درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

While teachers’ confidence in their abilities is a crucial asset in teachers’ professionalism and their identity development, their efficacy doubts are also considered useful. Given the diversity of English Language Teaching (ELT) contexts, this paper probes the dynamic nature of efficacy doubts the teachers face and are expected to resolve in English for General Purposes (EGP) and English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) instruction. To this end, based on the existing theoretical frameworks in EGP and ESAP methodology and interviews with 25 university English teachers, two questionnaires were developed and administered to 170 Iranian EGP and ESAP university instructors. The results of factor analysis confirmed five factors underlying ESAP teachers’ teaching efficacy doubts and four factors for EGP teachers’ teaching efficacy doubts. The results may promise implications for ESAP and EGP teacher education programs; teacher educators may address the common efficacy doubts identified in this study and expose the current in-service and future ESAP and EGP teachers to the typical factors which may potentially hamper their efficacy and help them resolve their efficacy doubts as a means towards professional development

During the last decades various researchers noticed that the traditional approaches to teaching had failed to teach learners to their utmost actual ability, therefore they put great efforts into developing post-modernist approaches and techniques such as critical thinking (CT) and cooperative learning (CL) for improving learning.The present study was an attempt to investigate the comparative effect of practicing CL and CT skills on EFL learners’ writing in a process-based approach to writing on EFL learners’ writing. Sixty Iranian female EFL learners at the intermediate level of English proficiency at Kish Language School were selected among a total number of 90 based on their performance on the Preliminary English Test (PET) and randomly assigned into two groups of CL and CT. Then the researchers administered an argumentative paragraph writing test to ensure the homogeneity of the two groups regarding argumentative writing before the treatment. Both groups were taught the same content through process-based approach throughout the 20-session treatment. Finally, the participants took a paragraph writing posttest including three writing prompts in argumentative genre. The mean scores of the two groups on the posttest were compared through an independent samples t-test. The results led to the rejection of the null hypothesis with the conclusion that CT instruction was significantly more effective than CL in improving EFL learners’ argumentative paragraph writing.

The use of effective multimedia instructions such as mobiles, computers, and the internet in language learning has turned out to be useful since the last decades. The impact of multimedia and synchronous approaches of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) on English as a foreign language (EFL) learners' learning of language skills and components has been studied to some extent. However, the impact of computerized mediated instruction through multimedia (text and graphics) on learning collocations requires further investigations. This study aimed at investigating whether synchronous and asynchronous multimedia components: text and text with added graphics had any effects on EFL learners' learning of collocations. In doing so, 150 male EFL learners at pre-intermediate proficiency level were selected through convenience sampling. They were divided into six groups. The results of the study showed that computerized mediated instruction was more effective than non-computerized instruction. Also, synchronous computerized instruction was more effective than asynchronous computerized instruction. The results also showed that presentation through text with added graphics was more effective than presentation through simple text. The results are discussed and some pedagogical implications are presented.

The present study, following Vygotskyan Sociocultural theory in education, and inspired by Rogoff’s conceptualization (1995, 2003) of development, aimed at conceptual development of in-service EFL teachers. To this end, two Iranian EFL teachers with pseudonyms (Tara and Sara) were selected as participants of the study. The participating teachers were first taught the sociocultural concepts related to language, teaching, and learning taken from Johnson (2009) and Rogoff’s (2003) mediatory model of development in six workshops through dialogic mediation. The data for the study comprised two semi-structured interviews, and three video-recording of critical reflection of each teacher on their video-taped classroom behavior. The recordings and transcripts were analyzed using Hatch’s (2002) procedure for interpretive analysis. The results of the study showed that participating teachers, over a process of struggle with their past experiences, gradually replaced their old everyday concepts such as grammatical accuracy, correct samples, and teacher interruption with new scientific concepts such as grammatical apprenticeship, guided grammatical participation, and grammatical appropriation through assisted participation. The results of present study can be illuminating for teacher educators and teacher education programs which have aimed at changing the classroom practice of in-service teachers

This study compared the effects of two types of form-focused tasks on proceduralization and transfer of linguistics knowledge in case of English modals. All participants of the study attended pretests, posttests and delayed posttests. The procedural comprehension and production knowledge were measured through the groups’ performance on a timed dual task test that resembled the context of practice. The transfer of knowledge was measured by evaluating the performance of participants on a timed dual task test in a context dissimilar from or reverse to the practice context. Three intact classes of intermediate EFL learners were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The output group (n= 27) received explicit grammar instruction and a combination of three output practice, while the input group (n=25) received explicit instruction and a combination of three input practice. Identical texts were exposed to the control group (n=25) through listening and reading tasks. The texts were followed by some questions irrelevant to English modals. On the procedural knowledge posttests, the experimental groups outperformed the control group. The participants were able to transfer the knowledge to dissimilar contexts. The results may help language teachers design more effective activities for the learners considering the institutional constraints

This mini-corpus, cross-linguistic, comparative, and norm-referenced study intends to render the most frequently and oft-used affixes in the written descriptive tasks in the performance of English language materials developers (ELMDs) and Iranian English language undergraduates (IELUs). Samples of writings of both groups were studied and analyzed through affixation principles. The frequency of nearly 63 affixes both inflectional and derivational morphemes was taken into account. The statistical analysis showed a highly significant correlation (.86) with (.75) coefficient determination (shared variance) between the performance of IELUs and ELMDs. The result of the study bears approximately a close resemblance to the findings by Bauer et al.(1982), Fry and Kress (2006), Honig, Diamond, Gutlohn, and Mahler (2000), and White, Sowell, and Yanagihara (1989). Finally, the implications of the study were taken into account.

