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Showing 209 results for Type of Study: Research
Mohammad Reza Oroji , Houman Bijani, Saeid Moharrami Gheydari , Rouhollah Rajabi , Mahsa Sheikhi,
Volume 26, Issue 1 (3-2023)
Abstract
This study was an attempt to investigate the relationship between test anxiety and writing performance among Iranian intermediate EFL students. To achieve this goal, 50 participants of EFL students (male and female) at Iran, Tehran, were selected on the basis of sampling convenience. The instruments used in this research consisted of the proficiency test and TAQ (Test Anxiety) questionnaire. After homogenizing the students via a proficiency test (Cambridge Placement Test, 2010), those students who were selected as upper-intermediate ones were allowed to take part in this research. Their age range was between 20 and 40. Having collected the results, the researchers recorded the scores in computer files for statistical analysis using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.00. In order to measure the relationship between the variables (test anxiety & written performance) Pearson Correlation tests were run. The results illustrated that there were significant relationships between writing performance and text anxiety and all its sub-scales of worry and emotionality. In addition, it was proved that there was not any significant difference between male and female in respect to writing performance. It must be reiterated that a Pearson Correlation test was also run to measure the Inter-Rater Reliability. The results of this study will provide insights to help EFL learners reduce their test anxiety and increase the level of their confidence.
Forough Rekabizadeh , Mavadat Saidi,
Volume 26, Issue 1 (3-2023)
Abstract
The study aimed to examine the mediating role of self-efficacy beliefs in the relationship between coping strategies and language learning anxiety using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). A total of 783 language learners participated in this research and completed Coping with Language Anxiety Scale, Foreign Language Anxiety Scale, and Self-Efficacy Belief Scale. The data were analyzed using SEM to test the hypothesized mediation model. Results indicated that coping strategies were negatively associated with language learning anxiety. Furthermore, self-efficacy beliefs partially mediated the relationship between coping strategies and language learning anxiety. Specifically, higher levels of self-efficacy were found to enhance the negative effect of coping strategies on language learning anxiety. These findings highlight the importance of promoting coping strategies and self-efficacy in language learning contexts to reduce anxiety. The implication of these findings for language learners, educators, and researchers are discussed, along with suggestions for future research in this area.
Sepideh Khalili, Shahab Moradkhani,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
Although reflective teaching is believed to be a significant feature of effective teachers, there is little empirical evidence to demonstrate its influence on learners’ evaluation. This study examines the relationship between EFL teachers' degree of reflection and learners’ evaluation of teacher effectiveness. Data were collected from 71 Iranian EFL teachers teaching at the private language institutes and 296 language learners. Reflective teaching inventory designed by Akbari, Behzadpour, and Dadvand (2007) was administered to the teachers and their learners’ evaluation was elicited through Murdoch’s (2000) checklist. The statistical analysis revealed significant positive relationships between reflection subscales and learners’ evaluation. It was thus assumed that understanding how reflection can change language learners’ evaluations can shed light on the role of reflection in improving teachers' performance and consequently learners’ appraisal. Hence, 10 teachers with the highest degree of reflection participated in follow-up interviews. Analysis of the interview data, indicated how reflection subscales contribute to teachers' in getting higher ratings from learners. In line with these findings, the implications for teachers, administrators and teacher education are discussed.
Mona Akhtari, Mahnaz Azad,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of immediate corrective feedback and delayed corrective feedback on EFL learners’ speaking fluency and speaking anxiety. The study adopted a quasi-experimental design with two experimental and no control groups. The participants consisted of 42 intermediate Iranian EFL learners at an English Institute in Tehran who were randomly assigned to two experimental groups. The instruments of the study included: the PET, teacher-made pre- and post-tests, and a speaking anxiety questionnaire. After the pre-test, the participants went through a ten session treatment during which the first experimental group received immediate corrective feedback while the second group received delayed corrective feedback. After the treatment process, a posttest was administered to both experimental groups to examine the effect of the treatment. Moreover, the participants in both groups filled in the speaking anxiety questionnaire to identify their anxiety level during in-class activities as well as those instructor’s behaviors and characteristics which might reduce their anxiety in class. The recorded data were transcribed and analyzed. The results indicated that delayed corrective feedback has a positive effect on EFL learners’ fluency and it also decreased their anxiety level.
Sharareh Sadat Sarsarabi, Zeynab Sazegar,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
In a world with globalization and communication development as its main features, arriving at a common understanding and correct transition of meaning is an unavoidable necessity. Here the responsibility and duty of the people who hold the task of translation is of great importance and one of the issues that should be considered in translation is using euphemism. The current research seeks to find the relationship between translators’ gender, education, and age and their use of euphemisms in translation. The study consists of four hypotheses, this is descriptive research and a questionnaire is used to find the relationship between translators’ gender, education, age, and their use of euphemisms in translation. It has been distributed among the research population which consists of translators who are members of the Iran Translation Association. The results show that euphemism exists at a suitable level in the translation of the translators who are members of the Iran Translation Association. Moreover, the translators’ gender affects their use of euphemisms in translation. There is a direct relationship between translators’ age and their use of euphemisms in translation. Finally, the translators’ level of education does not influence their use of euphemisms in translation.
