List of Articles

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  1 - A Qualitative Study on Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of Critical Pedagogy-Based Teacher Effectiveness
  Shiva  Ghorbani Shahram Afraz Neda Fatehi Rad Fazlolah  Samimi
  One of the significant factors in EFL learning is teacher effectiveness which is of high importance since teachers are really and directly engaged in language learning as the final aim of English classes. This study aimed at exploring Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions o More

  One of the significant factors in EFL learning is teacher effectiveness which is of high importance since teachers are really and directly engaged in language learning as the final aim of English classes. This study aimed at exploring Iranian EFL teachers’ perceptions of critical pedagogy-based teacher effectiveness. In so doing, a qualitative thematic analysis method was used. The participants included 20 male and female Iranian English teachers who were selected through purposive sampling. To collect the data, a semi-structured interview was used. According to the results, the following themes were extracted from the data: Paying Attention to Students’ Needs, Being Aware of Students’ Goals in English Learning, Friendly Relations with Students, Flexibility in Teaching/Assessment Methods, Making Classes Student-Centered, Cooperative Teaching, Facilitating Students’ Learning, Being Aware of the Last Achievements in the Field of TEFL, Generating Equal Opportunities for All Students in the Class, Teaching Students Problem Posing Skills, and Teaching Students Critical Thinking Skills. The findings have some implications for EFL teachers, learners, teacher education instructors and policymakers. Manuscript profile
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  2 - The Role of Brainstorming in Enhancing Language Skills: A Meta-analysis of EFL Learners' Speaking and Listening Performance
  Ali Hamideh Mustafa Zamanian Mohammad Javad Riasati
  This review article provides a comprehensive analysis of 21 studies investigating the effectiveness of brainstorming and related teaching strategies in enhancing language skills, particularly speaking and listening skills, among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learn More

  This review article provides a comprehensive analysis of 21 studies investigating the effectiveness of brainstorming and related teaching strategies in enhancing language skills, particularly speaking and listening skills, among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. The studies, conducted between 2010 and 2023, employed various research designs, including quasi-experimental, qualitative, and mixed-methods designs, and were carried out in different settings, such as high schools, universities, and workplaces, and involved participants from different countries, including Iran, China, and Indonesia. The review discusses the main findings of each study, highlighting the positive impact of brainstorming and related strategies on language skills. The review also identifies gaps in the existing literature and suggests directions for future research, such as investigating the effectiveness of these strategies in enhancing other language skills and exploring their impact on different learner populations. The studies suggest that brainstorming can increase students' confidence in speaking English, positively impacting their motivation to learn and use the language. Additionally, brainstorming activities can enhance students' creativity in spoken language by encouraging them to generate and share ideas in a supportive and collaborative environment. The studies also indicate that the use of brainstorming techniques can lead to noticeable enhancements in students' speaking skills, demonstrating its effectiveness as a teaching strategy. Manuscript profile
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  3 - Raising EFL Learners’ Pragmatic Competence via Teaching Compliments: The Case of Explicit vs Implicit Instruction in Focus
  Hossein Isaee Hamed Barjesteh
  Teaching the English language involves not only the lexical and grammatical systems but also the implicatures, implied meanings, and the influence of context/culture on interpretation (Tanduk, 2023), which are invisible and hard to teach. In effect, the researchers aime More

  Teaching the English language involves not only the lexical and grammatical systems but also the implicatures, implied meanings, and the influence of context/culture on interpretation (Tanduk, 2023), which are invisible and hard to teach. In effect, the researchers aimed to investigate whether explicit and implicit instruction of compliment speech acts could help EFL learners achieve pragmatic appropriateness in authentic communication. The study comprised 60 intermediate EFL learners, 21 males, and 39 females, from a private English language institute in Amol. Participants were divided into two groups of 30 learners each - explicit and non-explicit. The teacher-researchers taught both groups how to give and respond to compliments, using explicit techniques for one group and implicit techniques for the other. Participants received a Written Discourse Completion Task (WDCT) before and after the intervention to evaluate their pragmatic competence. The obtained data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), and a noteworthy disparity between the pre-test and post-test scores of both groups was revealed. Although both methods enhanced the pragmatic competence of EFL learners, the explicit group demonstrated more significant improvement compared to the implicit group. Findings testify that appropriate instruction can lead to better outcomes. Manuscript profile
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  4 - A Qualitative Study of Washback Effects of MSRT Test on Iranian PhD Candidates’ Attitudes toward English Language Learning Skills
  Nafiseh Lashgari Samad Mirza Suzani
  In Iran, the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology (MSRT) examination is a high-stakes test that has the potential to cause varying levels of washback at both individual and societal levels. Despite its significance for candidates, there appears to be insufficien More

