درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

This research investigated the effects of applying standardized grading procedures and tailored constructive feedback on the development of students' productive skills, with a specific focus on writing and speaking abilities in the Deanship of Preparatory Year students at the University of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal, Saudi Arabia. The study introduced two programs: a writing portfolio program and a speaking remedial program. These programs aimed to assess students' strengths and weaknesses in these skills before offering individualized feedback from teachers between two assessment points. Pre- and post-program scores were compared, and teachers' reflections were gathered. The results demonstrate that students experienced substantial improvements in their scores, with progress ranging from 29% to 66% following the implementation of these initiatives. Additionally, the study revealed that teachers also benefited from these programs, leading to a reevaluation of the quality and quantity of their feedback and an adjustment in their teaching approaches to better support their students. These findings underscore the significance of providing constructive feedback in higher education institutions. They highlight the necessity of implementing feedback systematically and methodically to cater to the needs of struggling students, enhance the learning experiences of high-achieving students, and professionalize the processes of learning, assessment, and student support.

In recent decades, numerous studies in Iran have examined entrepreneurial traits among university students. However, the entrepreneurial potential of undergraduate English translation students remains unexplored. This study investigates the entrepreneurial characteristics of English translation students at Islamic Azad University branches in Mazandaran Province and identifies key obstacles hindering their development. A sample of 106 English translation students from four branches was selected through convenience sampling. Participants completed a validated questionnaire assessing traits such as risk-taking, internal locus of control, success orientation, pragmatism, challenge-seeking, intellectual vitality, and tolerance of ambiguity. Additionally, they engaged in semi-structured interviews after being informed about the study’s objectives. Descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA analysis indicated that entrepreneurial traits were generally average, with no significant differences across the four branches. Qualitative analysis of interview data highlighted personal, financial, legal, and educational barriers as primary entrepreneurial obstacles.

The concept of “orthographic depth” refers to the degree of the deviation of the writing system from the one-to-one correspondence between graphemes and phonemes. This study aims to explore and compare of the “orthographic depth” between Persian and English writing systems using UTPECC corpus and homographic scale. To this end, the scope of the application of the homography feature in 10000 words of Persian writing system was determined by using the word processing software 2010 through the synchronic study in the field of graphology. Then, the occurrence frequency of this feature was briefly compared with a similar number of words in English writing system. The research results show only 4 graphemes possess homography feature in Persian writing system, each of which corresponds to a limited number of phonemes (maximum 4 phonemes). While this feature is observed in 11 graphemes of English writing system and the variety of their corresponding phonemes was much more than Persian writing system. Considering the fact that the extent of the occurrence of the homography feature in English writing system is significantly higher than Persian writing system, it can be stated that the orthographic depth of English writing system exceeds that of Persian writing system.

Cet article porte sur la traduction économique français-persan. S’appuyant sur la théorie de la Stylistique comparée, élaborée par Vinay-Darbelnet, il a pour but de déterminer quels procédés sont à la disposition du traducteur pour l’aider à résoudre les difficultés qu’il rencontre. Quelles sont les meilleures façons de traduire des termes techniques ? Quels sont les procédés les plus efficients ? Cette analyse se penche ainsi sur les principaux enjeux de la traduction du texte économique. Les textes financiers et bancaires se situant dans la sphère des textes spécialisés, mais aussi dans celle des textes des Sciences humaines, la principale problématique de leur traduction serait liée d’abord à la terminologie, mais aussi à la structure syntaxique particulière de ce genre de texte. Les enjeux seraient donc de trouver de bons équivalents aux niveaux lexical et phraséologique, mais aussi de plier (et non pas forcer) les longues phrases et les phrases complexes du texte français à la structure syntaxique de la langue persane.

The present study was an attempt to investigate the possible effect of using WordUp Software on Iranian EFL learners’ vocabulary learning. The participants were 60 upper-intermediate EFL learners who were selected out of 72 based on the Oxford Proficiency Test. Then, the participants were randomly divided into two groups of study namely experimental and control. The participants in the experimental group underwent an eight-session treatment including learning vocabulary based on using WordUp Software. In the control group, however, the participants gained new vocabulary by conventional methods. The quantitative approach employed a quasi-experimental method to obtain pre-test and post-test results from learners in both the experimental and control groups. The results of the study revealed that using WordUp Software caused a considerable improvement in learning the vocabulary among the learners in the experimental group. The findings of this study could benefit language learners, language teachers, and curriculum developers by providing valuable insights into vocabulary acquisition through WordUp for EFL learners.

English textbooks can be the frontiers of Second Language (L2) and world views for English as Foreign Language (EFL) learners. This qualitative study aimed to uncover how pictures of Iranian-published English textbooks represent identities in terms of gender, race, and nation. To this end, an intersectional lens was employed for analyzing the English textbook Vision 2 taught in Iranian high school as the subject of the study. Analysis of visual data, using the models proposed by Nelson (2019) and Zarza (2018), indicated that Vision 2 failed to offer a successful and realistic representation of gender, race, and nation for EFL learners. Insufficient representations of female characters, different races, and nations were the most prominent findings of the present research. This study provided some explanations and suggestions for the following revision of EFL textbooks.

