درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Speaking is a significant skill that many foreign language learners are trying to master. In this study, the effectiveness of two different speaking activities, i.e. oral presentation vs. free discussion, was investigated from quantitative and qualitative points of view. To achieve this purpose, 44 intermediate learners from a language institute in Tehran participated in the study. Half of the participants experienced oral presentation while the other half (22 in two other classes) experienced free discussion for eight sessions. The two activities were exchanged between the two groups after the end of the quantitative phase of the study for eight more sessions. The results of an independent samples t-test performed on the scores ofthe speaking section of a sample Preliminary English Test (PET, 2012 ) after the first phase of the study (the first 8 sessions) indicated that the learners who experienced oral presentation significantly outperformed the learners who experienced free discussion though both activities proved to be significantly useful. Furthermore, the results of the interview with 10 participants from each activity through purposeful sampling, after the second phase of the study (the second 8 sessions) through thematic analysis indicated that both free discussion and oral presentation activities had some merits and demerits. Based on the results it can be advisable to include the two activities as complementary.

وام گیری لغات یکی از مهم ترین منابع غنی سازی مجموعه واژگان هر زبان است که ماحصل تماس با دیگر زبان ها است. در این مقاله وام واژه های مربوط به حوزه معنایی «خوراک» از لحاظ آوایی و معنایی در زبان های روسی و فارسی بررسی شده است. مؤلفان سعی کرده اند تا ورود مستقیم و یا غیرمستقیم وام واژه ها را از یک زبان به زبان دیگر معین کنند. بیش از دویست واحد واژگانی از منابع و فرهنگ های گوناگون جمع آوری و تحلیل شده است. در نتایج به دست آمده، گذشته از وام گیری های رایج و استاندارد، شاهد وام گیری های غیرمتعارف و ترکیبی نیز هستیم که در آن ها تک واژهایی از زبان های گوناگون با هم تلفیق شده اند. همچنین معلوم شد بیشترین شمار وام واژه ها از زبان فرانسوی و سپس انگلیسی گرفته شده اند و زبان های دیگر در رده های بعدی قرار دارند.

This study tried to compare the possible differences between female and male EFL students with respect to the use of lexical hedges in their academic spoken language. To fulfil this objective, 40 Iranian upper-intermediate EFL learners majoring in TEFL were chosen from Islamic Azad University of Abadan, Iran. The selected participants were assigned into two equal groups namely male group (n=20) and female group (n=20). Then, five discussion sessions in a single gendered context were separately recorded for male and female participants. Frequency counts and chi-square were used to analyze the obtained data. By utilizing the framework of hedges, it is deduced that that there are differences among female and male respondents’ propensity in selecting word of lexical hedges. Female responders tend to utilize more lexical hedges than male responders. In such manner, most frequently lexical hedges of fillers such as; hmm, uhh, you know, yeah were used most frequently by female respondents in their utterances; while male respondents most repeatedly utilized lexical hedges of fillers like; I think, uhh, yeah in their utterances. Female respondents had broad range variegation in picking words of lexical hedges while male respondents were not sufficiently productive in selecting the words of lexical hedges. It was demonstrated by the number of lexical hedges applied in giving viewpoints in debate and discussion context.

Due to the lack of paralinguistic information, politeness gains a considerable significance in telephone conversations (TCs). The use of politeness strategies can help interlocutors promote and/or maintain social harmony in telephone interactions. Using the Rapport Management Model proposed by Spencer-Oatey (2008), this study intended to primarily investigate the fundamental closing structures of TCs in Persian and English. Furthermore, it examined the effect of two contextual variables and time availability on the closing pattern sand length of TCs. To this aim, 30 English natives, 30 Persian natives, and 30 Persian EFL learners were selected. A Discourse Completion Test (DCT) of 12 scenarios was developed considering contextual variables and time limitation. The obtained results demonstrated that the CPT (closing implicative environment + preclosing + terminal components) closing pattern may not be applicable in every context. Furthermore, telephone conversers change the pattern and length of TC closing part to maintain their rapport based on the aforementioned variables. The findings of the present study can guide the researcher to follow more complete and perfect politeness models.

The present study set out to investigate if informed Peer Dynamic Assessment (P-DA), as an alternative to Dynamic Assessment (DA), can cultivate grammar learning of Iranian intermediate EFL learners. To accomplish the objectives, two intact classes including 15 female students, aged from 16 to 20, were selected and randomly assigned into two groups, namely, experimental and control at Iran Language Institute in Khorram Abad City, Lorestan Province. The experimental group was trained on principles and procedures of P-DA during two sessions to make sure that the participants know how to provide their peers with graduated feedback appropriately. Next, they were teamed up in groups of three in order to work on a number of grammatical structures embedded in their course book for ten sessions. In contrast, the control group worked on the same grammatical structures according to traditional approaches wherein feedback was given unsystematically by the teacher. Furthermore, three parallel grammar tests, designed and developed by a panel of well-experienced EFL teachers, were administered as pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-test to measure the participants’ grammar knowledge prior and after the instructions. The collected data were analyzed using ANCOVA test. Results revealed that there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of gain scores on the post-test. In addition, the findings indicated that the experimental group outperformed the control group on the delayed post-test. In light with the findings, some pedagogical implications were presented for EFL teachers and learners.

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

A key component of any educational program is the “textbook”, the efficiency of which greatly contributes to the accomplishment of the pedagogical goals of the program. The grave significance of the textbook necessitates its rigorous evaluation (Tomlinson, 2008). This study aimed to investigate EFL teachers’ and students’ perspectives on a recently developed Iranian EFL junior high school textbook entitled “Prospect 3”. The participants were 218 third-grade junior high school students and 103 EFL teachers conveniently selected from different junior high schools of Khuzestan, Golestan, Hamedan, and Qom provinces. The evaluation of the textbook was carried out quantitatively through a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire. The analyses revealed that EFL teachers were partially satisfied with Prospect 3; however, EFL students were rather neutral. For the teachers ,                                                                       “Vocabulary and Grammar” was the most meritorious aspect, while “ Language Type ” was the least acceptable dimension. From the students’ perspective, the most meritorious aspect of the text was “ Vocabulary and Grammar” ,  while “ Layout and Physical Appearance ” was viewed as the least satisfactory dimension. The findings of this work might be of interest to Iranian EFL teachers, syllabus designers, materials developers, and the stakeholders involved in the materials preparation Bureaus of the Iranian Ministry of General Education.