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This study aims to analyze the factors associated with motivation and attitude towards English learning through the application of structural equation modeling (SEM). A quantitative, ex post fact, cross-sectional and explanatory study was carried out on 1202 university students. Eight motivational factors were examined, namely: Motivational Intensity (MI), Attitude towards Learning English (ATLL), Integrative Orientation (IntO), Instrumental Orientation (InsO), Interest Towards Foreign Languages (ITFL), Evaluation of English Teaching (EET), Desire to Learn English (DLE), Evaluation of the English Course (EEC). The multiple regressions showed that EET, DLE, InsO, and EEC are predictors of the MI. It was found that DLE, InsO, and EEC are predictors of ATLL. The SEM showed a weak positive influence of InsO on DLE, ITFL, EET, EEC, MI and ATLL. IntO had a weak positive impact on DLE, EET, EEC, and ITFL. There was a weak positive impact of DLE on ITFL, ATLL and MI, and it had a strong effect on EEC. Finally, EET had a weak positive effect on MI, whereas EEC had a weak positive impact on ATTL and MI. This research provided information that serves to understand the factors affecting the intensity of motivation and attitude in L2 learning

Critical discourse analysis was developed by three outstanding linguists such as Fariclough, Van Dijk and Wodak, who offered rather similar approaches towards discourse analysis. Their common point is that CDA should take a critical orientation to discourse and investigate the aspects of ideology and power hidden in the discourse. The salient purpose of CDA which differs from other related approaches is that it tends to explore the implicit underlined ideological and power patterns in the written and spoken discourses. As a whole, CDA tends to uncover the implicit ideological prejudice in the discourse which brings about a dominance, hegemony, inequality and racism, and discrimination. These scholars basically give an ideological perspective to their approaches by the inspiration from Halliday's systematic functional linguistics. Halliday's systematic functional linguistics (SFL) is one of influential frameworks which has been extensively applied for the textual analysis of a number of domains such as critical discourse analysis. This study intends to discover how it is possible to find out the ideological dimension of discourse by exploring the linguistic elements particularly the transitive verbs. It is hoped that it provides insightful guidelines for the CDA researchers to analyze a discourse with its ideological perspective. It concludes that the transitive verbs are most significant in transferring the ideological attitude of writer or speaker. These types of verbs are deliberately used within a textual discourse in which each textual element is interrelated to each other and has an influential impact of the signification of these verbs.

Given that technology-enhanced assessment has transformed language education by providing adaptive and interactive evaluation methods, the current research aimed to examine the comparative effects of Computerized Dynamic Assessment (CDA) and Computerized Formative Assessment (CFA) on vocabulary learning and academic buoyancy among Iranian EFL learners. Employing a quasi-experimental, non-equivalent groups pre-test-post-test-control group design, the study involved 60 intermediate male EFL learners aged 15–24 recruited from two language institutes in Tabriz, Iran. Participants were assigned to CDA, CFA, and control groups. The Oxford Placement Test determined proficiency levels, while the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale and Academic Buoyancy Scale assessed vocabulary acquisition and buoyancy, respectively. The CDA group engaged in dynamic, adaptive scaffolding through Adobe Captivate software, while the CFA group used Google Forms and Quizlet for formative feedback. The control group received traditional instruction. Results from ANOVA indicated that CDA and CFA significantly enhanced academic buoyancy, with no significant difference between them. However, CDA demonstrated superior vocabulary retention compared to CFA. These findings highlight CDA's effectiveness in fostering vocabulary acquisition through tailored mediation and CFA’s role in promoting self-regulation and academic buoyancy. The study underscores the importance of integrating adaptive assessment models in EFL instruction to optimize cognitive and affective learning outcomes.

