Research Paper
Hamed Abbasi Mojdehi; Abbas Ali Zarei; Rajab Esfandiari
Abstract
Grammatical accuracy has always been a concern for most Iranian EFL learners. This grammatical variability is more visible in the writing of Iranian IELTS candidates. In this study, the impacts of (distributed, peer and reciprocal scaffolding on IELTS learners' horizontal grammatical variability ...
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Grammatical accuracy has always been a concern for most Iranian EFL learners. This grammatical variability is more visible in the writing of Iranian IELTS candidates. In this study, the impacts of (distributed, peer and reciprocal scaffolding on IELTS learners' horizontal grammatical variability were investigated. An explanatory mixed design was employed to measure the differences among scaffolding types and to develop a better understanding of teachers' and learners' perception toward them. 120 IELTS candidates were randomly selected from a pool of 367 candidates, and they were put in three experimental groups and a control group. Each scaffolding type was used in one of the experimental groups as the treatment. Five different essay topics were given to each student before the course and after the course. Two official IELTS mock examiners rated the writing performances according to the details of IELTS criteria about grammar accuracy and variability. Next, using an ANCOVA procedure, the data were analyzed. Moreover, the data collected in the qualitative phase were content analyzed. The findings showed that in distributed and reciprocal scaffolding classes, the differences were significant. The qualitative findings showed that although there was a discrepancy between the teachers' and the learners' attitude toward the possible success of the treatments, at the end, both parties confirmed that they can be beneficial. Due to the fact that 'time' has always been a precious parameter in IELTS preparatory classes, these findings can be of help to IELTS teachers and candidates.
Research Paper
majid Ghorbani; shokouh Rashvand Semiyari
Abstract
The current study undertook to explore the interplay of motivational/attitudinal variables and second language (L2) learners’ motivated behavior through the lens of a revised model of L2 self-guides. This new model reconceptualizes Dornyei’s (2005, 2009) original motivational self-system ...
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The current study undertook to explore the interplay of motivational/attitudinal variables and second language (L2) learners’ motivated behavior through the lens of a revised model of L2 self-guides. This new model reconceptualizes Dornyei’s (2005, 2009) original motivational self-system into a five-factor model consisting of the bifurcated ideal and ought-to L2 selves (i.e., ideal L2 self/own, ideal L2 self/other, ought L2 self/own and ought L2 self/other) and L2 learning experience. In addition, two important antecedents of L2 self-guides (i.e., instrumentality-promotion and instrumentality-prevention) were also included in the new model. Data were collected from 856 students of English as a foreign language (EFL) at six Iranian universities. Fitness of the new model was supported by structural equation modeling (SEM) and all the paths were shown to be significant. Furthermore, SEM results indicated that ideal L2 self/own was the strongest factor predicting motivated behavior (considering its total effects). L2 learning experience and ought-to L2 self/own were the second and third predicting factors in terms of the magnitude of their effects respectively. The study provides a more nuanced understanding of learners’ motivational self system in foreign or second language learning.
Research Paper
Saba Bashiri; Hiwa Weisi
Abstract
Obituaries serve as the most viable means to announce a person's death. Regarding the socio-political changes in Iran due to the Islamic Revolution, this descriptive-analytic study reports on a move-based analysis of obituaries belonging before and after the Islamic Revolution driven by Swales' ...
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Obituaries serve as the most viable means to announce a person's death. Regarding the socio-political changes in Iran due to the Islamic Revolution, this descriptive-analytic study reports on a move-based analysis of obituaries belonging before and after the Islamic Revolution driven by Swales' (1990, 2004) genre move analysis. We employed a move-based analysis of 100 obituaries from two distinct periods collected via a library-documentary method. Our primary aim was to disclose the influence of a socio-political phenomenon on this specific genre, i.e., an obituary. After identifying the major moves of the two obituary sets, their similarities and differences were inspected. The results indicated that after the Islamic Revolution obituaries contained twice as many moves as their counterparts. There were overlaps between the two data sets in four moves, namely (a) identifying the announcer(s), (b) identifying the deceased, (c) identifying family members, and (d) outlining the time and place of the funeral. Four moves were only present in after the Islamic Revolution corpus, which included (a) opening, (b) including the picture of the deceased, (c) showing sorrow for the event, and (d) characterizing the deceased. The moves discussion will be supplemented with explanations instigated from the socio-economic, religious, and political context of both periods.
