درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

تحقیق حاضر تلاشی است برای ارزیابی مجموعه کتاب های پراسپکت و ویژن (کتاب های زبان انگلیسی دوره اول و دوره دوم دبیرستان) با توجه به سه عنصر اصلی منظورشناسی؛ نشانگرهای ادب ورزی، کنش های کلامی و نقش های زبانی. به همین منظور تمامی مکالمات (۱۷۲ مکالمه) این شش کتاب مورد بررسی و تحلیل دقیق جهت پاسخگویی به موارد ذیل قرار گرفت: پربسامد ترین نشانگرهای ادب ورزی؛ رایج ترین کنش های کلامی وپربسامدترین نقش های زبانی به کار رفته در کتاب های پراسپکت و ویژن نتایج این تحقیق نشان داد که نشانگرهای ادب و نشانگرهای اقدامی پربسامد ترین نشانگرهای ادب ورزی هستند. کنش های کلامیِ نمایندگی و بخشنامه ای پربسامدترین کنش های کلامی هستند. و همچنیمن نقش زبانیِ اطلاعاتی، پرتکرار ترین نقش زبانی به کار گرفته شده در این مجموعه کتاب ها هستند. از سوی دیگر عدم استفاده و یا استفاده محدود از برخی از عناصر منظور شناسی به عنوان نقص در این مجموعه ها شناخته شد. همچنین بر اساس نتایج حاصل از این مطالعه مشخص شد که توزیع مولفه های منظورشناسی به صورت مساوی در مکالمات هر دو سری کتاب ها صورت نپذیرفته است و هیچ ارتباطی میان سطح این کتاب ها و میزان استفاده از این مولفه ها وجود ندارد. و در نهایت، راه کارها و پیشنهاداتی به مسئولین تهیه و تدوین منابع درسی جهت به کارگیری عناصر منظورشناسی در کتاب های درسی زبان انگلیسی و تحقق اهداف آموزشی ارائه شد.

همچنان عدم قطعیت های زیادی در خصوص نقش محتمل عوامل میانجی فراوان نظیر زمینه زبانی و قومیت در فرایند بازخود اصلاحی وجود دارد. در پاسخ به این موضوع، مطالعه حاضر بر روی 79 زبان آموز فارس و 79 زبان آموز دوزبانه ترکمن با سن 13 تا 18 سال در دو موسسه آموزش زبان استان گلستان صورت گرفت. شرکت کنندگان به سه گروه تیمار و یک گروه کنترل تقسیم شدند. دو پیش آزمون، اشتباهات گرامری زبان آموزان را نشان داد که براساس آن سه راهبرد بازخورد اصلاحی فرازبانی شفاهی، کتبی و تلفیقی تنظیم گردید و بر روی 5 اشتباه گرامری پرتکرار زبان آموزان اعمال شد. گروه کنترل تیماری دریافت نکرد. آزمون کروسکال والیس نشان دهنده تفاوت معنی دار گروه ها پیش و پس از تیمار بود که براساس آن، پس-آزمون مقایسه زوجی کانوور انجام شد. نتایج نشان داد که در فارس ها و ترکمن ها تیمارها به شکل معنی داری بر روی کاهش اشتباهات گرامری اثر گذاشته است. راهبردهای اصلاحی فرازبانی شفاهی و تلفیقی برای فارس ها و هر سه راهبرد برای ترکمن ها بر روی کاهش اشتباهات اثر معنی دار داشتند. رتبه راهبردها به کمک روش نزدیکی به راه حل ایده آل (تاپسیس) با وزن برابر اشتباهات بررسی شد که برای فارس ها، روش شفاهی و برای ترکمن ها روش کتبی را به عنوان بهترین نشان داد. روش تاپسیس با تغییر وزن ها به میزان 50 درصد به میزان 10000 بار تکرار شد که نشان دهنده ثبات رتبه بندی به دست آمده بود. نتایج این پژوهش می تواند برای فراگیران زبان انگلیسی به عنوان زبان خارجی، آموزگاران زبان به فراگیران دوزبانه، طراحان سرفصل دروس و مواد آموزشی کمک نماید و هم زمان درهای جدیدی به سوی پژوهش های مرتبط بگشاید.