  In Iran, the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology (MSRT) examination is a high-stakes test that has the potential to cause varying levels of washback at both individual and societal levels. Despite its significance for candidates, there appears to be insufficient emphasis on investigating the washback, particularly the impact of MSRT on the English language learning skills of Iranian candidates. Thus, the current research aimed to investigate the modifications that Iranian doctoral students regarded as more advantageous in utilizing the MSRT module for the purpose of English education. With this objective in mind, a survey based on the MSRT washback was administered to a group of 150 PhD students selected from Islamic Azad universities located in Shiraz and Marvdasht, who varied in terms of their gender, age, and field of study. A mixture of stratified and convenience sampling methods was employed to choose the study participants. In the second stage of the research, a purposive sampling approach was used to select 30 PhD candidates from the same population to participate in the semi-structured interviews. The findings from the data analysis revealed both favorable and unfavorable consequences of MSRT washback. In addition, it was observed that MSRT preparation did not adequately equip the students with English listening and speaking skills, which are crucial for their academic English needs, in contrast to their reading and writing capabilities. Manuscript profile
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  5 - The Relationship between Iranian English Language Teachers’ Professional Identity and Teacher Cognition in their Professional Development: A Quantitative Study
  Najme Bagheri Mohammad Reza Esfandiari Forough Rahimi
  This study investigated the relationship between Iranian English language teachers’ professional identity and teacher cognition in their professional development. To investigate the current issue, the current study applied the quantitative methods approach of data colle More

  This study investigated the relationship between Iranian English language teachers’ professional identity and teacher cognition in their professional development. To investigate the current issue, the current study applied the quantitative methods approach of data collection. The participants of this study comprised 100 Iranian EFL teachers from some institutes and schools. The study included 100 English language teachers with 50 females and 50 males, aged above 24. To this end, three types of instruments were applied to collect research data. They are described as follows: Teacher Professional Identity Scale (TPIS), Horwitz’s beliefs questionnaire about language learning Inventory (BALLI), Teacher professional development. Three data analyses were used in this study: Kolmogorov-Smirnov (Normality), Cronbach’s alpha (reliability), Pearson correlation (relationship). The findings indicated that there was a positive relationship between teacher cognition and teacher professional development. This analysis revealed that teacher cognition and professional identity had a significant relationship with professional development. The findings can support EFL policymakers, supervisors, managers, and teacher trainers to grasp a better picture of teacher cognition, teacher professional identity in their professional development. Manuscript profile
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  6 - Comparing EFL Language Teachers and Students’ Perceptions of Teacher’s Interpersonal Behavior: A Case Study in an Online Iranian Context
  Emad Omidpour Mohammad Bavali Fatemeh Behjat
  Teachers’ interpersonal behavior and the way it is perceived are considered to be determining factors in the quality of any educational context. However, due to the lack of face-to-face interactions in an online context, this issue is under question. Since this phenomen More

  Teachers’ interpersonal behavior and the way it is perceived are considered to be determining factors in the quality of any educational context. However, due to the lack of face-to-face interactions in an online context, this issue is under question. Since this phenomenon has not been studied in an online environment, the primary objective of the present case study was to explore how experienced EFL teachers and their students perceived teacher interpersonal behavior in online classes and the extent to which the two groups’ perceptions either converged or diverged in six selected online classes in Shiraz, Iran. The samples of the study were six EFL teachers and their respective 106 language students. To gather the data, The Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) was administered to both groups to assess the eight scales of interpersonal behavior and dimensions. To analyze the data, the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test was employed to compare the two groups in terms of interpersonal behavior dimensions and scales. Accordingly, the results revealed that the EFL teachers and their students perceived the teachers to be moderately dominant and highly cooperative. There was a high level of convergence between the experienced teachers and their students’ perceptions of interpersonal behavior in terms of the Influence and Proximity dimensions. The Student Responsibility Freedom and Strict scales, however, were rated higher by teachers than their students. Following the findings, the present case study provides particular implications in the field of applied linguistics. Manuscript profile