Showing papers in "Research in Applied Linguistics in 2017"

Appraisal Theory in Translation Studies: An Introduction and Review of Studies of Evaluation in Translation

Abstract: Translation studies (TS), as a young (inter)discipline, has partly relied on metadiscussions, critical assessments of its literature, and compilation of bibliographies to deal with certain problems of its youth, such as polarity and fragmentation. While the current status of TS shows general maturity, there are still young areas of inquiry in the discipline that are faced with similar issues. The current study is an attempt to introduce and bring together an area of research in TS that draws on appraisal theory (AT; Martin & White, 2005) to functionally and systematically study the expression of feelings, emotions, viewpoints, and intersubjective positioning in translation. It is argued that this body of research has not received enough attention, partly due to its fragmentation and diversity. Several appraisal theory-informed studies of translations in different languages, genres, and mediums are introduced and reviewed, and certain points of similarity and differences are highlighted. More elaborate methodologies are given a closer look, and a general view of the findings in the literature is also provided. Finally, suggestions are made to address some limitations in the literature.

Relationship Between EFL Learners’ Self-Perceived Communication Competence and Their Task-Based and Task-Free Self-Assessment of Speaking

Abstract: Self-assessment and task-based assessment have recently attracted attention in language learning and testing contexts worldwide; however, little research has been carried out to document the link between these notions. The present research was an attempt to investigate the connection between task-free/task-based self-assessment and learners’ self-perceived communicative competence in speaking. To examine the link, 48 upper-intermediate and advanced language learners participated in the study. Data were collected via a self-perceived communicative competence questionnaire, the learners’ self-assessment (task-based and task-free) scores, and the teachers’ assessment of learners speaking. The analysis of the obtained data revealed a difference between the learners’ task-based and task-free self-assessment, and a high relationship between their self-perceived communicative competence and their self-assessment of speaking. Results also revealed a positive correlation between the learners’ task-based and task-free self-assessment of speaking and that of their teachers. Findings highlight the importance of self-assessment and task-based assessment in language learning to foster learner involvement.

EFL Teacher Education in Iran: Does It Promote Trainees’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge?

Abstract: Teacher education programs can play a principal role in helping prospective teachers to acquire requisite knowledge and skills. Vital to the issue of teacher education is the efficient evaluation of such programs in promoting prospective teachers’ knowledge base. However, the literature contains very few reports of the evaluation of the Iranian EFL preservice teacher education program, which is a gap to be addressed by this study. To this end, 346 high school EFL teachers, 20 EFL teacher educators, and 97 teacher trainees took part in the study. A questionnaire, semistructured interviews, tests, and an observation checklist were utilized. A mixed methods design was employed to evaluate the program. The results of the questionnaire, tests, and observation checklist were analyzed quantitatively. For the interview results, both quantitative (percentages) and qualitative analyses were deployed. Findings indicated that the program was not satisfactory in enhancing the EFL teacher trainees’ pedagogical content knowledge.

Effect of Input vs. Collaborative Output Tasks on Iranian Intermediate EFL Learners’ Grammatical Accuracy and Willingness to Communicate

Abstract: This study explored the effect of input vs. collaborative output tasks on Iranian EFL learners’ grammatical accuracy and their willingness to communicate (WTC). In so doing, the study utilized 3 input (i.e., textual enhancement, processing instruction, and discourse) and 3 collaborative output (i.e., dictogloss, reconstruction cloze task, and jigsaw) tasks and compared their effects on 5 English grammatical structures (used to, too, enough, wish, and past tense). To this end, 50 Iranian intermediate EFL students in 2 groups (input- and collaborative output-based) participated in this study. To collect the data, a 32-item grammar test and WTC questionnaire were used as the pretests and posttests. Results of the t tests and analyses of covariance revealed that the input- and output-based tasks had a significantly positive effect on the participants’ grammatical accuracy. Moreover, the output-based instruction enhanced the participants’ WTC more than the input-based one. Findings have implications for L2 grammar pedagogy.

