درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

One of the significant factors in EFL learning is teacher effectiveness which is of high importance since teachers are really and directly engaged in language learning as the final aim of English classes. This study aimed at designing and validating a Critical Pedagogy-Based Teacher Effectiveness Scale for Iranian EFL teachers. In so doing, an exploratory mixed-methods design was used. The participants of the qualitative phase included 20 male and female Iranian English teachers who were selected through available sampling. In the quantitative phase, 200 male and female Iranian English teachers participated through available sampling. To collect the data, a semi-structured interview was used. To analyze the data, qualitative thematic analysis, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Cronbach’s Alpha Test were used. According to the results, the Critical Pedagogy-Based Teacher Effectiveness Scale for Iranian EFL teachers was developed in 42 Likert items in three sub-scales including pedagogical effectiveness (items 1 to 23), socio-cultural effectiveness (items 24 to 33), and empowering effectiveness (items 34 to 42). Six items were omitted in EFA and 36 items remained in the final scale. It was designed in a four-point Likert range from 1= strongly disagree to 4= strongly agree. It was shown that the developed scale is valid and reliable. The findings have some implications for EFL teachers, learners, teacher education instructors and policy makers

In the present study, we analyze the semantic fragmentation and conventionalization in Persian compound nouns ending in the verbal stems –andāz ‘throw’, -band ‘fasten/close,’ -foruš ‘sell’, -gir ‘catch’, -keš ‘pull’, -paz ‘cook’, -yāb ‘find’, and -zan ‘hit’ from the usage-based perspective. The analysis is based on a 800 data set extracted from diachronic and synchronic corpora. The words produced from the general compounding pattern [XV PRS]N can be categorized in a range of semantic categories, including agent, instrument, location, and object. In describing the semantic fragmentation of [XV PRS]N, we propose the human agent as the starting meaning, from which the instrument sub-pattern is derived by the mechanism of metaphorical extension. However, to justify the object and location meanings, we consider the metonymic extension mechanism to be involved. The sense extension mechanisms do not only apply to the individual words but can happen on the pattern level. It is also argued that these mechanisms are not mechanically applied to all the patterns ending in the verbal stems, instead, it is the usage and the communicative needs of the speakers that determine the semantic fragmentation of any patterns. To illustrate this point, as a case study, we focus on the development of instrument meaning in the pattern [X-paz PRS]N. We show that the instrument sub-pattern is a recent linguistic phenomenon that coincides with the introduction of modern cooking equipment with mostly English names to Iranian society. The increasing use of these types of equipment has led to a new communicative need for naming such instruments. This extra-linguistic factor has motivated the pattern [X-paz PRS]N to be extended through analogy with English compound instrument nouns. The findings of this study may contribute to the understanding of word-formation patterns in general and compounding patterns in particular.

The present study scrutinized the probable significant correlation between Iranian language learners’ emotional intelligence (EQ) and reading proficiency. Moreover, the significant predicting role of the participants’ EQ for their reading comprehension proficiency was investigated. To this end, 196 Iranian B.A. English language teaching students at Islamic Azad university of Neyshabur attended the study. They formed unequal proportion of gender. The study followed a quantitative descriptive design, in which the significant correlation between the variables and the significant predicting role of EQ were investigated. As the normality of data was proved through Kolmogrow-smirnow test, the parametric statistical analyses, including descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient, independent sample T-test, and linear regression analyses were employed. The data collection instruments were an ETS TOEFL reading comprehension test and Bar On’s (1997) inventory of emotional quotient. The findings demonstrated significant positive correlation coefficients between the participants’ reading proficiency and overall EQ as well as most of its subcategories. Three highest positive significant correlation coefficients were seen among the participants’ reading proficiency level, happiness, problem-solving, and emotional self-awareness successively. The results of linear regression analysis also reflected that EQ significantly predicted the participants’ reading proficiency. No significant differences were found between the genders concerning EQ. The findings laid emphasis on the influential importance of psychological non-linguistic factors in improving linguistic competence of language learners. Language teachers should be acutely conscious of the highly influential role of psychological paradigms in boosting language learning process of language learners.

As conceptual models of language learning, use, and processing mature, it is both natural and necessary for the statistical models we apply to follow suit. One statistical approach with great potential in the field Applied Linguistics and L2 studies is structural equation modeling (SEM). SEM is introduced in this paper as a powerful and highly flexible family of analyses. In doing so, the paper outlines (a) the types of variables and possible modeled relationships that SEM is equipped to address and (b) statistical considerations for applying SEM in L2 research, and (c) a number of additional and key considerations for those interested in delving deeper into SEM (e.g., goodness of fit indices, model modification procedures, etc.). This paper also describes the potential of SEM to contribute to construct validation (e.g., convergent and discriminant validity). Throughout the paper, a plethora of examples pertaining to applications of SEM in L2 research are provided.

Cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) have received much interest within the field of language testing over the last decade due to their great potential to provide diagnostic feedback to all stakeholders and ultimately improve language teaching and learning. A large number of studies have demonstrated the application of CDMs on advanced large-scale English proficiency exams, such as IELTS, TOEFL, MELAB, and ECPE. However, too little attention has been paid to the utility of CDMs on elementary and intermediate high-stakes English exams. The current study aims to diagnose the reading ability of test takers in the B1 Preliminary test, previously known as the Preliminary English Test (PET), using the generalized deterministic input, noisy, “and” gate (G-DINA; de la Torre, 2011) model. The G-DINA is a general and saturated model which allows attributes to combine in both compensatory and non-compensatory relationships and each item to select the best model. To achieve the purpose of the study, an initial Q-matrix based on the theory of reading comprehension and the consensus of content experts was constructed and validated. Item responses of 435 test takers to the reading comprehension section of the PET were analyzed using the “G-DINA” package in R. The results of attribute profiles suggested that lexico-grammatical knowledge is the most difficult attribute, and making an inference is the easiest one.

Developing a learner’s ability to communicate in a second language is the goal of communicative language teaching (CLT). Many EFL teachers now accept and employ CLT as a teaching method. Although teachers’ views have a significant influence on how they practice CLT, there haven’t been many studies about teachers’ attitudes about CLT in a specific context, such as Iran. This was revealed through a study of related literature. The current study sought to examine how EFL teachers felt about CLT. The first aim of the present study is to ascertain how EFL teachers feel about CLT. Examining the fundamental causes of instructors’ attitudes is the second goal. Thirdly, determining whether there is a disconnect between instructors' perceptions about CLT and their classroom behavior. The researchers employed a mixed-methods strategy in this study. The study included 30 EFL instructors. Three phases made up the research design: firstly, a questionnaire for gathering quantitative data was used, then interviews and observations were used for gathering qualitative data. The findings of this study showed that, in general, EFL teachers had positive attitudes about the CLT’s tenets and exhibited CLT’s traits in their teaching. There was not much of a discrepancy between the teachers’ perceptions about CLT and their actual classroom actions. This study offers valuable insights that can inform curriculum development, teacher training, and policy decisions, ultimately enhancing the quality of English language education in Iran and similar contexts around the world.

This study aimed to examine the impact of Group Dynamic Assessment (G-DA) on the listening comprehension of Iranian intermediate EFL learners. To this purpose, through the Preliminary English Test (PET) 140 Iranian EFL female learners in four English Language Institutes of Ahvaz, Iran, were tested, and 80 of them were selected as the sample of the study using convenience sampling. They were taught through group dynamic assessment. After the pretest and treatment sessions, the participants were given the listening comprehension post-test and the resultant scores were statistically analyzed to detect their development from pretest to post-test. The obtained results revealed that Group Dynamic Assessment (G-DA) had a positive impact on the participants’ listening comprehension. This finding implies that EFL teachers may need to consider the positive impact of dynamic assessment on EFL learners’ listening comprehension improvement and provide them with more opportunities to interact. They may also need to create a change in the traditional models of listening comprehension assessment which emphasize psychometric quantification of students' performances

PhD examination is a unique type of assessment with examiners playing a key role in it. Despite extensive research on various modes of academic genre, research on the examiners’ language representing oral review genre is yet underrepresented. One important way to identify this genre is to unpack the metadiscursive features that constitute this type of academic discourse. Using a metadiscourse framework, developed by Hyland (2005), this study investigates the metadiscursive markers that constitute Iranian and International examiners’ language of PhD dissertation evaluation. The data include the transcriptions of Iranian and International examiners’ evaluative discourse in eight PhD dissertation defenses, taken place in Iran and the US (MICASE corpus), representing English for Academic Purposes. The results indicate that the examiners use a variety of interactional as well as interactive metadiscourse markers to convey the effective and appropriate evaluation of the PhD dissertations at hand. Further breakdown of the metadiscourse devices and the comparison of the two sets of data are provided. The results unpack an aspect of oral academic review as a specific genre with implications for both EAP-user examiners and PhD candidates to become aware of the discursive features of the examiners language.

This study is aimed at investigating the effect of reading-based vs. discussion-based pre-writing activities on the writing ability of Iranian EFL learners. To this end, a quasi-experimental study was conducted with 40 Iranian intermediate EFL learners within16 to 20 age range who were selected based on their performance on an Oxford Solution Proficiency Test. They were divided into two experimental groups: Reading Group and Discussion Group. The former group was made to involve in some reading activity prior to doing the main writing task, and the latter group was made to participate in a discussion activity before the main writing task. After the treatment for 10 sessions, both groups were post-tested. The findings indicated that both groups’ writing ability improved over the course of the study, but the difference between the performances of the groups on the post-test was not statistically significant, although the Reading group’s mean score was greater than the Discussion group. The results of this study have some implications for students, language teachers, syllabus designers and material developers.