Hassan Soleimani; Mohammad Alavi
Volume 5, Issue 11 , November 2013, , Pages 127-143
Abstract
Epistemologically speaking, second language acquisition research (SLAR) might be reconsidered from a complex dynamical system view with interconnected aspects in the ecosystem of language acquisition. The present paper attempts to introduce the tenets of complex system theory and its application in SLAR. ...
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Epistemologically speaking, second language acquisition research (SLAR) might be reconsidered from a complex dynamical system view with interconnected aspects in the ecosystem of language acquisition. The present paper attempts to introduce the tenets of complex system theory and its application in SLAR. It has been suggested that the present dominant traditions in language acquisition research are too simplistic to delve into the nature of language acquisition. The belief is that the Newtonian conceptualization of SLA research cannot be comprehensive to deal with the complexities of language acquisition research. So the suggested definition for SLA research in the present paper is a complex dynamical nonlinear open adaptive system of inquiry to find probable solutions to problems.
Bager Yaqubi; Mostafa Pourhaji Rokni
Volume 4, Issue 10 , March 2013, , Pages 127-161
Abstract
Pairing theory with methodology, this study demonstrates how EFL teachers’ limited wait-time practice structures in and affects the structuring of the unfolding classroom discourse with reference to learners’ participation opportunities. Informed by the tenets of conversation analysis, we ...
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Pairing theory with methodology, this study demonstrates how EFL teachers’ limited wait-time practice structures in and affects the structuring of the unfolding classroom discourse with reference to learners’ participation opportunities. Informed by the tenets of conversation analysis, we have observed, videotaped, and transcribed line-by-line 10 EFL teachers’ naturally-occurring classroom interaction. Analyses of six episodes from the data suggest that teachers’ seemingly inadvertent implementation of limited wait-time tends to reduce learners’ interactional space. Moreover, it serves the (dys)function of triggering those interactive practices whose structuring diverts teacher talk from the major pedagogic goal, i.e. increasing leaner participation. The findings of this study can be analytically generalized to the theoretical model of communicative competence. They can also help teachers on their way towards developing their classroom interactional competence.
Vahid Hassani; Mohammad Khatib; Massood Yazdani Moghaddam
Volume 11, Issue 23 , June 2019, , Pages 127-156
Abstract
This paper deals with the contributions of a language teacher education model by Kumaravadivelu (2012) known as KARDS (knowing, analyzing, recognizing, doing, and seeing) to Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) university teachers’ professional identity reconstruction. The researchers used ...
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This paper deals with the contributions of a language teacher education model by Kumaravadivelu (2012) known as KARDS (knowing, analyzing, recognizing, doing, and seeing) to Iranian English as a foreign language (EFL) university teachers’ professional identity reconstruction. The researchers used purposive sampling to select participants. A KARDS questionnaire designed, constructed, and validated by the researchers was used to group twenty teachers into a more KARDS-oriented group and a less-KARDS oriented group. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses showed that the questionnaire was both reliable and valid. Pre-course interview, post-course interview, teacher educator’s and teachers’ reflective journals, and class discussions were used to collect data. After the pre-course interview, there was a treatment during which teachers were familiarized with KARDS. Then, Grounded Theory was used to analyze the data. Findings indicated that there were two big shifts from “uncertainty of practice to certainty of practice” and “the use of fewer macro-strategies to the use of more macro-strategies” in teachers’ professional identities in both groups. The changes were similar and/or the same in nature but not in quantity, and they should be emphasized and included in teacher education programs. The findings may drive teacher education programs, teacher educators, and teachers to welcome and embrace uncertainty and confusion in classrooms. Suggestions to reduce “uncertainty of practice” by teacher education programs and teacher educators are presented in this paper.
Mohammad Salehi
Volume 2, Issue 222 , December 2010, , Pages 129-159
Abstract
University of Tehran administers a test known as The University of Tehran English Proficiency Test (the UTEPT) to PhD candidates on a yearly basis. By definition, the test can be considered a high-stakes one. The validity of high stakes tests needs to be known (Roever, 2001). As Mesick (1988) maintains, ...