Turn-Taking, Preference, and Face in Criticism Responses

Abstract: Vivas have multiple functions in academia, but their main goal is completing thesis evaluation. At the heart of this evaluation is a series of criticisms and their responsive turns by which participants talk vivas as institution into being (Heritage, 1997). Turn-taking is one of the many ways vivas are talked into being. This study drew upon conversation analysis to look into the turn allocation mechanism of criticism-response exchanges and their relationship with the notion of preference and dispreference in the context of Iranian English-medium vivas. It further investigated the relationship between turn-taking, preference structure, and the notion of face understood, following Arundale (2010) as the relational connection and separation. Findings and observations suggest a combination of turn preallocation, conciliatory turn negotiation, and adversarial turn competition of dispreference and preference as well as of the interactional achievement of slight connection and considerable separation in the discourse.

Effect of Autonomous Noticing Activities on EFL Learners’ Grammatical Accuracy

Abstract: This study focused on the effect of transcribing task, as a noticing activity, on EFL learners’ grammatical accuracy. For 20 sessions, oral discussion tasks were assigned to 2 intermediate adult EFL classrooms, with 1 class serving as the control group and the other as the experimental group. For this purpose, the learners were divided into groups of 3 or 4 in each class. Learners in both groups were asked to record their group conversations each session. Unlike the control group, the learners in the experimental group were engaged in the posttask activity. Working individually, they first transcribed the recorded classroom speaking task and autonomously tried to correct their own and their peers’ grammatical mistakes. Subsequently, collaboratively, the learners engaged in further reformulation of these mistakes. Results obtained from the t test indicated that the transcription of oral output with a follow-up self- and peer-correction significantly enhanced the accuracy of the EFL learners’ production.

Linguistic Features of English Textese and Digitalk of Iranian EFL Students

Abstract: This study aimed at investigating the English textese of Iranian EFL learners by scrutinizing the linguistic features through a qualitative design. In doing so, 700 messages were collected from 43 MA Iranian EFL learners of both genders. The features were categorized and analyzed calculating the frequency and percentage. The findings of the study showed that Iranian EFL students used different types of linguistic features with different density in their textese. They had consistency in textism and their text messaging language was mostly standard. The findings of the study could be used to raise students’ awareness on the linguistic features in choosing the right kind of language when communicating with others.

Impact of Mediation Types on Iranian EFL Learners’ Reading Comprehension Strategies

Abstract: The sociocultural theory holds the idea that knowledge to be acquired should be mediated. It underscores the presence of mediation as a crucial factor in internalization of abilities. Given this, the present research was an attempt to examine the effect of mediation on learners’ reading comprehension strategy in light of 2 approaches of response-based (RB) mediation (Vygotsky) and task-based (TB) mediation (Bruner) to intervention. To this end, the Reading section of the First Certificate in English (2010) and 1 cognitive and metacognitive questionnaire (Phakiti, 2003) were administered to 104 Iranian lower-intermediate EFL learners who were selected by convenience sampling. The questionnaire was given to the participants before and after the mediation session. MANOVA results revealed that not only had the learners’ monitoring metacognitive strategies changed by interventions, but also the participants in the TB mediation group outperformed those in the RB mediation group.

Moving Against the Grain: Exploring Genre-Based Pedagogy in a New Context

Abstract: Considerable literature explores the contribution of genre teaching in English academic writing. The role of this approach in developing academic writing of Iranian EFL students, however, has been underresearched. This study investigated the implications of using this approach with a class of undergraduate students in Iran. The current study reports on the findings of a project which employed a text-based cyclical teaching and learning method to teach argumentative genres, that is, exposition and discussion. Findings suggest rapid changes in appropriate mode of meaning making for developing macrostructures of such genres and a sharp decline in deploying unknown rhetorical strategies. Quantitative analysis of micronominalized features also shows some developments after the application of the genre teaching pedagogy.

