Reading Anxiety among Indigenous Students in Kuala Tahan, Pahang

Abstract

Reading is one of the vital skills needed to be literate. Reading abilities allow learners to gain new information, widen their knowledge, as well as improve their communication and language skills. This study was conducted to investigate reading anxiety among indigenous primary school students in an EFL classroom. This research was conducted with the participation of 30 indigenous kids from two national elementary schools. Employing a quantitative method, this study aims to determine the level of reading anxiety among indigenous students and the types of difficulties of using reading strategies that they experienced. The data were collected using ELF Reading Anxiety Inventory (ELFRAI) to measure their anxiety level and the types of difficulties that they encountered. The findings of the research indicate that they experience moderate anxiety, and the components of reading that provide the most challenge for them are vocabulary, followed by general reading anxiety, and then grammar.