Iranian EFL Context Research Articles

Unleashing the potential of lesson study in EFL teacher professional development: exploring perspectives and prospects in the Iranian context

ABSTRACT This study examines the perspectives of Iranian EFL teachers regarding the effectiveness of lesson study in improving teaching practices and student achievement. Using a mix-method approach, A validated questionnaire was used to collect participants’ views on the effects, benefits, weaknesses, and future prospects of lesson study. The quantitative and qualitative findings reveal that while many participants believe that lesson study facilitates the development of deep, trusting relationships among teachers and strengthens their sense of collegiality, lesson study also influences their discussions about teaching and learning and transforms their attitudes towards student and peer interactions within the classroom. However, the study identifies a concerning trend where lesson study is perceived as a ‘luxury’, time-consuming, and lacking significance in terms of quality. This suggests a need for addressing these challenges to ensure the continued implementation and sustainable impact of lesson study in EFL teacher professional development in the Iranian context. Overall, this study sheds light on the complex dynamics surrounding lesson study in the Iranian EFL context and provides valuable insights for educational policymakers and practitioners seeking to harness the full potential of this professional development approach.

Exploring the impact of screencast-based ipsative assessment on EFL students’ writing development

Screencast technology in English writing assessment offers personalized, detailed feedback, but not dialogic. However, integrating it with ipsative assessment (IA) principles may sustain conversations between teachers and learners on students’ writing development. This study explored the impact of screencast-based ipsative assessment (SIA) on developing students’ writing skills in an Iranian EFL context. Screencast technology recorded teachers’ feedback and facilitated students’ access to and reflection on their previous works. A qualitative research design was used to analyze teacher’s feedback profiles and students’ reflections. The findings revealed that SIA engaged participants in ipsative self-assessment, enhanced their self-regulation skills in writing, and created a comforting and socially safe environment where they felt supported and encouraged to take risks, knowing that their mistakes could be considered part of the learning process. However, SIA caused some students to focus on their scores rather than skill development in their writing tasks. The findings suggest that English teachers can utilize screencast technology for precise, detailed ipsative feedback in an IA regime. SIA procedures may encourage student self-assessment and foster a dialog between teachers and students to seek clarification and plan their next move in writing progress.

Constructing and Validating a Questionnaire on Perceived Barriers to Implementing CLT in the Iranian EFL Context

Constructing and Validating a Questionnaire on Perceived Barriers to Implementing CLT in the Iranian EFL Context

Academic writing assessment in the Iranian expanding circle context: any trust in local criteria?

ABSTRACT The present study set out to find out how Iranian EFL writing raters as a particular non-native speaker (NNS) group in an expanding context perceive the construct of writing as they rate the essays. For this aim, a body of 15 experienced raters were asked to verbalize their thoughts while rating the essays. Upon a rigorous content analysis of the raters’ protocols, it was found that the majority of the raters prioritized mechanical and grammatical aspects of the texts when assessing the texts. In fact, the raters equated writing with a small and superficial set of criteria. The findings revealed that, despite the pluralization of language needs and contexts in the Iranian EFL context, language testing practice is still norm-dependent. The study also warns that such a limited conception of writing construct should be given a second thought in a time when local non-native criterion are encouraged.

Unveiling the underlying constructs of mobile assisted language learning technological pedagogical content knowledge (MALL TPACK): development and validation of a MALL TPACK scale for EFL teachers

ABSTRACT In the present study, a MALL TPACK questionnaire was developed and validated based on a TPACK framework. Data were collected from 414 EFL teachers. The development of the questionnaire involved a comprehensive review of existing literature, examination of existing questionnaires, and interviews with experts. This process resulted in an initial item pool of 50 questions. The questionnaire was subsequently administered to participants, and its construct validity and reliability were assessed employing various statistical methods. Exploratory Factor Analysis was conducted with a subset of 200 participants, while Confirmatory Factor Analysis was performed with the remaining 214 participants. Additionally, the Cronbach’s alpha method was employed to evaluate the reliability of the instrument. The results indicated that participants were able to identify four constructs from the original TPACK framework: Pedagogical, content, and pedagogical content knowledge, as well as TPACK. However, knowledge of technology was divided into two separate constructs: Knowing technology and using technology. As a result, a six-factor solution with 37 items was developed and confirmed as a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating MALL TPACK levels among Iranian EFL instructors. These findings have important implications for future research and in the design of teacher professional development courses in Iranian EFL contexts.

