The increasing call for learning English as a foreign language has dramatically heightened the necessity to recruit effective English teachers. This is mainly because teachers have a key role in the success or otherwise of an educational program. Nevertheless, a comprehensive review of the related literature confirms the paucity of research studies on teacher characteristics which can influence their job satisfaction. The present research set out to investigate the association among EFL teachers’ self-efficacy, reflective thinking, and job satisfaction. Two-hundred and twelve Iranian EFL teachers from language institutes, schools, and universities participated in the study. They were asked to answer Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale, Reflective Thinking Scale and The Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire, as the main data collection instruments. The questionnaires were presented in three different ways: social networks, email, and in person. Structural Equation Modeling was employed to examine the hypothesized model of relationships. This model was confirmed following the application of the modification indices proposed by the software (Normal chi-square = 3.6; RMSEA =.03; RMR =.02; GFI =.93; AGFI =.90; NFI =.92; CFI =.93; IFI =.93). The results revealed that there were significant internal correlations between all the latent variables and their sub-scales. Moreover, results of multiple regression analysis represented that self-efficacy and reflective thinking positively predicted job satisfaction, with self-efficacy exerting more predictive power compared to reflective thinking. Pedagogical implications of the findings have been discussed. پرونده مقاله

Graphic organizers have been employed to facilitate second language learners' vocabulary knowledge development; however, the examination of the effects of these graphic organizer options on learners' collocation knowledge development has remained unexplored. This research investigated the effects of using teacher-generated, individually-generated, and cooperatively generated graphic organizers on Iranian English language learners' collocation knowledge. The present study examined these effects by studying 80 intermediate second language learners who were selected based on convenience sampling. The participants were assigned to four groups randomly. The collocations were provided on the board in the control group, and explanations were provided orally. In the teacher graphic organizer group, the teacher provided the learners with pre-filled graphic organizers with collocations. In the individually-generated group, the teacher provided the learners with a list of words in groups, and they had some minutes to generate their graphic organizers. In the cooperatively-generated group, the participants had some minutes to generate their graphic organizers cooperatively with their peers. Using a pre-test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test, the researchers examined the effects of these conditions on learners' collocation knowledge. The findings showed that all graphic organizer groups were more successful than the control group in developing learners' collocation knowledge. In addition, the mean value of the participants’ scores in the cooperative group was significantly more than that of the teacher-generated and individually-generated groups, and there was no significant difference between the mean scores of the teacher and individual-generated graphic organizer groups. پرونده مقاله

The study of second language learners' engagement with language learning tasks has become an enchanting line of research since several studies in general education and second language literature have proved its significant effects on learners' ultimate educational success. However, there are several niches in the literature which have not been occupied yet. One of these niches, addressed in this study, is the examination of the effect of computer-mediated condition on second language learners' emotional and social engagement with speaking tasks. Using a repeated-measures design, 40 intermediate language learners performed computer-mediated and face-to-face speaking tasks in a counterbalanced fashion. A questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were employed to collect the required data to respond to the questions. The results showed that learners were more emotionally and socially engaged with the computer-mediated speaking tasks. It was also revealed that low-intermediate learners’ use of social engagement indicators was significantly higher in the computer-mediated condition; however, the change in the condition did not significantly affect the quantity of social engagement indicators provided by high-intermediate ones. The findings also indicated that different engagement dimensions are interconnected, and the change in one of them can affect the other ones. پرونده مقاله

The present research was an attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of an adaptive online reading instruction with real-time feedback on the reading fluency of Iranian EFL learners and the perceptions of Iranian EFL students and teachers towards the use of the system. To this end, 60 out of 147 Iranian EFL students were selected based and a placement test, and equally divided into equal experimental and control groups. Before the instruction, a reading pretest was administered. The experimental group received instruction using adaptive online reading instruction. The system gave each participant unique reading tasks based on what they needed and how well they could read. There were timed reading tasks, comprehension quizzes, pronunciation drills, and other interactive activities in Hi-ELINA that helped with reading fluency. The instruction lasted for ten sessions. In contrast, the control group was taught through conventional reading instruction. Finally, a reading post-test was conducted. The data were analyzed based on an independent-sample t-test to compare the performance of the pretest and post-test. The findings revealed that there was a significant difference in the reading fluency scores of the experimental and control groups, verifying the efficiency of the adaptive online reading instruction with real-time feedback on reading fluency. In addition, the qualitative findings indicated that both Iranian EFL learners and teachers argued that the adaptive online reading instruction system was well-received by participants and that the real-time feedback provided was effective in improving their reading fluency. پرونده مقاله