Factors influencing students speaking skills: Social Support and Speaking Anxiety

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate aspects of speaking anxiety and social support that significantly influence students' ability in speaking. A correlational study was conducted through a survey by distributing the questionnaire to 135 senior high school students. The instrument was constructed and validated through several steps; instrument adaptation, expert judgment, validity test, and reliability test. The results of the study, which were supported by a significant value of 0.000 0.05 and a Fcount of 8.999 (greater than Ftable 3.84), showed that speaking anxiety and social support were correlated to speaking competence. This shows that the hypothesis is accepted. The ability of senior high school students to speak is significantly impacted by speaking anxiety and social support; the Reliable Alliance is one aspect of social support that has a major impact on speaking ability. In conclusion, social support surely enhances students' motivation to develop their speaking abilities and students should have more opportunities to perform speaking in public to decrease their anxiety.