“Okay, turn to your group and share your ideas, you’ve got 5 minutes!” I look around the room and whilst the majority of my learners are actively engaging in their group conversations, I notice Maria behaving as usual when speaking is on the program; she’s withdrawn. And then there is Jin, another learner who mostly remains silent during speaking activities.

I’m sure most teachers have encountered students like Maria and Jin who seem hesitant to participate in speaking activities; they may avoid eye contact, keep their answers short or simply remain silent. Whilst we may be quick to label these learners as "shy" or "introverted", it is important to be aware that their reluctance could have to do with other factors rather than with personality.

 

Shy, or Simply Unsafe?

But shyness may not always be the issue. Now, some students are naturally quiet, introverted or possibly shy and there’s nothing wrong with that!  Some prefer to listen or to engage in written communication rather than spoken activities. Shyness and introversion are not problems to be fixed—they are personality traits that influence how students engage with the world. However, a reluctance to speak in class isn’t always about personality, it can be a sign of something deeper. So, instead of assuming these students are naturally withdrawn, maybe it is time that we ask ourselves what is it that is holding these learners back? And even more importantly, how could we create a classroom where they may be more willing to speak?

In many cases the real barrier could be a lack of psychological safety: the feeling that it’s okay to take risks, make mistakes, and be vulnerable without fear of judgment or harm (Edmondson, 1999). Learners might be worried about what might happen if they make a mistake, don’t know the correct answer or simply share something other students may not agree with. Since students are shaped by their cultural background and past experiences, it is essential to realise that these fears don’t always have to come from inside the classroom.

 

 

Why might some students not feel safe?

  1. Past negative learning experiences - A student who was ridiculed in a previous language learning experience- or even in another subject- may have developed a fear of expressing their ideas or speaking in front of others. They might believe that sharing their thoughts or making mistakes might make them unpopular, the target of jokes or even cause others to get upset or angry with them. By not speaking they simply try to protect themselves.
  2. Cultural expectations - In some cultures, students are taught to listen more than to speak. Students may be used to a certain hierarchy in the classroom and expressing their opinions or sharing personal details about their life openly are simply things unfamiliar and unusual to them. As a result, personalised speaking activities could feel uncomfortable or inappropriate.
  3. Fear of judgment from peers - Teenagers and adults alike care and are deeply aware of how they may be perceived by others. A classmate rolling their eyes, an impatient sigh or even a well-meant correction can make some students feel more self-conscious. Over time, this fear of negative reactions can lead to choosing silence over the risk of being embarrassed, ultimately hindering their language development.
  4. Perfectionism and anxiety - Some students put immense pressure on themselves to speak perfectly. If they can’t find the right words or structure a sentence exactly as they imagined, they’d rather not speak at all. This fear of mistakes can be paralysing, leading to avoidance rather than willingness to practise. Opting out on opportunities to develop their fluency, however, these students get even more behind… leading to more anxiety.
  5. Trauma and emotional barriers –We all carry emotional baggage, some more than others. Sadly, some students haven’t experienced safe relations -whether at home or at school- and come to class with a hyper-aroused nervous system: their fight-flight-or-freeze system is already on high alert. For these students a certain response, e.g. their partner giving them a certain look or the teacher using a particular tone of could be a perceived as a “threat”, activating their fight-flight-or-freeze response. In other words, since speaking activities are perceived as possibly dangerous they tend to remain quiet since it’s safer. So what can we do?

 

  

 

Shifting our perspective

Instead of blaming students avoidance behaviour on shyness or their personality it is important that teachers are aware that students avoiding speaking, could be a sign of other fears. Behaviour is rarely a choice made in isolation, we need to acknowledge the role past experiences, beliefs and culture play. Therefore, to manage learners and their learning more effectively it might be more helpful to shift our perspectives to "what need isn’t being met that makes this student hesitant to speak?" rather than "how do I make this student speak?”

 

How can we create a safer speaking environment?

Below we will explore what it is we can do to try and create better conditions for these learners to feel safe enough to actual participate in speaking activities.

 

  1. Shift the classroom mindset from “mistakes are a failure" to "mistakes are part of the learning process." One way of doing this is by making your own mistakes visible. If students see you stumble over a word or laugh at a mistake, they learn that errors are part of being human!

💡 Share stories of yourself of famous people who struggled with language learning, or let students hear a recording of you trying to learn to speak a new language!

 

  1. Reduce the pressure. In some contexts it is still common for one student to share their story with the whole class and the other 34 students listening whilst that one might feel pretty uncomfortable! Remember, speaking does not need to happen in front of the whole class!

💡 Use pair and small-group discussions before asking students to share with the class and allow students to write down key points before they speak.

 

  1. Create a supportive learning environment so all students feel valued. It is key that students know they can have different ideas and do not need to agree with each other, the textbook or teacher. They also need to know that they won’t be laughed at, when disagreeing. At the core of this is building trusting and empathetic relationships with and between learners.

💡 Set clear expectations so everyone knows to respect every speaker no matter their age, gender, race, level of accuracy or fluency or point of view. Encourage responding kindly, even when disagreeing. Plan for micro-interactions, in particular with those learners that seem shy, to gain some insight into their lives.

 

  1. Give students control. Some students feel unsafe because speaking activities might ask them to talk about experiences or topics that retraumatise them. A simple example like “talk about your childhood” is not something all learners would want to do. Respect this. Also, they might not feel comfortable with all speaking buddies yet.

💡 Let students choose topics that interest them or adapt the current task so they don’t go into freeze-fight-or-flight mode. Allowing them some choice in who they speak with, whether to speak first or last and to only select e.g. the where and what, but not who and why may help too.

 

  1. Check in with students - Sometimes, simply asking students how they feel, in particular about speaking in class can reveal a lot.

💡 Use anonymous surveys or quick check-ins: On a scale of 1-5, how comfortable do you feel speaking in class? What makes speaking activities difficult for you?  What would make them easier? Which speaking buddy enables you the most in speaking activities? Which topics do you not feel comfortable talking about?

 

Final thoughts

When students don’t participate in speaking activities, it’s not always because they are shy. More often, it’s because they simply don’t feel sure enough or safe enough to try. By thinking about possible barriers that may prevent students from speaking, we can take action and create conditions that may create more willingness for students to take risks, engage in speaking, and share their views freely.

And remember, when students feel enabled finding the willingness to participate is easier. So set them up for success by considering:

  • Is the task clearly set and modelled?
  • Is the task demand matching their language abilities?
  • Do students actually have some background knowledge of the topic?
  • Are students given time to think and prepare before speaking?
  • Does the activity feel meaningful and relevant to their lives?

We hope this blog has given you some ideas on how to better support those learners who seem shy to speak but need it the most. Now, maybe they truly are - which is totally fine -  but taking into consideration why students may not be at ease speaking yet and what to about it, can benefit all learners in the classroom and beyond.

 

References

Edmondson, A. C. (1999). ‘Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams’. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44: 2, 350–383. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, Inc.