions and getting feedback from their peers. This practice

alleviates speaking anxiety. Additionally, Liao’s study found that “African American students,

Hispanic American students, and students whose mother had no more than a high school

education benefited the most from collaborative learning. This finding is important to note. As

educators we strive to close the achievement gap and this strategy could help us get one step

closer. To ensure these positive outcomes, the instructor must help students structure their

collaborative time.

Student Awareness of Learning and Expectations

With any assessment, informing students of the expectations is a necessary step. This step is

invaluable for public speaking assessments. Presentations are one of the most anxiety inducing

assessments students face in school, so they must know how they are going to be graded.

However, Tsang argues that oftentimes, rubrics for speeches are too vague and a “major

problem lies in the over-generalization in many descriptors and rubrics” (Tsang, 2017, p. 40).
This issue 19 must be addressed because “a learner awarded a low grade in ‘speaking style:

speed, volume, and intonation’ may very well not be able to identify the exact areas for

improvement” (Tsang, 2017, p. 41). Tsang suggests that to correct this, students should help

construct the meaning and description of the requirements. Students must become aware of

their own learning and decide what effective speaking looks like. Teachers may decide to show

examples and have students make observations about the delivery and content. Students could

look at lists of presentation features and evaluate or rank their importance. This valuable

practice was noticed by students. In the article, one anonymous student said, “I have greater

confidence […] Our teachers [before] didn’t spend time going over [presentation skills] even

though these are very useful” (Tsang, 2017, p. 47). Involving students in the creation of the

rubric forces them to think about presentation skills in a different way. It also encourages them

to analyze what the skills they are expected to have look like when they are being implemented.

Confidence in their speaking abilities will strengthen if students are more aware of what they will

be graded on and how they will be evaluated. By taking responsibility of their learning and

understanding of speaking requirements, students are more likely to be able to meet the

expectations their teachers have of them and feel more comfortable in their abilities.

Encouraging Critical Thinking

In all areas of education, teachers push their students to think critically. As cited in Philip

Wagner’s article, critical thinking is when students “engage in a thoughtful way [with] the

problems and subjects that come from within the range of one’s experiences” (Wagner, 2019,

p.159). However, Wagner argues that this does not happen in public speaking assessments as

much as teachers would like. Often times students choose topics that are surface level and

make arguments that are obvious. To alleviate this problem, Wagner assigns his students topics

that are 20 relevant to today’s society. He also assigns them their position, which may or may
not go against what the student actually believes. He points out that by creating an argument

opposing their own beliefs, students found that “it helped bolster their own perspective and

strengthen their stance” (Wagner, 2019, p. 163). Another variation of this strategy is to have

students prepare both sides of an argument and then choose which side they will present.

Requiring students to include counterarguments could also encourage critical thinking.

Every type of speaking provides opportunities for critical thinking. In an informative speech,

students may be required to include a section on the implications of their topic. Here they would

explain how their topic impacts society as a whole. This section should strive to look past the

obvious implications and instead share with the audience surprising connections. For example,

an informative speech about libraries might talk about the impacts libraries have on

communities with high levels of poverty; or a speech about the history of body hair might look at

the implications it has on trans people. Persuasive speeches could include a solutions section in

which students are required to offer actions their audience could take. Students must analyze

their audience in order to provide solutions the audience members could take part in.

Another area for students to think critically is when it comes to delivery. The tone used on

specific words, the pauses used, where a speaker changes volume, the facial expressions a

speaker makes all create meaning in a speech. Students who look through their speech and

annotate it to determine their delivery participate in critical thinking. They scrutinize every

phrase to determine how it should be delivered which requires them to think about what they will

do as well as how their audience might receive that message. In order for presentations to be

an effective means of learning, educators must encourage critical thinking skills in their

assessments.

References
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https://www.researchgate.net/publication/

281190369_Teachers'_perceptions_of_disruptive_behaviour_in_schools_a_psychological_pers

pective (Nash et al., 2016, p. 595)

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311159715_Positive_peer_relationships_and_acade

mic_achievement_across_early_and_midadolescence (Gallardo & Barrasa, 2016, p. 1637).

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338191976_Virtual_reality_exposure_therapy_for_ado

lescents_with_fear_of_public_speaking_a_non-randomized_feasibility_and_pilot_study (Kahlon,

et al., 2019, p. 6)

https://scholar.google.com.ph/citations?user=HtCyHJwAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra (Landkroon, et

al., 2022)

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/

357026701_Secondary_school_students'_perception_of_the_online_teaching_experience_duri

ng_COVID-19_The_impact_on_mental_wellbeing_and_specific_learning_difficulties (Walters,

et al., 2022, p.844).

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316531232_Impromptu_speech_gamification_for_ESL

EFL_students. (Girardelli, 2017).

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Parviz-Maftoon-2” (Parviz, 2020, p. 41).

