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Using a mixed methods design, the present study attempted to identify the factors influencing Iranian untrained EFL raters in rating group oral discussion tasks. To fulfil this aim, 16 language learners of varying proficiency levels were selected and randomly assigned to groups of four and performed a group discussion task. Thirty two untrained raters were also selected based on their volunteer participations. They listened to the audio files of the group discussions and assigned a score of one to six to each language learners based on their own judgments. They also provided comments on each language learners’ performance pointing to why they assigned such scores. The researchers had an interview with the raters after the rating session as well. The quantitative phase investigated whether linguistic features of accuracy, fluency, complexity and amount of talk were attended to by the raters in terms of having any relationship to the scores the raters assigned. Speech rate as an index of fluency and amount of talk turned out to be significantly correlated with the scores. Of more importance was the qualitative phase with the aim of identifying other factors that may account for the scores. The comments provided by the raters on each score and the interviews were codified based on Content Analysis (CA) approach. It was found that the raters attend not only to the linguistic features in rating oral group discussions, but they are also sensitive to the interactional features like the roles the participants take in groups tasks and the overall interaction patterns of the groups. The findings of this study may shed light on group oral assessment in terms of training the raters rating group oral tests and developing rating scales specific for group oral assessment.

This research aimed to screen 'essay writing' difficulties that non-native university students at postgraduate levels usually experience regarding scholarly publication in mainstream, English journals. Two sets of variables including written literacy competencies in Persian and English languages were mapped over language uses (General vs. Academic). Initial screenings from one hundred Iranian students at PhD and MA levels with publication experiences in both Persian and English languages gave rise to some fifty-five participants randomly selected from different university disciplines (Humanities, Engineering, Medicine and Basic Sciences) and diverse university settings (Public and Private) across the country and classified via stratified sampling. A validated questionnaire from a large-scale project called ENEIDA (Moreno, 2011) was used for collecting the required data. Two measures were used to assess written literacy competencies across language uses: 1) participants' assumed, self-reported written literacy competencies in using English and Persian languages for General and Academic purposes were denoted as 'perceived' measures and 2) further supported by actual measures: mostly received comments from reviewers in the mainstream, English journals by the target group above. Findings were discussed in the light of recent lines of enquiries in Academic Literacy (AL) trends.

The current study attempts to explore the characteristics of author-assigned keywords in research articles as important constituents of targeted search in academic communities. To this end, the keywords of 200 research papers in the field of applied linguistics, in terms of domain, degree of specificity, and relation to the titles, were analyzed. To supplement the findings, the keyword choice strategy of a number of researchers with publishing experience in the field was also investigated. The analysis revealed a considerable rate of title-keywords match, especially with respect to field-specific keywords. This finding points to the importance of users’ field-specific background knowledge in locating relevant information on the web. The examination of authors’ viewpoints and strategies, on the other hand, helped to bring to light the complex and non-clichéd nature of keyword selection. The significance of authors’ diverging and converging attitudes and their implications for enhancing the success rate of keyword search are discussed.

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.

To date, little research on pragmatic transfer has considered a multilingual situation where there is an interaction among three different languages spoken by one person. Of interest was whether pragmatic transfer of refusals among three languages spoken by the same person occurs from L1 and L2 to L3, L1 to L2 and then to L3 or from L1 and L1 (if there are more than one L1) to L2. This study aimed to investigate the production of refusals in three languages and to specify the impact of linguistic knowledge on pragmatic transfer of refusals. To this end, 161 participants in 5groups filled out a Discourse Completion Test (DCT). Data was coded and analyzed according to semantic formula sequences. The data obtained from Kurdish learners of English who were also fluent in Farsi (Trilinguals) were compared with those in other four groups: 1)Native English speakers; 2)Monolingual speakers in Farsi; 3) Monolingual speakers in Kurdish; and 4) Bilingual Farsi learners of English. The results revealed that pragmatic transfer exists in choice and content of semantic formulae. It was also found that the sociocultural norms of English, Farsi, and Kurdish languages differ with respects to the refusal speech act and that individuals’ social power and relative distance play a critical role in performing such a speech act. This research suggests that, in spite of the norm differences existing among these languages, transfer of refusals mostly occurs from Kurdish as L1but not from L2 (Farsi) to L3 (English).

Pratiquer un enseignement utile et durable et maîtriser efficacement une langue étrangère est le désir de tous les enseignants et apprenants de langue étrangère. Cet article vise à examiner l’efficacité de l’activité en groupe dans le processus de l’enseignement/apprentissage du FLE chez les apprenants iraniens. Notre hypothèse principal repose sur le fait que, grâce à l’activité en groupe, les apprenants iraniens peuvent mieux parvenir aux capacités telles que l’autonomie actionnelle, la pensée de l’auto-évaluation, l’autocorrection, l’autocritique, l’évaluation des critiques des autres par rapport à eux-mêmes; de même ils peuvent profiter des critiques des autres sur la base de l’interaction avec leurs coéquipiers. Ainsi, Ce travail de recherche mettra l’accent sur les avantages et les inconvénients de l’activité en groupe. Les résultats acquis par l’étude du terrain nous amène à constater que le recours à des activités interactives maximisait la participation des apprenants, renforçait la motivation, développait la pensée critique. Ainsi, l’activité en groupe intégrait les situations du monde réel et immédiat au contenu et encourageait les apprenants à approfondir les connaissances enseignées.

This research studied the creativity in Persian translation of The Remains of the Day by Najaf Daryabandari and the influence of creativity on a more successful literary translation. To this end, Schjoldager (2008) and Holst (2010) models were introduced and definitions of the micro-strategies and macro-strategies of these models were presented. The main questions with regard to the purpose of the study were whether the Persian translation of this novel is creative and whether creativity is influential in a more successful literary translation. In this study, the translator's creativity was studied through examples that were obtained by means of comparative analysis of the source and target texts as well as features defined in the eight creative micro-strategies of the Holst model. In addition, the features of translated text in terms of using Qajar prose were considered the macro-strategy, which was adopted by the translator. The findings of the study were as follows: The Persian translation of The Remains of the Day by the translator, Najaf Daryabandari, was a creative translation. In the research process, it could be inferred that the translator was able to present a successful literary translation in a meaningful and tactile manner in the target language by using creativity and by comparing and understanding the similarities of the nineteenth century classic English and Qajar dialects. Among extracted samples in this study, the most frequent one was the micro-strategy of adaptation, which was one of the most creative micro-strategies of the Holst model.