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Showing 43 results for Age
, , , Volume 16, Issue 2 (9-2013)
Abstract
The present study aimed to design and validate a “Critical Understanding of the Global Spread of English” Scale (CUGSES). To this end, a framework was designed based on the tenets of linguistic imperialism, English as an International Language (EIL), and globalization. The scale was then administered to a population of 425 participants, comprising English language teachers in language institutes, English language learners in language institutes, parents whose children attended English language institutes, university students majoring in English and English-major university professors. Rasch measurement was utilized to substantiate the construct validity of the instrument. The results of the Rasch analysis revealed that except for three items, the scale is unidimensional and meets the criteria to fit to the Rasch model. Next, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to extract the factors underlying the scale. Five components were extracted and labeled as: domination of English language and culture, preference for home culture and language, age and medium of instruction, native speakerism, and localization in ELT. Implications of the newly- designed scale in the Iranian EFL context were then provided.
, , Volume 16, Issue 2 (9-2013)
Abstract
Although images are abundant and play significant aesthetic and pedagogical roles in today’s EFL course books, they are still one of the less explored areas of research. The present study is an attempt to examine the role and function of images in Iranian high school EFL course books it also aims to cast a critical eye over their suitability and efficiency. To this end, Kress and Van Leeuwen’s (2006) model of visual grammar was adopted. The findings revealed that although the informative and/or illustrative functions of the images make them important resources in Iranian high school EFL course books, their full potential for language learning does not seem to be adequately exploited. This relates to flaws at the representational mode of meaning making, such as outdated portrayal of objects, gender stereotyping, and overdramatizing national identity as well as shortcomings at the interactive mode, such as poor modality due to grayscale printing and plain graphics with no contextualization or pictorial detail. These flaws make the images seem out of today’s world and hardly credible for high school students who are already adept at new technology. Since these shortcomings may sacrifice pedagogical objectives, the study calls for changes in both technical quality and underlying messages of images in the course books.
, , Volume 17, Issue 1 (4-2014)
Abstract
Despite their widespread popularity and rapid growth, the Internet-mediated English educational materials for learners of English as a foreign/second language (FL/SL) have rarely been analyzed in terms of their potential hidden curriculum. Accordingly, the present study aims to address this need through conducting a CDA investigation into some lessons which are randomly selected from an English educational website called “Englishcentral.” Adapting, expanding, and adopting some elements of Van Leeuwen’s (2008) Social Actor Network, the researchers attempt to describe and explain the representation of “Iran” in Englishcentral. Investigating and thematizing the research data revealed that the keyword “Iran” was used in this website to refer to three groups of social actors, namely the Iranian government and officials, Iranian people, and Iranian people and/or government/officials. The way these social actors are associated and dissociated, activated and passivated, personalized and impersonalized creates remarkable findings which give support to the presence of particular hidden agenda in this program. In all, the results of this study reveal that the Iranian social actors are portrayed unfavorably in Englishcentral, which is an alleged English educational program.
, , Volume 18, Issue 2 (9-2015)
Abstract
Gender representation has long been studied in both verbal and visual modes of ELT textbooks. However, regarding the visual mode, research has mainly focused on superficial analyses of how often each gender appears in different roles rather than on how the two genders are represented. The tools proposed in Kress and van Leeuwen’s (2006) social semiotics framework, however, permit deep analysis of images taking into consideration how pictorial elements are shown both alone and in relation to other pictorial elements, on the one hand, and the viewers on the other. Following the above-mentioned framework, the present study applied the three dimensions of representational, compositional and interactive meaning presented to 16 photographs randomly selected from the Interchange (Third Edition) series (Richards, 2005) to explore gender portrayals and disclose ideologies in the visual mode of the series. Qualitative data analysis showed some ideologies and stereotypical portrayals, each of which appeared either in one or a few photographs. Taken together, the findings indicated gender bias in favor of men in the series.