Investigating the Relationship Between Iranian EFL Learners’ Use of Strategies in Collocating Words and Their Proficiency Level

Abstract: This study investigated the relationship between Iranian EFL learners’ use of strategies in producing English collocations and their proficiency level. Participants were 115 undergraduate university students at 3 proficiency levels, that is, low, intermediate, and high, majoring in English language at the Faculty of Letters and Humanties at Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Iran. Their selection was based on their scores on a proficiency test (Oxford Quick Placement Test, OQPT). Participants’ knowledge of collocations and the strategies used were examined through a fill-in-the-blank and a translation test, both of which were accompanied by a self-report questionnaire. Findings showed that all the strategies in the self-report questionnaire were employed by the participants. However, retrieval, literal translation, and L2 common and delexicalized words were the most commonly employed strategies. Quantitative analysis of the data also revealed that the participants’ overall use of strategies in producing correct collocations was lower than their use of strategies in producing incorrect collocations. Results also showed that the participants in the 3 proficiency groups appeared to have adopted the same strategies and did not differ much in their total use of strategies. Nevertheless, there were differences among the 3 groups in producing correct collocations. These findings have immediate implications for EFL learners, teachers, and materials designers.

Textuality in EAP Research Articles: A Genre Analysis

Abstract: One of the main concerns of scholars working in the field of EAP over the last 2decades has been raising the awareness of EAP students and publishers of genreconventions in academic journals. In line with the above concern, many studies haveaimed at exploring the general characteristics of research articles (RAs) in the field.Among these features, it seems that the generic moves and textuality have drawn theattention of researchers. Therefore, the purpose of this study was twofold: (1) tocompare and contrast the Iranian local ESP journals with their internationalcounterparts in terms of the given features by drawing upon existing research, and(2) to develop a more inclusive model for the analysis of moves and lexical cohesionpatterns (LCPs) in the Discussion sections of ESP RAs. Results showed that theDiscussion sections in the international ESP RAs tended to have a more cyclicalevaluative move mechanism compared with their Iranian local counterparts.Findings also revealed that the organizational patterning and use of the LCPs inconsolidating the Results sections of the RAs have a dual intrinsic relationship.Translation of such findings provides a better chance for nonnative EAP writers topublish in international journals.

Effects of Task Complexity Increase on Computer-Mediated L2 Writing and Temporal Distribution of Cognitive and Metacognitive Processes

Abstract: This study examined the effects of cognitive task complexity increase on the complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) as well as the temporal distribution of the cognitive and metacognitive processes involved in computer-mediated L2 written production. To this end, the study employed a between-subjects experimental design with 85 EFL learners from a language learning institute in Iran. Participants were assigned to one of 3 groups: low-, medium-, and high-complexity groups. Each group performed one of the 3 computer-mediated letter writing tasks of varying levels of complexity, from the lowest level (low-complexity) to the highest level (high-complexity) of cognitive demand. Participants were also asked to complete L2 writing Cognitive Processes Scale (CPS) and Metacognitive Processes Scale (MPS) to measure the differentials in time and attention allocated to these processes by the participants in each group. Results revealed that the increases of task complexity (1) affected the fluency positively and the accuracy negatively, with no significant effects on the complexity; (2) directed the participants’ attention more toward the processes such as task formulation and generation of new ideas, which could help them manage the conceptual pressure imposed; and (3) contrary to the assumptions, directed the participants’ attention away from the processes such as thinking about language aspects, which could direct their attention to the linguistic aspects of the tasks. Implications are discussed and avenues for future research are outlined.

