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Since teachers’ creative behavior or innovation-promoting inclination affects the quality of education, some recent studies have aimed to explore teachers’ willingness to practice teaching for creativity (TfC) in various education contexts. As an attempt to identify the correlates of TfC, the aim of this research was to test a model of model of TfC in EFL contexts based on teachers’ creative self-efficacy and their growth mindset. A number of 472 Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers partook in this survey as the participants. The electronic versions of the questionnaires for the three latent variables were administered to the participants. Structural equation modelling was utilized to test the suggested model of TfC in the EFL context. The results indicated that both teachers’ creative self-efficacy and their growth mindset substantially influenced EFL teachers’ TfC although the contribution of creative self-efficacy was greater than. Additionally, teachers’ growth mindset had a slight effect on their creative self-efficacy. These findings can offer remarkable implications for EFL teacher educators

This study explores translators’ (in)visibility in translating English teen and young adult novels into Persian through various analytical perspectives. Five contemporary award-winning young adult novels were chosen for analysis. The textual aspect involved assessing the translator's influence using Baker’s translation universals: explicitation, simplification, and normalization. A sample of 300 sentences was scrutinized. The results indicated that translators utilized translation universals in 193 sentences, demonstrating considerable visibility. Four translators favored explicitation, while one preferred simplification, with normalization being the least prevalent strategy. The semiotic analysis of novel covers aimed to reveal the translators’ visibility. Utilizing Kress and Van Leeuwen’s (2006) framework, it was found that four covers featured smaller font sizes for translators’ names compared to the authors’, reflecting a diminished valuation of translators. None of the back covers acknowledged the translators, while authors’ names and images appeared on two, and publisher names were present on all five volumes. The paratextual analysis focused on the translators' presence in prefaces, postfaces, and footnotes. Three novels were devoid of both a preface and a postface. Translator acknowledgment was absent in the two novels with a postface, rendering them invisible. However, all five novels included footnotes, highlighting the translators' contributions and ensuring their visibility in this aspect. In conclusion, this study underscores the varying degrees of translators’ (in)visibility across different perspectives, particularly highlighting their underrepresentation in semiotic and paratextual domains.

Adaptive teaching addresses students’ diversity and their immediate learning needs. Particularly, in the high-interactive context of English teaching, fostering adaptive teaching in teacher professional development programs not only stimulates teacher change at the micro level, but also facilitates implementing the organizational and curricular innovations imposed by authorities at the macro level. The current English teaching literature lacks a measure for evaluating and fostering adaptive teaching within higher education. Hence, within the present study, the Interconnected Model of Teacher Professional Growth (IMTPG) was adapted and validated as a measure for evaluating and fostering teacher adaptability for 183 international English teachers in higher education. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was employed for validating two different enactment and reflection links in the original IMTPG, and the final adapted IMTPG for adaptive teaching (At-IMTPG) was proposed. The AT-IMTPG can be applied for evaluating how adaptive English teachers are, seeking to resolve the problem of implementing educational innovations by English teachers in higher education. It can also be used to design teacher professional growth programs for fostering adaptive teaching within English teaching higher education. Such a change in the classroom level is hoped to be translated into an educational change in English teaching higher education.

Drawing on qualitative research, this study explored, from a complex dynamic systems theory perspective, the motivation of Burundi junior high school students simultaneously learning L2 French, L3s English and Kiswahili. It aimed to fill the gap in research on (1) changes in motivational dynamics and factors responsible for any fluctuations in the levels of motivation over time and (2) complex interactions between different learner variables among multiple language learners. Twelve school pupils who were all Kirundi native speakers participated in this study. Retrospective interviews were used to collect data relating to the students’ multilingual learning experiences over the period of their formal education. The findings indicated that the intensity of learning each target language fluctuated over time, with English generally enjoying the highest increase and Kiswahili the lowest and that different factors were responsible for such dynamic changes. Besides, complex interactions between the students’ L1, L2, and L3s linguistic knowledge and their foreign language learning motivations were revealed. These results indeed highlight the complex and dynamic nature of motivation in learning multiple languages. In light of these findings, practical implications are discussed based on the Burundi educational context.