Rajab Esfandiari, Razieh Nouri, Volume 19, Issue 2 (9-2016)
Abstract
Professionalism requires that language teachers be assessment literate so as to assess students’ performance more effectively. However, assessment literacy (AL) has remained a relatively unexplored area. Given the centrality of AL in educational settings, in the present study, we identified the factors constituting AL among university instructors and examined the ways English Language Instructors (ELIs) and Content Instructors (CIs) differed on AL. A researcher-made, 50-item questionnaire was constructed and administered to both groups: ELIs (N = 155) and CIs (N = 155). A follow-up interview was conducted to validate the findings. IBM SPSS (version 21) was used to analyse the data quantitatively. Results of exploratory factor analysis showed that AL included three factors: theoretical dimension of testing, test construction and analysis, and statistical knowledge. Further, results revealed statistically significant differences between ELIs and CIs in AL. Qualitative results showed that the differences were primarily related to the amount of training in assessment, methods of evaluation, purpose of assessment, and familiarity with psychometric properties of tests. Building on these findings, we discuss implications for teachers’ professional development.
Zohreh Shooshtari, Kioumars Razavipur, Azimeh Takrimi, Volume 20, Issue 1 (4-2017)
Abstract
Pre-service teacher cognition literature abounds with the concept of change as well as proposals regarding desirable conceptual changes to be undertaken so that teacher candidates can set out their path of professional development with right beliefs. Yet, such changes would seem less likely to occur if the trainees’ thoughts, beliefs, and cognitions are not identified in the first place. This study was an attempt to identify the cognitions of EFL pre-service teachers and trace possible changes expressed by the candidates. Through a convenient sample of 64 pre-service teachers studying at three teacher training colleges in Iran, this mixed -methods exploration utilized a teacher cognition questionnaire and interview techniques. Results of the cognition questionnaire indicated that many of the candidates’ cognitions were still in need of adjustments. Also, the content analysis of the interviews revealed that the candidates’ attempts during the practicum revolved mostly around challenging debilitating beliefs, developing a sense of professional agency, managing stress, and resolving tensions between contradicting beliefs. Findings suggest that the trainees’ prior experiences as language learners exerted a very influential effect on their cognitions and also their attempts to refine those cognitions. |
Fatemeh Hemmati, Farnaz Farrokh Allaiee, Volume 20, Issue 2 (9-2017)
Abstract
This study aimed to compare the underlying measures of male and female high- school students’ social capital in terms of regional variations and gender and investigate the relationship between those measures and the students' foreign language (FL) achievement. To this end, a number of 904 third-grader high school students (278 male and 626 female) from two educational districts (privileged district (PD) and less-privileged district (LD)) participated in the study. They filled out the Student Social Capital Questionnaire and took an English language achievement test. The results showed that the students in the PD outperformed their counterparts in the LD. Furthermore, group statistics and t-test results suggested variations among the groups of students in terms of such factors as mothers’ involvement, institutional trust, intergenerational closure, and parents’ educational aspiration. Pearson product-moment correlation indicated that there was a significant negative correlation between male and female students' participation in social networks and religious activities on the one hand, and their foreign language achievement on the other hand. However, there was a significant positive correlation between intergenerational closure and parents’ educational aspiration and female students' English scores on the S-test. The findings have implications for families and school members to provide students with hopeful and positive aspirations and intimate family environments and learning environments, which can enhance their FL achievement. |
Zahra Hesami, Golnar Mazdayasna, Ali Mohammad Fazilatfar, Volume 21, Issue 1 (4-2018)
Abstract
Despite the abundance of research on ELT teachers, little is known about teacher language awareness (TLA) with focus on its impact on pedagogical practice in the EFL context. To fill this gap, an in-depth study was conducted to examine the procedural dimension of TLA among eight EFL teachers with different teaching experiences (novice versus experienced) related to teaching grammar at Iranian language institutes. Data were collected through non-participant classroom observations and stimulated recall interviews (of at least 7 lessons per teacher) from eight EFL teachers at three private language institutes in Iran. The findings revealed the experienced teachers’ application of TLA in their pedagogical practices in comparison to their novice counterparts. Most importantly, the application of TLA in classrooms was affected by factors, such as context, time constraints, learners’ emotions, and previous experiences as learners and teachers. This study may expand the current understanding of TLA and its impact on grammar teaching and have implications for language teacher education and development. |