This research explores political and media silence as a strategic communication device in political speeches, media interviews, and online media, using a multi-dimensional research methodology involving discourse analysis, acoustic recordings, and perception surveys. Through discourse analysis of a large dataset including 300 hours of political speeches, 200 media interviews, and 50 hours of online media, the research maps silence as a strong, convincing, and ideological device. Political speeches use longer but less frequent pauses for rhetorical effect while media interviews use shorter but more frequent silences in an attempt to evade uncomfortable questions. Silence in new media is found as a means of algorithmic manipulation. Surveys in six countries show large differences in how silence is understood; American respondents identify it as strategic while Japanese respondents consider it evasive or cheating. Hiding behind conventional linguistic theories assuming silence is a communicative absence, this research posits instead that silence is an active and discourse-dependent discourse device. Implications in media literacy and internet governance are also outlined with a call for greater openness in algorithmic modulations and a rhetorical awareness of silence.

The present study investigates the challenges of learning English grammar with a focus on the syntactic analysis of relative clauses (RCs) in Persian in contrast to English to identify the most common errors made by Persian learners of English. In addition, it aims to enhance L2 grammar learning and overcome challenges using AI-assisted tools such as Wordtune, Instatext, and ChatGPT in classroom activities. The quantitative data were collected through the RC tests adapted from the models used by Izumi (2003), comprising three test types: sentence combination, interpretation, and grammaticality judgment. These tests were administered before and after the implementation of AI-powered strategies. The result of the tests in intermediate learners revealed that the most recurrent interlingual error was “the use of object pronouns” instead of gaps, while the challenges in “RC reduction” were among the most common intralingual errors. The findings highlight not only the major differences in RC structures between the two languages but also present an innovative approach that uses AI to address these challenges, offering insights for teachers and instructors. Addressing such errors and utilizing technological advances can pave the way for learners and teachers to have more effective learning and teaching strategies.

Teacher accountability, referring to teachers’ responsibility for instructional effectiveness and student outcomes, is a fundamental concept in education. However, barriers to teacher accountability in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education in Iran have not been previously investigated. This study aimed to identify these barriers by developing and validating a context-specific instrument. A mixed-method approach was adopted, starting with semi-structured interviews with 60 EFL teachers to generate questionnaire items. Following the pilot study, a 27-item questionnaire was administered to 460 EFL teachers in private language institutes. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was run to develop an adjusted model of inhibitors to EFL teachers’ accountability and to assess the psychometric properties of the BTAS. Additionally, descriptive statistics explored teachers' perceptions of the identified barriers. The analysis supported a three-factor model of teacher accountability barriers: Internal obstacles, including motivational factors; external inhibitors, such as systemic constraints and assessment limitations; and environmental inhibitors related to cultural, sociocultural, and political constraints. The findings highlight the complex and interrelated motivational, institutional, and contextual challenges that hinder teacher accountability, and they present practical implications for policymakers and educational authorities to foster supportive environments that enhance teaching quality and learner achievement.

La Clé USB tout en s’inscrivant dans le registre des techno-romans est présentatif d’une certaine fluctuation, il se rapproche ponctuellement du roman d’anticipation puis il se bascule dans un espace du roman d’espionnage pour fluctuer à la fin dans une sorte du roman moraliste. Ce qui nous hante ici est de savoir le pourquoi de la réactivation d’un modèle de parodie du roman d’espionnage qui est la technique précédente de Toussaint et qui s’est utilisé à extrême dans les années 80.  Pour y arriver nous profitons de la méthode de la réception. Le résultat de nos analyses montre que le choix du roman d’espionnage a permis à l’auteur d’explorer la tension entre la réalité apparente et une réalité plus cachée, plus profonde et plus réelle. Cette représentation de la réalité sociale cherche à aider le lecteur à reconquérir un monde moins opaque et à attirer son attention sur ce qui se joue de l’inhumain dans son environnement.