Research Paper
Mahsa Seirafi; Masoud Zoghi; Haniyeh Davatgari
Abstract
This study delves into the attitudes of Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners toward the classroom practices of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). It endeavors to present a comprehensive understanding of the current state of CLT in Iran, the associated challenges, and potential avenues ...
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This study delves into the attitudes of Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners toward the classroom practices of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). It endeavors to present a comprehensive understanding of the current state of CLT in Iran, the associated challenges, and potential avenues for enhancing CLT classroom practices. The existing literature review highlights a scarcity of research concerning learners’ perspectives on CLT, with many studies primarily relying on questionnaires or surveys, failing to capture learners’ nuanced attitudes and experiences. In response to this gap, our qualitative research explores the attitudes of 31 Iranian EFL learners using a grounded theory approach. Grounded theory, known for its capacity to unearth insights into social processes and their underlying factors, is particularly suited to this endeavor. The research findings uncover seven key themes that constitute the dimensions of CLT practices in the EFL classroom. These themes include interactive learning, speaking-auditory communication, learners’ participation in class activities, learners’ ability, teacher empowerment, learning needs assessment, and communicative language training. This study offers valuable insights into Iranian EFL learners’ attitudes toward CLT classroom practices. Findings also contribute to the ongoing dialogue on language teaching methodologies, providing educators and policymakers with a deeper understanding of learner perspectives and paving the way for more effective CLT implementation in EFL classrooms in Iran.Keywords: Attitude, communicative language teaching, EFL, exploratory research, grounded theory
Research Paper
Narjes Khodaparast; Nasim Ghanbari; Abbas Abbasi
Abstract
Among different factors affecting writing assessment, rater and rating scale are two influential variables which determine the outcome of assessment. Taking this into account, this study attempted to identify and classify the raters’ behaviors in the Iranian EFL context when using analytic and ...
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Among different factors affecting writing assessment, rater and rating scale are two influential variables which determine the outcome of assessment. Taking this into account, this study attempted to identify and classify the raters’ behaviors in the Iranian EFL context when using analytic and holistic rating scales. For this aim, a body of nine expert raters were asked to verbalize their thoughts when rating student essays. They were also asked to do their rating using the analytic scale of ESL Composition Profile and IELTS holistic scale. Upon the qualitative analysis of think-aloud protocols (TAPs), two themes emerged which showed the raters’ behaviors when applying the rating scales. The findings further showed that when using the holistic scale, the raters read the text first to get an overall impression. Then they assessed the text based on their own criteria. Next, they referred to the scale for scoring and in the last stage they provided evidence for their scoring. On the other hand, when applying analytic rating scales, the raters first scanned the text for surface features. Then they read the text for their initial impression. Next, they read each scale component and its descriptor for scoring and finally, they attempted to provide evidence for their scoring. In addition to identifying the raters’ behaviors, the raters’ behaviors were classified. The findings imply that the diagnosis of the rater-rating scale interactions can unveil the strengths and weaknesses of the EFL rating process. This, in turn, can provide more quality training for the raters.
Research Paper
Elham Banisaeed; Mohammad Hashamdar; Kobra Tavassoli
Abstract
Classroom-based assessment (CBA) as one of the constructs of formative assessment has been considered highly significant in recent years. Consequently, various tools have been designed to investigate teachers` CBA needs and deficiencies ignoring different levels of teachers` CBA literacy. Thus, the present ...
