Teacher Concerns and Teacher Anxiety: A Neglected Topic of Classroom Research

Abstract

Although a considerable amount of research on the effects of anxiety in the classroom has been conducted, most studies have tended to focus on aspects of student anxiety. In recent years, however, a number of investigators have turned their attention to the complementary area of teacher anxiety and have begun to study the incidence and effects of teachers who experience anxiety in the classroom. Certainly relating anxiety to both student and teacher makes possible a more sophisticated and complete approach that should increase the understanding of the impact of anxiety in the classroom. Yet a closer examination of the research to date on teacher anxiety suggests that this area is still at a very early stage of development. This paper will outline the directions in which further research and theoretical clarification seem warranted.