Teachers’ Emotional Intelligence and Learner's Perceptions of Their Teachers’ Verbal and Non-Verbal Immediacy across Teacher’s Gender

Objective: This study aims to examine the relationship between teachers' Emotional Intelligence (EI) and learners' perceptions of their teachers' verbal and non-verbal immediacy across gender in the Iranian EFL context. Methods and Materials: A descriptive-correlational design was employed, involving 210 learners (91 males and 119 females) and 30 teachers (13 males and 17 females) from three language institutes in Tabriz, Iran. Data were collected using the Verbal Immediacy Measure (VIM), Non-Verbal Immediacy Measure (NIM), and the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i). The data were analyzed using SPSS, with normality tests, independent samples t-tests, Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA), and linear regression analyses performed to explore the relationships between variables. Findings: The results indicated no significant gender differences in verbal and non-verbal immediacy as perceived by learners (F(2, 207) = 1.59, p > 0.05, partial η² = 0.01). However, female teachers were perceived to exhibit slightly higher levels of verbal immediacy (M = 73.63, SD = 0.24) compared to male teachers (M = 72.97, SD = 0.28), and higher levels of non-verbal immediacy (M = 53.99, SD = 0.20) compared to male teachers (M = 53.94, SD = 0.23). Significant gender differences were found in Emotional Intelligence (EI), with female teachers scoring higher (M = 3.80, SD = 0.08) than male teachers (M = 3.45, SD = 0.06), t(28) = 13.35, p < 0.01. EI was a significant predictor of teacher immediacy (R² = 0.13, F(1, 28) = 4.20, p = 0.05), particularly among female teachers (R² = 0.62, F(1, 15) = 24.49, p < 0.01). This suggests that higher EI contributes to more effective immediacy behaviors in the classroom, especially for female teachers. Conclusion: This study underscores the importance of Emotional Intelligence in enhancing teacher immediacy, particularly for female teachers in the Iranian EFL context. While both male and female teachers can effectively use immediacy behaviors, EI plays a more significant role for female teachers. The findings have important implications for teacher training programs, which should incorporate EI development to foster more supportive and engaging learning environments.

Playing with words across visual humor in an Iranian EFL context with Arab students: Pedagogical translanguaging for enhancement of multicultural spaces in language education

This study focuses on how translanguaging in language instruction with the aid of audiovisual materials can teach Iranian EFL students with Arab ethnicity wordplay in English . Given the significant role wordplay plays in generating humor within TV shows, it can provide a challenge for EFL learners to understand both the humor and cultural nuances of such audiovisual materials. To this end, this study initially selected two popular series, Friends and The Simpsons, translated into Persian. The researchers taught linguistic and translation models to 15 EFL students with Arab ethnicity to identify and categorize the diverse types of wordplay and strategies used to translate them from English to Persian. Students participating in the action research found that the most commonly utilized wordplay and translation strategy were lexical-semantic wordplay and no wordplay strategy, respectively. They also reported that the equivalents were not appropriate in many instances. Interview results with these learners demonstrated the participants' enhanced understanding of wordplay, with translanguaging through translated audiovisual materials identified as a motivating and effective approach for language learning. Ultimately, this research has important implications for teaching English within the expanding cycle of world Englishes with the possibility of promoting translanguaging and intercultural competence.

Promoting Iranian EFL learners’ intercultural competences in english classrooms: The use of pedagogical intercultural and critical incident tasks

A long-standing concern reverberating over the minds of intercultural scholars is how best to incorporate intercultural issues in English language education, an issue on which there has been little research in the Iranian EFL context. Anchored in Byram’s (1997) intercultural model, this paper explores the efficacy of employing pedagogical intercultural and critical incident tasks to promote Iranian English learners’ intercultural competency in Anzali, Guilan Province, Iran. Twenty-two English learners (12 females and 10 males, ages 21–30) consented to participate in the research. They then enrolled in eighteen sessions of intercultural instruction utilizing intercultural textbooks and accomplished fourteen tasks prior to and during the course to examine the participants’ probable changes as a consequence of course practices. The primary data comprised students’ pedagogical intercultural tasks, critical incident tasks and reflective entries. Adopting qualitative content analysis, the results underscore that the pedagogical intercultural and critical incident tasks as well as the utilization of a virtual forum as a zone for cross-cultural interaction and learning, boosted learners’ intercultural attitudes, knowledge and skills. Furthermore, three themes emerged from the reflective entries analysis. Implications for educational practice are provided for further implementing and practicing pedagogical intercultural and critical incident tasks.