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University of Tehran administers a test known as The University of Tehran English Proficiency Test (the UTEPT) to PhD candidates on a yearly basis. By definition, the test can be considered a high-stakes one. The validity of high stakes tests needs to be known (Roever, 2001). As Mesick (1988) maintains, if the validity of high stakes tests are not known, it might have some undesirable consequences for the society at large. To investigate the construct validity of the test, factor analysis was employed (Farahdy, 1983). The factor analysis of choice was exploratory factor analysis with varimx rotation strategy. In the reading section, the factor analysis produced eleven factors. Furthermore, the use of Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was complemented with Principal Axis Factoring (PAF). Overfactoring was an issue. This overfactoring can be attributed to the heterogeneous nature of items; different paradigms from which items were taken: iBT TOEFL, ILTES, and FCE.
Karim Sadeghi
Volume 2, Issue 217 , October 2010, , Pages 131-154
Abstract
Cloze was officially introduced in a journal on Journalism as a technique for estimating text readability and as "a new psychological tool for measuring the effectiveness of communication" (Taylor, 1953: 415). Different varieties of cloze have since been developed and experimented upon as measures of ...
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Cloze was officially introduced in a journal on Journalism as a technique for estimating text readability and as "a new psychological tool for measuring the effectiveness of communication" (Taylor, 1953: 415). Different varieties of cloze have since been developed and experimented upon as measures of such diverse traits as reading comprehension and language proficiency. The findings of numerous corrleational studies on cloze as a measure of either skill is at best unsatisfactory and indeed contradictory. The present study seeks to find an answer to the question of whether standard cloze (with different text difficulty levels) is a valid measure of EFL reading comprehension (with IELTS Reading Paper as the criterion). 76 junior and senior students majoring in English Language and Literature at Urmia University participated in the study, where they sat 3 versions of standard 5-th deletion rate cloze tests as well as the Reading Paper of an Institutional IELTS (UCLES, 1995, 1997). While the results are in accordance with most previous research findings that cloze is a valid measure of EFL reading comprehension, serious problems are identified and discussed on the appropriacy of such a validation technique as correlation.
Abbas ali Rezaee; Nasrin Sayfouri
Volume 1, Issue 212 , December 2008, , Pages 135-160
Abstract
During recent decades publishing articles in academic journals has become a worldwide urge for all members of academia. There is, however, a widespread belief according to which more value is given to the articles published in internationally-recognized, high standard journals. An issue raised in this ...
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During recent decades publishing articles in academic journals has become a worldwide urge for all members of academia. There is, however, a widespread belief according to which more value is given to the articles published in internationally-recognized, high standard journals. An issue raised in this regard is whether the articles published in highly prestigious journals are remarkably different from those published in other journals as far as their contents and rhetorical styles are concerned. Taking the organization of information/moves into account, the present study seeks the probable differences existing between the two groups of 32 research articles (RAs) randomly selected from among Iranian ISI and non-ISI medical journals in English, published between January 2008 and February 2009, through analyzing the Introduction and Discussion sections of these articles based on the model presented by Nwogu (1997). The results of Mann-Whittney U and correlational tests revealed that Moves and Sub-moves have been exploited with quite similar frequencies in the two sets of the articles. The frequent use of Moves/Sub-moves in the sections not commonly stated in the literature, use of meta-discourse markers in the corpus, some marked implications of the findings of ESP genre analysis of RAs as well as some other findings have also been discussed
Mojtaba Gheitasi; Mohammad Aliakbari; nourodin Yousofi
Abstract
This study evaluated the cultural content of Vision textbook series that are currently in use in Iranian public secondary school system. The aim was to find the most frequent cultural references as well as the most-frequently-represented cultural senses. For this purpose, frequency counts were used to ...
