درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

The primary objective of this investigation was to examine the two Persian renditions of Daddy Long Legs (Webster, 1912) with regard to their adherence to the original sentence and syntactic patterns, as well as the manipulative alterations made during translation, as per Antoine Berman's distorting inclinations. In order to accomplish the objectives of this study, the researchers employed content or document analysis as a qualitative method to scrutinize the strategies employed in the translation of the novel from English to Persian. The data for this analysis were derived from an examination of two translated volumes by Soleimani (2020) and Dana (2018), respectively. The findings obtained from the comparison and contrast of two translated books with their original text, as well as with each other, revealed that the two Persian translations of the work experienced a form of stylistic distortion in their sentence and syntactic structures. Consequently, there were discrepancies between the translations and the original work in terms of textual patterns, which could be attributed to stylistic distortion resulting from manipulations in the sentence and syntactic elements.

The present study aimed to investigate the impact of language assessment literacy enhancement (LALE) on Iranian high school EFL students’ assessment as learning of writing skill. It also aimed to examine if LALE affects Iranian EFL students’ attitudes toward assessment as learning. To this end, 80 intermediate-level high-school EFL learners were selected and randomly categorized into the experimental and control groups. Both groups wrote an essay in the pre-test phase. Then, The ESL Composition Scale was used to teach the students what makes good writing and what criteria and standards they are supposed to learn to be able to write and rate the essays of their own and their peers. The control group received no instructional information on assessment rubrics. The experimental and control groups wrote another essay on a specific topic in the post-test phase. In the qualitative phase of the study, ten high school EFL students from the experimental group were interviewed regarding their attitudes toward the practice of assessment as learning of the writing skill in their English classes. The findings indicated that LALE significantly affected Iranian high school EFL students’ assessment as learning of writing skill. Moreover, students believed peer and self-assessment techniques are rarely implemented in Iranian high school EFL classes. They were also uncertain and felt uncomfortable judging, evaluating, criticizing, and rating their peers. Besides, they felt that they were not knowledgeable and capable enough to play the role of an assessor.

The rapidly growing influence of artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to fundamentally transform the realm of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction. This research studied this emerging trend through a qualitative research synthesis of 24 peer-reviewed articles published between 2021 and 2024. It examined them to highlight the diverse applications, challenges, and teaching practices associated with AI in EFL education. Methodological rigor was ensured through established inclusion and exclusion criteria for selecting the articles. The qualitative synthesis and thematic analysis revealed five prominent themes that illuminate the current landscape of AI in EFL instruction: 1) conceptualizations of AI within EFL settings; 2) factors influencing its adoption; 3) challenges faced when integrating AI into EFL settings; 4) limitations of AI-based tools and methods; and 5) potential avenues for future investigation. Although integrating AI into EFL pedagogy is still in its early stages and presents various challenges, the findings provide valuable insights and practical recommendations for effectively using AI in EFL education, enhancing teaching methods, and improving student learning outcomes. Educators can make informed decisions regarding its implementation while navigating the evolving EFL instruction landscape by cultivating an understanding of AI's potential benefits and inherent limitations.

Cette recherche examine l’impact des tâches numériques sur la production orale des apprenants iraniens de FLE de niveau A2, dans le cadre d’un cours de conversation à distance. Neuf participants ont été impliqués dans douze séances organisées autour de cinq thèmes, au cours desquelles des tâches numériques soigneusement planifiées ont été mises en œuvre. La méthodologie adoptée combine des approches quantitatives (pré-test et post-test analysés à l’aide du logiciel SPSS ) et qualitatives (productions orales des apprenants et entretiens). Les analyses statistiques mettent en évidence une amélioration significative entre le pré-test et le post-test, confirmant un progrès global dans les productions orales des apprenants. Bien qu’aucune différence notable n’ait été observée entre les performances des apprenants dans les différentes tâches numériques, cette homogénéité souligne un développement régulier, indépendamment de la nature de la tâche. De plus, les témoignages des apprenants recueillis lors des entretiens révèlent des perceptions variées de leur expérience d’apprentissage, mettant en lumière à la fois des aspects positifs et des pistes d’amélioration concernant l’intervention mise en place. En conclusion, les tâches numériques enrichissent considérablement l’enseignement de la production orale dans le cadre des cours de conversation, en favorisant un apprentissage interactif et authentique. Leur pleine efficacité repose néanmoins sur une planification didactique rigoureuse, incluant des formations technologiques pour les apprenants afin d’optimiser les résultats et de développer de manière équilibrée les différentes compétences linguistiques.

