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With the tremendous breakthrough in technology and its pivotal role, some EFL teachers are inclined toward applying technology in their classrooms. Given this, the present research aimed to discover the relationship between the use of Anki by language learners and the improvement of their vocabulary learning. Another focus of the study is to explore what self-regulated learning strategies are applied by English language learners to enhance their vocabulary learning through using Anki. To find whether they enable learners to improve their language learning or not. To do so, a survey was conducted among 60 young Iranian students aged from 16 to 20, forming two homogeneous groups from Jahesh Institute of Mohajeran, Arak. The instructor selected 120 target words from two intermediate-level coursebooks for the experimental group to practice using Anki, alongside instruction on self-regulation strategies. The control group continued with regular classes. Both groups took a pre-test and a post-test, while the experimental group also completed an MSLQ questionnaire after the program. Following 14 treatment sessions, the participants' scores were compared. Quantitative analysis revealed that the Anki users showed significant improvement in vocabulary retention compared to the control group, demonstrating the app's effectiveness. The second finding demonstrated the type of self-regulated learning strategies employed by the learners to improve their vocabulary learning.  In conclusion, using Anki can effectively enhance EFL learners’ vocabulary acquisition. This finding suggests that TEFL teachers should integrate technology-assisted learning tools like Anki into their instruction while also guiding students in self-regulation strategies to foster greater autonomy. Combining self-regulated learning techniques with mobile-based learning technologies offers significant potential for improving EFL students’ vocabulary retention and overall language development, ultimately leading to more successful learning outcomes.
 

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This study highlights the pivotal role of mobile phones in education, with particular emphasis on vocabulary acquisition in contemporary EFL/ESL classrooms through the use of two prominent applications. To ensure a homogeneous sample, 180 intermediate learners were selected from an initial pool of 270 individuals on the basis of their scores on the NELSON test, specifically those whose scores fell within one standard deviation above or below the mean. Subsequently, the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (VKS) test was administered to assess participants’ existing vocabulary proficiency. Then, the participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups: two experimental groups and one control group. One experimental group utilized the English Vocabulary Builder application, while another experimental group employed the VocAPP English Flashcards application. Following the intervention period, all participants completed an identical post-test to evaluate their vocabulary learning. Te second post-test was administered six days after the intervention to assess participants' vocabulary retention. Analysis of the collected data demonstrated that learners who used the VocAPP English Flashcards application achieved significantly higher scores compared to those in the other groups. These indicated results a statistically significant effect of the application on long-term vocabulary retention, leading to the rejection of the third null hypothesis. This outcome also indicates a meaningful difference between the two applications, which may be attributed to the user-friendly interface of the VocAPP English Flashcards and its incorporation of flashcard creation as an innovative and engaging vocabulary learning strategy.
 

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Few dramatists have achieved the global reach and adaptability of William Shakespeare. In Iran during the Pahlavi era (1925–1979), Shakespeare’s works entered cinema in ways shaped by modernization, secularization, and Western influence, yet mediated by censorship and persistent patriarchal norms. While tragedies addressing regicide and royal authority were largely unstageable, filmmakers adapted “safe” plays like The Taming of the Shrew into the commercial filmfarsi genre, blending melodrama, comedy, and spectacle. Davoud Esmaili’s 1969 feature The Cat Is Killed at the Bridal Chamber, inspired by both Shakespeare’s play and Zeffirelli’s 1967 film adaptation, exemplifies this process, presenting the comedy through exaggerated humor while normalizing masculine aggression and female subordination. Employing Linda Hutcheon’s theory of adaptation and Laura Mulvey’s concept of the male gaze, this article examines how the film reinterprets The Taming of the Shrew not as critique but as reinforcement of patriarchal authority, revealing how filmfarsi both reflected and intensified gender hierarchies.
 

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Discrimination in the education system and curricula is not limited to disadvantaged groups, and this issue is also evident in textbook content. The important role of textbooks in classrooms is undeniable. In this regard, the present study examined Iranian high school English textbooks named the “Vision” and “Prospect” series, as well as one of the localized English textbook series in Iran, the “Eight” series, focusing on the images contained in these books. In this study, Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis (MCDA), proposed by Machin and Mayr (2012), was employed as the theoretical framework to critically examine the images in these textbooks. The findings of this study showed that a form of neoliberalism, as conceptualized by Fairclough (1993), is present in these books, the consequence of which is the depiction of luxurious and lavish schools instead of ordinary schools; this does not benefit underprivileged groups, as they are unable to afford the costs of privatization and are dependent on government support. In addition, in the “Eight” series, images based on the target-language culture are more frequently observed. This can prompt greater attention to images rooted in Iranian culture, which would help learners better understand the content and make it more tangible for them. This study can offer suggestions for improving and enhancing the “Eight” series.
 