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This study evaluated the cultural content of Vision textbook series that are currently in use in Iranian public secondary school system. The aim was to find the most frequent cultural references as well as the most-frequently-represented cultural senses. For this purpose, frequency counts were used to collect the data and the culture categorization framework (Adaskou et. al., 1990) and cultural reference framework (Cortazzi & Jin, 1999), modified by Tajeddin and Teimournezhad (2014), were used to analyze the data. Results of the frequency counts indicated that the Vision ELT textbooks contained the most cultural content associated with Persian as the source culture. Similarly, the focus was primarily on the esthetic sense of culture, followed respectively by semantic, sociological and sociolinguistic (pragmatic) senses. The study ends up with implications for EFL stake-holders in Iranian context as well as the ELT enterprise in general.
Ali Jahangard
Abstract
This study aimed to discover whether an online writing system has any effect on Iranians’ EFL academic writing performance. The study also sought to find out whether the proficiency level of learners influenced the effect of the system on academic writing. To meet this end, an online writing system ...
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This study aimed to discover whether an online writing system has any effect on Iranians’ EFL academic writing performance. The study also sought to find out whether the proficiency level of learners influenced the effect of the system on academic writing. To meet this end, an online writing system was developed and 68 undergraduate students of the General English language course studying at Sharif University of Technology were requested to participate in this study. First, their English language proficiency was measured by a language proficiency test that included 80 questions of one of the latest versions of the official TOEFL iBT test, which was provided by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Then, over an eight-week period, the participants were assigned to write eight versions of academic writing that followed a genre-based teaching approach through computer-based instructions. The writing scores were statistically analyzed and the results revealed that providing students with computer-assisted instruction (CAI) led to significant improvements in their academic writing performance. Moreover, according to the findings of this study, the learners’ level of proficiency did influence the effect of the system.
Tohid Siami; Reza Abdi
Volume 4, Issue 9 , December 2012, , Pages 165-176
Abstract
In order to develop an understanding of the rhetorical conventions in the Persian language and to find out the metadiscursive cultural norms of Iranian writers in their native language writings, it is necessary to probe into the implicit rhetorical features of academic writing which has so far eluded ...
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In order to develop an understanding of the rhetorical conventions in the Persian language and to find out the metadiscursive cultural norms of Iranian writers in their native language writings, it is necessary to probe into the implicit rhetorical features of academic writing which has so far eluded a comprehensive systematic characterization. Metadiscourse marking, which is supposed to be one of the important rhetorical aspects in the writing process, is shown to be susceptible to cultural mentalities. Therefore, in this study an attempt is made to explore interactive and interactional metadiscourse strategies use by the Persian writers in the genre of research articles (RAs). For the purpose of this study, a corpus of 60 Persian research articles from social and natural sciences was selected for a close qualitative manual analysis. It appeared that, though globally similar in many ways, different IMRD sections of RAs which follow different cognitive genre types use interactive and interactional strategies differently. Also, the conventions of the two sciences appeared to be weirdly different. The findings are analyzed and implications are drawn for the teachers and learners of writing research articles in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classes. It is argued that without such characterizations it would be very difficult to gather an idea of the current rhetorical trend in Persian language so that a comparison can be made with any target language conventions in teaching and learning foreign languages.
Hossein Younesi; Zia Tajeddin
Volume 10, Issue 22 , December 2018, , Pages 113-139
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the impact of textual enhancement and metalinguistic explanation as focus-on-form tasks tending to encourage the acquisition of nominal clauses (NCs) in English. It explored (a) whether textual enhancement and metalinguistic explanation would promote and enhance the knowledge ...