Simin Karimi , Hossein Bahri,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
This study explores translators’ (in)visibility in translating English teen and young adult novels into Persian through various analytical perspectives. Five contemporary award-winning young adult novels were chosen for analysis. The textual aspect involved assessing the translator's influence using Baker’s translation universals: explicitation, simplification, and normalization. A sample of 300 sentences was scrutinized. The results indicated that translators utilized translation universals in 193 sentences, demonstrating considerable visibility. Four translators favored explicitation, while one preferred simplification, with normalization being the least prevalent strategy. The semiotic analysis of novel covers aimed to reveal the translators’ visibility. Utilizing Kress and Van Leeuwen’s (2006) framework, it was found that four covers featured smaller font sizes for translators’ names compared to the authors’, reflecting a diminished valuation of translators. None of the back covers acknowledged the translators, while authors’ names and images appeared on two, and publisher names were present on all five volumes. The paratextual analysis focused on the translators' presence in prefaces, postfaces, and footnotes. Three novels were devoid of both a preface and a postface. Translator acknowledgment was absent in the two novels with a postface, rendering them invisible. However, all five novels included footnotes, highlighting the translators' contributions and ensuring their visibility in this aspect. In conclusion, this study underscores the varying degrees of translators’ (in)visibility across different perspectives, particularly highlighting their underrepresentation in semiotic and paratextual domains.
Mohsen Shirazizadeh, Somayeh Fathali, Mahshid Kamareh,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
The current study explored the status quo of L2 writing self-efficacy among Iranian English majors in light of their gender, level of education, and teaching experience. To this end, 193 learners who were students or graduates of English literature or translation at BA, MA and PhD levels and who ranged in age between 19 to 40 participated in this study. Data were collected using the Second Language Writer Self-Efficacy Scale that measures L2 learners’ linguistic self-efficacy, course performance self-efficacy, and self-regulation efficacy. Analysis of the data revealed no significant difference between males and females in terms of L2 writing self-efficacy. A significant difference was, however, found among all the three academic degree levels with the PhD group showing the highest level of L2 writing self-efficacy and the BA group showing the lowest self-efficacy. We set out to also examine whether experience in teaching English influences L2 writing efficacy. Our analyses revealed that the experienced teachers had a significantly higher L2 writing efficacy compared to the mid-experience teachers who were, in turn, less efficacious in L2 writing than low-experience participants. Implications of our findings for the writing courses and the what and how of writing instruction in the Iranian higher education curricula are discussed.
Hadi Azimi, Zeinab Jahangiri, Mohammad Barzegar Rahatlou,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
The current study was conducted to examine the effect of receptive and productive types of learning medical terminology and vocabulary on medical students' reading comprehension to understand which one is more useful to improve reading comprehension of medical texts. Participants included 70 students (male= 36, female= 34) at the School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, who were assigned into control and experimental groups where medical terminologies and words were taught receptively and productively, respectively. Four standardized tests were administered to measure students' medical reading comprehension as well as receptive and productive medical terminology and vocabulary knowledge. Later, participants were asked to write a short medical report to understand the possible difference in the effects of the two productive and receptive vocabulary teaching strategies on their actual language production. The study concluded that all the participants who completed the productive and receptive tasks had higher scores on the posttest. In other words, the results of the study, following the related descriptive statistics and independent sample t-tests, indicated that both receptive and productive learning can be effective methods of improving reading comprehension skill of medical texts although the productive method was observed to be slightly, but not significantly, more effective.
Kobra Tavassoli, Marjan Oskouiefar, Masoumeh Ghamoushi,
Volume 26, Issue 2 (9-2023)
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the impact of mobile-assisted learning-oriented assessment (LOA) on the writing ability of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. A total of 60 intermediate Iranian EFL learners were selected through convenience sampling and divided randomly into two groups: control and experimental. Both groups completed pretests and posttests, and the experimental group received nine 90-minute sessions focused on teaching descriptive essay writing using LOA syllabi and mobile applications related to the tasks. The control group followed a traditional writing syllabus without any LOA-related treatments. Both groups used the Adobe Connect mobile application for their online classes. Two open-ended questions were administered to the experimental group at the beginning and end of the course to measure their attitudes toward mobile-assisted language learning (MALL). The data were analyzed using a repeated-measures two-way ANOVA, revealing that mobile-assisted LOA significantly improved the EFL learners’ writing ability. The results of the two open-ended questions indicated that the learners had a positive attitude toward MALL in general but a somewhat negative attitude toward online classes. The findings have important implications for teachers, materials developers, and teacher educators.
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