مجله جستار های زبانی
سال سیزدهم شماره 5 (پیاپی 71، Nov-Dec 2022)

With the rise of positive psychology (PP) and its emphasis on the affordances of positive emotions to second/foreign language teaching and learning, numerous studies have been conducted on different PP constructs all over the world. Nonetheless, the status of researching this school of psychology in L2 education is still imprecise. To fill this gap, the present state-of-the-art paper intends to flesh out the conceptualizations, premises, versatilities, emerging theories and methods, and research trends in PP and second language acquisition (SLA). Moreover, it elaborates on the seven PP factors, including optimism, immediacy, connectedness, commitment, academic buoyancy, immunity, and mindfulness. Such sample variables have also been supported by scientific evidence from different contexts. Additionally, some potential implications are drawn for stakeholders to enlighten the process and quality of L2 education. Finally, the study suggests some avenues for future studies to expand the scope of PP and SLA research and practice.

Syntactic complexity has received much attention in English for academic purposes (EAP) research. However, it remains an ignored area of EAP research in the Philippines. This study cross-examined syntactic complexity in research articles (RAs) authored by Filipino researchers (FRs) in Communication, Curriculum and Instruction, and Psychology. Major findings revealed that attributive adjectives, nominal prepositional phrases, and noun premodifiers most dominantly co-occurred across disciplinary RAs. A significant difference exists between the three nominal pre- and postmodifiers and other compressed and implicit and elaborated and explicit syntactic features. As such, Filipino-authored disciplinary RAs are characterized by a compressed and implicit discourse style. Therefore, L2 academic research writing by FRs regardless of the disciplines is syntactically complex with the use of the three compressed and implicit phrasal features. It is likewise filled with very dense packaging of information by the three nominal phrases. The study has practical implications for academic research writing instruction, academic research journals, and professional development training.

The present study compares the effects of the second language (L2) reading and listening on incidental vocabulary learning and retention of three dimensions of word knowledge (i.e., part of speech, syntagmatic association, and form-meaning connection) among EFL learners. The relationship between word exposure frequency and vocabulary learning is also examined in reading versus listening. Sixty-three pre-intermediate EFL learners in four intact classes were randomly assigned to four experimental groups based on the number of target word (TW) exposures (i.e., 1, 3, 5, and 7 exposures) they received in treatment texts. The experimental groups read and listened to four texts with 36 TWs. The scores on the immediate and three-week delayed posttests revealed that reading contributed to a greater amount of vocabulary learning and retention in the three dimensions of word knowledge. The results further revealed that an increase in the word exposure frequency had a significant effect on acquiring form-meaning connection through reading, and on three dimensions through listening. Moreover, frequency improved retention gains in both input sources.

The present study explored the Ecuadorian secondary school teachers' beliefs about teaching EFL in the context of national curriculum reform. The data comprised in-depth interviews with 16 teachers from 14 public secondary schools in Ecuador. The interviews were semi-structured, and they were guided by a set of questions probing into the teachers’ beliefs about instructional design, assessment, teaching materials, and learning activities. Qualitative analysis of the interview transcripts revealed some interesting insights into the Ecuadorian teachers' beliefs and reported practice. The findings showed that the teachers were positive about the principles and innovation in the new curriculum designed by the Ministry of Education. However, various contextual and practical constraints hindered the teachers from implementing the intended curriculum. These factors included large class size, a lack of teacher training and professional development, and the heavy load caused by compulsory extra-curriculum activities. Implications for EFL pedagogy and teacher professional development are discussed.