کیفیت زندگی کاری (QWL) معلمان یک چترواژه است که به میزان رضایت معلم از شغل خود و شرایط کلی کار اشاره دارد که تحت تأثیر سه عامل حمایت سازمانی از جمله مشارکت در تصمیم گیری، انصاف درپاداش و فرصت رشد می باشد (ویلگاس-ریمرز، 2003). مطالعه حاضر رابطه بین حمایت سازمانی درک شده (POS) و QWLرا در بین معلمان دوره متوسطه زبان انگلیسی به عنوان زبان خارجی بررسی کرده است. برای این منظور از روش همبستگی توصیفی استفاده شده است که در آن تعداد 173 معلم شرکت کردند که به روش نمونه گیری خوشه ای چند مرحله ای از بین جمعیتی متشکل از معلمان زبان انگلیسی به عنوان زبان خارجی در مدارس متوسطه ی تهران (N=1826) انتخاب شدند. ابزار گردآوری داده ها شامل پرسشنامه نگرش مبتنی بر مدل POS آلن، آرمسترانگ، رید، و ریمنشنایدر(2008) و همچنین پرسشنامه QWLوالتون (1973) بوده است. برای تجزیه و تحلیل داده ها از روش های همبستگی پیرسون و رگرسیون خطی چندگانه استفاده گردید. رابطه بین POSو QWL0.71 یافت شد. به عبارت دیگر، سه بعد POSمی تواند QWL را 71 درصد تحت تأثیر قرار دهد. به طور خاص، سه بعد مشارکت در تصمیم گیری با 21.4، انصاف درپاداش با 24.7، و فرصت رشد با 64.1 درصد می تواند برای پیش بینی QWL استفاده شود. این یافته ها از آن جهت حائز اهمیت است که نشان می دهد POSبه طور قابل توجهی با QWLمعلمان زبان انگلیسی به عنوان زبان خارجی ارتباط دارد که آن نیز به نوبه خود می تواند بر عملکرد این معلمان در مدارس تأثیر بگذارد.

Despite the fact that virtual learning seems to have considerable potential for enhancing language learners’ communicative abilities, it has received less attention for improving pragmatic competence of learners in EFL educational settings. The present study was an attempt to investigate the impact of virtual and real classroom instruction of speech acts on the pragmatic awareness and development of Iranian EFL learners. To do so, a quasi-experimental study was designed and, through a homogeneity test, 57 EFL female language learners at the intermediate level were chosen. The participants were randomly divided into the experimental groups of virtual and real classroom learning and went through the procedure of pretest, intervention, and posttest; the pertinent data were collected by means of a PET test, a speech-act pre-test and comparable post-tests of speech acts. Both measures of independent and paired-samples t-test were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that instruction of speech acts through both virtual and real classroom techniques can be conducive to the promotion of pragmatic awareness among the EFL learners in the Iranian context; meanwhile, real classroom instruction of speech acts proved to be more fruitful and more significantly elevated the pragmatic awareness of Iranian EFL learners. We conclude the study drawing on the implications of our findings for ELT and EFL policy makers, language educators and teachers, material developers, and learners.

This study investigated the comparative effect of collaborative strategic reading (CSR) and metacognitive reading strategy (MRS) on the reading comprehension of Iranian extrovert and introvert EFL learners. To achieve the purpose of this study, a sample IELTS was administered to 325 students studying at Marefat Language Academy in Tehran from whom 225 were selected based on their performance on that test. Next, the above students sat for Eysenck Personality Inventory questionnaire to determine their level of extroversion and introversion. As a result, a total of 150 learners (75 extroverts and 75 introverts) were selected as four experimental groups and two control groups. The four experimental groups, comprised of 1) 25 extroverts undergoing CSR, 2) 25 extroverts receiving MRS, 3) 25 introverts undergoing CSR, 4) 25 introverts undergoing MRS while the two control groups, with 25 extroverts and 25 introverts, the learners experienced the conventional procedure of teaching reading comprehension in the language school. Ancova and two-way Ancova were conducted which revealed introvert learners with MRS outperformed the extrovert with MRS, introvert and extrovert with CSR, and control groups, suggesting a decisive role for personality traits in reading comprehension classes with different reading strategies instruction. 