Monoochehr Jafarigohar, Mohammad Hamed Hoomanfard, Alireza Jalilifar, Volume 21, Issue 2 (9-2018)
Abstract
The present study aimed at providing a typology of Iranian supervisors’ written feedback on L2 graduate students’ theses/dissertations and examining the way different speech functions are employed to put the supervisors’ thoughts and feelings into words. In so doing, a corpus of comments, including 15,198 comments provided on 87 TEFL theses and dissertations by 30 supervisors were analyzed. We employed an inductive category formation procedure to form the typology of comments, and followed a deductive procedure to put the comments into the three categories of expressive, referential, and directive speech functions. The findings showed that supervisors provided seven main categories of comments on theses and dissertations: grammar and sentence structure, content, method, organization, references, formatting, and academic procedures. Furthermore, the findings indicated that supervisors employed comments with different patterns and for different purposes on MA and PhD students’ texts. |
Soroor Ashtarian, Saman Ebadi, Nourodin Yousofi, Volume 21, Issue 2 (9-2018)
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the application of Group Dynamic Assessment (GDA) to writing accuracy of EFL learners and explore whether secondary interactants could benefit from interactions between mediator and primary interactants. The idea of implementing DA (Dynamic Assessment) in dyads seems unworkable since teachers are required to teach the whole class (Guk & Kellog, 2007). Moreover, Lantolf and Poehner (2004) suggest a new approach to DA that is GDA, which involves applying DA with a large number of learners rather than individuals. Following a multiple case study design and interactionist DA, the development of ten students in a class of twenty five was tracked during the eight sessions of DA program. Data were collected though written artifacts, video-recording of interactions, interview, and observation. The results indicated that GDA was an effective way of helping learners overcome their linguistic problems and there were signs of microgenetic as well as macrogenetic development within the same DA session and across sessions. The present findings provide further insight into understanding how secondary interactants benefit from the interactions between mediator and primary interactants. |
Mohammad Nabi Karimi, Mostafa Nazari, Volume 22, Issue 1 (3-2019)
Abstract
Knowledge representation, defined as the way individuals structure their knowledge and cognitive processing of events and the associated sense-making processes, is believed to influence teachers’ reasoning/thinking skills. While extensively researched in mainstream teacher education, this line of inquiry is essentially lacking in the L2 teacher education literature. To fill some of the void, the present study explored 36 – 18 novice and 18 experienced – EFL teachers’ representations of classroom management events. The teachers were presented with 8 fragments involving management problems in a novice teacher’s performance and were asked to provide their representations of the scenes. To explore likely differences between the two groups’ representations, the Mann-Whitney U test was used. Data analyses indicated that experienced teachers provided a significantly higher number of representations across majority of the categories of the coding scheme, except for disciplinary issues which were of prime concern to novice teachers. The implications of the study for pre-service and in-service teacher education are discussed. |
Zahra Fotovatnia, Jeffery Jones, Nichole Scheerer, Volume 22, Issue 2 (9-2019)
Abstract
Finding out which lexico-semantic features of cognates are critical in cross-language studies and comparing these features with noncognates helps researchers to decide which features to control in studies with cognates. Normative databases provide necessary information for this purpose. Such resources are lacking in the Persian language. We created a dataset and determined norms for the essential lexico-semantic features of 288 cognates and noncognates and matched them across conditions. Furthermore, we examined the relationship between these features and the response time (RT) and accuracy of responses in a masked-priming lexical decision task. This task was performed in English by Persian-English speakers in conditions where the prime and target words were related or unrelated in terms of meaning and/or form. Overall, familiarity with English words and English frequency were the best predictors of RT in related and unrelated priming conditions. Pronunciation similarity also predicted RT in the related condition for cognates, while the number of phonemes in the prime predicted RT for the unrelated condition. For both related and unrelated conditions, English frequency was the best predictor for noncognates. This bilingual dataset can be used in bilingual word processing and recognition studies of cognates and noncognates.