The present study examined the content and construct validity, and internal consistency of the Academic Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (AERQ) in the Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context. The original scale was translated and back-translated between English and Persian. The content validity ratio (CVR), and content validity index (CVI) were then measured by a panel of 14 expert judges. The internal consistency coefficients of the scale were estimated by piloting it with 60 Iranian EFL learners. The results of the Cronbach’s alpha showed a satisfactory level of reliability. The AERQ was then administered to 346 English language learners (Mage = 19.34, SDage = 4.951). To explore the factorial structure of the 37 items of the questionnaire, an Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was conducted. In addition, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was run to examine the convergent and discriminant validity of the AERQ’s measurement model. The results obtained from the modified measurement model showed an adequate fit of the data. In the modified version, two items (i.e., one item from suppression, and one from redirection of attention) were omitted due to low standardized loadings (< .50). The model fit indices also provided a reasonable model fit for the structural model. The internal consistency coefficients for the constructs were higher than the minimum value (α = .70). Implications and limitations of the study are discussed.

With its prevalence as a global language, universities in Vietnam have striven to enhance students’ proficiency in English. This endeavor responds to the language requirements set by Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), the prominence of English as a medium of instruction in higher education, and the necessity of preparing students for better employability. This study focuses on General English programs currently deployed in most universities in Vietnam in terms of expected learning outcomes, course design and assessment practices. Drawing on document analysis, it examines the General English program of a public university and a private one in Ho Chi Minh City in relation to these three components. Findings show that these universities conformed to MoET’s policy on language education but developed different approaches to language program design and assessment in order to achieve their respective learning outcomes and ensure the quality of language learning and teaching in their own contexts. This study provides course designers, coordinators and language teachers with in-depth understandings of the deployment of General English programs and the theoretical bases underpinning such processes. These insights will enable them to become more aware of the elements constituting such programs and the considerations to be taken in updating and innovating the language curricula.

The self-monitoring technique, using the learners’ annotations and teacher’s response as its base, proved to be one of the beneficial alternatives for the traditional teacher feedback. Although some studies have been done on the effects of self-monitoring technique, more studies are still required to place this tactic at the forefront of educational practices. This study examined Iranian EFL learners’ annotations in terms of their form and content. To this end, after homogenizing the participants, 30 university students were selected and received essay writing instruction employing the self-monitoring technique for eight sessions. The learners’ annotations were gathered and classified in terms of their content and form based on the frameworks established by Sarabia, Nicolás, and Larioss (2012) and Storch and Tapper (1996) respectively. The research results, as for the content of the annotations, evinced that the largest number of annotations fell into the categories of lexis and syntax, and to a lesser extent the discourse organization. Regarding the form of the annotations, most of the learners’ annotations fell into the category of “a demand for the correction of an L2 form”. The results of the chi-square test also showed that the difference in the content and use of language forms of annotations used by students was significant. Hence, the use of self-monitoring technique in writing courses brings a wealth of information regarding the writing content and problematic areas for both the teacher and learners as they can have discussions over the written text, making the process of writing more interactive.

This study has two goals: first, to investigate prior language influence in the acquisition of object pronominalisation in the third language (L3) French by speakers whose first language (L1) grammar allows null objects; and, second, to find out whether non-native behaviour in relation to object pronominalisation is modulated by task type. I compare L3 speakers of French whose L1 is Sinhala and L2 English with L2 speakers of French whose L1 is English. Sinhala allows null objects, whereas null subjects are not allowed in French and English. Using data from a speaking task and acceptability judgement tasks, I found that the L3 speakers omit objects in production while demonstrating knowledge of the obligatory nature of French clitic pronouns in comprehension. The proficiency-matched L2 speakers, by contrast, do not omit objects. Drawing on Amaral and Roeper’s (2014) Multiple Grammars account of multilingual knowledge, I argue that the increased processing load of the production task compared with the comprehension task leads to the L3 speakers resorting to structures available in their L1. While the L2 speakers may also resort to L1 structures under increased cognitive load, their L1 does not include null objects, hence null objects do not arise in the L2 group.

