درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Giving certain elements more significance than others in the same context is called prominence. This study aims at identifying and comparing markers of focal and thematic prominence in Persian general       practitioners’ books (GPBs) and Persian online medical journals (OMJs) based on Levinsohn’s model. The data were gathered from 100 texts from two written Persian GPBs and 100 texts from two Persian OMJs. SPSS software version 24 was used to evaluate the data. Results demonstrated “emphatic   markers” such as fæqæt ‘just’ were used for focal prominence much more frequently in OMJs than in GPBs. In addition, significant differences were observed between GPBs and OMJs with regard to the markers of focal prominence and prominence in general, but not with regard to markers of thematic prominence. This may be related to the twofold effect of the different discourse types and different addressees of these texts.

This study explored the syntactic acquisition by Persian monolingual and Kurdish-Persian bilingual learners of English as a second and third language and the effect of instruction on beginner learners' syntactic acquisition with reference to UG-based non-primary language learning theories. A group of EFL learners (23 Persian monolingual and 73 Kurdish-Persian bilingual learners) were selected. They were divided into beginner, intermediate and advanced levels based on their performance on the Oxford Placement Test. A grammaticality judgment test, a translation test and a functional test were used to collect data. ANOVA analyses indicated that Kurdish- Persian bilingual learners of L3 English and Persian monolingual learners of L2 English were able to reset the parametric variations related to the intended features at intermediate and advanced stages of L3 acquisition, but they failed to do so at the initial stage. The Direct Access (DA) hypothesis, the Full Transfer/Full Access (FTFA) hypothesis and the Modulated Structure Building Hypothesis (MSBH) were found to best explain the findings. Paired-samples t -test showed that instruction positively influenced the acquisition of the syntactic features by beginner-level learners after the treatment.

Poor vocabulary retention is one of the major difficulties experienced by English as a foreign (second) language (EFL/ESL) students. To tackle this problem, the current study explored the impacts of the modified visual input and the modified oral input on the short-term and long-term vocabulary retention of Iranian EFL students and their perceptions regarding implementing these two types of input in their classes. The initial population consisted of 90 male and female students from Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch in Tehran, Iran. The convenience sampling method was implemented to select the participants. After administering the Oxford Placement Test (OPT), 60 students were chosen to serve as the participants, and they were randomly divided into two groups of 30 learners, namely the experimental groups A and B, which received instructions based on the modified visual input and the modified oral input, respectively. Later, the participants received ten 60-minute treatment sessions. Next, the learners' short-term vocabulary retention was assessed using the same vocabulary test as the posttest. One month later, the same test was given to students to check their long-term vocabulary retention as the delayed posttest. The results showed that the two types of input had significant impacts on the vocabulary short-term and long-term retention of the Iranian EFL students to varying degrees. Moreover, the qualitative findings indicated that the learners adopted a significantly positive view toward implementing oral and visual input modifications in their classes. In the end, the implications of the study are provided.

Listening anxiety is the feeling of apprehension that learners might experience when trying to comprehend information from others. This anxiety associated with listening comprehension has been a significant focus of academic research for the past few decades. Foreign language listening anxiety (FLLA) can be triggered by different factors, including affective pressure, cognitive load, or communication disorders. However, there is a lack of appropriate conceptual models to accurately pinpoint the sources of anxiety related to listening. This research introduces a novel model in a non-experimental correlation research design to scrutinize the efficacy of cultural intelligence (CQ) and reflective thinking (RT) in predicting the source of FLLA among EFL learners. To accomplish this, a sample of 250 EFL students was administered the three scales for the constructs under study. In terms of the statistical analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM) was run to examine the fit of the conceptual model. The findings showed that both CQ and RT affect FLLA. However, RT was a stronger predictor of FLLA than CQ. Notably, critical reflection was found to be the strongest predictor of FLLA in the RT. Besides, both cognitive and behavioral dimensions equally influenced FLLA for CQ. Lastly, the results and implications for reducing FLLA are discussed.

Individuals are controlled by tests in every advanced society when they want to be admitted in educational courses, to proceed from one stage to the next, or to be given a certificate (Shohamy, 2001b). Accordingly, the present study was carried out to construct and validate educational, social, and psychological consequences questionnaires of English Language Proficiency (EPT) as a high-stakes test in Iran. To achieve the goals, after initial piloting of the item pool, a total number of 252 non-English PhD students completed the final researcher-made questionnaires developed using a comprehensive review of the related literature, experts’ opinions, documents, and interviews. A number of statistical procedures were taken to validate the current questionnaires including Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). EFA was utilized to determine the underlying factors of the scale that affect the variables in a data structure without setting any predefined structure to the outcome and to verify the number of factors; subsequently, these results were confirmed in the CFA phase. Ultimately, the results were discussed and implications of the questionnaires were presented as follows.

