مطالب

Emotion and cognition are both considered influential factors in language learning. In this study, the role of "emotioncy" (which is a combination of emotion and frequency) in the cognitive load and sentence comprehension of a group of language learners was examined. Emotioncy includes emotions that are evoked by the senses. To this aim, 200 English as a foreign language (EFL) learners were asked to fill out the NASA Task Load Test, a sentence comprehension test, and an emotioncy scale. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was run to measure the construct validity of the emotioncy scale. Subsequently, Pearson Product-Moment correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to analyze the data. The results showed that emotioncy has a significantly negative and positive relationship with cognitive load and sentence comprehension, respectively (p

Computerized Dynamic Assessment (CDA), encouraged by Brown and colleagues’ graduated prompt approach, is grounded in Vygotsky’s Socio-Cultural Theory (SCT) of mind and its concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD). It emerged to respond to the challenge of implementing DA in large classes and to meet the psychometric properties of assessment. To this end, the present study attempted to design a unique computerized dynamic assessment tool to diagnose learners’ development of pragmatic competence, specifically their knowledge of the speech acts of apology and request. To conduct the research, a number of 60 BSc students of engineering, aged 18-24, participated in the study. They had different proficiency levels, including pre-intermediate, intermediate and upper-intermediate levels. In the course of CDA, they were provided with 30 multiple choice discourse completion tests of apology and request and they were required to choose what they would say in that specific situation. The participants received pre-established meditational hints for each of the unacceptable responses, which were arranged from the most implicit to the most explicit. Finally, to diagnose learners’ development, their test performance, including their actual score, mediated score and learning potential score (LPS), was instantly displayed. Paired samples t-test showed development in learners’ mediated score. The results of the univariate analysis of variance showed that there is no interaction between mediation and proficiency level. Teachers can use this supplementary dynamic assessment tool to diagnose learners’ development of pragmatic competence.