The present research examined the effect of reading-based activities on Iranian EFL learners’ vocabulary learning. To do this, 57 students of a language institute in Kerman were selected based on available sampling. After homogenizing them, 50 pre-intermediate students were put into two groups (25 students in each group). The study is a quasi-experimental one and the students took the pretest and posttest of vocabulary knowledge. These tests contained two parts: The first part pertained to the comprehension of vocabulary multiple-choice items; the second part was associated with production of vocabulary consisting of fill-in-the-blank items. Both tests were extracted from their textbook. The students of the experimental group were provided with related reading activities. The reading activities required the students pre-read passages at home that relate to the reading comprehension activities during classroom on the following day, and the reading engages the students to pre-read passages before the reading activity. However, the students of the control group received the traditional instruction on vocabulary and they were not given any related reading activities. At the end of term, the post test was administered and the collected data was descriptively and inferentially analyzed. The results revealed that reading-based activities had a significant effect on pre-intermediate EFL learners’ vocabulary learning. The finding indicates the value of reading-based activities leads the researchers to focus on increasing learners’ vocabulary in EFL classrooms through designing a variety of tasks. Manuscript profile

This study was an endeavor to explore the relationship between advanced EFL students' listening comprehension strategies and their critical thinking ability. To do this, 75 Iranian EFL learners of both genders were selected as the subjects of the study. All of them were advanced learners that were selected based on cluster sampling. The employed instruments were two related questionnaires, Critical Thinking Questionnaire (CTQ) and Listening Comprehension Strategies Questionnaire (LCSQ). On the first day, the researcher explained the instruction of this survey clearly and the participants were provided with CTQ to evaluate the strategies employed by them. On the second day, LCSQ were distributed among them. The participants had to responded all the questions in the limited time. Fortunately, none of the students were absent during the data collection procedure, and this factor would increase the reliability of the results. Findings of the study revealed a significant relationship between advanced EFL students' listening comprehension strategies and their critical thinking ability. Results can be significant since identifying the strategies that students apply, assist them to overcome the difficulties they might encounter in different language skills. Manuscript profile

Purpose: This study endeavored to find out the possible relationship between reflectivity and impulsivity as cognitive learning styles and vocabulary/ grammar development as sub-skills among EFL learners.Methodology: Two intact classes of the third-grade students were selected by the researchers and Oxford Placement Test was run for homogenizing them. After that, Barrat’s (2005) Impulsive/ Reflective questionnaire was given to the participants and they had to respond the translated items in a limited time. Regarding the score scale provided by the questionnaire, the participants were labeled as reflective and impulsive ones. Next, a standard grammar/vocabulary test, extracted from their book, administered to them and the scores were recorded by the researchers. Then, the scores of the questionnaires and tests sent to SPSS software for analyzing and interpreting the data. In inferential statistics, the researchers used correlation test to examine the possible relationship between the students' learning styles and their sub-skills development.Findings: Results of the study indicated a positive relationship between the students' sub-skills achievements (vocabulary/ grammar) and their learning styles (reflectivity/ impulsivity). In other words, reflectivity and impulsivity had effect on the students' performance in sub-skills, as the reflective students presented better performance and made fewer errors than the impulsive ones in vocabulary and grammar tests.Conclusion: According to the results, it can be concluded that the higher the reflectivity of the learners is, the more successful they tend to be in such tests. It is expected that the findings of the research indicate the importance of learning styles in educational environment. Manuscript profile

The present study has focused on the translation of slang words/expressions in Pink Nail polish story as a literary Text. The researchers analyzed the extent of translation accuracy and applied strategies based on Baker’s (1992) model. For this end, Jalal Al-e-Ahmad’s Pink Nail polish story as Source Text (ST) with the English translation as Target Text (TT) by Robert Wells (2007) were selected by the researchers. Data were descriptively and qualitatively analyzed and the results revealed that all Bakers' strategies of slang translation were applied except "translation by illustration". However, none of the strategies were equally distributed in English translation. Based on the analysis, "Translation using a loan word or loan word plus explanation" identified as the least frequent strategy and "Translation by paraphrase using the related word" strategy has been applied frequently which shows that the concept expressed in the ST existed in the TT, but in different form or in different words. Results also indicated some major shortcomings as meaningless translation, untranslated slangs, and adding and removing some words. Totally, the translator tried to find appropriate equivalences in most of the selected parts to be closer to target language. Manuscript profile

