This study tracked and quantitatively measured Japanese English Language Learner (ELL) classroom speaking anxiety over 12 weeks. Participants (N = 75) were first-year Japanese Oral Communication students attending a public university in Japan. The Nervousness Metric (NM) was created by the researcher and was used as a quantitative tracking tool. Beginning from the second week of one school term, students filled out the NM two times in each lesson: once at the start of each week’s lesson, and again prior to the lecturer’s assigned performance task. Quantitative data produced from the NM tracking system suggested that participants’ anxiety decreased, with the most significant decrease occurring between the first and second weeks of data collection. Additional quantitative data indicated that within each lesson, anxiety levels were raised pre-performance. Qualitative data supported previous research by Woodrow (2006), which suggested that ELLs prefer collaborative group activities over individual oral presentations. 本論は、12週間にわたり日本人英語学習者（ELL）の授業中のスピーキングに対する不安感を調査し、量的に測定することを目的とした。参加者（人数 = 75名）は、日本の公立大学で英語オーラルコミュニケーションの授業に参加している日本人の大学1年生である。量的な調査を行うツールとして緊張度メトリック（NM）が使用された。調査は学期の第2週目に開始され、学生は授業開始時とタスクの前にNMを記入した。NMによる量的データでは、第1週目と第2週目の間に日本人ELLの不安感が最も顕著に減少することが示唆された。また、授業中では、タスク直前に学生の不安度が上がることが示唆された。学生のコメントによる質的データでは、Woodrow（2006）の研究と同様の結果を示し、ELLは各個人で行う口頭発表よりも共同で行うグループ活動を好むことが確認されている。

The following paper highlights a podcast narrative that emerged through a series of interviews for the podcast series "Lost in Citations". The thread that connects each guest is the topic of silence in 2nd-language university classrooms in Japan. Much like academics read, cite, and then publish responses, throughout this podcast narrative, leading scholars in the field of silence in university classrooms were able to listen in "real time" to their colleagues and subsequently respond and forward the ongoing conversation to future guests in the series. After reviewing 5 interviews which focused on publications regarding silence in university language classrooms, the following themes emerged: ways of conceptualizing silence, silence and culture, approaching research, problematizing and coping with unwanted silence, and categorizing meaningful/productive silence. Where appropriate, we situated these commentaries within the wider discourse of silence literature.

While psychologists often use a combination of physiological and self-reported data to examine the dynamic effects of stress on performance, the impact of affective states on Foreign Language (FL) speaking performance has almost exclusively been assessed using self-report methodology (e.g., questionnaires, interviews). In fact, studies that correlate physiological data with self-report measures in a classroom context are extremely rare due to both cost and logistical restraints. This study set out to address this gap in language learning research by employing Fitbit smart watches as a tool to unobtrusively collect heart rate (HR) response data. Participants in this study were undergraduate Japanese language students (5 males and 5 females, mean age = 19.7 years, SD = .95) at a private university in Japan. Over three sessions, students wore Fitbit smart watches and performed three different class-observed dialogs (with randomized partners and performance order) while seated at their desks. Students were also asked to report their affective state (to index their feelings in the moment) across three intervals within each class session: class start, pre-performance, and post-performance. Using multi-level modeling statistical analysis, elevated self-reported state feelings of distress and embarrassment were found to be significantly positively related with elevated HR response. To further understanding of how affective states unfold in classroom environments, researchers should consider both physiological and self-report measures. With advances in wearable technology, similar research designs to this study may become more commonplace.

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