Museums are crucial cultural and educational institutions that facilitate visitors’ learning by integrating diverse modes of engagement, including linguistic, visual, auditory, and spatial elements. Consequently, coherence of these elements is crucial for effectively presenting information and maximizing its impact on visitors. Utilizing Kress and van Leeuwen’s (2020) principles of composition, specifically focusing on information value and salience, this study sought to assess text-image interaction in the images at the Omidvar Brothers Museum and their corresponding Persian labels, as well as to compare the interaction in the Persian labels with that in the English labels. The analysis revealed that the criterion “information value: left vs. right” received minimal attention, while the “information value: center vs. margins” criterion was the most consistently met in both Persian and English descriptions. However, the overall accuracy of multimodal interaction between the images and labels decreased by 7.40% in the English labels compared to the Persian labels, indicating a decline in translator performance relative to the original authors. This reduction in verbal-visual coherence suggests a less engaging experience for English-speaking foreign visitors compared to Iranian audiences. These results emphasize the necessity of addressing multimodality within museum contexts, as such focus can significantly enhance visitor experiences and deepen their understanding of museum exhibits.

The present mixed methods study examined the relationship of three constructs within applied linguistics, namely, shame, guilt, and grit among Iranian EFL learners. By considering the principles of positive psychology, the authors tried to determine the existence of any significant association between the variables. In this vein, 263 Iranian students aged between 13 to 18 participated in the study and filled out the questionnaires. Analyses of the data revealed strong negative relatedness between shame and the other two variables, while the learners’ guilt and grit were found to be positively correlated.  Expanding the quantitative results, the authors utilized a grounded theory approach and interviewed 30 students to further investigate the shame-inducing factors in L2 classroom and the analyses signaled that the ashamed learners suffer from internal and external shame-provokers. Attending to shame and other negative feelings would possibly reduce the learners’ shame and stress, help them progress in learning and enhance their well-being.

This study examined the impact of AI-driven feedback on the writing complexity of Iranian intermediate EFL learners using a quasi-experimental design. Through convenience sampling, 100 participants (male and female, aged 18-25) from two language institutes in Tehran were divided into four groups: two experimental groups receiving direct and indirect feedback from AI ChatGPT, and two control groups receiving the same feedback types from their teacher. Participants completed a pre-test, ten writing tasks over 14 weeks, and a post-test. Results, analyzed via descriptive statistics and one-way ANOVA, indicated notable improvements in writing complexity across all groups. The AI direct feedback group showed the highest improvement, with a mean difference of 5.24 (p < 0.05), followed by the teacher direct feedback group, which also demonstrated significant gains. The AI indirect feedback group exhibited moderate progress, while the teacher indirect feedback group showed the least improvement. Analysis of syntactic measures revealed that AI feedback, particularly direct feedback, effectively enhanced sentence structures and encouraged the use of more sophisticated vocabulary. These findings highlight AI-driven feedback’s potential to enhance EFL learners’ writing complexity, with direct feedback yielding the greatest benefits.

Critical thinking is one of the main functions of education and it is considered as learners’ use of prior knowledge to make judgments and solve problems. This study aimed, firstly, to examine the relationship between university EFL teachers’ critical thinking tendencies and their problem-solving skills, and secondly, to explore the prediction of university EFL teachers’ critical thinking tendencies by problem-solving skills, gender, and teaching experience. The study was designed in a correlational survey method. In total, 70 university EFL teachers (35 males and 35 females), from Azad and Payame Noor universities located in Isfahan and Ilam provinces teaching undergraduate students majoring in English, participated in this research. Data were collected via the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory and the Problem-Solving Inventory. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient, and stepwise regression analysis. The relationship between critical thinking tendencies and problem-solving skills was investigated through the Pearson Product Moments Correlation Coefficient, and stepwise regression analysis was run to determine whether university EFL teachers' problem-solving skills, gender, and teaching experience can significantly predict their critical thinking tendencies. The findings indicated that there was a positive, moderate, and significant relationship between university EFL teachers' problem-solving skills and their critical thinking tendencies, while there was no significant difference according to gender. In terms of teaching experience, the correlation coefficient for novice teachers showed a weak, positive, and non-significant relationship, yet the correlation coefficient for experienced teachers indicated a moderate, positive, and significant relationship. This study has both theoretical and practical implications for EFL teachers, practitioners, learners, and policymakers.  

