درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Despite the general findings that address the positive contribution of teaching pragmatic features to interlanguage pragmatic development, the question as to the most effective method is far from being resolved. Moreover, the potential of literature as a means of introducing learners into the social practices and norms of the target culture, which underlie the pragmatic competence, has not been fully explored. This study, then, set out to investigate the possible contribution of plays, as a medium of instruction, to the pragmatic development through either explicit or implicit mode of instruction. To this end, 80 English-major university students were assigned to four experimental groups: two literary and two nonliterary groups. One of the literary groups (Implicit Play) received typographically enhanced plays containing the speech acts of apology, request, and refusal and the other (Explicit Play) received the same treatment in addition to the metapragmatic instruction on the acts. The medium of instruction for the nonliterary groups were dialogs containing the given functions; they were also given either enhanced input (Implicit Dialog) or input plus metapragmatic information (Explicit Dialog). Analyses of the four groups’ performance on a Written Discourse Completion Test (WDCT) before and after the treatment did not show any advantage for the literary medium, i.e., there was no significant difference between literary and nonliterary groups. It was rather the mode of instruction that mattered most, where explicit groups outperformed their implicit counterparts. These findings indicate that even though implicit teaching, that is, exposure to enhanced input followed by some awareness-raising tasks, is effective in pragmatic development, it cannot contribute so much to learning as can the explicit instruction

Three decades ago, the theory of education took a critical turn. From this perspective, classroom is no longer a public sphere of cultural assimilation but a site for identity struggle. The basic argument underlying such an approach is that education cannot be studied in isolation from an analysis of wider social and cultural influences. In such a context, this study investigated Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions of the basic tenets of critical pedagogy. To this end, a mixed method approach was adopted and the data were gathered through in–depth interviews and questionnaires developed by the researchers. The participants of this study included 21 Iranian EFL teachers at the qualitative phase and 127 teachers at the quantitative phase. Qualitative data analysis included in-depth content analysis of oral data obtained from semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data analysis involved descriptive statistics and independent sample t-tests. The results indicated that Iranian EFL teachers were supportive of the basic tenets of critical pedagogy altogether. Also, mixed findings were obtained concerning their views according to their level of education and field of expertise. Based on the findings, several suggestions are made for classroom management, materials development, and teacher training programs.

While teachers’ confidence in their abilities is a crucial asset in teachers’ professionalism and their identity development, their efficacy doubts are also considered useful. Given the diversity of English Language Teaching (ELT) contexts, this paper probes the dynamic nature of efficacy doubts the teachers face and are expected to resolve in English for General Purposes (EGP) and English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) instruction. To this end, based on the existing theoretical frameworks in EGP and ESAP methodology and interviews with 25 university English teachers, two questionnaires were developed and administered to 170 Iranian EGP and ESAP university instructors. The results of factor analysis confirmed five factors underlying ESAP teachers’ teaching efficacy doubts and four factors for EGP teachers’ teaching efficacy doubts. The results may promise implications for ESAP and EGP teacher education programs; teacher educators may address the common efficacy doubts identified in this study and expose the current in-service and future ESAP and EGP teachers to the typical factors which may potentially hamper their efficacy and help them resolve their efficacy doubts as a means towards professional development

Abstract: The widespread use of test scores for different educational and social decision making purposes has made the washback effect of tests a distinct educational phenomenon (Cheng, 1997).The high school third grade final exam in the general educational system of Iran has for long been a high stake test designed to assess the achievement of high school graduates in different school subjects. The present study aimed to investigate the washback effect of this nation-wide exam on EFL teachers’ teaching methodology, assessment procedures, and attitudes towards different aspects of the educational system. For this purpose, a researcher made, validated questionnaire was administered to 160 EFL teachers. The results indicated that the third grade nation-wide final exam adversely affects EFL teachers’ teaching methodology and increases teaching to the test effect quite noticeably as they try to teach according to the content and format of the test. The results further showed an even stronger negative effect of the exam on EFL teachers’ assessment procedures. However, the teachers’ attitude towards different aspects of the educational system was not found to be as strongly affected as the other two variables. The findings of the study are of importance for testing and assessment bureaus in charge of extensive high stake tests development. Moreover, raising teachers’ awareness of the drawback of teaching-to-the test effect of such a high stake test might help them improve their teaching and evaluation practices.