Text Self-Evaluation of Teacher Talk (SETT), comprised of four modes and 14 interactures, aims to make teachers cognizant of the importance of their classroom interactions. This study specifically elaborates on the skills and systems mode, which generally gives primacy to accuracy and is pertinent to the reading and writing literacy development course. The data were collected from five experienced elementary teachers - one female and four males - taking part in the official ‘Superior Teaching Style Contest’ of the Ministry of Education in Iran. The data were analyzed using Walsh’s (2006b) adapted SETT framework. The results showed that all of the interactures and pedagogic goals of the mode were observed in the analyzed data. Code-switching, as an added interacture to the mode, happened in all five teachers’ recorded classes, especially when moving from one activity to another. The findings of the study provided robust evidence regarding the overuse of teacher echo in the mode.

The paper deals with the topic of visually based L2 acquisition in higher education and evaluates the impact of the use of visual images based on Kolb´s theory of experiential learning. It evaluates its impact on the students´ risk-taking, motivation and anxiety. The research was conducted at the English Department of the University of Diyala, Iraq. The total number of participants was forty (n = 40) and they all were first-year students at English Department. The research was conducted by using guided interviews through the Google Meet platform. The main idea of the research was to evaluate how much will experiential learning, via the reading pictures technique, influence college students’ risk-taking, motivation, and anxiety. The research results show that students’ motivation and risk-taking were affected positively by using pictures. It further shows that the classroom anxiety of the students was less affected than the other two variables

This study offers a re-reading of Ken Kesey’s oeuvre, One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, employing Deleuze and Guattari’s semiotics of Face and their concept of regime of signs; it tries to map the workings of Face as an impersonal despotic system that emerges from the mixture of two regimes of signs that facilitates surveillance, discrimination and control. It also pinpoints the potentiality and activities of escape from this system, and the emergence of signs of disruptive faciality. Analyzing the facial activities of three characters in the novel, namely, Nurse Ratched, Chief Bromden and Randel McMurphy, the study elaborates on the following facial aspects: the State’s policies of facialization in Nurse Ratched; the schizoid experience of faciality in Chief Bromden and the suspense of the face system in McMurphy. Besides the produced mappings, the reader also meets a set of newly conceptualized functionalities of faces, contributed by the particular signs this context provides, namely, the catatonic face, the synaptic face and the carnivalesque faces.

Positive emotions are regarded as vital constructs in L2 learning. With the advent of positive psychology in SLA, the link between L2 grit and Foreign Language Enjoyment (FLE), as an achievement emotion, has drawn the attention of numerous scholars. However, despite these investigations, what remains is to see to what extent this link can be accounted for by the control and value appraisals of classroom activities and tasks. In other words, what is the matter of debate is how L2 learners’ perseverance and consistency of interest during the performance of language tasks and activities can predict their enjoyment when they are in control of, or out of control of these activities and tasks. Given this gap, this conceptual study attempts to argue the need for the investigation of L2 grit and FLE in light of control-value theory (CVT) and its methodological orientation. These arguments can pave the way for future research on this link via the CVT framework and provide pedagogical and methodological implications for investigators, learners, teachers, teacher educators, educational policy-makers, and advisors to raise their awareness of how the proximal determinants of enjoyment in learning a foreign language can be realized in terms of their perseverance of effort and consistency of interest in achievement activities.

In today’s world of education, a successful teacher can be assumed to be the one who benefits from Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT), which demands consideration of teachers’ beliefs about tasks. The present paper takes into account developing a questionnaire regarding teachers’ beliefs about tasks. To this end, 300 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers from Mazandaran province participated in the study. The raw items for the questionnaire were collected by randomly interviewing 15 participant teachers and the related literature on teacher cognition research on TBLT. Then the items were factor-analyzed to develop the final version of the Teachers’ Beliefs on Task Questionnaire (TBTQ). Employing Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) resulted in a six-factor structure including TBLT and teacher education, TBLT and the learners’ expectations, TBLT and challenges with Present-Practice-Produce (PPP) approach, TBLT and teachers' time limitations, TBLT and teachers’ characteristics, and the feasibility of TBLT resources. Findings revealed that although TBLT has been considered as an innovative approach due to its inspiration from Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), teachers’ attitudes towards TBLT implementation appear to have been taken for granted according to the components emerged from the factor analysis. It is suggested that TBTQ can be used in both foreign and second language contexts in order to identify different categories that can shape teachers’ beliefs about tasks and provide further pedagogical insights into designing and implementing tasks more effectively

