Translated texts have an in-between existence commonly referred to as hybridity; they belong to both source and target cultures, which indicates that hybridity is an inherent characteristic of translation. However, it is not only translated texts that contain hybridity, original texts do too, especially in the case of linguistic hybridity that is caused by non-standard language. All forms of non-standard language have their own sociolinguistic implications; their mere presence in a literary production conveys certain messages, which makes this presence a prominent one. It is equally important to find out what becomes of such language in the process of translation. Therefore, the current qualitative research picked four literary novels that featured at least one-character parading non-standard speech patterns, along with two Persian translations for each novel so that translators' styles could be compared. The target texts were inspected to observe cases of either neutralization or reproduction of non-standard language. The findings proved that most translators gravitate towards normalization, meaning that their readers would not be able to perceive the existence of different speech patterns in the story. Nevertheless, by employing diverse structures and terms, two translators managed to demonstrate that linguistic hybridity existed in their texts. Considering how dissimilar English and Persian dialects are, having transferred non-standard language through the translation process is an impressive accomplishment.
Metaphor shapes our language as well as our thoughts by grounding the concepts related to our body within an experiential framework in which we can accommodate abstract concepts. Being aware of their underlying structure and mastering them are believed to be integral in developing metaphoric competence and communicative competence in a second language. Body-related metaphors are among the prevalent, yet under-researched metaphors of Persian that can pose substantial challenges for foreign learners of Persian. This study explores the body-related metaphor constructions utilizing Lakoff and Johnson’s conceptualizations in Persian language that can be problematic for learners of Persian. It was found that the Persian body metaphors are relatively rich and pervasive. In many cases, Persian speakers tend to use different metaphors as a kind of hyperbole to show the repetition and/or significance of a phenomenon or concept (both negatively and positively). It was also suggested that the primary function of metaphors in Persian could be explained based on the narrowing and expanding of meaning. The findings suggested that while systematicity is universal, there are also differences among the metaphor structures cross-linguistically and cross-culturally. The results could also provide another evidence for cognitivists’ claim that the conceptual system by which we understand and communicate (about/with) the world around us is mostly metaphorical. Finally, the significance and implications of studies of this nature for the learning and teaching of Persian as a second/foreign language were discussed.
Evaluating the oral abilities of foreign language learners through online assessments attitudes a significant challenge for both teachers and students. Conducting skill evaluations in person, through direct interaction between the examiner and the learner, enables more authentic communication. However, shifting to a digital format and incorporating technological tools may cause discomfort among students and take away the friendly atmosphere of the assessment.This study aimed to investigate the impact of online assessment on the speaking complexity, accuracy, and fluency of intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. Initially, 50 learners took the Oxford Placement Test, with only 44 scoring between 50 and 60, placing them at level B1. These students were then divided into an experimental group and a control group. The Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) was administered as a pretest and posttest for both groups, alongside a speaking pretest to assess complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) scores. The experimental group underwent online assessment (OA) via the Adobe Connect platform, while the control group engaged in book exercises without any specific treatment. Following the intervention, both groups took a speaking posttest (TOEIC). Data analysis involved Pearson Correlation Coefficient, kurtosis, skewness, descriptive statistics, and sample t-tests. The findings revealed that online assessment significantly improved participants' speaking accuracy and fluency, although it did not have a significant impact on speaking complexity.
In this research, we carried out a meta-analysis of the effects of teacher scaffolding on EFL learners’ reading proficiency in which 28 experimental and quasi-experimental studies published from 2008 to 2022 and 39 effect sizes were reviewed and synthesized. Three questions guide this analysis: What is the overall effect of teacher scaffolding on EFL learners’ reading proficiency? To what extent moderator variables such as learners’ educational levels and proficiency levels modify the effect of the teacher scaffolding? What is the magnitude of publication bias in this analysis? The overall effect size was found to be 0.89, which represents a large effect size based on Cohen, Manion and Morrison’ (2007) scale. The effect sizes of moderator variables were calculated and it was reported that the scaffolding has the most effect in elementary learners and elementary school level. The symmetrical funnel plot together with the fail-safe N test indicates that publication bias does not have any significant effect on the effect size reported in this study. The findings of this meta-analysis have implications for EFL teachers, researchers, policy makers and curriculum developers.
The impact of humor on language acquisition has been documented in scholarly accounts. Hence, this study investigated Iranian pre-service and high-experienced and low-experienced in-service EFL teachers’ beliefs and practices of humor in the classroom. In order to collect data, the researchers adopted four distinct instruments including pedagogical humor questionnaire, semi-structured interview, observation checklist, and field notes. A total of 182 Iranian EFL teachers participated completed the questionnaires, while 10 in-service EFL teachers engaged in semi-structured interviews. Additionally, the second researcher observed 36 classes. The results indicated that both pre-service and in-service EFL teachers believed that humor was effective. Notably, high-experienced in-service EFL teachers displayed more pronounced positive beliefs in humor compared to their pre-service and low-experienced counterparts. The results also disclosed that humor was a routine practice for high-experienced teachers. Based on the findings of the present study, it can be suggested that it is essential to train and educate both pre-service and in-service EFL teachers in order to integrate humor into different EFL classrooms.
Many studies on L1 and/or L2 pragmatic competence are constrained by universalist orientations towards sociopragmatics and overlook the idiosyncratic cultural scripts and schemas of underexplored languages and cultures. Particularly neglected is the complicating role of Iranian cultural schema of a (dis-)belief in the evil eye with regards to the speech act of complimenting (and responding to it); actually, the schema is hypothesized (Talebzadeh & Rajabi, in preparation; Younesi & Talebzadeh, 202) to pose intricate interactional challenges for both parties due to the possible interpretations of and (non-)verbal responses to compliments (as predominantly Face-Saving Acts versus potentially Face-Threatening Acts). Moreover, still unknown is the way these could confound EFL learners’ cross-cultural communications. To address these gaps, we present the second phase of a more comprehensive study of compliment response (CR) behaviors of Iranian respondents while checking the adequacy of our proposed model (inspired by Herber’s taxonomy). To qualitatively and quantitatively examine the CRs of fifteen proficient Iranian female learners of English, we initially collected the data using two sets of Discourse Completion Tasks (DCT) (in Persian and English) consisting of a variety of situations and variables (e.g., social distance and compliment topics). Then, follow-up semi-structured interviews were conducted to tap into the participants’ (non-)beliefs in the evil eye and its presupposed effects on their compliment exchanges. The findings underscore the adequacy of our modified model and the particularities of Iranian cultural schemas. Specifically, being a widespread belief, evil-eye is shown to play a pivotal role in formulating the responses to compliments through the selective application of CR types such as Cheshm-Zadan and Taarof in reaction to the compliments given (particularly those on family members or beloved ones) across both languages. The study concludes with a discussion of the findings with reference to the relevant literature and implications for intercultural communication, language education, and sociopragmatic research and practice.
