Iranian Journal of Learning and Memory
Volume:4 Issue: 13, Spring 2021

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of learning context on the acquisition of plurality agreement in English noun phrases by Iranian L3 learners of English. To this end, 64 elementary learners of English were chosen from among the students of Arabic language and literature and Persian language and literature of Ahvaz university and Yazd university via the Oxford Quick Placement test. The participants were assigned to four groups to be compared in terms of the comprehension and production of plurality agreement via a grammaticality judgment correction task and a picture description task. The first and the second groups had Persian as their first language (L1) and Arabic as their second language (L2) but differed from each other concerning their language of contact instruction, Persian and Arabic, respectively. The third and fourth groups had Arabic as the L1 and Persian as the L2 but differed from each other concerning their language of contact instruction, Persian and Arabic, respectively. The results showed that the groups which had Arabic as their language of contact instruction outperformed the other groups in both tasks, which suggests that they transferred plurality agreement facilitatively from Arabic, which was their language of contact instruction. Therefore, the results of this study suggest that the context of learning matters in the acquisition of L3 properties since the L3 learners associate their language of contact instruction with the L3 in their mind due to the similarities in the learning context.

The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of metacognition and problem solving training on teaching-learning strategies awareness of gifted high school male students of 10th grade in Ardabil. This research is a quasi-experimental research, with a pre-test/ post-test design. 127 gifted high school male students of Ardabil were participated in the study as the statistical population in 2017-18 academic year. Sixty of these students were selected through simple random sampling. Before starting the training programs, three groups were tested by the Weinstein Teaching-Learning Strategies Questionnaire first developed by Weinstein and Schultz (1987). Metacognitive training program was taught for the first experimental group, and problem solving skills program was taught for the second experimental group; each training program consisted of eight two-hour sessions and the control group did not receive any kind of training. Pre-test and post-test results were analyzed using MANOVA. The results showed that both metacognitive and problem solving training enhance teaching and learning skills and that metacognitive training is more effective in terms of test strategies, attitudes, focus, and time management. Also, similar effects were achieved in terms of information processing and selection of the main idea, anxiety, motivation, self-examination, study guide in the two groups. In conclusion, metacognitive training was proven to be more effective than problem solving training.

The present study aims to identify the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation on different types of attention in the third-grade students with specific learning disabilities (reading) considering moderating role of gender. As a quasi-experimental research, the study uses pretest-posttest design with control group. Façade testing, a helpful tool to identify the reading difficulties and dyslexia in elementary school, is performed to determine the research sample among the third-grade students in Tabriz. The students who score above average survey response rate are identified as specific learning-disability learners (reading). Among these students, 60 (four groups of 15) are selected by simple random sampling method and randomly divided into two experimental groups (two groups of 15, one group female students and the other male students who received cognitive rehabilitation training program) and two control groups. Cognitive rehabilitation training is delivered through Smart Sound training software (8-level computer-based cognitive rehabilitation in reading disorder). Attention is also measured by focused/sustained attention and scattered attention test designed in Sina Institute. To analyze the data, multivariate analysis of covariance is used. The results indicate cognitive rehabilitation is effective in focused/sustained attention, scattered attention, and reaction time in specific learning-disability students and gender does not have a moderating effect. Accordingly, cognitive rehabilitation does not have meaningful effect in the increase of focused attention, scattered attention and reaction time in male and female students.

Objectives of the study:

This article aimed to study the effect of computerized cognitive rehabilitation (CCR) on verbal skills of students with specific mathematical learning disorder (SPLD).Participants: Forty people were selected using simple random sampling method from among the primary fourth grade male students with SPLD in Karaj; they were divided into experimental (n=20) and control (n=20) groups after matching using random substitution.

The study was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group and a two-month follow-up. The subjects in the experimental group received Capitan’s Log Cognitive Rehabilitation Software (2018) individually for 12 sessions of 50 minutes of training program, whereas the control group did not receive this training program. TOLD language development test was used to evaluate students' verbal skills. The collected data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance SPSS 24.