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28616007/ (Tsang, 2017, p. 40)

https://www.icbuw.eu/frieder-wagner-deadly-dust-2019-an-important-book-about-uranium-

weapons/ (Wagner, 2019, p.159).

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the research methodology, including the research design,

research locale, interview guide, ethical standards, conversational partners, and data gathering

procedure.

Research Design

For this study, the qualitative approach methodology, using face-to-face interviews, was

used to examine a particular causes and emotional impact of speaking anxiety among junior

high school. Capturing the complex dynamics and contextual factors involved in speaking

anxiety is exceptionally well suited for qualitative research, which focuses on exploring the
broad range and depth of experiences among Junior High School students in Rizal, Buenavista,

Agusan del Norte, Philippines. The qualitative approach is a methodological approach that

explores the intricacies of human experiences, perceptions, and social phenomena. It stands

out for its dedication to comprehending the background, significance, and individualized

interpretations people give to their experiences. Qualitative research plays a crucial role in the

social sciences by revealing the complexity and depth of human behavior and providing insights

that quantitative methods might miss. (Brinia, et. al., 2020).

Research Locale

tThis study will be conducted within the confines of Buenavista, a coastal municipality in Agusan

del Norte, Philippines. Buenavista, which consists of 25 barangays, is located on the island of

Mindanao at approximately 8° 58' North, 125° 25' East. The Municipality of Buenavista will be

acknowledged in both Tagalog (Bayan ng Buenavista) and Cebuano (Lungsod sa Buenavista).

According to the 2020 census, the municipality is home to 68,892 people, providing a diverse

and dynamic setting for this study. The research will explore the causes and emotional impact of

speaking anxiety among junior high school students residing in Buenavista. Given its

educational and social context, the study will aim to understand the factors influencing speaking

anxiety, the emotional effects on students, and how these challenges are shaped by the local

cultural and societal environment.

o capture in-depth insights into students' experiences and emotions related to speaking

Interview Guide

The researchers use a self-made interview guide to obtain the respondents' direct,

comprehensive, qualitative insights. The first part primarily seeks to gather the respondents'

profiles (Age, Gender, Grade Level). The following parts address various themes that emerge
from responses when participants are asked about the perception of causes and emotional

impact of speaking anxiety among Junior High School.

Ethical Standard

In conducting this research, we consider ethical standards to ensure the integrity,

confidentiality, and well-being of all participants. Established ethical guidelines provide all

respondents with informed consent, outlining the study's purpose, procedures, and potential

implications. Participation is entirely voluntary, and individuals have the right to withdraw at any

stage without consequence. The research aligns with the provisions of Republic Act No. 10173,

known as the "Data Privacy Act of 2012," which establishes the rights of individuals to data

privacy and governs the processing of personal information. To maintain confidentiality, all

collected data are anonymized, and no personally identifiable information is disclosed in the

research findings. The research promotes fairness, respect, and honesty, safeguarding

participants' rights and dignity, minimizing potential risks, and seeking ethical approval from

review boards. The team is committed to transparency and open communication, aiming to

uphold the trust and well-being of all participants while minimizing potential risks and seeking

ethical approval from relevant review boards.

Data Gathering Procedure

The data-gathering procedure aims to collect extensive and comprehensive qualitative data

from Junior High School students in Rizal, Buenavista, Agusan del Norte, Philippines, regarding

their speaking anxiety. It involves a methodical approach consisting of several key steps.

The process begins with the identification of participants. This step ensures a diverse

representation of perspectives and experiences. Conducting the research study involves

identifying participants, obtaining informed consent, and ensuring ethical considerations.

Interview scheduling is coordinated with participants, and semi-structured interviews are

developed to facilitate open-ended responses. In-depth interviews are conducted with the

students and recorded with explicit consent. Document analysis is used to validate interview
findings and uncover nuances. Thematic analysis helps identify recurring themes, patterns, and

categories within the data, enhancing comprehension of underlying issues. This process

ensures a diverse representation of perspectives and experiences while adhering to ethical

standards. Thematic analysis facilitates the organization and interpretation of qualitative data,

allowing for extracting key findings and formulating conclusions.

In addition to the research study, the researchers face challenges when assessing the

factors influencing the causes and emotional impact of speaking anxiety among Junior High

School students. One of the issues encountered during interviews is the difficulty in

understanding how students perceive their causes and emotional impact of speaking anxiety.

Some students have limited awareness of their speaking anxiety, while others struggle to

articulate the reasons behind their choices. Additionally, a few students lack sufficient

knowledge about the potential effects of speaking anxiety. These were some of the difficulties

encountered when interviewing the students.

This research aims to add significant insights to the existing knowledge on the causes and

emotional impact of speaking anxiety by offering a thorough and complex understanding of the

factors influencing the speaking anxiety of Junior High School students in the local context

through this methodical data collection process.