Today, technological applications provide language learners with many possibilities to improve their learning. Online learning environments create opportunities for more flexibility, interaction, and collaboration in a way different from face-to-face learning environments. This study attempted to investigate the effects of synchronous distance education on the oral comprehension of Iraqi English language learners. The participants were 19 Iraqi English as a foreign language (EFL) learners in a language institute in Karbala, Iraq. All learners were following the same language course at the B1 level. These learners were randomly divided into three groups: the face-to-face control group, the experimental group taught via the Adobe Connect platform, and the experimental group taught via the Skype application. The data were collected through pre- and post-oral proficiency tests. The findings showed significant differences in the improvement of oral comprehension among the three groups. Experimental groups scored significantly higher than the control group. Moreover, the results indicated that the Adobe Connect-based instruction had a better effect on the learners’ oral comprehension in comparison to the Skype-based instruction. Concerning the performance of males and females in the experimental groups, the findings showed a significant difference between females and males in the Adobe Connect condition, with females showing more improvement. However, no significant difference was observed between males and females in the Skype group. The study stresses the mediation of virtual classrooms in enhancing EFL learners’ learning achievements. Relevant pedagogical implications for classroom practice in EFL education are presented and discussed and some suggestions are made for future research

Technology-mediated instructional activities have received increasing attention in second language acquisition (SLA) studies. Yet, research on the role of technology in language learners’ emotional intelligence has been limited. More specifically, the role of data-driven learning (DDL) using concordancing, as a technology-mediated approach to learning English, in developing emotional intelligence has been left unattended. Through a mixed-methods explanatory sequential design within a quasi-experimental comparison group pretest-posttest design, the present study examined if DDL statistically significantly influenced the English learners’ trait emotional intelligence (TEI) and its attributes, including emotionality, self-control, well-being, and sociability. The results of questionnaires, open-ended surveys, and semi-structured interviews with 92 female undergraduate English learners indicated that DDL did not statistically significantly influence their TEI and its attributes. However, in terms of well-being, learners in the experimental group were slightly higher than learners in the control group. Finally, analysis of the qualitative data pointed to an increase in the learners’ TEI through enhancing self-confidence, stress management, and emotional perception.

This research explored the intricacies of incitement as a speech act in political discourse, particularly in the context of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, the study combined qualitative analyses—focusing on rhetorical structures and pragmatic strategies—with quantitative evaluations of speech act frequencies. The corpus included speeches from prominent political figures delivered between February 2022 and March 2024, selected for their relevance to incitement. The analysis revealed that incitement often straddles the boundary between illocutionary and perlocutionary acts, showcasing how politicians use indirect language to maintain plausible deniability while still mobilizing action. This ambiguity complicates traditional classifications within speech act theory. Furthermore, the study highlights various persuasive strategies employed in political rhetoric, such as emotional appeals and historical analogies.The implications of this research are significant for understanding how language functions as a tool of political power, particularly in conflict situations. It provides insights into ethical considerations surrounding incitement in political communication, suggesting that awareness of linguistic strategies can help prevent escalation of tensions and promote more responsible discourse among leaders.

This study aimed at exploring Iranian thesis supervisors’ views on examiners’ fair in examining M.A. Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL )thesis in Iran. In so doing, a phenomenological design was used. 20 M.A. thesis supervisors participated in the study who were selected through purposeful sampling. To collect the data, a semi-structured interview was used. Data analysis was conducted via manual thematic analysis. According to the results, the following views were among those extracted for M.A. theses supervisors about examiners’ fair: Examiners’ unfair in Examining Theses; Inattention to the Standards of Thesis Writing; Judgment Based on Personal Mood; Examiners’ Personal Problems with Supervisors; and Examiners’ Relation with Students. Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that according to the perceptions of Iranian TEFL thesis supervisors, examiners are not just and fair in examining theses. They pay attention to the issues such as previous relations, personal problems, practicing power and such matters which are non-relevant to thesis itself. It can also be concluded that Iranian TEFL thesis examiners, at least according to thesis supervisors' views, are illiterate or unknowledgeable in terms of statistics and some research topics. This is a reason for their unfair in examining theses. The results have some implications for M.A. thesis examiners, students, higher education administrators, and researchers.