The present research probed the sociocultural challenging variables which may affect EFL learners’ identity formation during their language studies in an Iranian context. A thorough analysis of the literature encompassing EFL teachers’ opinions and EFL coursebook analyses was performed to develop a comprehensive view of the recognized sociocultural domains and variables. Furthermore, an open-ended questionnaire was designed and distributed among 50 adolescent male and female EFL learners at the age range of 13-21 years (M=16) as Erickson’s identity confusion stage to identify the newest sociocultural challenging variables in the present Iranian context. The result of the research led to compilation of a Sociocultural Variables Inventory presenting an extended range of variables operating in the context of Iranian EFL learners’ identity formation. The inventory could act as a basis for research in the fields of TEFL, sociolinguistics, cultural studies, and further interdisciplinary research.

Psychophysiological studies and MRI neuro-imaging findings provide evidence that heart rate variability (HRV) which is in control of our emotions affects our brain cognitive centers. It has been shown that coherent heart-brain interaction can change the pattern of the afferent cardiac input that is sent to the brain. For this purpose, the Institute of HeartMath (IHM) has proposed a kind of biofeedback training, the TestEdge program, which self-regulates negative emotional learning impediments by increasing HRV measures. It leads to an optimal self-generated psychophysiological state that has an important role in cognitive development through autonomic nervous system dynamics. In the present study, through using IHM self-regulated techniques and tools, the TestEdge program was performed on 63 Iranian EFL learners. In particular, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of HRV measures on reading comprehension performance. The data was measured and recorded by emWave Desktop device. The results confirmed that the intentional heart-focus techniques led to a beneficial mode of psychophysiological coherence of heart-brain interaction. The results indicated significant differences among EFL students with different levels of high, mid, and low coherence and their reading performance.

English is taught all over the world either as a foreign or second language. It is taught as a foreign language in the Iranian educational system as well. However, it has always been the issue that EFL programs have been developed without conducting a systematic needs analysis from the learners’ perspective. The present study examined the effect of employing critical needs analysis on the learners' speaking skills improvement. To this end, 128 Iranian intermediate learners from three language institutes were selected and assigned to two experimental and control groups. The learners' Necessities, Wants and Lacks through a questionnaire and semi-structured interview were investigated. The experimental group received treatment based on the results of the interview and questionnaire. The results of the inferential statistics showed that the students' highest mean score was in the Necessities sub-dimension, followed by the Lacks, and Wants sub-dimensions which revealed that the students' needs were mostly the items which were necessary for the learners' use of language. In contrast, the control group received treatment based on the pre-determined syllabus of the course. The results of an independent sample t-test indicated that in the post-test, the speaking scores of the participants in the experimental group were significantly higher than the scores in the control group.

The purpose of the present study was two-fold: (a) First, it examined fairness of Special English Test (SET) of Iranian National University Entrance Exam (INUEE) by analyzing Differential Item Functioning (DIF) with reading comprehension section of this test (b) second, it explored test takers’ attitudes towards possible sources of unfairness and DIF. In the quantitative part of the study the data from 10000 test takers (6820 females and 3180 males) were analyzed for gender DIF using Mantel-Haenszel (MH) technique. It was revealed that only 6 items in the reading comprehension skill showed DIF. Further analysis manifested that the effect size of DIF for all six items were category A or negligible. Moreover, qualitative interview results indicated that learners generally considered the test a fair one while some potential sources of bias such as topic familiarity, multiple-choice format of the test, topic interest, passage length, and complex structure of test items were mentioned.

This study aimed at investigating the relationship between Willingness to Communicate and EFL learners’ Communication Apprehension, Self-perceived Communicative Competence, Self-regulation, Need for Closure, Tolerance of Ambiguity as well as Aggression. The participants of this study were 300 (197 female and 103 male) Iranian EFL learners of English language institutes in Isfahan. To fulfill the purpose of the study, participants were asked to answer seven questionnaires on Willingness to Communicate (WTC), Communication Apprehension (CA), Self-perceived Communicative Competence (SPCC), Self-regulation (SR), Need for Closure (NFC), Tolerance of Ambiguity (TA) and Aggression (Agg). The results of Structural Equation Modeling confirmed previous studies on the relationship between EFL learners’ WTC and SPCC as well as CA asserting that WTC was positively correlated with SPCC and negatively with CA. It was also found that WTC positively correlated with TA. However, the findings revealed no relationship between WTC and SR, NFC and Agg. This study had implications for EFL learners and teachers regarding the factors influencing WTC in language classrooms.