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The current study reports the steps taken in the first phase of a larger project aiming at assessing the pragmatic competence of Iranian EFL learners with a focus on L2 (im)politeness features. To this end, a Multiple-choice Discourse Completion Test (MDCT) was developed, based on the scenarios present in two recently published webcomics. First, the types and the frequencies of the L2 (im)politeness strategies found in the webcomics were determined through discourse analysis.  Next, similar situations to those present in the webcomics were developed based on a table of specifications developed by the researchers. The developed (im)politeness questionnaire was first piloted by a number of native English speakers and improved according to their comments and suggestions. Finally, the finalized version of the questionnaire, i.e., the developed DCT, was administered to a few Iranian EFL learners for the final piloting. The steps taken and the findings of each one is reported and discussed.
 

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Teachers as the heart of each educational system have been in danger of burnout according work-family interference. The following thesis relies on Hobfoll’s conservation of resources theory to investigate the association of work interference with family (WIF) and family interference with work (FIW) with burnout among the EFL teachers in Iran. The study also explores the moderating role of emotional intelligence (EI) in the relationship between work-family interference (WIF/FIW) and burnout. Data were collected from 155 EFL school teachers (male = 62, female = 93) in high schools in Iran using a questionnaire survey. These available participants were at the range age of 23 – 58, and they had different years of experience teaching at different public and private schools. The sampling strategy was informed by convenience sampling. Data were gathered through FIW five-item scale developed by Netemeyer et al., WIF five-item scale developed by Netemeyer et al., burnout 22-item scale, developed by Maslach et al., Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale. Also the questionnaires were collected by the researcher and entered into PLS software for further analysis. The study utilized partial least squares path modeling to assess the proposed measurement and structural model. The design of this study is based on quantitative correlational design applied in Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). This study is utilized as a quantitative method of research in which three quantitative variables were examined, and it determines if there is any relationship among them. Findings reveal that WIF and FIW are positively associated with burnout. The association of WIF was found to be stronger than FIW with burnout. There is a statistically significant negative relationship between work-family interference and teachers’ burnout. Also, there is a significant relationship between family-work interference and teachers’ burnout. On the other hand, emotional intelligence does not moderate the relationship between family-work conflict and job burnout. This study provides some important implications for ministry of education, teachers and other stakeholders.

 

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Abstract
This paper offers a critical exploration of the postwar psychological and political terrain depicted in David Hare’s Plenty, with a particular emphasis on the interplay of power and emergent political trajectories. Anchored in Organski’s Power Transition Theory, the study interrogates the residual impacts of World War II on personal identity formation and shifting power dynamics. Employing a single-case cultural analysis centered on the character of Susan Traherne, the research foregrounds the tension between wartime idealism and the pervasive disillusionment of the postwar period. Through qualitative and interpretive methodologies—drawing on frameworks from political psychology and critical discourse analysis—the study uncovers the ways in which sociopolitical ruptures destabilize subjectivity and reconfigure hegemonic structures. The findings reveal that Plenty stages the disintegration of ideological coherence and the psychological ramifications of geopolitical transformation, ultimately portraying individual crises as symptomatic reflections of broader global realignments.

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effectiveness, however, challenges such as academic dishonesty remain significant concerns. Un-proctored online assessments, especially multiple-choice exams, are particularly vulnerable to cheating and plagiarism, threatening the integrity of student evaluation. While numerous strategies have been proposed to mitigate cheating, the effectiveness of specific measures in un-proctored settings remains underexplored. This study investigates the impact of several anti-cheating strategies on un-proctored online multiple-choice exams administered through Moodle. Strategies tested included fixed time limits, limited exam availability,restriction on backtracking, and auto-submit on time expiration. The TOEFL reading section was administered to 608 students to assess the effectiveness of these strategies. Results showed a Variance-Covariance Matrix value of +0.386 and a -2log likelihood of +37.913.919, indicating validity for the sample and effective mitigation of cheating. Item and person reliability analysis revealed that fewer than 4% of participants exceeded the outfit index of 1.2, suggesting minimal instances of random guessing or dishonesty. This research contributes to the growing body of literature by providing empirical evidence on the effectiveness of specific anti-cheating measures in un-proctored online assessments.
 

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While the previous studies showed the impact of the music on the words’ learning and retention, this study explores the effect of traditional music as an input mode on Iranian upper intermediate learners’ learning and retention of difficult English words. Eighty participants were divided into four groups. Two groups were exposed to western music while other two groups were exposed to Iranian traditional music. Each group received a pretest first, followed by instruction on selected difficult vocabulary items, and then posttest and delayed posttest. Repeated measures ANOVA indicated significant main impacts of time on vocabulary learning and retention. Descriptive statistics showed that those who were exposed to western music were outperformed by the ones who were exposed to Iranian traditional music in both immediate and delayed tests, although no significant interaction between time and music type was found. These results show that culturally familiar musical input may ease vocabulary learning and retention in L2 contexts. For language teaching and curriculum design implications are discussed.
 