The Analects of Confucius is one of the representative works of traditional Chinese culture and has been translated into different versions. Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version is one of the most popular among the different translated versions. It has a considerable potential to spread Chinese culture by multimodal means. A brief review shows that so far, there have been few studies on Tsai Chih-Chung's Chinese classic comics from the perspective of multimodality. This study applies the analytical framework based on Kress and van Leeuwen’s “Visual Grammar” to Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version of The Analects of Confucius, attempting to explore how the visual modes realize three meta-meanings in the English comic version. Through the analysis, it is found that the images in Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version fully realize the representational meaning, interactive meaning and compositional meaning. Furthermore, most of the images in Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version realize more than just one meta-meaning, and more frequently include all three meta-meanings. By combining the texts and images organically, Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version has been successful in attracting readers to read the classic, deepening the readers’ understanding of the classic and finally making them accept the cultural essence embedded in it. This study provides a case reference for the analysis of multimodal discourse in Chinese classic comics, and also contributes to optimizing Chinese classic comics’ design and innovation.

Despite the fact that interpreting has long existed in history and predates translation, the interpreter training as an autonomous discipline is non-existent at the graduate level in Iran. The paramount focus of this study was to probe into the status quo of interpreting courses in the Iranian academia and subsequently delve into the possible expediencies to establishing such a discipline in the higher education. To this end, 15 professional interpreters (9 from Iran and 6 from other countries), 10 interpreter trainers (4 from Iran and 6 from other countries) and 118 English Translation Studies students (32 M.A. and 86 B.A.) who were selected through convenience sampling participated in this study. The students filled out a 20-item researchers-designed Likert-scale interpreting status quo questionnaire and the interpreter trainers and interpreters were invited for a formal semi-structured interview. Findings, analyzed quantitatively by SPSS software version 28 and qualitatively by inductive codification process, revealed the existing situation of the interpreting courses in the Iranian academia in terms of needs analysis, objectives and syllabus, methodology, materials as well as course contents and ensured the significance of establishing interpreter training as an independent discipline in the higher education among all stakeholders, i.e. interpreters, interpreter trainers (teachers) and interpreter trainees (students) for a number of expediencies including non-existence of this discipline in Iran, the need for academization, its multidisciplinary nature, dearth of specialization, addressing stakeholders and researchability, generating pertinent activities, glocal reputation, and employability.

Second language (L2) education researchers have recently been concerned about students' willingness to communicate (WTC) since communication competence is considered an ultimate goal of L2 education. This study examines Vietnamese teachers' perceptions of L2 WTC and their strategies to encourage students to communicate inside the classroom. Data were collected from interviews with 30 Vietnamese EFL university teachers. Results showed that all the teachers believed students' L2 WTC inside the classroom influenced the development of second language acquisition (SLA) and perceived their role in encouraging WTC. Also, the teachers revealed that they used a wide range of strategies to encourage students to communicate. The findings suggest that L2 teachers use a wide range of strategies to promote students’ WTC inside the classroom. It might be necessary for Vietnamese EFL teachers to update strategies to encourage WTC inside the classroom.

