Cooperative learning has widely been used as a teaching method in English class around the world,and has attracted worldwide attention for its remarkable achievement. This study was an attemptto investigate the effects of an optimization method named genetic algorithm to determine optimalcomplementary learning clusters on Iranian EFL learners' English proficiency. The subjects of thismixed method study were 40 male students at intermediate level with the age of 12-17, and thestudy was done in winter, 2016, in a private language institute in Isfahan, Iran. They were dividedin two groups, the experimental group (EG) who were taught cooperative learning with optimalclustering, and the control group (CG) who were thought traditional cooperative learning. At thequantitative phase, an Independent Samples T-test was used to compare the means of pre andposttests. The results indicated that, in listening, speaking, and vocabulary, the subjects'performances in EG were significantly better than CG. At the qualitative phase, the findings of theinterviews revealed that Iranian EFL learners had positive attitudes towards using cooperativelearning in improving their English knowledge. This study could benefit teachers, students, andEnglish private institutes in teaching and learning process. It could also help language designers,policy makers, and administrators employing optimization methods to facilitate teaching Englishskills, and components. پرونده مقاله

While the main focus of the studies in the literature is centered around EFL teachers’ identity construction in face-to-face classes regarding certain cliche factors, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the potential of investigating EFL teachers' professional identity reflection in the developing contexts of distance education. Thus, this study examined the possible association between Iranian EFL instructors' Professional Identity Reflection (PIR) and their use of Achievement Orientation Strategies (AOSs) in the dynamic setting of E-teaching. Besides, this study evaluated the prediction power of the AOSs in determining the PIR of Iranian EFL instructors. One hundred four male and female Iranian EFL instructors were selected based on convenience sampling to participate in this quantitative correlational research. Two instruments, including Measure of Teachers Achievement (MoTA) and Questionnaire of Professional Identity (QPI), were used to collect the required data on the online platform of Type form. The R software's correlation and multiple regression packages were utilized to analyze the gathered data. The results indicated a robust direct association between the PIR of Iranian EFL instructors in E-teaching and their use of AOSs. Moreover, three out of four AOSs significantly predicted the PIR of Iranian EFL instructors in E-Teaching. Furthermore, the mastery-approach strategy had the most predicting power among the other AOSs. This study provides practical interdisciplinary benefits for EFL teachers, EFL teacher trainers, and educational psychologists in training EFL teachers who are aware of how their views toward achieving specific academic goals in E-teaching influence their professional identity in E-teaching. پرونده مقاله