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Classroom-based assessment (CBA) as one of the constructs of formative assessment has been considered highly significant in recent years. Consequently, various tools have been designed to investigate teachers` CBA needs and deficiencies ignoring different levels of teachers` CBA literacy. Thus, the present study researchers developed and validated a classroom-based assessment literacy questionnaire (CALQ) to determine teachers` levels of CBAL. To do so, an inclusive review of the literature was accomplished to retrieve major themes and components of CBAL, and then a series of interviews were conducted with five assessment experts and 13 experienced EFL teachers in accordance with Pill and Harding’s (2013) Model of LAL, Hill and McNamara’s (2012) scope and dimensions of CBA in addition to teachers’ assessment literacy beliefs. Accordingly, a questionnaire (CALQ) including 41 items was developed. To inquire the reliability and validity of the CALQ, 318 EFL teachers were selected through non-probability convenience sampling and asked to answer the questionnaire. The outcomes of the Cronbach’s alpha demonstrated a proper reliability index, and factor analysis products clarified that items loaded on six factors named as illiteracy (6 items); nominal literacy (11 items); functional literacy (6 items); procedural and conceptual literacy (6 items); multidimensional literacy (6 items); and assessment literacy beliefs (6 items). Besides, CALQ is considered advantageous in assessing teachers’ CBAL and facilitating materials preparation to design instructional courses and develop EFL teachers’ CBAL, based on the conclusions of structural equation modeling (SEM), which proved that the Model enjoyed good psychometric features.
Research Paper
Milad Naderi; Jalil Fathi; Habib Soleimani
Abstract
With the widespread use of technology in today's society, the effective integration of technology in education has become a vital area of research, particularly in teacher education. Teacher variables play a crucial role in the successful incorporation of technology in the classroom. Consequently, ...
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With the widespread use of technology in today's society, the effective integration of technology in education has become a vital area of research, particularly in teacher education. Teacher variables play a crucial role in the successful incorporation of technology in the classroom. Consequently, several empirical studies have explored the factors influencing teachers' intentions to use technology. This study aims to contribute to this research by examining the roles of teacher self-efficacy and technology self-efficacy in predicting technology use among Iranian EFL instructors. A sample of 353 Iranian EFL instructors participated in an online survey, completing three self-report scales measuring the mentioned constructs. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to analyze the collected data and test the relationships between the variables. The findings indicated that teacher technology self-efficacy had a more significant impact on intentions to use technology compared to teacher self-efficacy. Both predictor variables, however, showed unique effects on intentions to use technology. The paper concludes with practical implications and recommendations for further research.
Research Paper
Farhang Daneshfard; Mahboobeh Saadat
Abstract
Investigation of cross-linguistic influence (CLI) using stimulated recall can be revealing at the level of cognition. Cross-linguistic and intra-linguistic influence in the use of French prepositions for Iranian L1 Persian/L2 English/L3 French learners was thus explored in this study. Data were gathered ...
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Investigation of cross-linguistic influence (CLI) using stimulated recall can be revealing at the level of cognition. Cross-linguistic and intra-linguistic influence in the use of French prepositions for Iranian L1 Persian/L2 English/L3 French learners was thus explored in this study. Data were gathered from 12 students of English (Group E) and 12 students of French (Group F). A fill-in-the-blank test of French prepositions was administered; then, the participants were asked to recall how they answered the items. The results of analysis of the data gathered revealed traces of CLI and intra-linguistic influence. It turned out that the participants not only used their L3 knowledge but also thought of the sentence, part of the sentence, or the preposition in Persian or English or considered a similar sentence or phrase in one of the three languages. However, Persian influence manifested more deeply in the form of thinking of sentences whereas that of English was more in the form of thinking of prepositions. Furthermore, in both groups, after the CLI of Persian, French intra-linguistic influence was more frequent followed by CLI of English; therefore, linguistic proximity between French and English was not found crucial. Finally, Group F, with more L3 exposure, experienced less CLI with a higher percentage of facilitative influence.
Research Paper
Mahnaz Mostafaei Alaei; Mahya Alaei
Abstract
Although the concept of favoritism has received attention in various areas of study such as management, business, and medical settings, this line of research has scarcely been explored in teacher education and especially in L2 acquisition context. The current study aimed to design and validate a scale ...