A Comparative Study of Rhetorical Moves Adopted in Research Questions and Method Sections of Applied Linguistics Research Articles

Abstract: The study investigated whether there was any significant generic difference between the Research Questions (RQs) and Method sections of applied linguistics research articles (RAs) published in international and local Iranian journals. Two hundred applied linguistics RAs (100 from each group) were selected from 5 SSCI-indexed international journals and 5 Iranian Scientific-Research (Elmi-Pazhouheshi) ISC-indexed journals. Having analyzed the Introduction and Method sections based on Swales’ (2004) CARS model and Lim’s (2006) model, respectively, we found there were no significant differences in the frequency of occurrence of RQs in the Introduction sections, on the one hand, and between the Method sections of both groups of RAs, on the other. However, significant differences were found in the frequency of occurrence of certain moves and steps in both sections. Moreover, the findings of an expert-viewed validated questionnaire indicated that the RQs were of paramount importance to the authors of both groups of RAs.

Classroom Discourse Analysis as a Tool for Reflective Practice: Focus on Form Approach

Abstract: The present research aimed at investigating the interaction of the classroom talk to have a better understanding of the teachers’ practice teaching which can pave the way for reflection on teaching. The study benefitted from conversation analytic perspective to qualitatively and interpretively examine the classroom discourse of the teacher-learner interaction. The classroom talk was analyzed through conversation analysis perspective with taking the extracts of the learners’ and teacher’s interactions into account to see whether tasks paved the way for the learners to learn the target from through ‘Focus on Form’ approach. The findings could be beneficial for the practitioners in the field.

Washback Effect of General English Test of Ph.D. Entrance Exam on Science and Humanities Students: Perceptions and Practices

Abstract: Testing holds an important place in the Iranian test-oriented context where the entrance examinations have serious educational and occupational outcomes. This study aimed to explore the potential washback effects of the General English Language Test of the Ph.D. (GELTP) as part of the Ph.D. University Entrance Examination (PUEE) on the humanities and science students’ perceptions and practices. The study also examined the students’ language learning needs to examine the correspondence between the test-taker’s language needs as well as the GELTP requirement and content. To this end, the data were collected through conducting interviews with 16 Ph.D. students and the administration of a questionnaire to 560 students. Results revealed minor differences in the GELTP washback effects across the science and humanities perceptions and practices. Moreover, the findings showed some mismatch between the test-takers’ language needs and the test content that affected negatively the test washback effects. Findings can have implications for raising the education and assessment authorities’ awareness to employ the students’ feedbacks in designing and modifying high-stakes tests.

A Comparative Study of Metadiscourse Markers in English and Persian University Lectures

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare metadiscourse markers in forty English and Persian university lectures. Twenty of them were selected from the British Academic Spoken English corpus. The other 20 were selected from an Iranian website (www.maktoobkhane.com). We used Hyland’s (2005) model of metadiscourse. The metadiscourses were collected. Further, the frequency of each type was studied. Finally, native English data were compared to Persian ones. Data were analyzed through Chi-square and findings revealed there were meaningful differences between the two corpora. However, as for boosters, the difference was not meaningful in both lectures.

Long-Term Effects of Collaborative Task Planning vs. Individual Task Planning on Persian-Speaking EFL Learners’ Writing Performance

Abstract: This study was aimed to compare long-term effects of collaborative and individual task planning on Persian-speaking EFL learners’ writing performance, using Brown and Bailey’s (1985) rating scale. Therefore, a group of 90 upper-intermediate EFL learners in collaborative task planning, individual task planning, and control groups took part in the study. In the experimental groups, the participants were required to do task planning before attempting the main task. All the participants took a pretest, posttest, and delayed posttest. ANOVA results indicated task planning produced better writing performance in the experimental groups on the posttest and delayed posttest. Furthermore, repeated measures analyses showed both time and group played a part in the efficacy of the treatment. In fact, the participants of the experimental groups continued to retain the effects of task planning. Results provide further support for the sociocultural theories of L2 development, according to which learning can be strengthened interpersonally.

