Addressing the “Silent Classroom”: A theoretical perspective on language anxiety and communicative readiness among Vietnamese primary learners

Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive theoretical perspective on the complex interplay between Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety (FLCA) and Willingness to Communicate (WTC) within the landscape of Vietnamese primary education. Amidst the nationwide implementation of the 2018 General Education Program, the pervasive phenomenon of the “silent classroom” has emerged as a critical pedagogical challenge, where learners possess linguistic knowledge but lack the psychological readiness to engage in discourse.

Drawing upon a multi-dimensional synthesis of Krashen’s (1982) Affective Filter Hypothesis, Horwitz et al.’s (1986) tripartite construct of FLCA, and MacIntyre et al.’s (1998) Heuristic Model of WTC, this article analyzes how socio-cultural stressors specifically the collectivist imperative of “face-saving” and the fear of peer evaluation-act as psychological blockades. The study demonstrates that high levels of state anxiety effectively thicken the affective filter, causing a situational collapse of the WTC pyramid at the communicative antecedent level.

To address these barriers, the paper proposes a localized conceptual framework for pedagogical interventions, including the cultivation of “mistake-friendly” environments, gamification, and the strategic use of recasts. By establishing this robust theoretical foundation, the study provides a strategic roadmap for future empirical investigations including longitudinal and parental influence studies and offers actionable strategies for educators to transform the “silent classroom” into a dynamic, “low filter” environment conducive to natural language acquisition.