Although researchers have analyzed the formal, syntactic, and functional behavior of cleft sentences in the English language across various genres, their distributional frequencies have received very little attention in academic research genres. Therefore, drawing on a 20,389,297-word corpus including 1,521 research articles (RAs), 116 PhD dissertations, and 48 textbooks, in applied linguistics, this study followed Biber et al.’s (1999) and Collins’ (2002) models to identify and analyze four major types of cleft structures in our corpus. Using a corpus-based research design, we drew on concordances to extract the target cleft structures. The computer program AntConc was used to identify instances of cleft sentences, and the statistical significance of the findings was evaluated through separate chi-square tests. The results of frequency analysis showed varying degrees of these grammatical structures across the three research genres, with textbooks including the highest number of clefts, followed by dissertations, and RAs. The results promise pedagogical implications for non-native English student writers to familiarize themselves with conventions in academic research genre writing for publication purposes. The findings suggest that academic research genre writing affects the frequency and use of these complex grammatical structures.  

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have significantly transformed the education system in recent decades, providing new opportunities for both teachers and students and improving the quality of education. The purpose of this study is to analyze the opinions of foreign language teachers regarding the impact of ICTs in the classroom, the training acquired and the challenges faced during the teaching-learning experience. A study with a quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, and descriptive approach was carried out using a questionnaire as a data collection instrument. The final sample consisted of 117 foreign language teachers from bilingual schools of Primary and Secondary Education in Andalusia (Spain), both public and subsidized/semi-public. Specifically, 66.6% are female and 33.4% male. The results indicate that teachers believe in the positive impact that ICTs may have on the teaching-learning process, and feel highly motivated in carrying out their work through ICTs. However, teachers continue to express the need for further and continuous training and highlight the importance of technical support and how the lack of resources can undermine the quality of foreign language teaching. 

The implementation of a curriculum involves numerous variables and entities, both individual and institutional, which makes it a complex and multifaceted process in education. Implementing Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) curricula has proven challenging in various global contexts. The present study, using a human activity system model, investigated CLT implementation in Iranian senior high schools. There were four groups of participants in this qualitative study, including 20 teachers, 28 students, 10 teacher directors, and 10 parents. We used semi-structured interviews and class observations. The study's findings highlight several significant obstacles to implementing CLT in the examined educational setting. Key challenges include teachers' reliance on traditional methods despite acknowledging the benefits of communicative activities, inadequate professional development, and insufficient familiarity with CLT principles. Students face issues such as demotivation, overdependence on teachers, and limited opportunities to engage with English outside the classroom. Additionally, logistical difficulties, such as overcrowded classrooms, insufficient educational materials, and non-communicative assessments, combined with a lack of cooperation among educators and restricted teacher autonomy, further hinder the effectiveness of CLT. Based on these findings, we proposed several solutions and pedagogical implications to facilitate the successful implementation of this curriculum reform. 

Cet article étudie le rôle de la parodie dans Les États et Empires de la Lune de Cyrano de Bergerac qui, durant le XVIIe siècle, période de changements intellectuels majeurs, adopte une approche novatrice en parodiant les normes sociales, la science, la philosophie et la religion. Distinguant entre parodie au sens restreint et parodie au sens large, nous avons examiné la ‘parodicité’ chez cet écrivain. Ainsi notre étude se penche-t-elle sur la relation entre la parodie et les débats intellectuels de l'époque, mettant en lumière les opérations parodiques utilisées pour remettre en question les croyances et idéaux du XVIIe siècle. Nous soulignons l'importance de l'effet comique dans la parodie de Cyrano, affirmant que cette forme d'expression contribue à innover, critiquer et divertir tout en offrant une perspective captivante sur le monde. La parodie chez Cyrano, loin d'être un simple procédé, fonctionne en tandem avec des opérations telles que l'anachronisme et l'inversion pour stimuler la réflexion du lecteur, créant ainsi une véritable œuvre originale. On met également l’accent sur l'importance de la réception de la parodie, notant que chaque lecteur peut créer sa propre interprétation humoristique et que la parodie chez Cyrano révèle une vérité constamment redéfinie. La méthodologie de notre recherche est basée sur une analyse approfondie des éléments parodiques présents dans l'œuvre de Cyrano de Bergerac, en appliquant les théories de Gérard Genette et Daniel Sangsue. Il ressort de notre étude que la parodie chez Cyrano fonctionne comme un moyen habile d'exprimer diverses idées philosophiques et scientifiques, tout en apportant une perspective fraîche et captivante sur le monde. En parodiant des concepts religieux, philosophiques et scientifiques de son époque, Cyrano suscite des réflexions et des questionnements chez le lecteur, tout en offrant un divertissement subtil. Le rire parodique de Cyrano et sa neutralité constante soulignent la nature toujours mouvante et renouvelée du sens, offrant ainsi une réflexion profonde sur la vérité et la perception dans la littérature.

English as a Foreign Language (EFL) University students usually write in their native tongue and translate it into English using Artificial Intelligence programs. The study evaluated the quality of translations generated by AI in one hand and investigated the impact of Artificial Intelligence Generated Translation (AIGT) on EFL students in another. A human translator and an AI tool were used to translate two sample texts from English into Persian. The texts were given to 30 EFL teachers to examine the quality of AI translations. In addition, 152 students randomly divided into control or experimental groups were exposed to translated texts. Results from an independent t-test showed that there was a negligible difference between the two groups. The qualitative analysis of the interview data that involved 30 participants revealed that language teachers perceived omission, addition, syntax and punctuation errors in AIGT as adequately acceptable, despite their prevalence. However, a majority of the teachers were dissatisfied with AIGT’s accuracy in rendering idiomatic expressions. Based on the results, EFL educators should acknowledge the prevalence and usefulness of AI among students, and aim to incorporate it effectively in their teaching instead of prohibiting its use.