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This study aimed to investigate the impact of textual enhancement and metalinguistic explanation as focus-on-form tasks tending to encourage the acquisition of nominal clauses (NCs) in English. It explored (a) whether textual enhancement and metalinguistic explanation would promote and enhance the knowledge of NCs, (b) whether these two tasks would differ in terms of enhancing learners' knowledge of nominal clauses, and (c) whether learners' use of self-regulatory capacity for grammar acquisition would have differential effects on textual enhancement and explicit explanation groups. A test of recognizing noun clauses and a test of producing combined sentences were used as both the pretest and the posttest to measure the achievement of first-year undergraduate university students in four intact classes. A grammar self-regulation questionnaire was also administered to measure the use of self-regulatory capacity. The findings demonstrated that both textual enhancement and explicit instruction contributed to developing grammatical knowledge of the learners at both recognition and production level. The results also showed that the learners who received textual enhancement used their grammar self-regulatory capacity more effectively in developing their receptive knowledge of NCs. It can be concluded that textual enhancement, which provides learners with less explicit instruction, pushes them to use their self-regulatory capacity more effectively in improving receptive knowledge of grammar.
saeed Ketabi; Ehsan Alijanian; Ahmad Moinzadeh
Volume 10, Issue 21 , June 2018, , Pages 117-136
Abstract
Private speech utilization is accepted to have a critical role in the continuum of language acquisition. As a valuable device in studying learners’ talk during interaction, a language related episode (LRE) is any part of a dialogue where a student speaks about a language problem s/he comes across ...
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Private speech utilization is accepted to have a critical role in the continuum of language acquisition. As a valuable device in studying learners’ talk during interaction, a language related episode (LRE) is any part of a dialogue where a student speaks about a language problem s/he comes across while completing a task. The present study investigated the role of private speech produced by Intermediate Iranian EFL learners while they were involved in completing a dictogloss. For this purpose, 12 female EFL learners were chosen and they were required to speak about a lexical item cooperatively while they were completing a dictogloss task. These interactions were recorded and their lexical language related episodes were transcribed. In order to investigate the private speech used in the interactions, data was coded for different forms and contents of private speech and their functions were identified. The results indicate that private speech is mostly used for self-regulation and gaining control over the task. The study has implications for teachers and researchers by giving insights on how L2 is used in interactions.
English language learning
Elham Daliranfirouz; Mohammad Amiryousefi; Renata Geld; Daryoush Nejad Ansari
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the influence of a gamification-enhanced language classroom within the context of Moodle in promoting extrinsic and intrinsic motivational attributes of language learners. A total of 220 language learners from different universities in Iran were recruited as the participants ...
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This study aimed to investigate the influence of a gamification-enhanced language classroom within the context of Moodle in promoting extrinsic and intrinsic motivational attributes of language learners. A total of 220 language learners from different universities in Iran were recruited as the participants and randomly assigned to the gamification-enhanced (n= 114) and control groups (n= 106). Over the eight weeks of treatment, the experimental group members were taught using various gamified tasks and activities through the gamified Moodle LMS. A motivational orientation scale was administered before and after the intervention. The results of ANCOVAs demonstrated a significant boost in the extrinsic motivation of language learners, including external, introjected, and identified regulation. Furthermore, the study confirmed that the integration of gamification has resulted in a higher level of intrinsic motivation for the participants in the areas of knowledge, accomplishment, and stimulation. The relevant pedagogical implications and directions for future studies are discussed.
Elaheh Sotoudehnama; Fatemeh Moini
Volume 5, Issue 11 , November 2013, , Pages 145-171
Abstract
This study was intended to find out any possible effect of topic bias on the writing proficiency of Iranian extrovert/introvert EFL learners at high/low writing proficiency levels. One hundred participants chosen from among 150 adult language learners on the basis of their personality type (extrovert/introvert) ...
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This study was intended to find out any possible effect of topic bias on the writing proficiency of Iranian extrovert/introvert EFL learners at high/low writing proficiency levels. One hundred participants chosen from among 150 adult language learners on the basis of their personality type (extrovert/introvert) and writing proficiency (high/low) took part in this study. They were arranged into four groups according to their writing proficiency and personality type. They were asked to write on three different topics (one unbiased, one extroversion-biased, and one introversion-biased) and fill out Eysenck Personality Questionnaire for adults (EPQ, Eysenck & Eysenck, 1975). The writings were scored by two raters according to Bailey and Brown's (1984) composition grading scale. The data gathered was analyzed using two-way ANOVA. The final results of the analysis revealed the significant difference between the scores of different groups of participants on all topics – unbiased or biased toward either of the two personality types in favor of introverts but one.
