درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

This study examined the effects of EFL teachers' behavior on intermediate L2 learners’ WTC in English. To this end, a proficiency test was administered to 150 female learners, and 98 intermediate learners aged 16 to 26 were recruited as the participants. Subsequently, a WTC questionnaire was distributed among them to measure their level of WTC. Moreover, interviews were carried out with 30 volunteers who agreed to participate in this phase of the study. The results of the analysis of the WTC questionnaire showed that the WTC level of the learners could be rated as above-average. Besides, the results of the interviews revealed that different kinds of teachers’ behavior affected learners’ WTC both positively and negatively: teachers’ sense of humor and rapport could positively affect learners’ WTC; on the other hand, teachers’ methods of error correction while learners’ speaking and teachers’ lack of support could negatively affect learners’ WTC. Additionally, according to learners’ perspectives, there were a number of ways through which a language teacher could increase the learners’ WTC in English such as encouraging learners to read extra-curricular topics and highlighting learners’ strengths instead of their weaknesses. Several implications were proffered at the end of the study to heighten the awareness of L2 teachers, teacher-trainers, and language institute managers regarding the issue under investigation.

This study aimed to create medical terminology flashcards in the form of teaching and learning aids for use in the specialized language and medical terminology courses at Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. To achieve the objective of the study, first, a needs analysis was conducted, which showed the scarcity of such educational materials and students’ needs for them. Next, the structure and the content of information of the flashcards were developed; then, the designed flashcards were examined and modified. Afterwards, professors who were experienced in teaching medical terminology and specialized language courses evaluated the flashcards using a questionnaire. Moreover, an interview was conducted with the professors on ways to improve the quality of the flashcards. The results showed that the professors were satisfied with the potential learning effects, the structure, and the content of information of the flashcards. They also suggested a few modifications to the flashcards and recommended that the flashcards should be used in the university courses. The study has implications for the development of educational materials in the form of teaching and learning aids.

Classroom discourse refers to the language and interaction used by the teacher and the students to communicate and shape learning in the educational context. The present study focused on Iranian EFL teachers’ classroom discourse by observing their dominancy, teacher talk, question types, and interactions in their classes. To do so, through a non-experimental, descriptive research design, 20 female experienced teachers with the age range of 30-40, teaching at an upper-intermediate level in different language institutes in Isfahan, Iran were selected based on the convenience sampling. Two classes of the teachers were observed, the sessions were recorded, and their classroom discourses were transcribed and later analyzed. Moreover, to increase the validity and reliability of the research, a semi-structured interview was conducted with volunteer participants; their reflections on their communication with the learners and discourse types were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics in terms of frequency and percentages. The findings of the study showed that the teachers made use of specific discourse to ascertain their dominance and control in their classes. The findings also revealed that the teachers used more monologic discourse patterns in their classes rather than dialogic ones. Teacher talk far exceeded student talk, Initiation-Response-Feedback pattern dominated the classroom discourse; and display questions were used more frequently than referential ones. These findings could benefit teachers to be more conscious about type of CD and its effect on student-to-student and teacher-to-student interactions. It could also serve the purpose of critical classroom discourse analysis

Annually, a good number of Iranian students who have completed their undergraduate studies in non-English-related majors apply and enroll in Master’s level Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) programs. Although evaluating MA TEFL program in Iran from university instructors’ and students’ perspectives has so far been the subject of several studies, the experiences and views of these TEFL major-changers have not been duly explored. To address the existing gap, in this qualitative research, the experiences of major-changers studying TEFL at MA level in three state universities in Tehran have been investigated. Besides, six TEFL university instructors were asked to share their perspectives concerning major-changers attending MA TEFL programs. In the main , the findings revealed that motives like interest in pursuing an English teaching career rather than a job related to their former major; gaining the required competency through attending crash courses held by university exam preparatory institutes; facing challenges in acquiring the specialized discourse of the community; and witnessing realities which ran counter to their prior supposition, as discussed by the major-changers and the instructors, formed part of the lived experiences and views of these major-changers.

The present study sought to cast light on differences in strategies of compliment responses used across Persian and American English. For this purpose, 110 participants, under three groups of Persian native speakers, American native speakers, and Persian learners of English, answered a Discourse Completion Test (DCT), followed by a semi-structured interview with the Persian learners of English to cross-check the findings of the DCTs. The collected responses from the DCTs were coded at macro and micro-levels. Moreover, a macro-level of Persian cultural schemas was used for the Persian groups. The chi-square test revealed the independent performance of the three groups. Judged by the written DCTs while performing in English, the learners’ responses displayed cases of utilizing the native Persian cultural schemas. More specifically, the English learner respondents employed different instances of ta’arof and shekaste-nafsi . Confirmed by the interview, such failures resulted from insufficient exposure to the American English culture and more importantly from their lack of instruction and awareness of cross-cultural pragmatic differences.

Teacher professional development rests on the provision of knowledge, development of skills, and change of attitudes of teacher candidates and in-service teachers. Teachers’ professional knowledge, perceptions and teaching practice contribute greatly to student learning. This study sets out to investigate the relationships and inter-relationships among professional knowledge, academic self-concept and self-reported instructional practice which was found as a research gap in the literature. Using a sample of 92 pre-service TEFL teachers in Iran, a significant positive correlation was found between professional knowledge and academic self-concept. The findings also revealed that different domains of professional knowledge are not related to each other for TEFL. Finally, the obtained results indicated that academic self-concept affected instructional practice in total and at the level of sub-dimensions while professional knowledge had an effect on the two dimensions of instructional practice, namely cognitive activation and student learning support but not on the dimension of classroom management .