The role of clandestine assessment in Iranian EFL context: a teacher’s perceptions about the impact of educational digital-based games on teaching and learning English

The role of clandestine assessment in Iranian EFL context: a teacher’s perceptions about the impact of educational digital-based games on teaching and learning English

Research into Intercultural Communicative Competence: A Model Test

This study intended to propose a model of intercultural communicative competence integrating international posture, L2 motivational self-system, autonomy, and cognitive learning strategies. To do so, 180 EFL learners in the Iranian EFL context, selected by convenience sampling procedure, participated in the study. The findings, derived from structural equation modeling, showed that the model adequately fits to the data. That was discussed that interest in seeking international affairs and making intercultural friends, desire to bridge the gap between their current and future selves, taking responsibility for learning, and employment of deep/surface learning strategies direct learners to open conversation with the speakers of other ethnicities. Finally, implications for language teachers and policymakers to inspiring learners to be competent in intercultural communication were provided.

Gender-Positioning within the Visual Network: How (Non-) Inclusive Can EFL Materials Get?

Much of the research on gender representations in language teaching materials has focused on providing frequency-based accounts of character appearances, familial/occupational role attributions and sexist language use. However, gender discrimination, when communicated visually, might more readily drop off the already overburdened teacher’s radar. Therefore, this study concentrated not just on the depiction of coursebook images but also on their relation to the learners, and aimed to discover the latent sexism in three thematically similar units from one global and two locally-produced coursebooks widely used in the Turkish and Iranian EFL contexts. A critical analysis of 41 images with Van Leeuwen’s (2008) framework revealed that male overrepresentation prevailed throughout all three resources, though to a lesser extent in the global coursebook. The characters mainly avoided direct contact with the viewers by averting their gaze and offered themselves as visual cues for denotative meanings. The global and Turkish-made series tended to position them both closer to the young readers and at their eye level to help build intimacy with more relatable role models. In their Iranian counterpart, the male and female characters were yet socially distanced from them through long shots taken from low and high angles respectively, in which case men were portrayed as authority figures to be looked up to, and women as the diminished other to be looked down on by the students. While both genders were oftener seen frontally in the Turkish EFL material with mixed-gender authorship, the all-male author teams preferred to show the male characters from an oblique angle to further detachment in the global and Iranian contexts. In establishing relatively closer, more personal and engaging interactions with both boys and girls visually, the global and Turkish EFL materials can be claimed to encode a more inclusive and equitable worldview than their Iranian counterpart.

Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions of writing assessment literacy: a countrywide study

Despite a surge of interest in language teacher assessment literacy, teachers’ writing assessment literacy (WAL) has received little attention. When considering the issue in the particular Iranian EFL context, it becomes more significant since exploring the context shows the lack of a countrywide and systematic study on EFL teachers’ WAL. Considering this gap, the present study sets out to investigate the Iranian EFL writing teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and practices regarding writing assessment. To achieve this goal, an adapted version of Crusan’s et al (Assessing Writing 28:43-56, 2016) WAL questionnaire was sent out to writing teachers in ten major state universities in the country. Overall, the researchers received back 118 questionnaires. The analysis of the results illustrated that although writing instructors had a positive attitude toward writing assessment and were aware of some basic concepts of writing assessment, their level of assessment literacy was not reflected in their practice, particularly when it came to the use of assessment rubrics. The results further showed that the teachers need to develop sound and clear conceptual understanding of WAL as well as the ability to use the knowledge in practice in the actual context of their practice. Generally, it can be argued that in the absence of systematic pre-service and in-service writing assessment training programs, Iranian EFL writing teachers relied on their individual expertise developed throughout their years of practice. The study also provides several pedagogical implications for training writing teachers and improving EFL writing assessment in the long run.