Nasser Rashidi; Mortaza Yamini; Elham Shafiei
Volume 3, Issue 7 , December 2011, , Pages 145-174
Abstract
The present study intended to propose a causal model of factors that would predict Oral Communication Apprehension (OCA) of Iranian learners of English as a foreign language. To conduct the study, 135 male and female University students majoring in English were selected. Five variables including: learners’self-esteem ...
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The present study intended to propose a causal model of factors that would predict Oral Communication Apprehension (OCA) of Iranian learners of English as a foreign language. To conduct the study, 135 male and female University students majoring in English were selected. Five variables including: learners’self-esteem and introversion/extroversion(as independent variables), their gender and proficiency level (as moderator variables)and their oral communication apprehension (as the major dependent variable) were selected. To collect the data necessary for the study a language proficiency test and three questionnaires were used. Statistical analyses revealed that all the independent and moderate variables predicted the participants’ OCA. Furthermore, extroversion was found to be the strongest predictor of OCA. Results of the t-test and one-way ANOVA revealed that females and students of the lowest level of proficiency experience a significantly higher level of OCA. The findings are finally discussed and pedagogical implications of the study are provided.
Mohammad Zohrabi
Volume 8, Issue 17 , July 2016, , Pages 147-177
Abstract
Generally, program evaluation is of prime importance to check the workability of a course. In this way, it can be made sure that the course achieves its intended goals and objectives, and consequently fulfills the learners’ needs, wants, and aspirations. Therefore, an attempt was made to evaluate ...
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Generally, program evaluation is of prime importance to check the workability of a course. In this way, it can be made sure that the course achieves its intended goals and objectives, and consequently fulfills the learners’ needs, wants, and aspirations. Therefore, an attempt was made to evaluate the instructional functioning of the Simple Prose and Newspaper Articles course which is offered to the undergraduate English majors at the university of Tabriz, Iran and is taught by the researcher/instructor himself. To this end, Brown’s (1995) model of program evaluation was opted for. Based on local needs and objectives, this model was modified and extended to seven curriculum components: objectives, attitudes, needs analysis, time, classroom activities, materials, and assessment. In order to gather quantitative and qualitative data, a mixed methods design was employed. The quantitative data were obtained through a questionnaire which comprised 35 items based on the aforementioned curriculum components, i.e. five items for each component. Also, the qualitative data were collected through a semi-structured interview. The participants consisted of 36 undergraduate English majors, i.e. 12 male, 24 female. The results of the study indicate that this course is quite useful for the students to develop their linguistic, cultural, and social knowledge. However, it needs to be modified in order to be more fruitful. One of the main implications of this study might be that the seven curriculum components proposed by the researcher could be employed for the evaluation of any course of study. Another implication might be that these seven curriculum components could be utilized by syllabus designers or curriculum developers for the development of any syllabus.
Mohammad Ali Torabi
Volume 2, Issue 217 , October 2010, , Pages 155-165
Abstract
In a speech community, people utilize their communicative competence which they have acquired from their society as part of their distinctive sociolinguistic identity. They negotiate and share meanings, because they have commonsense knowledge about the world, and have universal practical reasoning. Their ...
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In a speech community, people utilize their communicative competence which they have acquired from their society as part of their distinctive sociolinguistic identity. They negotiate and share meanings, because they have commonsense knowledge about the world, and have universal practical reasoning. Their commonsense knowledge is embodied in their language. Thus, not only does social life depends on language, but language defines social reality. With practical reasoning, people in a speech community use, appropriately, their commonsense knowledge in different social settings in order to negotiate suprasentential meanings. All of this knowledge is acquired without overt, explicit and intentional training. Proceeding along linguistic ethnography and functional lines, we may attempt to specify just what it means to be a truly successful and competent speaker of a particular language within the framework of a speech community.
reza khani; Mahmood Samaie; Ali Khadivar
Volume 11, Issue 24 , December 2019, , Pages 155-176
Abstract
Despite appealing notion of research based language teaching, we argue that scientific way of conducting research on English language teaching (ELT) is problematic since it ignores language learners’ subjectivity, instructors’ professionalism, practitioners’ culture and learning particularity. ...