This study was an endeavor to analyzed the effects of reading short stories on improving the grammatical and vocabulary knowledge of high school students in Kerman. To achieve this end, two intact classes of 52 female students who were selected based on convenience sampling, and regarding the placement test scores, 40 of them participated in the current study. The research was an experimental one and the participants were randomly divided into two groups of 20 students. The interventions administered for the experimental group involved teaching two short stories, i.e., the Beauty & The Beast and Robinson Crusoe. However, the control group received conventional method of teaching of grammar and vocabulary. The data were analyzed in quantitative way and statistical analyses were performed in SPSS software. The results indicated a significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of posttest scores for the dependent variables after controlling the pretest at the P<0.001 level. Accordingly, it can be said that there is a significant difference in the scores of the dependent variables (grammatical and vocabulary skills) in the posttest. As a result, the present study revealed that reading the mentioned stories is an effective way for improving grammatical and vocabulary knowledge of high school students in Kerman. Manuscript profile

This study sought to investigate the culture-oriented concept in a literary text based on Newmark's (1998) model. More specifically, the study was conducted to find the applied strategies in English translation anecdotes of Gulistan Sa'adi. It also highlighted if Newmark's strategies distributed equally through the translation. Moreover, the shortcomings of the translation were presented. The corpus composed of the Persian textbook of Gulistan Sa'adi as Source Text (ST), with the English translation as Target Text (TT) by Rehatsek (2010). Data were analyzed and the results are presented in the form of tables. After analyzing and interpreting data, some major shortcomings have been observed in the English version as vague, unclear, meaningless translation and omitted words have been observed in the English version. Moreover, all the cultural strategies were applied by the translator, but none of them were equally distributed in English translation of Gulistan Sa'adi. Based on the received data, "Paraphrase" and "Synonymy" strategies have been used in many cases and frequently by translator. "Paraphrase" strategy is most commonly used in the cases that the translator could not find any equivalents for the source items and the translator is forced to explain the meaning of the cultural items and the explanation is much more detailed than the equivalents. In the case of synonymy strategy, the translator renders near translation of an SL word or expression with a TL expression, but not completely. However, the least frequent strategies were "naturalization", "shift /modulation" and "couplets" strategies which found just in one case. Manuscript profile

The present study considered the role of E-learning in EFL learners’ identity construction. It specifically tried to highlight the extent that different aspects of students’ identity were constructed in the virtual teaching context. It also identified the most/least dominant types of identity construed in the E-learning context and explored the possible difference between male and female learners as far as E-learning identity is concerned. To achieve the objectives, the researcher adopted survey research as a quantitative method with a sample of 80 newcomer students of both genders. The study centered on the Internet via Adobe Connect Application for virtual classes. It is worthy to mention that participants of the study experienced E-learning during a term in the case of virtual education imposed by COVID-19. The data were collected through Aspect Identity Questionnaire (AIQ) and moved to SPSS software to be analyzed and interpreted. Results indicated that a high extent of language learning identity was achieved among the participants, and relational and collective identity types were identified as the most and least dominant ones in them, respectively. Moreover, findings of overall language learning identity presented no difference in both genders (male & female EFL learners). Manuscript profile

This study focused on the integration of foreign culture in English instruction in an academic context. More specifically, it analyzed the Iranian university EFL students' and teachers' views towards the integration of foreign culture in English instruction. Moreover, the possible difference between the participants' views towards the integration of foreign cultures was assessed. In doing so, 30 English EFL university teachers and 40 B.A. students were selected from four universities in Kerman (Bahonar, Azad, Payame Noor, & Institute of Higher Education). In order to collect data, a related questionnaire developed by Han (2010) was employed to examine the participants' views. After completing the questionnaires, the acquired data were analyzed by conducting descriptive statistics and the t-test of two independent groups. The results emerged from data analysis indicated that a great percentage of students asserted that learning foreign cultures was significant for them. It was necessary for them to get information about the target culture and spend more time on it. The university teachers remarked the same views as learning foreign cultures was important for them. It was essential for them to provide information and to spend more time on foreign culture teaching. The results of the study revealed no significant difference between the participants' views towards the integration of foreign culture in English instruction. Findings will contribute to the theoretical research gap in the field of culture and foreign language teaching and can serve as a guide to lead teachers and learners to the desired cultural goals of a specific language course. Manuscript profile