Formative Assessment and Feedback as Predictors of Students’ Engagement

Abstract: To explore the effects of formative assessment on student engagement in classroom, 60 upper-intermediate level EFL students, were chosen out of a convenience sample of 120, using the Oxford Placement Test and were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. After the intervention, the students were asked to complete the Student Course Engagement Questionnaire. Independent sample t-test results using SPSS revealed that the difference between the two groups’ engagement scores was statistically significant and that formative assessment and feedback were highly correlated with students’ engagement. Results also indicated that formative assessment and meaningful feedback can facilitate teachers’ efforts to improve student engagement in classroom activities.

Investigating Language Learning Strategies in ELT

Abstract: Learning strategies play leading roles on students’ understanding information and solving problems. Not being aware of learning strategies and their use may lead to students’ failure. Furthermore, conducting research on learning strategies is difficult as they are not observable directly and selecting a reliable method is an issue. Accordingly, this paper aims to investigate the significant contribution to the development of learning strategies within English Language Teaching (ELT) studies through reviewing three research-based related articles to adapt the findings to new research. The articles’ framework, designs, and methods investigated to choose the appropriate ones for a new study and ensure the reliability and validity of it. Regarding different sections of this paper, it explains the learning strategies related to the new study and describes its pedagogical context. Moreover, it compares and contrasts the articles’ research strategies and designs, methods of data collection and data analysis, validity, reliability as well as ethics. It also considers their shortcomings and discusses general implications for the new research project. Finally, it decides to conduct a case study design in a university setting in Iran consists of 22 undergraduate male and female students studying Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) motivated in acquiring English well. It will also employ mixed method research to collect more reliable data, apply think-aloud protocol and administer Strategy Inventory of Language Learning (SILL) questionnaire, use descriptive and content analysis and cross-check the findings in order to recognize students’ learning strategy usage.

A Comparative Study of Interactive and Interactional Metadiscourse Markers in Sales Contract Written by English Natives vs. Iranian Non-natives

Abstract: This study investigated two major types of metadiscourse markers as used in typical sales contracts, written by English natives and Iranian non-natives. In so doing, 60 sales contracts were selected, 30 written by native English and 30 by Iranian non-natives. Based on Hyland and Tse’s taxonomy, the contracts were codified and classified in terms of the frequency and percentage of the interactive and interactional metadiscourse markers found. The results revealed that Iranian non-natives used more interactive metadiscourse markers while natives used more interactional metadiscourse markers. The latter also used more hedges in their sales contracts compared to non-natives.

Poring Over Metadiscourse Use in Discussion and Conclusion Sections of Academic Articles Written by Iranian ESP Students

Abstract: This study investigated the employment of interactional metadisocurse in English academic articles written by Iranian ESP students. Data consisted of a total of 66 academic articles written in English by nonhumanities and humanities writers. Discussion and Conclusion sections were extracted, and Hyland’s (2005) taxonomy was borrowed for analysis. The use of hedges, boosters, and attitude markers was compared in the articles. Total number of each metadiscourse marker was counted, and the differences were checked running Mann-Whitney U test. Analysis revealed that there were disciplinary differences in the use of markers by nonhumanities and humanities. Hedges and attitude markers were more frequent in the humanities’ articles, rather than the nonhumanities’ articles. Also, the use of hedges and boosters was statistically significant. Pedagogical implications are discussed in light of the empirical data.

Introspective Study of Emotion Icon in Public Chat as a Gesture of Texting

Abstract: An emotion icon, better known as emoticon is a metacommunicative pictorial representation of a facial expression that, in the absence of body language and prosody, serves to draw a receiver's attention to the tenor or temper of a sender's nominal verbal communication, changing and improving its interpretation. The present study investigates the use of these nonverbal cues in whatsapp public chat. The analysis focuses on the multifunctionality of emoticons, their role in online relational work, and possible connections between emoticon use and language proficiency and thus contributes to a more complete understanding of emotive communication online. Its ultimate goal is to help clarify the role of emoticons within a larger conceptual framework of emotive and relational meaning. To this end, this study takes a micro-analytic approach to show how English as foreign language learners use emoticons in text chat. The analysis shows that emoticons are highly context-sensitive and can display affect or serve as contextual cues to signal illocutionary force or humor.

