درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

The present study focused on the effect of an in-service meta-pragmatics training course on Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ pragmatic awareness and classroom pragmatic practices. A mixed methods design was used to achieve the objectives of the study. In the quantitative phase of the study, 300 EFL teachers were selected through convenience sampling and filled out the Pragmatic Awareness Questionnaire. In the qualitative phase, 60 of those teachers participated in a pragmatic training course. They were divided into experimental and control groups and underwent the processes of pretesting, intervention, and post-testing. Furthermore, 30 of these teachers were observed in terms of their teaching inter-language pragmatics both before and after the training course of meta-pragmatics. The results of the multivariate ANOVA (MANOVA) revealed that EFL teacher’s pragmatic awareness was relatively low. In addition, the findings unveiled a statistically significant difference between the EFL teachers’ meta-pragmatic awareness and their practices in terms of the 'language teacher' component. Moreover, the findings showed a statistically significant improvement in the EFL teachers’ pragmatic practices regarding teaching pragmatic features after receiving the instructions. The results of this study have some implications for stakeholders, namely EFL teacher trainers, EFL teachers, and EFL students.

Today, the success of organizations and institutions requires effective and efficient management; among them, management in education and schools, as the formal institutions of education, holds a special place. The effectiveness of educational management on the one hand, and the ability to monitor the activities of principals on the other, necessitate access to performance standards in this area. Given the lack of a formulated standard for school principals and the significance and status of high schools, the aim of this research is to identify the performance standards for high school principals. The research method is grounded theory, and the data collection tool is a semi-structured interview. The statistical population includes all male high school principals in the districts of Mashhad. Ten prominent principals were purposefully selected as a sample using the snowball method. After open coding the transcribed interviews and axial coding, 27 components of the performance standards for school principals were identified. Finally, with categorization, these components were classified into five dimensions: human relations, managerial tasks, principals' vision and attitude, school growth and progress, and principals' personal needs. The importance of human relations in high school management was defined as the main category, and other components were defined in relation to it. Ultimately, a model of performance standards for high school principals was obtained.

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Reality Therapy in improving temperament and sleep quality among adolescents with learning disorders. This randomized controlled trial included 30 adolescents, aged 12 to 18, diagnosed with learning disorders. Participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (15 participants) or the control group (15 participants). The intervention group underwent twelve 60-minute sessions of Reality Therapy over a two-month period, while the control group received no therapeutic intervention. Temperament and sleep quality were assessed using the Revised Dimensions of Temperament Survey (DOTS-R) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), respectively, at three time points: pre-intervention, post-intervention, and two-month follow-up. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measurements and the Bonferroni post-hoc test, with SPSS-27 software. The results indicated significant improvements in both temperament and sleep quality in the intervention group compared to the control group. These improvements were sustained at the two-month follow-up. Specifically, the intervention group showed marked improvements in emotional regulation and sleep patterns, highlighting the efficacy of Reality Therapy in addressing these critical aspects of adolescent health. Assumptions for ANOVA were confirmed, ensuring the robustness of the findings. Reality Therapy significantly improves temperament and sleep quality in adolescents with learning disorders, with effects lasting beyond the intervention period. This study supports the use of Reality Therapy as a viable intervention for improving emotional and sleep-related outcomes in this population. Further research with larger sample sizes and extended follow-up periods is recommended to confirm these findings and explore additional benefits.

Several investigations in the psychology domain, educational psychology, and other related subjects have examined the inner voice. However, it has not been used as much in teaching foreign languages, particularly in developing learning materials. This study aimed to develop new English learning materials based on Tomlinson’s text-driven approach to enhance learners’ inner voice through instruction using the newly developed materials. The participants in this study were 40 intermediate female EFL learners, aged 20-35. All participants were selected through convenience sampling and were native speakers of Persian. The researchers then assigned the participants randomly into two experimental and control groups, each including 20 participants. Data were collected through an inner voice questionnaire and semi-structured interviews, utilizing both quantitative and qualitative methods to align with the study’s objectives, participant characteristics, and research questions. The quantitative data were statistically analyzed using SPSS (version 22), revealing that learners demonstrated a moderately high engagement with their inner voice after instruction with the newly developed materials. Qualitative insights emphasized key themes, including the natural use of English in internal thought processes, more frequent internal dialogues, and deeper mental engagement with the language. The study suggests that textbook developers and curriculum designers should consider new approaches to meet EFL learners’ psychological and cognitive needs, particularly in fostering inner voice processing for deeper engagement.