Exploring the Effects of Online Courses on Elementary Students’ Listening, Reading Abilities and Learning Anxiety

Limited access to English-speaking environments in contexts such as Taiwan presents a great challenge for learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). Although synchronous online learning has shown promise in fostering authentic and interactive learning environments, its effectiveness for young learners of English as a foreign language, particularly those with limited resources, remained unclear. Therefore, this study examined the effects of synchronous online learning courses on EFL elementary school students’ listening and reading ability, as well as their levels of learning anxiety. Eighty-nine elementary school students participated in 10-week online courses, receiving around 160 minutes of instruction per week. Before and after the online courses, they received pre- and post-tests on their listening and reading ability and filled out learning anxiety surveys. Using paired sample t-tests, the analysis revealed significant enhancements in the students’ listening abilities after the online courses, accompanied by a significant reduction in anxiety associated with learning English. Although reading abilities showed some improvement, it was not statistically significant. The findings not only underscored the potential of synchronous online learning to enhance language abilities among young learners with limited resources but also highlighted its role in mitigating learning apprehensions. Therefore, this study offered pedagogical implications for the design and implementation of online language courses, particularly in contexts where traditional resources may be limited or inaccessible.