Exploring the Relationship between Students’ Shyness and Class Engagement at Secondary School Level

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to explore the relationship between students’ shyness and class engagement at the secondary school level. The study aimed to investigate the students' views on the reasons for the problems of shyness and class engagement. This study was descriptive in nature, employing a quantitative approach and correlational in design. A questionnaire comprising 30 closed-ended statements was developed on a five-point Likert-type scale. The sample of the study consisted of 400 students (grade 10th) from public secondary schools in Lahore District. The questionnaire was piloted by 50 students, and the reliability of the instrument was checked by Cronbach’s Alpha formula, which was found to be 0.819. The random sampling technique was used to select the sample for this study. For data analysis, an independent sample t-test, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson r were used. Pearson's r correlation was computed to determine the relationship between shyness and class engagement. The results revealed a statistically significant negative correlation (r = –.194, p = .001) between shyness and class engagement. This indicates that as shyness increases, class engagement tends to decrease. While the strength of the correlation is small, it remains meaningful in highlighting that shyness can negatively influence students' active involvement in class activities. There is a need to foster supportive, inclusive, and low-anxiety classroom environments that help shy students feel more confident and comfortable to engage, thereby enhancing both their engagement and academic development.