Teachers' Emotions in Language Teaching: A Quantitative Study

Strategic Insights -

A recent study published in the International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching has shed light on the complexities of teachers' emotions when providing feedback on student writing. Conducted by researchers from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the study aimed to develop an instrument for measuring Chinese university English writing teachers' feedback-giving emotions. The research involved 288 English writing teachers from 120 universities in 23 provinces of China and resulted in the identification of five kinds of emotions: cheerfulness, contentment, frustration, anxiety, and anger. The study also found that most demographic variables had no correlation with teachers' feedback-giving emotions, except for professional training experience.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study developed a 17-item scale to measure Chinese university English writing teachers' feedback-giving emotions.
  • The scale revealed five kinds of emotions: cheerfulness, contentment, frustration, anxiety, and anger.
  • Latent profile analysis identified four groups of teachers according to their diverse patterns of emotions: slight-positive-emotional teachers, negative-emotional teachers, positive-emotional teachers, and mixed-emotional teachers.
  • Most demographic variables, including teaching experience, student background, and institution prestige, had no correlation with teachers' feedback-giving emotions.
  • Professional training experience had a minimal influence on teachers' group memberships concerning feedback-giving emotions.
  • The study contributes to the literature on teachers' emotions during the provision of feedback.
  • The findings highlight the complexity of feedback-giving emotions, particularly the identification of mixed-emotional teachers.

Statistics:

  • 288 English writing teachers from 120 universities in 23 provinces of China participated in the study.
  • 40.97% of the teachers were classified as slight-positive-emotional teachers.
  • 12.15% of the teachers were classified as negative-emotional teachers.
  • 17.36% of the teachers were classified as positive-emotional teachers.
  • 29.51% of the teachers were classified as mixed-emotional teachers.
  • The study involved a sample size of 288, with a response rate of 100%.

Sources:

  • Exploring Chinese University English Writing Teachers' Emotions In Providing Feedback On Student Writing. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 2025;63(3):1871-1893.
  • Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Dept. of Chinese and Bilingual Studies.
  • Xinhua Zhu, Researcher, Hong Kong Polytechnic University.