The present research analyzed Berman's (2000) negative deformation tendencies in the Persian translation of Chevalier's Girl with a Pearl Earring.The data came from a sample of 100 sentences that were randomly selected from the novel translated into Persian by Goli Emami. The researchers read the English text line by line carefully to find the negative deformation tendencies based on the mentioned model. After finding the mentioned cases, the equivalences used in the Persian translation were found by the researchers. Then, the extent of the translatability of negative deformation tendencies and the most/least frequent ones were presented by the researchers. The results revealed that most deformation tendencies applied in the source text (ST) were not translatable in the target language (TL) by the Persian translator. Also, the most frequently applied tendency in translating the statements was rationalization which seemed to affect syntactic structures. However, the least frequent one was the effacement of the superimposition of languages which refers to the omission of the traces of different forms of languages that coexist in the ST in translation. The significant issue was that the destruction of linguistic patterning which destroys the constructions and patterning of the ST and quantitative impoverishment which is loss of lexical variation in translation, were not employed in the translation. Manuscript profile

The present study explored localization of computer games in Persian translation versions. Also, it investigated the applied strategies by Iranian translators in localization of computer games. Also, it found the shortcomings of the translation regarding localization. The corpus was composed of five computer games. The data of this project were collected and evaluated based on Tomaszkiewicz's (1993) model. After that, all the data were collected by the researcher and processed through SPSS software. This study indicated that there was a very significant difference between the frequencies of the applied strategies. That is to say, the most frequently used strategy was "literal translation", while the least frequent ones identified as "omission" and "borrowing". However, "Replacement of the cultural term with deictic" avoided in transactions of the games since it cannot make a natural and acceptable translation. Manuscript profile

The present research was an endeavor to determine whether or not the adoption of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) can be an effective means of increasing the students’ reading comprehension ability. Also, this paper explored the students' views towards the mentioned method. To fulfil the purposes of the study, a mixed method research was employed and 80 advanced EFL learners of university participated in the study that were assigned randomly to the experimental and control groups. Having instructed the two groups with the same texts but different methods of teaching during a term, the learners’ reading performance results were compared through administering a reading posttest to both groups. The researchers in the control group class followed her regular teaching practice through the conventional book-based method, but, she applied task based method in three stages in the experimental group class. The obtained data were analyzed using t-test to examine the effectiveness of TBLT method as on students’ reading performance. Moreover, the students' views of the experimental group were investigated through related questionnaire and interview. The findings revealed that the experimental group remarkably performed better than the control group. Therefore, TBLT had a significant effect on learners’ reading performance compared to traditional reading instruction. On top of that, findings of the interviews and questionnaires demonstrated the participants' satisfaction with implementing TBLT method, and also revealed that they had positive views towards it. Manuscript profile

Scaffolding and its relationship to second or foreign language learning has been studied in different aspects of interaction such as teacher-student or student-student interaction, called peer-scaffolding. Peer-scaffolding as its name suggests refers to student-student help and cooperation in a situation that one student is more knowledgeable than the other. The researchers of the present study noticed the empty place of examining the effectiveness of peer scaffolding on language learners' writing skill in the extant literature. With a view to this, the main aim behind this study was to analyze the impact of peer scaffolding in L1 vs. L2 on Iranian EFL learner's writing development. To achieve this aim, out of 55 students who were selected based on available sampling, 44 of them participated in this study. That is to say, a pre-test of writing was administered to the participants at the beginning of the term to examine homogeneity of students. Then, they were randomly assigned in the two experimental groups (22 Ss in each). Posttest of writing in the form of essay writing was performed and scores were obtained and analyzed using SPSS Software. Careful analysis indicated that there was no significant difference between applications of the two languages in peer scaffolding writing. Moreover, there was a significant relationship between peer-scaffolding and student’s writing skill scores. The findings have some implications for EFL teacher education researchers, policy makers, curriculum developers, and teachers. Manuscript profile