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.

Willingness to communicate (WTC) in English is specifically important because L2 (foreign/second language) communication is considered to be a key factor in L2 learning. When the opportunity to speak English arises, there are generally two options: speaking or avoiding it. Several factors might exert influence on the choice of either option by different individuals. In this vein, the current study investigated the underlying factors that lead to (un)willingness on the part of Iranian EFL (English as a Foreign Language) tertiary students. Through a purposive sampling procedure, this classroom-based case study recruited and examined 10 EFL learners in Iran over a period of three weeks. Data were collected employing semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and stimulated-recall interviews. Thematic analysis was performed to identify common themes from the participating students’ ideas. Results reveal that participants’ L2 WTC emerges as a result of the complex, dynamic and non-linear interaction between individual, contextual, and linguistic factors. These three factors interdependently exerted either facilitative or inhibitive impacts on an individual student’s WTC in class at any point in time. The current study, therefore, reinforces the need for teachers to be aware of the multiple factors which lead learners to be more or less willing to communicate in L2 classrooms.

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.

This study attempted to investigate Iranian EFL teachers' and students' perceptions of plagiarism, the reasons for committing it, and the ways through which it can be resolved. To do so, a questionnaire was administered to a convenient sample of university teachers (N=9) and students (N=34). Results revealed that compared to their students, teachers reported greater amount of plagiarism in the writing samples given to them, which might imply that they were more strict in detecting plagiarism. In terms of the unfairness of plagiarism, both groups pointed out that plagiarists are primarily unfair to the original author because they take the credit that s/he really deserves. Regarding the reasons for doing plagiarism, too, both groups concurred that the most prominent reason is the students' inability to write scientifically. Finally, while students thought that this problem could be solved through open discussion and negotiation, teachers posited that open discussion as well as severe punishment methods could be used to solve the problem.

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