Emotion labor is defined as any conflict between institutional demands and teachers’ professional beliefs and preferences. Engaging in emotion labor is an inevitable aspect of becoming a language teacher. Scholars agree that language teacher agency and identity are closely tied to emotion labor. This fact particularly looms large for novice language teachers, who tend to perceive contradictions between what they imagine prior to entering the profession and what they actually experience in their teaching contexts. This case study applied activity theory (Engeström, 2015) and Gee’s (2000) identity framework to explore how the emotion labor experienced by a novice Iranian female teacher of English as a foreign language (EFL) over a five-year career period at three private language institutes affected her language teacher agency and identity. The findings, obtained from class observations and semi-structured interviews, highlight two major sources of emotion labor: 1) profit-oriented policy, and 2) performance-constraining factors within the institute, which caused the participant to contemplate quitting her job. Implications and further research are discussed in line with the interplay among emotion labor, language teacher identity, and well-being.  

Over the last decade, Mobile-assisted Language Learning (MALL) has led to an authentic and contextual language learning process across the globe (Kukulska-Hulme, 2009). It has played a pivotal role in language learning in general and vocabulary learning in particular as a building block of academic writing. The current study examined the effect of a mobile application (i.e. AWL builder) on academic vocabulary learning among sophomore university students in applied linguistics. The study also focused on measuring students' perceptions and problems in utilizing mobile-assisted applications in acquiring English academic vocabulary. Accordingly, using convenience sampling procedures the participants were divided into experimental (N =36) and control (N = 36) groups. The experimental group used a mobile application (i.e. AWL builder), while the control group used a traditional approach. Furthermore, to answer research questions academic vocabulary pre-and post-tests and a questionnaire were employed. The findings show that the AWL group showed prominent performance in academic vocabulary tests. The current study concludes that instructors should take into account mobile devices as useful supplementary tools to enhance L2 academic word retention and include them in regular language curriculum.

This article tries to delineate different aspects of Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) in detail: MLE as a model of learning in psychology, MLE as a dynamic assessment methodology, and MLE as a basis for designing a course. This article tries to delineate different aspects of Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) in detail: MLE as a model of learning in psychology, MLE as a dynamic assessment methodology, and MLE as a basis for designing a course. MLE, well-known as Feuerstein's theory, is presented as a model of learning in psychology for enhancing cognitive functioning and problem-solving skills in children with cognitive challenges. Some other studies and scholars such as Poehner (2008) consider MLE as a dynamic assessment methodology because in dynamic assessment, assistance emerges from the interaction between the mediator and the learner. The other studies look at MLE as a holistic and integrative approach which is able to prepare a course. Definition of MLE principles and a meticulous and elaborate analysis of the first five MLE principles in different studies, entitled as MLE Taxonomy, are presented in a table at the end of the article.

Virtual learning has been defined as any system of education and instruction that brings together participants who are separated by geographical distances or time. Significantly, in a virtual learning environment, interactive telecommunications systems are utilized to connect learners, resources, and instructors. As such, the present study sought to investigate the possible effect of a synchronous virtual learning environment on the reading comprehension of undergraduate EFL university students. To this end, from the population of students majoring in English translation at Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran, one control group, and one experimental group were non-probabilistically selected based on their availability. Indeed, thirty students were chosen for the control group and thirty students were nominated for the experimental group. Live interactive teaching rooms were utilized in the experimental group during the term, whereas asynchronous instructional practices were adopted in the control group within the study. According to the results of paired samples t-test, the experimental group, which was instructed by live interactive teaching rooms over the term, progressed at the end of the period as compared to the beginning of the term. Moreover, the independent samples t-test showed that the students' scores on the post-test in the experimental group were higher than that of the control group. Evidently, the results of the present study may have practical implications for EFL teachers, online instructors, distance education programmers, materials developers, and syllabus designers.

This quasi-experimental study aimed to investigate the effects of dynamic assessment employed by teachers on promoting Iranian EFL learners’ stances in academic writing. For this purpose, three intact writing classes were selected by convenience sampling from BA students of English translation at Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University. The Quick Oxford Placement Test (QOPT) was administered to them, and those whose scores matched the intermediate band score of QOPT were selected. In general, 35 homogeneous students were selected from each class and randomly assigned into two experimental groups and one control group. A writing test was administered to all groups as the pre-test at the onset of the semester. The experimental groups were taught by the researcher and passed five different quizzes during the semester. The three groups were post-tested at the end of the semester. The results illustrated that both teacher and peers’ dynamic assessment effectively improved Iranian EFL learners’ stance in academic writing.