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Despite appealing notion of research based language teaching, we argue that scientific way of conducting research on English language teaching (ELT) is problematic since it ignores language learners’ subjectivity, instructors’ professionalism, practitioners’ culture and learning particularity. Positivists pedagogical arguments neglect the social nature of meaning making instructional practices and emphasize objectivity and measurability criteria which lead to instrumental rationality. A critical discourse analysis of practical arguments proposed in pedagogical implications section of empiricist research articles revealed that positivists assumptions manifest themselves as the rules and regulations of carrying out scientific research. These yardsticks give power to the neoliberal tendencies to present reasons as premises of arguments to restrict and control the agency of ELT teachers as well as to deprofessionalize them. Since there is a close affinity between this paradigm world views and neoliberal policies, positivists research articles lead to the domination of neoliberalism on TEFL discourse. This indicates the ideological function of the article genre and awareness of that is crucial for the sake of democratic and fair education.
Mahdieh Mofidi; Mohammad Reza Hashemi
Volume 11, Issue 23 , June 2019, , Pages 157-187
Abstract
The purpose of the current study was to investigate culture representation in ACT series, a recently developed EFL textbook by Iran Language Institute, with a focus on the visuals. Two models were taken into account for content analysis: Cortazzi and Jin (1990) to investigate the type of culture (i.e., ...
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The purpose of the current study was to investigate culture representation in ACT series, a recently developed EFL textbook by Iran Language Institute, with a focus on the visuals. Two models were taken into account for content analysis: Cortazzi and Jin (1990) to investigate the type of culture (i.e., source, target, & international) and Adaskou, Britten, and Fahsi (1999) to investigate the dimension of culture (aesthetic & sociological). Analysis of 1581 visuals indicated that textbook developers have placed a high value on presenting international and source cultures while target culture has received comparatively little attention to fulfill the mission for which the series was developed. Additionally, as of the two dimensions of culture, visuals representing the sociological dimension of culture outnumbered those manifesting the aesthetic dimension. To conclude, it can be claimed that ACT series can be beneficial in promoting intercultural awareness among its audience and providing the learners with an opportunity to communicate their cultural and national identity with other bilingual speakers of English. The study ends with some future lines of research for the interested researcher.
Elaheh Sotoudehnama; Akram Ramazanzadeh
Volume 2, Issue 222 , December 2010, , Pages 161-182
Abstract
This study investigated the effect of oral dialogue journals on communicative competence of Iranian EFL learners. Participants of this study were 80 students of two Payam-e-Noor Universities who were proved to be homogenous in the communicative competence based on TSE (Test of Spoken English) interview. ...
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This study investigated the effect of oral dialogue journals on communicative competence of Iranian EFL learners. Participants of this study were 80 students of two Payam-e-Noor Universities who were proved to be homogenous in the communicative competence based on TSE (Test of Spoken English) interview. The participants of one of these universities were considered as the experimental group. The experimental group practiced oral dialogue journals in addition to participating in Oral Reproduction of Stories 2 class. The comparison group just participated in Oral Reproduction of Stories 2 class. Both classes were conducted by the same teacher. At the end of the treatment two groups were interviewed based on TSE once more. The results revealed that the experimental group outperformed the comparison group significantly. Moreover it was revealed that this technique (oral dialogue journal) was significantly more beneficial for the low proficient speakers of English than the high ones though useful for the high ones, too.
Manijeh Youhanaee; Ahmad Alibabaee
Volume 1, Issue 212 , December 2008, , Pages 161-176
Abstract
The present study was planned to investigate the efficiency of explicit teaching and adequacy of the L2 learners' exposure to L2 input in academic contexts in Iran. The case at hand was the acquisition of referential, quasi and expletive subject pronouns, as three different types of obligatory subjects ...