The Efficacy of Implementing Call into EFL Settings

This study tries to investigate impacts of integrating CALL in classroom enhancing EFL learning gaps. This study also tries to provide local voice and insight of implementing CALL into Iranian EFL contexts as well as global perspectives in CALL. There is no qualm that CALL mediated is adhered as technology development to convey and paving paths which we are interacting with each one of community members especially in EFL context users; tutors or pupils. So, primary goal of research is to find how information and communicative technology and its methodology can be effectively utilized to ameliorate cumbersome and prohibitive EFL teaching-learning obstacles. Based on findings it can be predicted that CALL helps to learn FL skills. Recent research has focused to go over status of CALL and non-CALL settings to investigate what students do while to use CALL technology in EFL contexts for their language learning activities. While a lot of studies have carried out research in a laboratory context or through structure observation, this study explores learners’ interactions and challenges within CALL. The results indicate significant changes in participants’ scores after to use CALL to learn EFL skills in contrast to non-CALL environments. It examines strategies in which persuade students’ challenges for their developing CALL professionals and brief overview of three stages of CALL history, teachers’ jobs about computer assisted language learning in classroom for language learning purposes, Web 2.0 applications and a purview to CALL components.

The relationship between EFL teachers’ reflective thinking and their teaching style in Iranian EFL context

ABSTRACT Reflective thinking and teaching style are considered as two prominent and influential factors in the process of education. There have been several studies carried out to investigate different aspects of each of these two factors. However, no studies have been done to explore the possible relationship between these two crucial elements. Therefore, the present study set out to fill the gap and explore the relationship between reflective thinking and teaching style among EFL teachers in Iran. Ninety EFL teachers including 50 males and 40 females were chosen as the participants of this research. The questionnaires selected for the data collection phase were given to the teachers and they were asked to fill them out. The collected data were analyzed and it was found that there was a positive correlation between EFL teachers’ reflective thinking and their teaching style. The results of this research study can be of use for EFL teachers and teacher educators.

Investigating teachers’ perceptions and instructional practices regarding form- focused instruction of speech acts in the Iranian EFL context

Mastery over speech acts plays a significant role in the accomplishment of communication between interlocutors. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate Iranian EFL Instructors' perception and instructional practices towards form-focused instruction of speech acts, specifically request apology and invitation. To this aim, through a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, the present researchers selected 30 English language instructors in Islamic Azad University (IAU) of North Tehran Branch based on criterion sampling as the study participants. All the participants completed an adapted version of Pragmatic Knowledge Questionnaire (PKQ), and were successively interviewed in terms of their claimed perceptions and practices regarding form-focused instruction of speech acts through a semi-structured interview. Finally, six classes were observed by the researchers to get informed of their real classroom practices. The results of data analyses were then triangulated, and the findings revealed that Iranian EFL instructors used explicit strategies rather than implicit strategies to instruct speech acts in their classes. Also, they presumed and agreed that explicit instruction is more effective since this technique seems to be easier, understandable and without ambiguity for the learners. The results of the current study are beneficial for EFL instructors, syllabus designers, materials developers, and scholastic administrators to enrich the current English language teaching curricula.

The Efficacy of Implementing CALL into EFL Settings

This study tries to investigate impacts of integrating CALL in classroom enhancing EFL learning gaps. This study also tries to provide local voice and insight of implementing CALL into Iranian EFL contexts as well as global perspectives in CALL. There is no qualm that CALL mediated is adhered as technology development to convey and paving paths which we are interacting with each one of community members specially in EFL context users; tutors or pupils. So, primary goal of research is to find how information and communicative technology and its methodology can be effectively utilized to ameliorate cumbersome and prohibitive EFL teaching-learning obstacles. Based on findings it can be predicted that CALL helps to learn FL skills. Recent research has focused to go over status of CALL and non-CALL settings to investigate what students do while to use CALL technology in EFL contexts for their language learning activities. While a lot of studies have carried out research in a laboratory context or through structure observation, this study explores learners’ interactions and challenges within CALL. The results indicate significant changes in participants’ scores after to use CALL to learn EFL skills in contrast to non-CALL environments. It examines strategies in which persuade students’ challenges for their developing CALL professionals and brief overview of three stages of CALL history, teachers’ jobs about computer assisted language learning in classroom for language learning purposes, Web 2.0 applications and a purview to CALL components.