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Leila Hassanzadeh, Saeideh Ahangari, Nasrin Hadidi Tamjid, Volume 23, Issue 1 (3-2020)
Abstract
In educational psychology, mindsets refer to a set of core beliefs about intelligence and its role in successful learning in a specific domain. This study investigated the extent to which, the EFL learners’ mindsets might predict their English achievement considering the mediating roles of engagement and self-regulation. The data were collected by means of three questionnaires: The Language Mindset Inventory (LMI), the University Student Engagement Inventory (USEI), and the Academic Self-Regulated Learning Scale (A-SRL-S), as well as the institutes’ reports on their English achievement. We analyzed the data quantitatively using the SPSS 20 and Amos 8 Software. The results revealed that there was a significant direct relationship between language mindsets and English achievement of the EFL learners. Besides, this relationship was significantly mediated by the learners’ engagement and self-regulation. Drawing on the findings of this research, the challenge for teachers is to cultivate in students the mindsets that emphasize growth and potentials rather than constraints and stagnation.
Saeed Nourzadeh, Jalil Fathi, Majid Soltani Moghaddam, Volume 23, Issue 1 (3-2020)
Abstract
The aim of this study was to provide evidence on the construct validity of the ‘What is Happening in this Class’ (WIHIC) questionnaire in the context of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in Iran. The field of language teaching has made a number of claims about the role of language learning environments (particularly the classroom) in L2 acquisition and use, but it does not provide teachers and researchers with reliable and valid instruments to assess the accuracy of these claims. To serve the purpose of the study, a sample of 607 Iranian EFL learners from both university and institute contexts was requested to complete the WIHIC questionnaire, and the obtained data were then submitted to exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis for construct validation. The results indicated that the deletion of one dimension and several items from the original WIHIC questionnaire enhanced its psychometric properties, thus confirming the validity of the questionnaire with six factors. In addition, the psychometric properties of the validated questionnaire were found to be invariant across the teaching context (i.e., university versus institute contexts). The implications of these findings for research on language learning environments are discussed, and some suggestions are made for further validation studies.
Marjan Vosoughi, Volume 23, Issue 1 (3-2020)
Abstract
In this research, the teacher-researcher (henceforth, I) presents a chronological report over some life-long educational experiences in an EFL setting and during a long period—twenty-five years aimed at verifying/authenticating role conflicts. In so doing, I decided to carve my earlier educational paths to describe my diverse roles/realities. To this end, I recounted my past and presented experiences, including my three roles as (A) Language learner, (B) Language teacher, and (C) Language researcher. Using life-history narrative research designs and in line with auto-ethnography approaches, I initially embarked on critically describing my English language educational experiences from a recollection of past events in my memory through my first two roles—language learner and teacher—and mapped them onto my recently assigned role as a language researcher. The findings were self-revealing to me in that while recounting my experiences, I found out how specific intuited conflicts involving ‘impotency in using the English language for non-educational aims’, ‘the gap between theories and practice’, ‘the influence of essential others on my future decisions’, ‘the duality of exposures with people having more vs. fewer authorities’ among others had inflicted me to a great extent. Then and there, during such a long period for demonstrating my professional identity construction, I summarized my intuited conflicts. This was to designate how the unpredictability of affairs in ELT and maintaining intricate interactions with people in the community of practice, which resulted from numerous aims and led to unpredictable directions, might have influenced me as a language practitioner in my future attempts to experience a new being. The findings may promise implications for professional identity construction as mapped on recent narrative accounts for English language teachers.
Parinaz Khayatan, Ahmad Reza Lotfi, Bahram Hadian, Volume 23, Issue 2 (9-2020)
Abstract
This study focused on the pedagogical application of priming in an EFL context. Structural priming refers to the speakers’ tendency to produce the structure they encountered in recent discourse in subsequent production compared to an alternative form. Given the limited number of studies in the literature with a focus on the application of priming in L2 teaching and the problems that L2 learners face during speech production, the present study aimed at investigating whether the implication of priming leads to a more frequent oral and written production of the relative clause (RC) structure compared to adjectival modification of nouns (AN) in long- and short-terms as an instance of implicit learning. Participants consisted of 60 EFL female L2 learners, aged between 18-25 years old. Two experimental and 1 control groups were defined and 20 participants were allocated to each group. By applying a pretest, a treatment, an immediate posttest, a delayed posttest design, a picture description task, and a grammaticality judgment test (GJT), the data were gathered. Results of the descriptive and inferential analyses revealed that the implication of priming led to an improvement in the rate of the RC construction when the participants were involved in the written production of the L2, as compared to oral modality. Results are discussed based on structural complexity and procedures involved in L2 production. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are considered, too.
