1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Rajab Esfandiari; Sahar Saleh
Abstract
In the last two decades, citation behaviour in academic research writing has been highlighted in English for academic purposes. This concordance-informed, corpus-based study has focused on cross-disciplinary analysis of citations by English and Iranian academic writers in English Economics and Industrial ...
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In the last two decades, citation behaviour in academic research writing has been highlighted in English for academic purposes. This concordance-informed, corpus-based study has focused on cross-disciplinary analysis of citations by English and Iranian academic writers in English Economics and Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering research articles published in international and Iranian national English-medium journals. To that end, research articles in Economics and Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering were developed and divided into four sub-corpora: English corpus and Iranian corpus. Thompson and Tribble’s (2001) classification and Thompson and Ye’s (1991) framework were used to analyse citations. The computer program AntConc (version 3.5.7) was used to identify 1,032 citations. The results of data analysis showed more frequent uses of citations by Economics than Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering writers. In terms of citation structures, more integral citations were utilised by Economics writers, and more non-integral citations were used by Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering writers. In addition, the citation analyses of native and non-native writers revealed that English writers employed more citations than Iranian writers. The findings imply that the cultural context of publication, in addition to the linguistic background and knowledge structures of their disciplines, seems to shape the writers’ citation choices when writing their research articles.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Behnaz Rastegar; Abbas Ali Zarei; Rajab Esfandiari
Abstract
Substantial research has been done on assessment literacy (AL), and several questionnaires have been developed to measure AL. However, little (if any) research has attempted to provide a comprehensive assessment literacy questionnaire. To fill this gap, the present study attempted to develop an assessment ...
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Substantial research has been done on assessment literacy (AL), and several questionnaires have been developed to measure AL. However, little (if any) research has attempted to provide a comprehensive assessment literacy questionnaire. To fill this gap, the present study attempted to develop an assessment literacy questionnaire which encompasses not only the areas identified by previous research, but also those not identified by those studies. Moreover, attempt was made to identify the components that were better predictors of Iranian EFL teachers’ assessment literacy. To this end, first previous AL questionnaires were explored and their main items were identified. Then, researchers-made items were added. Meanwhile, interviews were conducted with experts, who suggested some additional items. Then, 386 Iranian teachers of English were selected through convenience sampling on the basis of availability to fill in the first draft of the questionnaires that assessed different aspects of assessment literacy in order to validate it. Finally, a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was conducted, and a questionnaire with 35 items which evaluated nine components of assessment literacy was developed. In addition, the validated, final version of the AL questionnaire was distributed among 146 EFL teachers to identify the better predictor components of AL among Iranian EFL teachers. Multiple regression analysis revealed that “administering, rating, and interpreting test” was the best predictor of teachers’ AL in comparison to other components. The theoretical as well as practical implications of the findings are also discussed.
Rajab Esfandiari
Abstract
Exploring language assessment and testing: Language in action is an updated version of its 2014 predecessor. Although this second edition remains intact in its structure and organisation, it is a welcome and timely addition to the field of language assessment, because thematically it reflects the most ...
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Exploring language assessment and testing: Language in action is an updated version of its 2014 predecessor. Although this second edition remains intact in its structure and organisation, it is a welcome and timely addition to the field of language assessment, because thematically it reflects the most recent developments in the field. In addition to much new content information, Green has also updated the glossary in which the terminology used in the book is briefly explained, more recent references are added to Further Reading section, and more new references are included in the reference list to reflect the new changes in the field. Green has adopted a pragmatic approach in writing this textbook and presenting the information in that the real-world problems and experiences are introduced first, followed by practical examples to steer readers towards the discussion of language assessment points, before the readers relate the experiences, problems, and points to theoretical perspectives. Although the textbook is primarily written to be “an indispensable introduction for postgraduate and advanced undergraduate students”, in language education and applied linguistics, I highly recommend it to all the members of community of practice in language assessment (and more specifically language teachers) because of the advantages it offers in classroom-based assessment, highly accessible presentation of the assessment points, and the author’s lucid, user-friendly style.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Rajab Esfandiari
Abstract
In rater-mediated assessments, the ratings awarded to language learners’ written, or spoken, performances do not necessarily reflect their language abilities because a number of other construct-irrelevant factors may affect the knowledge they demonstrate. Rater subjectivity and rating scales are ...
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In rater-mediated assessments, the ratings awarded to language learners’ written, or spoken, performances do not necessarily reflect their language abilities because a number of other construct-irrelevant factors may affect the knowledge they demonstrate. Rater subjectivity and rating scales are among the variables possibly influencing the final results. The purpose of the present study was to examine the extent to which university students’ ratings on their essays mirrored the effect of these two factors. To that end, 150 Iranian EFL teachers rated ten five-paragraph essays BA students had written as their course requirements at Imam Khomeini International University. The raters used two rating scales to rate the essays on a number of assessment criteria. The study rested on a partial rating design, and the Rasch-based computer program, FACETS, was used to analyze the data. Results of Facets analyses showed raters differed considerably in the amounts of severity they exercised when rating the essays. The results also showed rater bias interactions with holistic rating scales. The implications of the findings for proposing procedures for reducing the effects of such extraneous variables are discussed.
1. Applied Linguistics (Language Teaching and Learning)
Maryam Ahmadi; Abbas Ali Zarei; Rajab Esfandiari
Abstract
Finding more effective ways of teaching second language idioms has been a long standing concern of many teaching practitioners and researchers. This study was an endeavorto explore the effects of three linguistic mnemonic devices (etymological elaboration, keyword method, and translation) on EFL learners’ ...
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Finding more effective ways of teaching second language idioms has been a long standing concern of many teaching practitioners and researchers. This study was an endeavorto explore the effects of three linguistic mnemonic devices (etymological elaboration, keyword method, and translation) on EFL learners’ recognition and recall of English idioms. To achieve the purpose of the study, ninety male and female EFL learnersat intermediate level of language proficiency who were preparing themselves for IELTS were selected. They were in three groups of thirty members each. Each groupwas randomly assigned to one of the treatment conditions and was taught idioms using one of the above-mentioned linguistic mnemonic devices. The one-way ANOVA procedurewas used to analyze the data. The results showed statistically significant differences between these techniques, with the etymological elaboration method being the most effective of all, on both recognition and recall of idioms. The findings of the study can have implications for textbook designers, curriculum developers, teachers, and learners.