The efficacy of Implementing C ALL into EFL Settings

This study tries to investigate impacts of integrating CALL in classroom enhancing EFL learning gaps. This study also tries to provide local voice and insight of implementing CALL into Iranian EFL contexts as well as global perspectives in CALL. There is no qualm that CALL mediated is adhered as technology development to conveyand paving paths which we are interacting with each one of community members specially in EFL context users; tutors or pupils. So, primary goal of research is to find how information and communicative technology and its methodology can be effectively utilized to ameliorate cumbersome and prohibitive EFL teaching-learning obstacles. Based on findings it can be predicted that CALL helps to learn FL skills. Recent research has focused to go over status of CALL and non-CALL settings to investigate what students do while to use CALL technology in EFL contexts for their language learning activities.While a lot of studies have carried out research in a laboratory context or through structure observation, this study explores learners’ interactions and challenges within CALL. The results indicate significant changes in participants’ scores after to use CALL to learn EFL skills in contrast to non-CALL environments. It examines strategies in which persuade students’ challenges for their developing CALL professionals and brief overview of three stages of CALL history, teachers’ jobs about computer assisted language learning in classroom for language learning purposes, Web 2.0 applications and a purview to CALL components.

A Survey Study of Secondary Students’ Beliefs and Preferences about Grammar Instruction: An Investigation of Iranian EFL Context

In this study, we investigated Iranian high school students’ preferences and beliefs about two types of form-focused instruction (FFI) for teaching grammar, namely isolated FFI and integrated FFI. Using an adapted version of the questionnaire developed by Valeo and Spada (2016), we collected data from a large sample of senior high school students (n=1,058) in the Iranian public school system. The results of the analysis showed that most participants expressed preference toward having more integrated FFI grammar in their curricula. The analysis also indicated that learners’ preferences for each of these types of grammar instructions vary depending on their high school major and length of exposure to English. The results are discussed with special attention to the context of the research and in light of the country’s attempt to implement communicative language teaching at K-12 schools.

Assessing the Effects of Gamification on Developing EFL Learners’ Idiomatic Knowledge: Do Attitudinal Factors Contribute to the Learning of the Idioms with the Game?

Regarding the attractiveness of educational games for EFL learners, the present research intended to investigate the effects of gamification on improving Iranian EFL learners’ idiomatic knowledge. In addition, the current research examined the attitudes of Iranian EFL learners towards using gamification in English learning in the Iranian EFL context. Firstly, to carry out this research, the researchers administered the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) to 84 Iranian EFL learners and selected 50 upper-intermediate participants. Secondly, they divided the selected participants into an experimental group (EG) and a control group (CG). Thirdly, the researchers gave an idiom pretest to the participants of both groups to assess their idiomatic knowledge before starting the treatment. Fourthly, the EG was taught the new idioms using game-based instruction, while the CG received traditional idiom instruction. Following the instruction of 70 idioms to both groups, the participants received an idiom posttest to determine the influence of the treatment on their idiomatic knowledge. The EG was then provided an attitude questionnaire, and 15 members of the EG were interviewed as a result of the questionnaire. In the idiom posttest, the data were evaluated using paired samples and independent samples t -tests, and the findings revealed that the EG performed significantly better than the CG on the posttest of idioms. In fact, gamification helped EFL learners develop their idiomatic knowledge. The results indicated that Iranian EFL learners presented positive attitudes toward gamification in learning English idioms. In addition, the results revealed that enjoyment, fun, reducing anxiety, involvement, and immediate feedback were the factors that the students mentioned for the instructional games. The implications of this research can encourage English teachers to implement different educational games in their teaching.

Reading Digital Texts vs. Reading Printed Texts: Which One Is More Effective in Iranian EFL Context?

Considering the development of technology in the current era, the present research aimed at investigating the effects of reading digital texts vs. reading printed texts on developing Iranian intermediate EFL learners’ reading comprehension. To this end, the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT) was administered to 93 language learners, and 60 of them whose level was intermediate were selected. Then, they were assigned to two groups: one CG and one EG. After grouping the participants, a reading pretest was administered to gauge the participants’ reading comprehension before conducting the treatment. After that, ten digital texts in the format of PDF with their audio files were instructed to the EG. On the other hand, the same texts were taught to the CG in a printed format. After teaching all texts, a reading posttest was administered to both groups to measure the effects of the treatment on their reading comprehension. The gained data were analyzed using paired samples and independent samples t-tests. The findings illustrated that both digital and printed texts helped the participants to improve their reading comprehension, but digital texts were more effective than printed ones. In other words, the EG participants trained by the digital texts outflanked the CG participants taught through the printed texts. The implications of this study can inspire both English teachers and learners to use digital texts in their teaching and learning.