Orientalism Beyond Belief: Critiquing the Problematics of V. S. Naipaul’s Islamic Excursion

Abstract: This study aims to offer a critical analysis of V. S. Naipaul’s second Islamic travelogue Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted Peoples (1998), which chronicles the author’s excursions to the 4 non-Arab Muslim countries of Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, and Malaysia. This critique is presented, firstly, through problematizing the author’s theorization on the theme of Muslim conversion— which, according to Naipaul, has bred nothing but neurosis and nihilism in Muslim societies—and then through analyzing representations of the post-Revolutionary Iran of the late 90s. We argue that Naipaul’s representations fall within an Orientalist frame of reference in which Iran and its people are portrayed through various tropes of Othering in a narrative fraught with disinformation, exaggerations, and reductive treatment of complex sociopolitical phenomena. Finally, Naipaul’s reasoning in formulating conversion coupled with his myopic approach undermine the authenticity of his representations, resulting in what Said (1998) has dubbed “an intellectual catastrophe of the first order” (p. 42).

Ethicality of Narrative Inquiry as a Tool of Knowledge Production in Research

Abstract: The sociocultural ways of conceptualizing human learning in general education have given rise to various sensitive and time-consuming tools of knowledge production for both the researcher and the researched. The gravity of the situation is more noticeable in narrative inquiry methodology, which has gathered momentum in both general education and second language teacher education (SLTE) because it requires long engagement with participants and (re)telling of tales of success and failure. However, the ethicality of this knowledge production tool has remained in the periphery of academia. Grounded in our data, we present a case for a critical-event approach to narrative inquiry, indicating how the participants’ engagement in the research process enabled them to externalize their feelings, verbalize their everyday and scientific theories and, ultimately, systematically examine their teaching philosophy and develop ecologically valid pedagogical practices. These 3 functions of narrative inquiry seem to enhance the ethicality of narrative inquiry research methodology.

A Critical Discourse Analysis of Four Advanced ELT Textbooks Based on Fairclough’s Framework

Abstract: Critical Discourse Analysis uncovers the relationship between discourse, ideology, and power. This study investigated and analyzed contents, social relations, and subject positions in conversations of four popular advanced ELT textbooks. The findings indicated that for contents, giving/asking for information and interaction were outstandingly significant. Regarding social relations, friend was the most conspicuous item. For subject positions, societal, friendship, and occupational took the first to third positions, respectively. The language utilized in ELT textbooks was not value free and discourse, tone, and intonation were based on the western ideology. Neo-liberalism, neoclassical ideology selected by the producers had effect on learners’ attitudes towards social problems.

Space as a Semiotic Object: A Three-Dimensional Model of Vertical Structure of Space in Calvino’s Invisible Cities

Abstract: Following the “spatial turn” of the last 3 decades in humanities and social sciences and the structure of semiotic object, this research studies space as the main semiotic object of Calvino’s (1972) Invisible Cities. Significance of this application resides in examining the possibility of providing a more concrete methodology based on the integration of Zoran’s (1984) 3 vertical levels of constructing space and Hrushovski’s (1979) 3-dimensional model of the structure of semiotic object in the space-oriented plot of Calvino’s (1972) novel. In fact, the topographic, chronotopic, and textual levels of space are respectively studied in association with the dimensions of meaning and reference, organized text, and speech and position. It is also suggested that for studying all the vertical levels of space in Invisible Cities as well as all other literary texts, the 3 aspects of textual levels including the selectivity of language, the linearity of the text and the latter’s perspective are respectively reflected in the structure of space at the topographic, chronotopic, and textual levels.