To date, controversy among scholars exists on whether or not teachers should react to EFL learners' written grammar errors. This study investigated the effect of three feedback types (i.e., selective, comprehensive, and the one recommended by Truscott (1999), that is, no correction) with regard to possible improvements in accuracy in the writings of a total of 66 elementary EFL learners. It, further, sought whether such an effect would last in the long run. During 11 weeks, selected global (e.g., past tense, countable/uncountable, and comparative adjectives) and all grammar errors in the written pieces of the subjects in two treatment groups ( n= 22 in each) were reacted through coded underlining. However, in line with Truscott, the only reaction participants in the third group ( n= 22) received were comments such as great, good, ok, etc.. Analysis of the written pieces in the immediate and delayed post tests  revealed that selective feedback had a significantly more positive influence on learners' accurate use of selected grammatical structures  both in the short and in the long run. The implications are discussed in terms of effective guidelines for teaching writing in EFL contexts. Keywords: Comprehensive feedback; Selective feedback; No correction; Writing accuracy   تصحیح گرامر از نوع بازخورد انتخابی در مقایسه با بازخورد جامع در آموزش نگارش: شواهد متقابل بر دیدگاه تروسکات امروزه در خصوص اینکه آیا  معلم باید به اشتباهات دستوری زبان آموزان  در نگارش باخورد اصلاحی داشته باشد یا نه، در میان پژوهشگران اختلاف نظر وجود دارد. این تحقیق با هدف بررسی تاثیر سه نوع بازخورد اصلاحی( انتخابی، جامع، و نوع توصیه شده توسط تروسکات (1999)،  که بازخورد بدون اصلاح میباشد) بر امکان بهبود  در دقت در نگارش 66  زبان آموز مبتدی انجام شده است. علاوه بر این، این پژوهش به بررسی این تاثیر احتمالی دردراز مدت نیز پرداخته است. در طول 11 هفته،  ساختار های انتخاب شده ( صفات مقایسه ای، اسامی قابل شمارش / غیر قابل شمارش، و زمان گذشته) و تمامی اشتباهات دستور زبان در متن های نوشته شده توسط زبان آموزان در دو گروه تحت بررسی (22 نفر در هر گروه)، از طریق خط تاکید کدگذاری شده مورد بازخورد قرار گرفت. با وجود اینکه، مطابق با نظر تروسکات، تنها عکس العملی که زبان آموزان در گروه سوم (22 نفر) دریافت کردند، نظراتی مانند عالی،  خیلی خوب، خوب، و غیره بود. تجزیه و تحلیل متن های نوشته شده درپس آزمون فوری و تاخیری نشان داد که بازخورد از نوع انتخابی تاثیر مثبت تری در استفاده دقیقتر زبان آموزان از ساختارهای دستوری، هم در کوتاه مدت و هم در دراز مدت بوده داشت. کاربردهای این تحقیق در قالب دستورالعمل های موثر برای آموزش نگارش  زبان خارجی مورد بحث قرار گرفته است. واژگان کلیدی:  بازخورد انتخابی،  بازخورد جامع، عدم بازخورد ، دقت در نگارش

Critical pedagogy (CP), as a poststructuralist educational movement, challenges the asymmetrical, power-over nature of classroom discourse and seeks to accommodate multivocality in the classroom and in the society. This study probed the discourse architecture of EFL classrooms in Iran. Specifically, it aimed to explore to what extent Iranian EFL classrooms have stepped away from the teacher-dominant initiation-response-follow-up (IRF) discourse structure and welcomed CP-oriented dialogism and multivocality. To this end, a number of EFL classrooms in Isfahan and Shahrekord (Iran) were observed, and the running classroom discourse was audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. The results showed that discourse-construction opportunities were distributed unevenly in favor of teachers regarded as the sole authority in the classroom. Student-regulated symmetrical talks were seldom evidenced in the classrooms. The findings further demonstrated that the power-over IRF discourse architecture, despite its communicative inadequacies, still seems to be dominant in EFL classrooms in Iran. Finally, it is suggested that L2 practitioners should move towards transforming the status quo, include more elements of CP into L2 classrooms, and invest in dialogism and multivocality as essential mechanisms to de-silence the students.