هدف مطالعه ی حاضر افزایش آگاهی در زمینه ی ساختار تعامل در کلاسهای زبان بیگانه ی انگلیسی است. با استفاده از چارچوب متدولوژیکی گفتمانکاوی، تعاملات کلاسی پنجاه و دو معلم به مدت سه ساعت ضبط و جمع آوری گردید تا بافت های تعاملی بر اساس اهداف آموزشی در توالی نوبت ها شناسایی شوند. سپس با تلفیق روش گفتمان کاوی با روش های کمی، توزیع بافت های تعاملی و تاثیر عوامل محیطی، شامل توانش زبانی شاگردان و تربیت (آموزش) معلمین، مورد بررسی قرار گرفت. با تحلیل گفتمان کاوانه ی اطلاعات تحریری، چهار بافت تعاملی، شامل بافت هایی با محوریت ساختار، معنا، مهارت، و مدیریت، مورد شناسایی قرار گرفت. بررسی توزیع بافت ها نشان داد که بخش عمده ای از تعاملات کلاسی با محوریت ساختار و مهارت های زبانی شکل می گیرند. در حالی که بافت معنامحور کمترین سهم را در تعاملات کلاسی دارد. تحلیل واریانس چند متغیره یدوسویه نشان داد که توزیع تمامیبافت های شناسایی شده تحت تأثیر سطح توانش زبانی شاگردان می باشد. اما آموزش معلمین تنها بر توزیع بافت ها با محوریت ساختار و مدیریت مؤثرند. یافته های مطالعه ی حاضر توجه معلمین و مربیان تربیت معلم را به لزوم اصلاحات در وضعیت کنونی تعاملات کلاسی سوق می دهد.

Motivation can be conceptualized as a dynamic process which is a key contributor to mastering a second language. This study used the L2-Motivational Self System as the basis for a conceptual framework for studying the effects of external factors on learners' motivation. In particular, the role of teachers and parents was studied as the external facets of predicting learners' motivation. One hundred and twenty EFL teachers along with 1,270 of their students participated in the study. To measure motivation, the Persian version of Dörnyei's L2 Motivation Self-System Scale was utilized. Three key components of the scale, namely, criterion measure, attitudes to L2 learning, and instrumentality promotion were employed in measuring motivation. To assess the role of family in motivating learners, another subscale of Dörnyei's questionnaire, i.e., family influence was used. To gauge teacher burnout, the educator version of the Maslach burnout inventory (MBI-ES) was used. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was run to analyze the causal relationships among the variables. The results revealed that teacher burnout negatively influenced learners' criterion measure and their attitudes to learning English. However, the path leading from teacher burnout to instrumentality promotion was not significant. Furthermore, three direct, positive, and significant paths leading from family influence to learners' criterion measure, instrumentality promotion, and attitudes to learning English were detected. Finally, findings are discussed with reference to the context of Iran

این مطالعه جهت بررسی کاربرد راهبردهای فراشناختی در مهارت صحبت کردن انجام گرفته و به طور خاص سعی در بررسی این موضوع دارد که در تمرینات یک سویه و دو سویه صحبت کردن چه راهبردهای فراشناختی به کار گرفته می شود. به همین منظور 60 دانش آموز سطح بزرگسال (زن) به طور تصادفی و از طریق آزمون یکسان سازی OPT انتخاب شدند و به دو گروه کنترل و آزمایش تقسیم شدند. برای بررسی به کارگیری راهبردهای فراشناختی از پرسشنامه فراشناختی (اکسفورد، 1990) استفاده شده است. گروه کنترل تمرینات یک سویه و دو سویه را به شیوه مرسوم انجام دادند و گروه آزمایش پس از دریافت راهبردهای فراشناختی به انجام تمرینات پرداختند. بعد از مرحله پس آزمون و مقایسه ANCOVA مشخص شد که مقدار میانگین مقایسه ای بین دو گروه تفاوت قابل توجهی داشته است. نتایج نشان می دهد که گروه آزمایش بهتر از گروه کنترل عمل کردند. از طریق آمار توصیفی و آزمون خی دو این نتیجه به دست آمده است که استفاده از راهبردهای فراشناختی در تمرینات یک سویه و دو سویه صحبت کردن متفاوت بوده و در هرکدام یک سری از این راهبردها به کار گرفته شده است.

Despite the importance of interlanguage pragmatic rating (ILP) in the second language teaching and learning context, scant attention has been devoted to it. This study aims to investigate native EFL teachers’ major criteria in assessing the speech act of complaint produced by Iranian EFL learners. To fulfill this end, two groups of experienced native raters, including American (n=47) and British (n=30) EFL/ESL teachers, were elected for evaluating the complaint discourse completion tests (DCTs) made from video-prompts which were answered by EFL learners before. The content analysis of raters’ comments on the EFL learners’ productions revealed eleven different criteria including logical reasoning and comments, politeness, linguistic appropriacy, semantic formula, interlocutors’ relationship, register choice, formality, degree of intensity, cultural accommodations, degree of directness, and finally fluency and naturalness respectively from the most to the least frequent ones. The result of the t-test and chi-square analysis proved that British and American raters differed significantly in their degree of variations and preferences of these criteria. The results further showed that EFL learners’ responses seemed unreasonable and impolite to native raters which might be due to the different cultural norms between L1 and L2 societies and consequently encourage us to be aware of the importance of teaching sociopragmatic knowledge to the EFL learners.