CCR led to enhanced ability of the experimental group subjects in the post-test and follow-up stages compared to the control group in terms of most of the verbal skills. (p <0.05). However, there were no significant differences between the ability of the subjects of the experimental and control groups regarding producing the word in the post-test and follow-up stages (p <0.05).

The findings indicated that CCR program is effective in the development of students' verbal skills with SPLD and could be used as an appropriate intervention method.

The present study investigated the relationship among teachers 'mindsets and their perceptions of students' behavior, learning, and achievement, their interpretations of students 'behavior, and their strategies to increase students' motivation through a qualitative approach and a descriptive phenomenological design.The target population of this study includes all female primary school teachers in District 1 of Yazd city. Initially, 18 teachers volunteered to participate in the study, according to the call. Then, they completed mindset questionnaire and after evaluating the answers and determining teachers’ mindset, 5 teachers were purposefully selected for a more profound and more extensive study. The data were collected using Dweck's Mindset Questionnaire (2000) and Semi-structured interviews. Content analysis was used to analyze the data and the results showed that the relationship between teachers 'mindsets and their perceptions of students' behavior, learning, and progress could be traced through the categories such as fixed mindset's teacher, growth mindset's teacher, and six factors including stereotypes, performance interpretation, evaluation, instruction, motivation, and responsibility. In general, it can be said that teachers 'mindset affect the way, they interpret students' behavior, learning, and success, it is influential on teachers' instructions, evaluations, and responsibilities in the teaching process as well as the type of activities that they use to increase students' motivation. Furthermore, the results showed that teachers' mindsets are intertwined with cultural assumptions; and teachers can be made aware of cultural challenges by increasing their level of knowledge and modifications of their mindsets.

The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two methods of cup stacking game and transcranial electrical stimulation of the brain (tDCS) on cognitive inhibition, auditory attention and visual attention in students with attention deficit syndrome in 2019-2020. The present study was a quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design and a control group. The present study population consists of all fifth and sixth grade elementary students with symptoms of attention deficit in Tehran in 2019-2020. Among the fifth and sixth grade students, 45 students with attention deficit symptoms were selected by convenience sampling and randomly assigned to three groups of 15 people including the brain stimulation group, the cup stacking game group and the control group. The tDCS experimental group was treated for 10 sessions of 30 minutes, and the cup stacking experimental group were exposed to ten 30-minute sessions of cup stacking game. In order to evaluate the research variables, the continuous auditory visual function test (IVA) of Rosvold, Sarason, Bransome, and Beck (1956) was used. The results of mixed analysis of variance showed that cup stacking game and tDCS are both effective in improving cognitive inhibition and auditory attention of students with attention deficit syndrome, but there is no significant difference between the two methods in influencing cognitive inhibition and auditory attention (P> 0.05). Also, only the cup stacking game had a significant effect on improving visual attention, but tDCS did not have a significant effect on improving visual attention.

Cognitive strategies and also social self-efficacy are the most important learning tools that are essential and influential components for student performance. Considering this, the present study aims to investigate the effectiveness of the cognitive styles training on the improvement of learning and social self-efficacy among students of Farhangian university of Mazandaran. Present research was a quasi-experimental with pretest-posttest and control group design. To this purpose, 60 students were allocated to experimental and control groups during the year 2018-2019 using a random sampling method (30 control group and 30 experimental group) and they were asked to complete Smith and Betz’s (2000) 25-item Scale of Perceived Social Self-Efficacy (SPSSE) as pretest. The experimental group received 10 ninety-minute sessions of cognitive strategy training. At the end both groups answered the above questionnaire again. Mean, standard deviation and analysis of covariance were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that Cognitive styles training increased students’ learning and social self-efficacy significantly (P≥0/001). Considering the effectiveness of cognitive style training, it is suggested that utilizing this method to improve students' academic status and increase social self-efficacy.