EXPLORING THE IMPACT OF GENDERS ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING ANXIETY OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

This study aims to assess anxiety levels related to English learning among male and female students and compare them based on gender. I used a quantitative method with a descriptive approach, analyzing questionnaire results from 35 male and 35 female 8th-grade students at SMPN 1 Sorong Regency for the 2023/2024 school year. The questionnaire was adapted from FLCAS. The findings reveal that female students tend to experience higher anxiety levels, particularly related to the fear of making mistakes and negative evaluation, and these differences are statistically significant. While females also reported higher anxiety regarding self-confidence and speaking in front of others, these differences were not statistically significant. The correlation analysis shows that fear of making mistakes and fear of negative evaluation are key contributors to anxiety in both genders. However, females display stronger connections between lack of self-confidence and these fears, making these factors more impactful on their anxiety levels