In a typical English language classroom, learners are expected to produce written sentences that are grammatically correct, and they are expected to sound native-like in their pronunciation. However, such expectations may cause anxiety and could potentially hinder the success of creating functional and successful language learners. This study aimed to understand undergraduate students’ language learning anxiety and their perceived success in an ESL classroom in the hopes of creating a mentally healthier language learning environment. Through a quantitative approach, the results of the questionnaire showed that reasons that led to undergraduate students’ anxiety in an ESL classroom were fear of tests, fear of comprehension, and fear of negative evaluation by peers. The results also showed that undergraduate students felt less anxious when lecturers provided non-threatening or mentally healthier environment for students to learn in their classroom. It can be concluded that a lecturer’s teaching styles and strategies affected students’ level of anxiety and can help ensure a mentally healthier language learning environment. From the findings, it is recommended that lecturers create a less formal and friendlier classroom atmosphere by providing psychological support and making students aware of the possible channels to seek help when needed.

Since the term 'janda', Malay for previously married women, is typically seen to carry a negative connotation, this study set out to investigate society's perceptions towards media portrayal of the word 'janda' in Malaysia. It also aimed to examine the significant difference between gender on the perceptions towards the media portrayal. The quantitative approach was employed in this research and data for this study were questionnaire responses collected from 381 respondents of different backgrounds. The results showed that in general, the media in Malaysia portrays janda negatively. However, there are still positive portrayals of janda in the media as independent individuals especially when it relates to their children. Other than that, it was also discovered that there was a significant difference in the perception of media portrayals of janda in Malaysia between genders and it seemed that women felt that the media portrayed jandas more negatively compared to men. Future research could use qualitative methods to have an in-depth analysis and a further understanding of the reasons for negative media portrayal of janda and how it influences society, both directly and indirectly.

The vast majority of 'Gen Z' are in the positive light about the future of technology in education. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a shift in teaching, learning and assessing methods. To keep abreast with current technology, computer-based language test (CBLT) was used as one of the methods to assess students' language proficiency during the shift. For this study, the CBLT was adopted and conducted among students who were taking an English proficiency course in a public university mainly located in Selangor, Malaysia. They were required to sit for the test as part of the course fulfilment. Thus, the purpose of the study is to investigate whether there are significant differences in the CBLT 1, CBLT 2 and CBLT 3 scores among Business Management (BM), Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH), and Science and Technology (ST) students, who were from different branches around Malaysia. The study employed a quantitative research design in which a total of 16079 students' scores from three (3) different tests were recorded and analysed. The results of this analysis will provide insights on the conclusion that students from different programmes were able to adapt to the use of the CBLT in assessing their listening skills.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the education system in this world, forcing students to navigate challenges and risk factors. Hence, this study was conducted to understand the challenges and risk factors faced by university students in Malaysia due to the sudden shift to online distance learning. It utilised a qualitative method and the data was obtained using open-ended questions via Google Form. The findings discovered that there were 4 themes under challenges, namely cultural (44.4%), individual (33.3%), technological (25.0%), and academic (i.e. their studies) (13.9%). The challenges were compounded by the risk factors, which were family (36.1%), health-related factors (27.8%), individual (25.0%), the pandemic (19.4%), social (8.3%), and geographical (2.8%). It can be inferred from the findings that students faced challenges during ODL and the risk factors may worsen the effects of the challenges on the students. Interestingly, it was observed that the students sought outlets to share their stressful experiences and were willing to use tools such as personal reflections. Since university students struggle with many mental health challenges, further research could look into students' reflections to determine their potential as a therapeutic tool in the classroom.

Although argumentative writing skills are essential for survival in today’s social and professional world, they are rather challenging to master. The Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education places great emphasis on the needs for graduates to grasp argumentative writing skills. However, learners appear to be ambivalent about the skills. Thus, using a quantitative approach, this study aims to explore the students’ perceptions towards learning argumentative writing as well as identify the challenges that they face. Analysed using ANOVA, data from the questionnaire used in the study indicates that: i) the respondents believed that learning argumentative writing is equally important for academic success and career development in the future; and ii) those with lower grades tend to struggle more with language style and components of argumentative writing. The findings also suggest that educators should try to cater to students’ needs in order to promote mastery of argumentative writing skills. In the future, qualitative research could be conducted to explore learners’ perceptions in more detail. Researchers could also employ mixed methods to investigate issues around argumentative writing skills from educators’ perspectives.