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The present study was planned to investigate the efficiency of explicit teaching and adequacy of the L2 learners' exposure to L2 input in academic contexts in Iran. The case at hand was the acquisition of referential, quasi and expletive subject pronouns, as three different types of obligatory subjects in English. 96 Iranian EFL learners were selected from two universities in Isfahan. They were categorized into three groups based on the amount of L2 instruction/ input they had received. Analysis of the participants’ performance on a grammaticality judgment test and a translation task revealed that their knowledge of English obligatory subjects progressed after instruction and as the years of exposure increased. However, it did not reach an acceptable rate for learning. The problem was more prominent for quasi subjects where they performed least accurately. These results indicate that the kind of instruction on obligatory subjects is not efficient enough to affect the learning process. It is concluded that certain properties of L2 require more elaborate instructional techniques to achieve a higher rate of effectiveness in our teaching EFL setting
Mahboobeh Khosravani; Hooshang Khoshsima; Amir Mohamadian
Abstract
Pitfalls inherent in traditional approaches, movement into post-method frameworks and necessity of reaping benefits of technological advancements gave birth to flipped instruction as a newly emerged practice of teaching. A robust literature has submitted proofs on the merits of this practice in language ...
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Pitfalls inherent in traditional approaches, movement into post-method frameworks and necessity of reaping benefits of technological advancements gave birth to flipped instruction as a newly emerged practice of teaching. A robust literature has submitted proofs on the merits of this practice in language learning. Adopting an innovatory perspective, the current research was an attempt to investigate the effect of this practice on a number of learning and learner related variables among Iranian intermediate language learners. To this aim 39 learners were selected through convenience sampling, and after removing outliers, 29 learners were randomly assigned to control (N=14) and experimental (N=15) groups. For each variable, a valid instrument was selected or adopted from the literature and modified for the purpose of the study. Then, employing a post-test-only control-group design, their performance on the post-test was measured and analyzed through one-way analysis of variance. The outputs reveled a statistically significant difference between groups in achievement (F (1, 27) = 9.627, p = .004) and autonomy (F (1, 27) = 8.308, p = .008) while indicating no significant effect on motivation and willingness to communicate. Some of these findings are in line with major currents of research in the literature but others stand in sharp contrast. Further investigation is required to examine into the nature of these findings through qualitative perspectives, interviews and open-ended questionnaires. These findings have implication for educational researchers, language teachers, language learners and applied linguists.
Shiva Kaivanpanah; Mohammad Alavi; Rose Meschi
Abstract
Writing is thought as the most complicated skill in second language acquisition; therefore, L2 researchers have always been in pursuit of discovering an effective approach to improve it. One of the most debated ways is feedback which has a key role in improving the quality of writing. Much of the previous ...
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Writing is thought as the most complicated skill in second language acquisition; therefore, L2 researchers have always been in pursuit of discovering an effective approach to improve it. One of the most debated ways is feedback which has a key role in improving the quality of writing. Much of the previous research on feedback has focused on analyzing different types of feedback and their effect on the learners’ writings and few studies have examined the effectiveness of computer feedback. Therefore, the present study was conducted to 1) determine what aspects of students’ writings receive computer feedback, 2) examine the difference in the effect of computer-generatedfeedback (CBF) and Teacher-based feedback (TBF) on improving the students’ writing quality and 3) compare the differences in Depth of Processing (DOP) in processing computer and teacher feedback. The results indicated that content, style and organization of their essays received feedback from the teacher and the computer. Teacher feedback was more effective in terms of its impact on improving the quality of the writing of the students than computer-generatedfeedback and it resulted in deeper processing of lexical items, whereas computer-generated feedback invoked medium processing on grammar.
