Saudi EFL Learners’ Test Anxiety Levels during CBT and PBT
Alwazzan, Osama Ahmed . 2019
Individuals’ attitudes toward computer-based testing (CBT) can either increase or decrease their test anxiety
level. As a result, they may be highly resistant to change or they may have different types of behavior. It is,
therefore, pertinent to investigate individual students’ attitudes toward computers before administering CBT.
This study investigated the effectiveness of CBT when compared to traditional paper-based testing (PBT) in
terms of reducing test anxiety among Saudi learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). The participants
were forty undergraduate male students enrolled in a first-year preparatory EFL course at a Saudi university.
The students were divided into two groups, a CBT group and a PBT group, and took the same assessment in
the two test formats. The participants completed two questionnaires to examine their anxiety levels before and
during each test, and to collect information regarding their prior experience with and attitudes toward either
testing format. An analysis of variance comparison was used to compare anxiety levels between the CBT and
PBT groups. The findings showed that students had a neutral attitude toward both types of tests. Furthermore,
the students’ attitudes did not have a significant impact on anxiety levels for either testing format. Rather,
anxiety levels experienced in both testing formats were significantly correlated with each other and the attitude
factor. Further research is required to delineate factors that may contribute to test anxiety as well as provide
further insight into the under-represented student subgroup that participated in the study.
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