Prospect 1 and Four Corners 1 in the Spotlight: Textbook Evaluation with Some Reference to Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract: As an analytical type of approach, Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) deals with the emphasis on social practice, identity, power, and ideology built through text and speech in socio-political and educational contexts. Having proposed a theoretical framework, it uncovered all discrepant ways through which power and societal practices are produced in written and spoken texts. Moreover, mingled with text and talk, textbooks play a pivotal role in determining a standard curriculum. To this end, using a mixed-methods design, a questionnaire was applied to compare the perceptions of 103 Iranian EFL teachers of Yasouj, Dehdasht, and Gachsaran English institutes and junior high schools with each other towards the Prospect 1 and Four Corners 1 textbooks. Furthermore, a semi-structured interview was also conducted from 9 teachers. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were applied for analyzing the data. The results revealed that the two textbooks differed in terms of ‘layout’, ‘language type’, and ‘whole aspect’ whereas they were similar in light of ‘activities’, ‘content’, and ‘skills’. Also, findings gained from the interview suggest that the textbooks more or less failed to consistently take the needs of language learners into account. This study might be beneficial to textbook designers and language teachers and learners.

The Visual Transitivity System in Two ELT Books Series

Abstract: The present study aims to investigate the system of the visual transitivity by analyzing the images of American English file (2014) and Cutting edge (2005) series based on Halliday’s (1976) systemic functional linguistics and Kress and van leuween’s (1997-2006) social semiotics. The system of visual transitivity refers to a type of process which determines how represented participants are labelled, how many of them are involved, and what roles they play. As a result, two points emerged: The first point showed the usefulness of these theories in determining the fact that these images are not neutral. In the second place, the analyses of these images determined many processes (e.g., action, reaction, and symbolic) and (e.g., material, mental, and relational) which were required in representing and interpreting these images and their processes.

The Effect of Natural and Classroom Settings on Iranian Learners’ Pragmatic Competence: Length of Residence Versus Intervention

Abstract: The present investigation sought to comparatively explore the effect of length of residence (LOR) as well as EFL instruction on the pragmatic competence of Iranian learners. The participants were 45 EFL learners in Iran and 45 learners in Canada selected based on snowball sampling and each group was divided into three sub-groups based on the years of learning English in an EFL or a natural setting. The instrument used to collect data was a Pragmatic Test developed by Roever (2006) consisting of three subtests i.e. implicature, routines, and speech act sections, each containing 12 items. Initially, the participants in classroom settings in Iran were asked to complete the Pragmatic Test. As for the learners in the natural setting, the participants were requested to complete the test which was sent to them through social networks such as instagram, and submit it. The results of independent samples t-test and ANOVA indicated those residing in Canada were more competent in terms of pragmatic competence; however, the length of residence in Canada and also years of classroom experience did not have any significant effect on learners’ pragmatic competence. The findings of the current study have implications for material developers, syllabus designers, and EFL teachers.

Students’ Attitude Towards English Language Learning: The Case of Iranian Junior High-School Students and Prospects Course-books

Abstract: Although a surfeit of studies have examined the students’ attitude towards foreign and / or second language both inside and outside Iran, it seems scanty studies have been devoted to evaluate Prospect-trained students’ attitude towards English. This quantitative study investigated the students’ attitudes towards English language learning among 80 junior high school students in Ahvaz, Iran. These students have been exposed to English through Prospect course-books (the newly designed course-books in Iranian Educational system) for three years. To this end the researchers adapted a Likert scale questionnaire some items of which have been taken from Attitude and Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) designed by Gardner. The questions comprised three parts each of which represented one aspect of students’ attitude towards English language (Cognitive, Behavioral, and Emotional aspects). The choices opted by the participants have been calculated using descriptive statistics (minimum score, maximum score, mean, and standard deviation).The results indicated that the participants enjoyed a positive attitude towards all three aspects with differing degrees. Additionally, participants’ demographic information was used to justify some parts of the findings. The findings can be inspiring for teachers and material designers to consider attitude aspects more than ever.