Reza Khani; Fian Ghasemi
Volume 10, Issue 21 , June 2018, , Pages 137-160
Abstract
Reviewing the literature indicated that no validated model was found that examine the extent to which teachers support their students emotionally in EFL classrooms. Therefore the present study elaborated on this issue through developing and validating a teacher emotional support scale in an Iranian English ...
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Reviewing the literature indicated that no validated model was found that examine the extent to which teachers support their students emotionally in EFL classrooms. Therefore the present study elaborated on this issue through developing and validating a teacher emotional support scale in an Iranian English foreign language context. Main components of the scale have been specified based on Hamre and Pianta's (2007)theoretical framework. A large number of items were created primarily based on operational definitions of each component. After reviewing the items by a group of experts, the questionnaire was piloted and tested on a sample of 324 EFL teachers. Finally, the researchers evaluated the validity of the questionnaire through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis.The results of the reliability of the questionnaire estimated through Cronbach’s alpha were 0.833. 17 items have been removed from analysis resulting in identifying 4 factors in exploratory factor analysis. The model was evaluated using AMOS 22 also indicated that the model was fit the data.the current study contributes to the field of English language education through designing and validating new instrument to assess teacher emotional support in EFL classrooms. Researchers and other practitioners who are involved in teaching English language can assess the extent to which teachers support students emotionally in similar pedagogical EFL context using this instrument. They also need to encourage teachers to improve their emotional skills by participating in teacher training courses.
Mostafa Younesi; Ebrahim Khodadady; Behzad Ghonsooly
Volume 10, Issue 22 , December 2018, , Pages 141-156
Abstract
This study aimed to explore the relationship between language acquisition and grade four senior high school (G4SHS) students’ achievement in English as a foreign language (EFL). To this end the 41-item English Language Acquisition Scale (ELAS) designed by Khodadady and Younesi (2017) was administered ...
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This study aimed to explore the relationship between language acquisition and grade four senior high school (G4SHS) students’ achievement in English as a foreign language (EFL). To this end the 41-item English Language Acquisition Scale (ELAS) designed by Khodadady and Younesi (2017) was administered to 518 G4SHS students. Also to find the probable relationship between ELAS, its latent variables and participant achievement in EFL classes in EFL classes 126 participants were randomly selected out of population to answer schema-based cloze multiple choice items test ( S- test) designed by Khodadady and Ghergloo ( 2013). To know which of the G4SHS students who took the ELAS took the S-Test as well the researcher was matched the codes of the ELAS S-test and ELTAS carefully. The results showed that the ELAS consists of five factors, i.e., Qualified, grammatization, Humanistic, Engagement and Orientation. Also the ELAS and its underlying factors show significant relationships with English achievement scores. The results of the study are discussed .
English language learning
Farahman Farrokhi; Fatemeh Gholami
Abstract
This study investigated the effects of three vocabulary development strategies of keyword method, thematic clustering and developing morphological awareness on the Iranian EFL learners’ vocabulary repertoire. Adopting a quasi-experimental design, sixty high-intermediate to advanced Iranian EFL ...
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This study investigated the effects of three vocabulary development strategies of keyword method, thematic clustering and developing morphological awareness on the Iranian EFL learners’ vocabulary repertoire. Adopting a quasi-experimental design, sixty high-intermediate to advanced Iranian EFL learners were randomly assigned to three experimental groups and partook six online sessions of vocabulary instruction during a week. Using a pre-test and three post-tests, the vocabulary repertoire of the subjects was measured. The pre-test was administered a week before the commencement of the treatment sessions; the first post-test was administered immediately after each treatment; the second post-test was held 24 hours after each treatment and the third post-test was held one week after the end of the treatment sessions. Paribakht and Wesche (1993) model of measuring vocabulary enhancement was used to quantify the vocabulary repertoire of the subjects. Split-plot ANOVA test revealed that the subjects in the keyword group outperformed the subjects in the other two groups in all the three post-tests. Moreover, it was revealed that the thematic clustering group outperformed the developing morphological awareness group. The findings of this research may have pedagogical implications for English teachers, learners and material developers.