This study focused on Iranian EFL learners’ learning styles and their willingness to communicate (WTC) in the classroom as two critical factors causing individual differences in language learners. A sample of 175 Iranian EFL learners studying at elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels at the University of Tehran Language Center participated in this study. The participants were asked to fill out two Likert-type questionnaires of the Willingness to Communicate and the Perceptual Learning Style Preference Questionnaire (PLSPQ). The findings of this study demonstrated that Iranian EFL learners prefer kinesthetic learning style above all others. Moreover, the findings indicated that there is a significant, albeit low, relationship between Iranian EFL learners’ learning styles and their willingness to communicate in the classroom. Furthermore, it was revealed that while Iranian EFL learners’ learning styles are not significantly different across different levels of language proficiency, there is a significant difference in their levels of willingness to communicate in the classroom.

Translanguaging' has been promoted as a prominent term in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) studies. It describes how learners of a new language effectively utilize their entire range of languages to convey meaning and communicate. Additionally, it serves as an educational strategy to harness these language repertoires as valuable resources for learning. In the last twenty years, multiple empirical investigations have been carried out to investigate pedagogical translingual strategy in language learning classes across the world. However, there is limited knowledge on this occurrence in English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) in the educational context of Iraq, where TEFL policies prohibit using students' first language and perceive them as a hindrance to language acquisition. By examining the views of English language teachers regarding pedagogical translanguaging, this study seeks to close this gap. Additionally, it investigates the extent to which these perspectives are manifested in their instructions. A total of 120 English language instructors at an Iraqi university willingly took part in this research. The findings highlight a significant disparity between the attitudes that teachers claim to have and the teaching methods that they use, based on the survey. The results also illuminated the barriers that prevented the participants from using translanguaging in their instruction.

The present study explores the occupational prestige of the translation profession from both practicing and prospective translators’ viewpoints. The sample of the study included 142 translators and 115 prospective translators (translation students), who completed a survey on the occupational prestige of translation in Iran. The research incorporated two questionnaires as the instruments of the study. The first instrument was the general format of Dam and Zethsen’s (2008, 2011) Translators’ Assessment of the Occupational Prestige of Translation Checklist (henceforth TAOPT). For the second group, the questionnaire prepared by Ruokonen and Svahn (2022) was adapted and used. Based on the findings of the study, translation can be perceived as an art that draws on the knowledge, wisdom, and expertise of translators to provide the best translated target version of the materials. The results of the study disclose that while the participating prospective translators (translation students) perceived translation as a highly prestigious occupation, the majority of practicing translators displayed a more moderate perception of translation as a prestigious occupation. It was also found that participants considered translation’s occupational prestige to be strongly and consistently affected by various factors. It was concluded that translation as a profession requires evolutionary steps on the part of translators and related agencies and organizations in order to elevate the status of the field into a more prestigious and professional domain.

The present study aimed to find the effect of artificial intelligence (AI)-mediated speaking assessment on speaking performance and willingness to communicate (WTC) of Iraqi EFL Learners. More specifically, the study sought to find whether AI-mediated speaking assessment enhance the speaking performance (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, intonation, and fluency) of Intermediate Iraqi EFL learners and whether AI-mediated speaking assessment enhanced their WTC in English. In so doing, 40 intermediate Iraqi EFL learners were randomly selected and assigned into experimental and control groups, each comprising 20 learners. The experimental group participants received ten 60-minute treatment sessions with ELSA Speech Analyzer, while the control group received no treatment. The speaking pre-test of both groups was run prior to the treatment, and all participants were post-tested at the end of the study. The Willingness to Communicate in a Foreign-Language Scale was also administered to groups prior to and after the treatment. A speaking assessment rubric, including vocabulary, grammar, intonation, pronunciation, and fluency, was used to assess the speaking performance of both groups. The findings demonstrated that AI-mediated speaking assessment enhanced the grammar, vocabulary, intonation, and fluency of the experimental group. However, the two groups did not differ in terms of pronunciation. Furthermore, this assessment tool enhanced the willingness to communicate with native speakers, the willingness to communicate with non-native speakers, and the willingness to communicate in the school context of this group. In general, the speaking assessment mediated by AI significantly enhanced the speaking performance and WTC of the learners. These findings might advance the current scholarly discourse on AI within the domains of language pedagogy and assessment.