این مقاله به بررسی استفاده از روش متن متقابل (تقابل با متن)، برای آموزش خلاصه نویسی و تفسیر به دانشجویان دکتری رشته های زبان می پردازد. در این پژوهش انواع واکنش های روانی خواننده (چه محتوایی و چه نسبیتی) به متن نوشتار، در شیوه کلی مکالمه محور تدریس زبان روسی به غیر روسی زبان ها بررسی می شود. در کنار ارزیابی ها و نظرات شخصی که ازجمله متداول ترین واکنش ها به شمار می روند، واکنش های دیگری نیز تحلیل می شوند؛ واکنش هایی نظیر استدلال، پاسخ آزاد، تعیین جهت سخن، تصدیق، پیچیده سازی، نتیجه گیری، تعمیم، تصویرسازی، ترجمه، بیان متن با جملات دیگر، تجسم، تثبیت، فرض، بینامتنیت، پیش بینی و جایگزین سازی معنا. گاهی اوقات ارزیابی و تفسیر پدیده ای که در نوشتار ارائه می شود، همانند واکنش های شخصی و روانی متنوع به آن، دشواری هایی را طی دوره آموزشی زبان روسی برای زبان آموزان خارجی ایجاد می کند. به همین دلیل، واکنش های گفته شده، به گفتار روزمره آن ها وارد می شود. مبنای این مسئله رشد به اصطلاح تفکر تداعی گرا (که به مفهوم توانایی برقراری ارتباط بین واقعیت های نزدیک و یا کاملاً دور از ذهن است) در دو بستر منطق و دستور است. در این مقاله نمونه ای از تمرینات معین که زبان آموز را به سوی این هدف رهنمون می سازند و همچنین موادی جهت ساخت متن متقابل به پیوست ارائه می شوند.

Fossilization has become the focus of many L2 studies since its introduction in 1972 as many learners fail to achieve native-speaker competence. Researchers have tried to unravel the causes of fossilization, among which noticing has been claimed to be of great importance. This study aimed to explore the effect of noticing on fossilization. To achieve this aim, a mixed methods approach was utilized. Sixty advanced L1 Persian learners of English studying in Iran were chosen to perform two written and three spoken tasks twice. Qualitative data included the content analysis of the participants’ performance on the written and spoken tasks while the quantitative data included percentages of noticed errors and recurrent erroneous forms. The errors observed in both performances were counted and classified. Six main categories named Grammatical Errors, Lexical Errors, and Cohesive Errors were identified. The observed errors were further classified into 61 subcategories. When learners’ ability in noticing their errors was investigated, it was found that they could notice 37.4% of the 3,796 fossilized forms they had produced. Most of the errors observed were categorized in the category of grammatical errors. Noticing affected the number of errors produced. It can be concluded that becoming aware of ones fossilized forms, one will produce fewer fossilized forms. The results of the current study have implications for English language teachers and learners. By being informed of the errors learners make while learning a language and how their noticing affects fossilization, teachers can improve their teaching practice which in turn enhances learning.

در این پژوهش به بررسی تاثیر فناوری های جدید اطلاع رسانی و ارتباطی در آموزش بر بهبود توانش های دستوری و آگاهی فراشناختی در دستور نزد معلمان آینده زبان فرانسه در دانشکده تعلیم و تربیت دانشگاه تانتا، پرداخته می شود. به نظر می رسد که استفاده از فناوری های اطلاع رسانی و ارتباطی در آموزش نه تنها عملکرد دستوری زبان آموزان بلکه آگاهی فراشناختی آنها را نیز می-تواند بهبود بخشد. آگاهی فراشناختی تاثیر زیادی بر فراگیری زبان فرانسه دارد. تحقیقات زیادی مانند عبدالغنی (2009 و 2010) نشان دادند که زمانیکه فراگیران به عملکردهایشان آگاه باشند چگونه مرتکب این یا آن خطا می شوند و چگونه آنها می توانند با استفاده از فناوری های اطلاع رسانی و ارتباطی در آموزش، عملکرد زبانی شان را بهبود بخشند. از منابع مجازی بر خط مانند Franc-parler.org (پایگاه جهانی معلمان زبان فرانسه به عنوان زبان خارجی) و غیره استفاده شد تا تاثیر آنها بر آموزش دستور و رشد آگاهی فراشناختی در دستور نزد معلمان آینده زبان فرانسه در مصر بررسی شود.

Multiple Choice tests are utilized widely in educational assessment because of their objectivity, ease of scoring, and reliability. This study aimed to compare IF and ID of MC vocabulary test items and attempted to find whether these indices are affected by the number of options. To this end, four 20 item stem equivalent vocabulary tests (3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-option MC) were administered to 194 (106 male and 88 female) pre-intermediate students. Besides, an attitude questionnaire was utilized to examine the attitudes of test takers towards MC test format. Results of one-way ANOVA showed that altering number of options in MC tests does not affect Item Discrimination (ID); however, there were significant differences between Item Facility (IF) of 3-, 5-, and 6-option and 4-, 5-, and 6-option MC test but not between 3- and 4-option MC test, suggesting that 6-option test is the most difficult test. Also, the results of questionnaire revealed test takers’ preference towards the use of 3-option MC. Findings demonstrated that increasing the number of options makes a test more difficult and that choosing the right number of option for MC tests is controversial. Testers are recommended to consider various factors while choosing the right number of options.