اسماعیل عباسی

Writing is one of the four skills of language learning, especially, one of the skills of practical communication in a communicative approach. The purpose of this research is to evaluate and analyze writing activities of the writing sections of secondary high school English textbooks, grades 10th, 11th and 12th, so-called vision 1, 2, 3. The theoretical framework of this research, a descriptive-analytical and qualitative method, was based on Kern's (2007) and Harmer’s (2004) model and continuum of writing activities. The writing activities of these vision books were divided into three major categories of controlled, guided and free writing and fifteen more sub-categories. The exercises and activities of the writing section of these six-volume English textbooks, so-called vision 1,2,3 were counted on and the average and percentage of each category were calculated based on Kern’s (2002) and Harmer’s (2004) model and continuum of writing. The findings of this research indicate that the categories of controlled writing and copying, the first item of Kern’s continuum, are the dominant writing tasks in these books. Activities concerning the guided, and especially the free writing activities in these books are rarely seen or they have not been much carefully regarded. In the communicative approach, regarding the goods and the existing requirements, the teaching of writing is generally concerned with free writing tasks. Therefore, to enhance and promote practical communication skills as an aim of a communicative approach, free writing skills are inevitable. The findings of this research point out that English teachers can reinforce and enhance their students’ practical communication abilities in their classes by using freestyle exercises and hence, cover the shortcomings of the books.

Hail phenomenon is one of the hazardous weather phenomena that can make the highest amount of damage to farms, gardens, cars, rooftops, etc. in a very short time (a few minutes), depending on the diameter of the particles. One of the best ways to study this devastating climatic phenomenon is the use of atmospheric instability indices. The indices which are calculated with the help of radiosonde data give a fairly comprehensive vision regarding the occurrence of such phenomenon. In this study, the incidence of moderate to severe hail is investigated in the period of 1990-2010. First, the atmospheric codes related to hail phenomena were applied to extract the data, then radiosonde data in intended time were received and applying the RAOB software, the physical status of atmosphere was studied. In the studied period, two hail examples were reported on November 27, 2008 and December 5, 2008. In the first instance of hail that occurred on November 27, 2008, the status of some indicators was calculated and it was found that LCL was at an altitude of 284 meters, CCL at an altitude of 1582 meters, LFC at an altitude of 6230 meters, the ice surface at an altitude of 3278 meters, the LI index was -0.2, the K index was 25.7 ° C, and PWC was 28 mm. In the above mentioned conditions, there was a hail with a diameter of 25.4 mm. In the second instance of hail that occurred on December 5, 2008, the status of some indicators was calculated and the results showed that LCL was at an altitude of 280 meters, CCL at an altitude of 1762 meters, LFC at an altitude of 2271 meters, the ice surface at an altitude of 2771 meters, the LI index was -1.4, the K index was 27.1 ° C, and PWC was 23.6 mm. In the above mentioned conditions, there was a hail with a diameter of 3.6 mm. Given that in many ways, the status of most atmospheric indicators in the two above examples of hail were close to each other, it turns out that in similar circumstances, the greater the distance the ice level gets to the summit of cloud, the greater is the probability of hails larger in diameter. The value of this distance for November 27, 2008 was at approximately 6384 meters and for December 5, 2008, it was at about 5012 meters.