As potential mismatches between teachers' and students' perceptions can have negative effects on students' satisfaction with the language class and even on their ultimate achievement, many researchers have attempted to identify and examine possible sources of such mismatches. In line with those investigations, the present study intended to compare the perceptions held by Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) public school teachers with those of their students. To this aim, a convenient sample of teachers (N = 75) and students (N = 202) from different cities of Iran was recruited to participate in the study. Using a 50-item Likert-type questionnaire and running between-groups independent-samples t tests and a two-way ANOVA, the researchers found that students' perceptions were completely different from those of their teachers. Contrary to expectations, while students preferred a communicative approach to learning English, their teachers tended to favor a more traditional approach. Also, although high-and low-achieving students' perceptions were not statistically different, they were significantly different from those of their teachers. Moreover, male teachers held different perceptions from their female students, and female teachers' perceptions were also different from those of their male students. Findings of the study along with their implications for the practice of English teaching are also discussed.
By the growing emphasis on communicative language skills, the attention toward using first language in second language classrooms has been raised. The primary aim of this study was to find out teachers' and students' perceptions toward the utilization of L1 in English classrooms in Institutes. In order to do this objective, the researcher used a mixed methods research design. Two groups of participants were used in this study. They were 56 EFL learners of elementary, intermediate, and advanced level and 11 EFL teachers who were selected through convenient sampling. The proficiency level of the students was determined using Nelson Proficiency Test (NPT). The quantitative data were collected through a questionnaire while the qualitative data were collected through teachers' interviews. After the data collection and analysis, the results of this study revealed that students in all language levels in Institutes had positive perceptions toward utilizing L1 in L2 classes, teachers indicated their eagerness toward using L1 in their classes, and used L1 in high schools more than in Institutes. Furthermore, this study has some implications for EFL teachers.
In the history of language teaching and learning, writing in general and the assessment of writing in particular have always been the topic of controversy. Listening to the voice of students with regard to the process of writing and its assessment is of crucial importance. Doing so, the present study intended to explore Iranian EFL students’ perceptions of criteria for assessing students’ written performance. To this aim, a convenient sample of students (N = 30) from different classes and institutes in Darab, Iran, was recruited to participate in the study. All of the participants were interviewed to determine their perceptions of criteria for writing assessment. Results indicated that based on students’ perceptions, grammar and spelling are the important factors in the assessment of a piece of writing, respectively. They also mentioned that the ability to write can be assessed through composition writing and their teachers should utilise their own perceptions rather than utilising a standard rubric. Keywords: Assessing writing, criteria, perceptions, students. ed.
The present study aimed to find out the effect of watching captioned TV series on speaking accuracy of Iranian advanced English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learner. To do so, 66 advanced learners were selected out of 104 ones, using Oxford Placement Test. The researchers assigned the participants randomly into three groups, one control and two experimental, each including 22 learners. One of the experimental groups watched the series with English subtitles and the other group with Persian subtitles while the control group (CG) watched the same series without any subtitles. The form of the pre-test and post-test was semi-structured interview. Before the treatment, the participants were asked questions about friendship, similar to the theme of the series and after the treatment they were asked the same questions as the post-test. The results indicated that both English and Persian subtitling had a positive impact on the accuracy of Iranian advanced English learners. Furthermore, it was found that oral accuracy did not considerably change in the CG, but there were significant improvements in English subtitle and Persian subtitle groups in oral accuracy. Moreover, the study has insights and implications for EFL/English as second language teachers and curriculum designers. Keywords: Advanced English as a Foreign Language learners, English subtitles, Persian subtitles, speaking accuracy
The present mixed-methods study intended to explore Iranian EFL teachers’ and students’ perceptions of assessment of students’ written performance and the effect of any possible (mis)matches on students' achievement. To these aims, a convenient sample of teachers (N=5) and students (N=30) from different classes and institutes in Iran was recruited to participate in the study. In the first phase of the study, all of the participants, both teachers and students, were interviewed to determine their perceptions of writing assessment. In the next phase, students were asked to write about a topic and in the last phase, the writings were assessed and scored by both teachers and students. During this phase, teachers and students were asked to think aloud while assessing the writings. Results indicated that a) based on teachers’ perceptions, language, punctuation, content, organization, and communicative achievement are important factors in assessing a piece of writing, respectively. Also, teachers believed composition writing is the best activity to assess students' writing and the teachers should stick to their own perceptions while assessing writing and not use available rubrics. Moreover, all of them believed that scoring writing is always inaccurate and subjective; b) based on students’ perceptions, grammar and spelling are important factors in the assessment of a piece of writing, respectively. They also mentioned that the ability to write can be assessed through composition writing and their teachers should utilize their own perceptions rather than utilizing a standard rubric. In addition, most of them considered scoring writing to be always inaccurate and subjective; c) students' perceptions of writing assessment affected their writing scores. That is, based on their own perceptions of criteria for writing assessment, the students expected to receive higher scores than the ones given by their teachers.
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