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Although the concept of favoritism has received attention in various areas of study such as management, business, and medical settings, this line of research has scarcely been explored in teacher education and especially in L2 acquisition context. The current study aimed to design and validate a scale that could explore English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ perceptions of academic favoritism. After developing the 40-item Academic Favoritism Questionnaire (AFQ), it was administered to the target participants of the study, and the required data were collected from 154 Iranian EFL teachers selected through non-random convenience sampling. The results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses revealed eight underlying components of the model: damaging collaborative learning, educational inequality, teachers’ biased attitudes, teacher-student conflicts, learning barriers, unfair students’ treatments, negative learners’ experience, and unhealthy academic atmosphere. The study findings may shed light on this obscure topic in the field of education. The study provides important implications for different education stakeholders including researchers, teacher educators, supervisors, EFL teachers, and L2 learners as the findings could increase their awareness of favoritism and its likely influence on their professional practices and environment.
Research Paper
Sepideh Mehraein; Hamideh Marefat
Abstract
Extensive research exists on the effects of task design features on measuring L2 learners’ implicit and explicit knowledge. However, the role of structure difficulty has received limited attention. Additionally, the use of fine-grained measures of implicit knowledge has remained underexplored. ...
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Extensive research exists on the effects of task design features on measuring L2 learners’ implicit and explicit knowledge. However, the role of structure difficulty has received limited attention. Additionally, the use of fine-grained measures of implicit knowledge has remained underexplored. To address these gaps, utilizing objective criteria to select easy (plural -s) and difficult (third-person -s) structures, a total of 256 experimental items, equally divided into grammatical and ungrammatical, as well as easy and difficult structures, were developed and administered to 32 advanced L2 learners. A word monitoring task (WMT) assessed their implicit knowledge through reaction time (RT) and grammaticality sensitivity index (GSI), while a timed grammaticality judgment test (TGJT) measured their automatized explicit knowledge through accuracy scores. The WMT results showed longer RTs for ungrammatical items and larger GSI for the plural -s items, revealing participants’ more implicit knowledge of the easy structure. The results of the TGJT revealed that L2 learners judged grammatical items more accurately than ungrammatical ones and the plural -s items more accurately than third-person -s ones, showing participants’ more automatized explicit knowledge of the easy and grammatical structures. The findings highlight the influence of grammaticality and structure difficulty on knowledge retrieval and suggest that advanced L2 learners exhibit stronger implicit and automatized explicit knowledge of the easy structure. These findings underscore the need for tailored instructional approaches to address difficult structures and emphasize the importance of using real-time psycholinguistic measures to examine L2 learners’ implicit knowledge.
Research Paper
Goodarz Shakibaei; Seyyed Mohammad Ali Soozandehfar; Fatemeh Owliaei; Arash Hashemifardnia
Abstract
The goal of this inquiry was to scrutinize how Iranian university students' motivation, creativity, emotional intelligence (EI), and intellectual awareness (IA) were affected by artificial intelligence (AI). Sixty Iranian university students in Ahvaz, Iran, were chosen based on a convenience sampling ...
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The goal of this inquiry was to scrutinize how Iranian university students' motivation, creativity, emotional intelligence (EI), and intellectual awareness (IA) were affected by artificial intelligence (AI). Sixty Iranian university students in Ahvaz, Iran, were chosen based on a convenience sampling method to reach this objective, and they were separated into two groups: the experimental group (EG) and the control group (CG). Both groups were administered four relevant questionnaires to gauge their proficiency in each dependent variable. Next, utilizing AI-ChatGPT, some modified materials (ten reading texts) were trained to the EG. The CG received traditional instruction using the same materials. Four questionnaires were given to each group as research posttests following the ten-week course of treatment. The results of ANCOVA and independent samples t-tests revealed meaningful differences; the EG did better than the CG on all dependent variables. Based on the gained results, the EG outperformed the CG on the posttests of motivation, creativity, EI, and IA. The research's implications can encourage EFL teachers and learners to acquaint themselves with different AI applications and apply them in their teaching and learning.
Research Paper
Parviz Ajideh; Mohammad Zohrabi; Rougia Oghbatalab
Abstract
In academic discourse across diverse fields, the cultivation of authorial competence in crafting compelling and persuasive texts is of paramount importance. Scholars in the field of linguistics, particularly those involved in discourse analysis, have been attentive to this necessity. Within the realm ...