The present study assessed test-taking strategies awareness, test anxiety, and test performance relationships among Iranian ESP students. The sample was comprised of 60 students majoring in Bachelor of Science Civil Engineering who were enrolled in an ESP course. All participants completed the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) as a requirement for ensuring homogeneity regarding language ability. Participants also completed Barati's (2005) test-taking strategies questionnaire and a standard test anxiety scale, and test performance was assessed by ESP course examinations. Pearson correlation analysis produced three general findings: First, there was significant positive correlation between test-taking strategies awareness and test performance, such that students with higher strategy awareness had better test scores. Second, test anxiety was significantly and negatively correlated with test performance. Third, an inverse correlation existed between test-taking strategies awareness and test anxiety, suggesting that students employing more strategies experienced less anxiety. These findings highlight the interdependent functioning of strategy awareness and anxiety control in performance. The results suggest that ESP instruction needs to integrate training in the use of test-taking strategies and anxiety reduction in order to assist students most effectively. The study contributes to our understanding of factors influencing language test performance in ESP settings.

Learners’ classroom involvement is thought to be highly influential in their academic success in that highly involved learners typically invest more time and energy in acquiring course content. For this reason, the predictors and determinants of learners’ classroom involvement have been highly attended to by educational researchers. Nonetheless, the predicting role of teachers’ emotional competencies like compassion and empathy has rarely been researched. Furthermore, to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, no theoretical review has looked into the concurrent impacts of teachers’ compassion and empathy on EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners’ classroom involvement. To address this lacuna, the current theoretical review aimed to explicate the effects of these two emotional competencies on EFL learners’ classroom involvement. The desirable effects of teachers’ compassion and empathy on EFL learners’ involvement were demonstrated using theoretical and empirical evidence. The implications of the present review’s findings are thoroughly discussed.

The concepts of work-related satisfaction, happiness, and burnout have received increasing attention in psychological research. As the field of translation studies is interdisciplinary, it has consistently drawn inspiration from various fields in the humanities, including psychology. Since sworn translators play a crucial role in translation communities, the present article aimed to look into job-related satisfaction, happiness, and burnout utilizing a qualitative interview-based approach and Iranian sworn translators as participants. The findings revealed that sworn translations involved challenges and occasionally unpleasant aspects; nonetheless, the majority of participants reported feeling satisfaction and happiness in terms of the job in general, the translation process, and their income. Furthermore, this profession has led several participants to experience fatigue, stress, nervousness, sleep disturbances, and indigestion, but the most frequent manifestations of burnout are mental exhaustion and pain in the neck, arms, hands, and eyes. These findings can be helpful for sworn translators and policymakers seeking solutions or preventing negative consequences.

Jam (2020) attempts to provide an Optimality-Theoretic analysis of Persian vowel harmony. As to cases where backness harmony does not appear to occur, his explanation appeals to Lexically Specific Constraint Theory, treating these instances as exceptional rather than systematic. In this reply, I argue that such an appeal to exceptionality is unnecessary, and I propose an alternative analysis in which regressive vowel harmony in Persian can be accounted for in a principled, unified manner without recourse to lexically indexed constraints. By introducing an appropriately formulated markedness constraint, it becomes possible to capture the full range of observed patterns while maintaining the parsimony and explanatory elegance expected of an Optimality-Theoretic framework. In addition to this central point, I identify several further weaknesses in Jam’s analysis. These include a conflation of rule ordering with constraint ranking, which obscures the theoretical distinction between derivational and constraint-based approaches, the problematic assumption that the phonological representation of loanwords should mirror their source-language forms, and the omission of critical information in both the representations and tableaux.

This study investigated the effectiveness of digital flashcards (DFs) in enhancing young learners' (YLs) acquisition of idiomatic expressions and speaking skills. A quasi-experimental pre-test post-test design was employed with 34 Iranian EFL learners randomly assigned to an experimental group (utilizing DFs) and a control group (receiving traditional instruction). Over five structured sessions, the experimental group used DFs featuring engaging visuals, contextual examples, and interactive activities to practice idiomatic expressions and speaking. In contrast, the control group followed textbook-based instruction. Both groups completed pre-tests, post-tests, and delayed post-tests assessing idiomatic expression knowledge and speaking ability. Data analysis confirmed normal distribution and acceptable reliability for all tests, and the groups were homogenous in general language proficiency. Repeated measures analysis revealed significant improvement in the experimental group’s post-test and delayed post-test scores, particularly in idiomatic expression retention and speaking performance. These findings support the efficacy of technology-assisted learning tools, highlighting the potential of DFs for promoting idiomatic expression acquisition and speaking fluency among young EFL learners.