The pluricentricity of English language has led to the appearance of new trends in English language education. This is especially important in Expanding Circle (EC) countries to develop intercultural communication among learners. The current study attempted to investigate the views of Iranian Englishteachers towards the relevancy of English as an international language (EIL) to their practice of English language teaching and the influence of teacher education on shaping their attitudes. To this end, a mixed method sequential research design was used to collect data, sing a questionnaire delivered to115 EC teachers who, at the time, were taking an online teacher education workshop held in a Language Institute in Tehran regarding EIL and varieties of English. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 34 teachers who had expressed their agreement to be interviewed. The analysis of the data showed that although the EC teachers had mostly expressed positive perceptions about EIL and varieties of English, their perceptions misaligned with their practices in ELT classes. The mismatch between teachers’ conception of EIL and its relevance to their context of teaching seemed to have undermined their self-confidence in applying this concept to practice. They seemed to have taken it for granted that American English is the sole variety to be practiced in Iran, as it is considered the most desirable target language variety. Implications of the results for educators and policy-makers on bridging the gap between theory and practice in ELT classes are presented.

This study investigated the effect of strategy-based methods vs. translation-based methods on General English and ESP reading comprehension of Iranian university students. 120 homogenous General English and ESP students were selected based on a Quick Placement Test. They were assigned into four groups. One experimental and one comparison group for General English and ESP students. A pretest of General English and ESP reading comprehension was administered to assess their General English and ESP reading comprehension ability. In both experimental groups, the strategy-based method, and in comparison groups, the translation-based method was used for teaching General English and ESP reading comprehension. After the post-test, the result of independent t-tests indicated that the comparison group outperformed the experimental group in the ESP course. However no statistically significant difference was observed between the two groups in General reading comprehension, it can be concluded that in ESP reading comprehension, the translation-based strategy is more effective than the strategy-based method however in General English reading comprehension, students can understand the text via both strategies. So, the strategy-based method was preferred in General English reading comprehension. These findings encourage English teachers to choose a proper strategy for teaching different materials in different contexts.

Despite widespread studies on language assessment literacy (LAL), there are still many unexplored areas about LAL (Gan & Lam, 2022). One of these areas is identifying various aspects of LAL regarding different language skills and scrutinizing the English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ involvement with these aspects. Accordingly, this study attempted to (a) explore Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions, preferences, and difficulties of oral/aural skills LAL and (b) develop a scale to measure these teachers’ oral/aural skills LAL. The study was carried out in two phases. First, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 Iranian EFL teachers to identify their perceptions, preferences, and difficulties of oral/aural skills LAL. Second, the researchers developed a questionnaire based on a review of the literature on assessing oral/aural skills and the results of interviews. The questionnaire was reviewed by experts, revised accordingly, and administered to 150 Iranian EFL teachers who were selected through convenience sampling. The reliability of the questionnaire and its construct validity were then checked. The results of both phases of the study were compatible. The outcomes showed that almost all teachers represented dissatisfaction about their oral/aural skills LAL and they were enthusiastic to participate in assessment training courses. Furthermore, it was found that due to their lack of knowledge about oral/aural skills assessment, traditional techniques of assessment were widely used by Iranian EFL teachers.

The design, implementation and outcomes of curriculums must be ongoingly evaluated. Using quantitative gap analysis, this study evaluated Iranian EFL teachers’ satisfaction with their pre-service education in developing their assessment literacy in reference to the perceived importance of knowledge and skills areas of classroom language assessment.  To this end, the study included 100 EFL teachers who graduated from state universities in Iran with at least a Bachelor’s degree and three to five years of teaching experience at public schools. Data were collected using a 44-item researcher-made semantic differential Likert scale. It involved two parts tapping into their perceptions of importance and the level of their pre-service preparation. Descriptive analysis and inferential statistics revealed that the teachers rated all the areas almost highly (M ≥ 4.67 out of 6). The participants attached the highest importance to the areas of "assessing different language skills and sub-skills". In contrast, the areas relating to "interpreting students’ test performance” and “making the appropriate decision about the students’ test results and test washback" were perceived to be the least significant in classroom assessment. The gap analysis also indicated that there was a significant difference between the teachers’ perception of the importance of assessment knowledge and skills areas and their level of pre-service education, construed as their under-preparedness for classroom assessment. Further, the gaps were perceived to be sharper in assessment skills areas.  The study discusses the implications of the findings in the context of teacher education and classroom assessment in Iran.