Are online classes less apprehensive for students with high communication apprehension?

Effective communication skills are vital for academic success and student satisfaction, while high Communication Apprehension (CA) hinders both. The COVID-19 lockdown popularized online teaching-learning as the new paradigm for schools. Understanding its impact on students with high CA is imperative due to reduced interpersonal communication opportunities. This study investigates practices of teachers and CA experiences among eighth-grade students with high CA in offline versus online classes. The study also identifies differences in the impact of peers, teachers, and parents on students' CA concerning offline and online classes. Results exhibit that CA diminishes in online classes by up to 35.9%, predominantly when called upon by the teacher or seeking clarification. Parental presence during online classes contributes to CA, whereas it declines towards teachers and peers. Notably, more students report higher CA in interpersonal communication (82.1%) than in public speaking (69.2%), emphasizing attention to this domain.