Extensive reading (ER) has been widely recognized for its impact on vocabulary acquisition, yet its role in shaping L2 learners’ affective learning experience remains underexplored. In the early 20th century, Palmer proposed ER (see Day & Bamford, 1998) to lead to enhanced reading abilities and motivate L2 learners to read. Although ER’s potential in language development has been widely studied, few empirical studies have examined this connection within the framework of L2MSS. Selecting Dörnyei’s (2005, 2009) L2 Motivational Self-system (henceforth, L2MSS) which links learners’ future self-concept to their motivation and learning behaviors as our theoretical framework, we measured offline ER’s influence on not only Iranian EFL learners’ vocabulary development but also on their L2 learning experience. In so doing, we selected an experimental group (EG) ( N =32) and a control group (CG) ( N =28) from two university-level intact classrooms who were passing their General English course. The experimental group (EG, N=32) read three proficiency-matched graded readers over an 8-week period, while the control group (CG, N=28) used only the coursebook, Select Readings: Pre-Intermediate . The graded readers were selected in such a way to match learners’ current language proficiency as determined by an Oxford and Cambridge Quick Placement Test (OCQPT). Our participants’ baseline vocabulary knowledge was assessed using a teacher-made test, while their baseline L2 learning experience was measured through Li’s (2025) L2 Learning Experience Scale measuring six subcomponents: positive emotion, negative emotion, engagement, relationship, meaning, and accomplishment. The findings showed that both groups had little knowledge of the target words before the treatment. However, post-treatment results showed that the EG significantly outperformed the CG in vocabulary knowledge and reported greater gains across multiple L2 learning experience subscales. These findings have important implications for integrating extensive reading into general English curricula to foster both lexical growth and learner motivation.

Grounded in social learning theory, this study examined Iranian English language instructors’ and students’ perceptions of the contribution of Vadana-Mediated Learning Management Systems (VMLMS) as a remote education platform to online English language learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 54 university EFL instructors and 164 English language students were selected through convenience sampling from Islamic Azad Universities (IAU) in Gilan Province, Iran. To investigate their perceptions of VMLMS, one common questionnaire (for both instructors and students) and two separate questionnaires (one for instructors and one for students) were administered. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to evaluate the common and instructor questionnaires. Descriptive analyses indicated that both groups held unfavorable perceptions of VMLMS. The results of the MANOVA revealed statistically significant differences between instructors’ and students’ perceptions of VMLMS. The analysis also showed that students agreed they did not receive sufficient support from either instructors or the system. These findings may have implications for universities and educational administrators seeking to facilitate the implementation of online instruction in the Iranian context.

Productive skills have a vital role in learning the English language as they provide foreign learners with opportunities to practice real-life activities in the classroom. The photo-based method for teaching language skills has been developed due to advances in visual technology, the shift to student-centered learning, and the demand for 21st-century skills. Thus, this study aimed to examine the effectiveness of utilizing Photovoice on Iranian intermediate learners’ English language productive skills. The research followed a quantitative quasi-experimental design that included pretest and post-test equivalent treatment and control groups. Sixty intermediate female language learners were chosen from a private institute in Isfahan, Iran. First, they were selected conveniently and then they were homogenized based on their performance on the Preliminary English Test. They were divided into two experimental ( n = 30) and control ( n = 30) groups. The experimental group received Photovoice as a methodological innovation, incorporating reflective and collaborative activities, while the control group received routine language instruction involving traditional teaching practices such as lectures, textbook exercises, and grammar drills. One pretest and one post-test were administered to assess the learners’ speaking and writing skills. Then, between-subjects MANOVA and t-tests were employed to analyze the data. The results revealed that Photovoice significantly helped students improve their speaking and writing skills. The present study might have useful implications for curriculum designers, language learners, teachers, and other researchers who are considering the use of Photovoice in language classes.

Technology-mediated learning experiences are becoming a norm for today’s language learning. In the technology-mediated society, the production and transformation of information is not restricted to published works, but to anyone with access to basic technology resources. This study was an endeavor to explore the ESP (English for Specific Purposes) learners' overall views of technology-mediated language learning. The research also focused on the overall idea of the participants about the challenges and opportunities of remote learning. To this end, the current mixed-methods study was used. The data-gathering tools included a related questionnaire and interview. By scrutinizing satisfaction levels, benefits, drawbacks, and skill preferences, the study sheds light on the nuanced dynamics of remote learning. Results of the study indicated a high satisfaction level among participants with remote education. The study further demonstrated a prior recognition of benefits over drawbacks. Notably, vocabulary and reading emerged as preferred skills for virtual learning. In summary, this study contributes to the understanding of ESP students' views in the context of remote learning, offering remote education that can be an educational strategy for the future.