This research generally aimed to gain a better understanding of the stop voicing contrast in Khuzestani Arabic (KhA) by focusing on VOT and vowel onset f0. The potential effects of voicing status, place of articulation, vocalic context, and gender on the word-initial VOT and f0 measurements were investigated. 15 females and 15 males were asked to repeat 31 authentic words three times out of context with no marked intonation pattern. The results showed significant differences between VOT and f0 values as a function of voicing status, among others. In addition word-initially, the statistical analysis indicated significant place-dependent and vocalic-related VOT variations in the context of VOICELESS stops, whereas for f0 the effects of gender, place of articulation, and vocalic context were significant both at the VOICED and VOICELESS levels. Word-initially, in KhA /b, d, ɡ/ are produced with voicing lead, while their VOICELESS counterparts /p, t, k/ have long lag, and the two stops with no VOICED cognate /tˁ, q/ make use of short lag. Overall, KhA exhibits a two-way laryngeal contrast system, and similar to Swedish the two opposite ends of VOT continuum are utilized. Logistic regression models were executed separately for both genders to predict the levels of voicing status and emphaticness. The results revealed that in voicing contrast more weight was given to VOT compared to f0. Lastly, Pearson’s correlation showed a significantly positive linear relationship between the two acoustic parameters in marking the voicing feature of VOICELESS plosives.

Lexical richness in written language production has been examined in different contexts and in relation to different genres but research into the effects of within-genre topics on lexical richness is still limited and takes little account of learners’ perspectives. The present study therefore sought to understand the effects of topics on lexical richness (lexical density, lexical diversity and lexical sophistication) in written essays by Vietnamese EFL learners. Data were collected from sixty-four English-major university students who each wrote four essays on four different topics across two genres (persuasive and descriptive) in their normal classes as progress tests. Ten students were also interviewed after they had completed all the essays to understand their perceptions of the writing topics. Lextutor’s VocabProfile was used to obtain measures of lexical density, lexical diversity and lexical sophistication. The results showed mixed effects of writing topics on these three lexical measures. Learner perspectives provided insights into how cognitive and affective individual factors contributed to the complexity of topic influence. Pedagogical implications are discussed in regard to how to enhance productive lexical use in writing through task selection and instructional planning.

Technology has become a quintessential component of educational practice over the past years. Research in this area has shown that the integration of various technologies positively contributed to language education and facilitated learning different language skills. Despite the extensive application of computer assisted language learning for adults, little research has examined Young Language Learners’ (YLL) language development through technology. In this regard, the current study investigated the impact of using a mobile technology on YLLs’ (age range: 6 to 8) vocabulary development. Seventy-one learners participated in the study who were divided into a control (N = 32) and an experimental (N = 39) groups. Data were collected using a vocabulary test in three rounds of pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-test. The collected data in terms of vocabulary test scores were analyzed using mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance. The results revealed that the experimental group who used mobile devices for vocabulary learning outperformed the control group in the posttest and gained significant improvements in the delayed posttest. The study provides implications for various educational stakeholders including teachers, learners, and material developers to exploit the affordances of technology in effectively contributing to YLLs’ vocabulary development.

Le jugement professionnel est défini comme un processus qui mène à une prise de décision à partir de différentes considérations. Ces dernières se construisent par les processus cognitifs individuels et sociaux des enseignants. Dans cette perspective, le jugement professionnel, issu du processus cognitif des enseignants, contribue à la détermination des critères d’évaluation ainsi qu’à la prise de décisions sommatives. La présente étude vise à comprendre comment l’agir évaluatif des enseignants du FLE s’effectue lorsque le jugement évaluatif s'exerce dans des pratiques d’évaluation sommative. Dans cette visée, nous avons tenté de remettre en question l’influence du jugement professionnel des enseignants sur les quatre étapes de la démarche de prise de décision et d’attribution des notes à savoir 1. La définition de l’objet d’évaluation 2. Le recueil des informations 3. L’interprétation des informations recueillies à partir des critères d’évaluation établis 4. La prise des décisions. Dans le but de la réalisation de cette recherche, nous avons mis en œuvre des entretiens semi-dirigés en tant qu’outil de recherche et nous avons analysé et interprété le récit de pratiques évaluatives des participants à l’entretien. Les résultats montrent qu’il y a un écart entre la réalité des pratiques déclarées des enseignants et celle considérée comme souhaitable ainsi qu’il y a des obstacles et des tensions en ce qui a trait à la construction de la professionnalité du jugement professionnel d'évaluation des enseignants.