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In academic discourse across diverse fields, the cultivation of authorial competence in crafting compelling and persuasive texts is of paramount importance. Scholars in the field of linguistics, particularly those involved in discourse analysis, have been attentive to this necessity. Within the realm of academic writing, the strategic utilization of engagement markers plays a pivotal role in achieving persuasive communication and fostering reader engagement. The cultural positioning of academic writers is often reflected in the incorporation of these linguistic elements within written discourse. This study undertook an examination of 60 research articles spanning the domains of hard and soft sciences, with a focus on discerning potential disparities in the employment of engagement markers between two distinct cohorts of authors: native English speakers and non-native Iranian writers. Employing Hyland's (2005b) model of engagement markers as an analytical framework, the study sought to ascertain the frequency of these linguistic devices within academic research articles produced by the aforementioned groups. The findings of the analysis revealed significant differences in the overall and categorical distribution of engagement markers in the scholarly works of native English and non-native Iranian authors across hard and soft science disciplines. These differences may be ascribed to the cultural positioning of academic writers or the potential lack of familiarity with the established conventions of English rhetoric, pragmatics, and sociolinguistics among non-native Iranian authors. The implications of these findings are significant, as they can inform the development of pedagogical materials aimed at enhancing the academic writing proficiency of authors.
Research Paper
Ali Akbar Farahani; Ali Geravand
Abstract
Having active participation in today’s more universally-networked research community through publishing in valid English journals has become delicate for the most populated contemporary users of English as a foreign language known as ‘ESP writers. This challenge is typically experienced in ...
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Having active participation in today’s more universally-networked research community through publishing in valid English journals has become delicate for the most populated contemporary users of English as a foreign language known as ‘ESP writers. This challenge is typically experienced in ESP authors’ variation in employing the generic move patterns in the overall structure of the academic research articles (RAs) ‘Conclusions’ sections, probably caused by heterogeneity in ‘English’ across the authors’ discipline-specific fields of expertise. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to analyze the organizational moves/steps of the RAs ‘conclusions’ to examine any significant difference/s in the discipline-specific authors’ writing styles in terms of the ‘type’ and ‘frequency’ of the moves/steps under study. To this end, 160 randomly selected RAs conclusions (RACs) from eight academic disciplines equally representing the hard sciences and soft sciences, were comparatively analyzed based on a conflated ESP move analysis model of Yang and Allison (2003), and Moritz, Meurer and Dellagnelo (2008). The results of the study obtained from the Frequency counts, Chi-square tests and the Effect Size measure revealed statistically significant differences between the frequency of moves/steps of the RACs in both discipline-specific groups of sciences; in addition, it was found that generic move patterns of the RACs did not strictly follow the proposed model. However, Pedagogical and practical implications along with suggestions for further studies are presented.
Research Paper
Kiyana Zhaleh; Hamed Zandi
Abstract
Classroom justice, an under-investigated topic in language education, has been brought under focus in this study. Employing a qualitative research design, we took conceptual metaphor as both the theoretical framework and data analysis tool. Accordingly, 51 Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) ...
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Classroom justice, an under-investigated topic in language education, has been brought under focus in this study. Employing a qualitative research design, we took conceptual metaphor as both the theoretical framework and data analysis tool. Accordingly, 51 Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers were selected via snowball sampling to express their beliefs about (in)justice by creating a metaphor/simile. The aim was to discover EFL teachers’ conceptualization of metaphors of classroom (in)justice. The participants took a metaphor completion task (e.g., classroom justice is like …… because ……). Data analysis involved gathering, inductively coding, and classifying linguistic metaphors. Three elements were identified for each response, namely, the topic, vehicle, and ground. Then, conceptual categories were formed based on thematically grouping vehicles. Findings indicated reflection of the multidimensional conceptualization of classroom justice based on the organizational justice theory in many created metaphors; reference to emotional, psychological, and learning consequences of (in)justice in many other metaphors; and many pairs of opposite metaphors. These findings have implications for teacher education programs to employ metaphor as a useful tool to promote teachers’ reflection about classroom (in)justice; raise awareness of second/foreign language (L2) teachers about both issues of justice and injustice and their potential consequences for students’ wellbeing and educational outcomes; and train teachers for practical strategies of implementing justice principles in the instructional context as a way to address their professional development needs for becoming a quality L2 teacher and acting fairly in classroom.