This study examined Iranian EFL learners’ preferences regarding oral Corrective Feedback (CF) in a TOEFL speaking course. A 30-item questionnaire was administered to 32 participants in a TOEFL preparation course to elicit EFL learners’ views concerning their CF expectations. The results showed that based on the nature and objective of the course, students cared about their accuracy while fluency for these students was of secondary importance. Therefore, CF was regarded as crucial and necessary by the participants and they considered their grammatical errors as the most important one to be corrected followed by vocabulary and pronunciation errors. In terms of CF type, explicit and delayed corrective feedback were the most preferred error correction forms. Furthermore, males preferred their teacher to correct them, females favored self-correction and peer correction more than males. Finally, it can be concluded Attitudes to different feedback types and types of errors that they prefer to be corrected were mostly affected by the nature and the objective of the tasks and the course in general.

This study aimed to overcome the researchers' extreme attention to essentially qualitative methods in research on language learners' imagined communities and move towards quantification in order to achieve a more tangible image of this construct. To do so, the present researchers followed three main phases. First, a hypothesized model of language learners' imagined communities with eight components was developed for the Iranian context based on the wide-ranging readings of the literature on imagined communities, consultations with experts and interviews with language learners. Second, a questionnaire was developed and validated based on the model to represent its components. Finally, the data collected through the questionnaire were fed into the model to see to what extent the model fit the data. The initial results showed poor values; however, the model was trimmed by removing one item from the questionnaire, and final statistical indices showed that the model was fit.

Plagiarism is considered as a serious problem in academia around the world. The issue of plagiarism has recently received global inquiry in different fields of science, especially in foreign language (L2) academic writing. To meticulously assess the Iranian academics for plagiarism at both theory and practice grounds, developing an accountable instrument seemed to be inevitable. To bridge the gap, in phase 1 of the study, a conceptual framework for Iranian academics’ grasp of plagiarism and its components was designed after a thorough review of literature. In phase 2, a number of M.A. graduates and graduate students (n = 224) in six State and Islamic Azad universities in Iran were recruited to partake in piloting the newly-designed plagiarism questionnaire. After a two-step revising the inefficient items (n = 11), the final draft of the developed questionnaire with 36 items was administered with the main sample of participants (n = 288). An Exploratory Factor Analysis was performed to identify the components of the instrument, followed by Confirmatory Factor Analysis to measure its construct validity. As a result, the final draft of the Sociocultural Plagiarism Questionnaire contained 31 Likert-point and 5 multiple choice items in four components of awareness (10 items), attitude (8 items), sociocultural beliefs (8 items), and perception (5 Likert-point and 5 multiple choice items), which were suggested as having fundamental contributions to the Iranian academic writers’ sensitivity to plagiarism. Findings of the study suggested that (a) the Iranian academic writers’ normative sociocultural beliefs can probably reduce their sensitivity to plagiarism, (b) while the Iranian academics might have relatively high awareness and deep perception about plagiarism, their attitude toward plagiarism seems relatively neutral or even insensitive.

In regard to recent revolution in the education domain, English Language Teaching (ELT) assigns a sociopolitical dimension to itself in the light of Critical Pedagogy. The present study, in line with the recent educational revolution, aimed to investigate the effectiveness of critical thinking on improving EFL learners’ productive skills. The statistical population consisted of 164 pre-intermediate attendees of EFL in an English Language Institute in the city of Babol selected for taking an Oxford Placement Test (OPT). The participants were 80 Iranian pre-intermediate EFL students within 10-20-year range, enrolled in Shokouh English language institute in Babol, who were randomly divided into two experimental and two control groups of (N=20) for each group during summer 2018 through the non-probability sampling design. Then, IELTS pre-intermediate speaking and writing tests were taken as the pre-test to make sure that they have failed to have a previous knowledge of objective structures. Unlike the control group, the participants in the experimental group were told to apply critical thinking instructions in learning speaking and writing skills. After intervention, the same pretest was taken to the participants in both groups as the posttest to determine the result of gaining the medical aid. Independent and paired sample t-tests were run to answer the research questions. The results indicated that critical thinking is highly contributive in learning productive skills. The findings of this study can be applied in methodological issues.