L’hybridité dans sa dimension linguistique a une esthétique liée au contexte de la littérature migrante, car cette littérature est un espace où le va-et-vient entre la langue de soi et la langue de l’autre se manifeste sous différentes formes. En considérant l’écriture migrante comme un terrain propice à l’hybridité linguistique, nous partons de ce principe que cette forme d’écriture pourrait être hybride par son essence même ; dans le présent article nous proposons donc de contextualiser la problématique de l’hybridité linguistique dans une des œuvres de Nahal Tajadod, romancière iranienne d’expression française. Le roman s’appelle Sur les pas de Rûmi et par cette étude, nous cherchons à étudier la place, les modalités de l’apparition et aussi le degré de l’hybridité de ce texte. Pour ce faire, nous nous baserons essentiellement sur la perspective microscopique proposée par Myriam Suchet qui tente d’analyser l’hybridité comme un trait stylistique de chaque œuvre. Ainsi, dans un premier temps, nous essayerons d’élaborer notre sujet d’étude à travers un bref aperçu théorique visant à souligner les rapports de l’hybridité avec la littérature migrante et la traduction en tant que déclencheur de l’hybridation, pour être ensuite en mesure d’illustrer nos propos grâce à des exemples tirés de Sur les pas de Rûmi. Les résultats de cette étude démontrent que Sur les pas de Rûmi, comme un exemple de la littérature migrante, s’avère hybride sur le plan linguistique et que cette hybridité est corrélée à l’hybridité culturelle et intertextuelle.

In recent years, the target of research shifted from students to teachers and different dimensions of teachers’ characteristics such as teacher education, personality and identity were widely researched. Among teacher’s psychological factors, in EFL context, teachers’ emotion regulation, resilience and their psychological well-being became the center of attention in recent years. The main purpose of this investigation was to explore the relationship between Iraqi EFL teachers’ emotion regulation, resilience and their psychological well-being. To this end, 450 Iraqi EFL teachers were selected as the participants and 421 filled the relevant questionnaires which were distributed through sharing the link of google form containing the questionnaires. The results of data analyses revealed that there was a positive and significant relationship between teachers’ emotion regulation and their well-being. Moreover, multiple regression analysis proved that teachers’ resilience and emotion regulation were significant predictors of their psychological well-being and teacher resilience had a higher predictability power. The findings will be helpful for teacher trainers and decision makers to improve the quality of novice and student teachers regarding their emotion regulation, resilience and psychological well-being.

Cognitive Training (CT) refers to programs designed to enhance the efficiency of cognitive and brain mechanisms through practice and/or intentional instruction. A highly controversial issue in the field of Computerized Cognitive Training (CCT) is its possible transferability to non-trained areas; one untouched discipline is second language (L2) learning. Hence, due to the facilitative role of attention and the predictive strength of working memory in L2 development and comprehension, CCT seems necessary for English language learners. Furthermore, few studies have investigated users’ perceptions of potential improvements in their cognitive functioning. To fill such inherent gaps and overcome the imposed barriers of conducting intervention studies during the COVID-19 pandemic era, this study adopted an interdisciplinary approach to explore English language learners’ self-perceived Far Transfer (FT) effects of Remote Adaptive Multi-Domain Computerized Cognitive Training (RAMCCT) in general cognitive functioning and L2-specific cognitive functioning. Thus, online observations of L2 receptive skills courses (reading and listening) and synchronous semi-structured interviews were undertaken with a convenience sample of 11 intermediate EFL learners who completed eight weeks of RAMCCT. Thematic Analysis (TA) revealed perceived advances in working memory, attention, multitasking, processing speed, hand-eye/ear coordination in general cognitive functioning, and improvements in either one or both of the L2 receptive skills in terms of attention and comprehension and speed. The results are discussed by the corresponding links between attention, working memory, and multitasking, together with the automatization of the core cognitive processes. Implications address game designers, L2 teachers, teacher training programs, and researchers.