Research Paper
Saeed Ketabi; Maliheh Sattari; Farzaneh Dehghan
Abstract
Because of the significance of teachers’ individual and psychological qualities in affecting their performance, an increasing number of studies have been conducted to probe the relationships among teacher constructs in influencing their professional development. In an attempt to clarify the association ...
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Because of the significance of teachers’ individual and psychological qualities in affecting their performance, an increasing number of studies have been conducted to probe the relationships among teacher constructs in influencing their professional development. In an attempt to clarify the association among teacher constructs, the current study examined a structural model hypothesizing the predictive role of teachers’ resilience and psychological well-being in promoting their professional development using 300 Iranian English language teachers as a sample. In doing so, the validated scales of the three mentioned constructs were administered to gather data and Structural Equation Modeling was adopted to evaluate the hypothesized model of the variables. The findings indicated that both resilience and psychological well-being significantly predicted professional development for the whole sample. However, psychological well-being appeared to be a stronger predictor of professional development in comparison with resilience. The results are discussed, and the pedagogical implications are proposed for teacher education programs.
Research Paper
Fatemeh Ranjbarvahed; Gholam-Reza Abbasian; Bahram Mowlaie
Abstract
Applying an appropriate and a dynamic method of teaching in EFL instruction is a critical mechanism for engaging, attracting and accompanying students. Hypothesized as a dynamic platform, synthesizing Engagement, Study, and Activation (ESA) with portfolio assessment was addressed in this study mixed-method-based ...
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Applying an appropriate and a dynamic method of teaching in EFL instruction is a critical mechanism for engaging, attracting and accompanying students. Hypothesized as a dynamic platform, synthesizing Engagement, Study, and Activation (ESA) with portfolio assessment was addressed in this study mixed-method-based research to see its effectiveness with regard to the target students’ cognitive dimensions of developing writing skills. To this end, 177 Iranian female students from a public high school attended an experimental study and attempted three data collection instruments including think-aloud protocol, a questionnaire as well as an interview. MANOVA of the quantitative data and NVivo-based qualitative data analyses revealed significantly compatible results. MANOVA showed that the synthesizing ESA with portfolio assessment had the highest means as to writing skill-oriented cognitive dimensions, which were followed by pure ESA application, and the control group achievement. Moreover, the pure ESA application had a significantly higher means compared to the conventional instructional mainstream on overall cognitive dimension. However, the synthetic mechanism proved to be much more effective than the pure ESA as to the overall cognitive dimensions. In line with the quantitative analyses, NVivo-based think-aloud and interview data revealed the nature and process of the effectiveness of the applied synthetic mechanisms in the areas of attention, practicing, thinking, self-correction, and problem solving dimensions each with certain degree.
Research Paper
Rasoul Mohammad Hosseinpur; Reza Bagheri Nevisi; Mohammad Bagher Mikhak; Abdolreza Lowni
Abstract
The question of whether, and to what extent, different measures of pragmatic knowledge mirror students' capabilities as represented in their authentic application of language has been an important consideration in the vicinity of interlanguage pragmatics. To examine the production of politeness ...
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The question of whether, and to what extent, different measures of pragmatic knowledge mirror students' capabilities as represented in their authentic application of language has been an important consideration in the vicinity of interlanguage pragmatics. To examine the production of politeness markers, as defined by House and Kasper's (1981) seminal work, this study compared and contrasted language learners' performance across four different measures of pragmatic competence: Written Discourse Completion Test, Oral Discourse Completion Test, Role-play, and Natural Methodology in an EFL setting. Furthermore, the requests made by 27 learners in natural situations and by means of WDCT, ODCT, and Role-play with similar characteristics were analyzed. The results revealed that hesitators enjoyed high prevalence in Natural Methodology and consultative devices and scope-stators were more popular in the WDCT, ODCT, and Role-play suggesting, regardless of some minor similarities, significant disparities between the three conventional data-gathering techniques and Natural methodology. The investigation exhibits that Natural Methodology might not necessarily be the ideal pragmatic measure to truly represent all politeness markers. WDCT, ODCT, and Role-Play could be more appropriate to draw on learners' explicit/declarative knowledge, though Natural methodology might be more advantageous to capitalize on learners' automated/procedural knowledge.
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