Masoomeh Taghizadeh, Golnar Mazdayasna, Fatemeh Mahdavirad, Volume 23, Issue 2 (9-2020)
Abstract
In the educational setting of Iran, language assessment literacy (LAL) is still an underexplored issue. This paper investigated the development of LAL among EFL students taking language assessment course at state universities in Iran. The three components of LAL (i.e., knowledge, skills, and principles) were the focus of the inquiry. To collect the required data, a questionnaire, encompassing 83 Likert items and a set of open-ended questions, was developed, and responses from 92 course instructors were collected. Teaching and assessment practices of two course instructors were also observed throughout an educational semester. SPSS (26) was used to analyze the data. Findings revealed that these courses mainly focused on knowledge and skills, overlooking the principles of assessment. Adherence to traditional assessment approaches, use of inappropriate teaching materials, and lack of practical works in assessment also characterized the investigated courses. The paper concludes with suggestions to better design language assessment courses to increase the assessment literacy of English graduates who will probably enter the teaching contexts after graduation.
Hamid Allami, Mohsen Ramezanian, Volume 24, Issue 1 (3-2021)
Abstract
People are constrained by their culture and social life when telling stories. A second language learner then cannot be expected to tell stories in the target language without cross-cultural effects that influence the way of narration. The present study examined the role of the first language (L1) and second language (L2) in the organization of narratives by focusing on Persian speakers’ and EFL learners’ lived narratives. For this purpose, 125 oral stories were voice recorded. Seventy-five EFL learners’ narratives and 50 Persian narratives as told by Iranian native speakers were collected via classroom discussions and interviews. To examine the substantive effect of L2 knowledge, the EFL learners were selected from pre-intermediate and upper-intermediate proficiency levels. The Labovian analytical narrative model was employed for the analysis. The findings indicated that EFL learners’ narratives were mostly affected by L1 rather than L2. Furthermore, English linguistic knowledge, rather than the English narrative structure itself, affected the organization of EFL narratives
Mohammad Ghasemi Bagherabadi, Golnar Mazdayasna, Volume 24, Issue 1 (3-2021)
Abstract
Teaching English as a second or foreign language has internationally turned into a determiner of success for societies. Thus, the demand has risen for changes in English Language Teaching (ELT) curricula in different contexts. In response to the growing globalization and the dissatisfaction of many Iranian ELT stakeholders with the former program in lower and upper high-school levels, the Ministry of Education, in 2010, initiated the renovation of national policy documents, coursebooks, and the introduction of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) orientations. The present study is part of a larger project that aims to qualitatively scrutinize the implementational complexities of the new program using a systematic language-in-education planning (LEP) framework. In this respect, 30 experienced headteachers' perspectives and voices from several provinces were explored through open-ended semi-structured interviews designed based on the analysis of school-based documents and observations of ELT goings-on in state schools. Interviews were then transcribed and the content was analyzed to identify the recurring themes. Key findings indicated that the new received program suffers from drawbacks like underbudgeting, students’ unequal access to quality ELT, the shortage of prepared teachers, etc. We further found that the program still requires dedicated support of the macro- meso- and micro-level agents at the national scale. Correspondingly, implications for revisions and suggestions for future research are offered.
Sasan Baleghizadeh, Morvarid Saeedi, Volume 24, Issue 2 (9-2021)
Abstract
With the rapid growth of online education, many language teachers are seeking to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to teach English language courses online. This study investigates the effectiveness of an online training program designed to enhance the pedagogical competencies of teacher trainees in online environments. A qualitative approach was adopted, and four experienced teacher trainers and 25 student-teachers who participated in the program during different semesters were selected as participants for in-depth, semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that while both trainers and student-teachers expressed some level of satisfaction with the program's quality, some areas required improvement. The program's strengths included its well-organized course structure, comprehensive training on online platforms, and effective development of online teaching materials. However, participants reported a lack of training on different teaching methods, writing skill, and adequate real teaching practice for future online teachers. These results have significant implications for online teacher training programs in general. Although the online format has numerous advantages, it also poses particular challenges for teacher education. To better prepare teachers for the unique demands of online teaching, future online language teacher training programs should address these challenges. The insights gained from this study can inform the development of more effective online training programs and contribute to the advancement of online educational policies and reforms. |
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