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This study explores the interplay cultural identity (CI), cultural intelligence/cultural quotient (CQ), and critical intercultural awareness (CIA) among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners with a focus on the potential influence of gender and educational context. To this end, a total of 192 EFL learners (122 language institute and 70 senior secondary school) in Tehran (120 females and 72 males) of different ages (17-35) from different language institutes and senior secondary schools took part in the study. The participants completed the Cultural Identity Clarity Scale (Usborne & Taylor, 2010), the Cultural Intelligence Scale (Ang et al., 2007), and the Critical Intercultural Awareness Questionnaire (Susilo, 2022). The results indicated that EFL learners’ cultural identity and intelligence/cultural quotient (CQ) were significantly associated with critical intercultural awareness (CIA). Moreover, EFL learners’ CQ was found to be the strongest predictor of critical intercultural awareness (CIA). The findings also revealed that gender and educational context played significant roles: female EFL learners had higher levels of cultural identity, cultural intelligence/cultural quotient, and critical intercultural awareness than their male counterparts. Moreover, the results designated that EFL learners in language institutes had higher levels of cultural identity, cultural intelligence/cultural quotient, and critical intercultural awareness than senior secondary school counterparts. The results can offer valuable insights for EFL policymakers, managers, curriculum developers seeking to enhance intercultural competence in language education within the Iranian context.
 

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Abstract

The increasing popularity of AI writing tools raises the question of how students perceive the fairness of automated feedback, particularly in comparison with teacher feedback. The perceived fairness of the feedback is an underexplored subject. This paper investigated the perceived fairness of AI writing feedback among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students compared to teacher writing feedback and the relationship between students’ acceptance of AI writing feedback. The design was quantitative, within-subjects and it was based on 35 B1–B2 EFL students who were enrolled in an English language institute. The participants were given a brief writing assignment and were provided with teacher feedback as well as AI feedback. Subsequently, they completed a survey that assessed perceived fairness, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and acceptance (intention to use) AI feedback. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, correlation, and regression. Findings indicated that teacher feedback was perceived as significantly fairer than AI feedback. The AI feedback was positively evaluated. Perceived fairness was related to students’ acceptance of AI feedback. The regression analyses indicated that acceptance was predicted by perceived fairness, usefulness and perceived ease of use jointly, but usefulness emerged as the strongest predictor. The findings imply that AI feedback is most effective when it is used as a complement to teacher feedback in EFL writing instruction.
 

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As oral language proficiency assessment relies on human judgment, raters play a crucial role in performance-based testing. Among rater-related variables, rating experience has received considerable attention. Previous research on rater training has shown that extremely severe or lenient raters often benefit most from training, leading to changes in rating behavior. However, many of these studies have applied FACETS to only one or two facets and have rarely employed pre- and post-training designs. In addition, empirical findings have been inconsistent, providing no clear evidence as to whether experienced or inexperienced raters demonstrate greater rating reliability. The present study investigated the impact of rater training on experienced and inexperienced raters. Twenty raters evaluated the oral performances of 200 test takers before and after participating in a training program. The results indicated that training increased interrater consistency and reduced bias in the use of rating scale categories. The findings further suggested that, given the difficulty of fully eliminating rater variability, rater training should prioritize improving intrarater reliability rather than focusing exclusively on agreement among raters. Both experienced and inexperienced raters showed improved rating quality following training; however, inexperienced raters demonstrated greater gains. These results suggest that inexperienced raters should not be excluded from rating solely due to limited experience. As inexperienced raters are also more cost-effective, the findings imply that testing authorities may benefit more from investing in effective rater-training programs than from allocating substantial resources to recruiting highly experienced raters.
 

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IELTS writing is a critical factor in facilitating academic and professional mobility and success of both EFL learners and non-English majors globally. This study systematically identifies and categorizes the principal research themes, methodological trends, learners’ challenges, and proposed solutions through a scoping review of the previous literature. In accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, relevant studies on IELTS writing task 2 were identified and screened from Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, and ResearchGate. Through a multi-stage screening process based on rigorous exclusion and inclusion criteria, 30 peer-reviewed studies were selected for the final content analysis. Thematic content analysis employing manual open coding was applied to these chosen studies in order to identify the recurring patterns regarding the themes, methodology, problems, and solutions. The analysis yielded five primary themes: linguistic features, cross-linguistic transfer, pedagogical interventions, assessment and washback, and emerging AI-based evaluation. The findings showed that IELTS writing research is mainly employing qualitative approach, followed by mixed-methods, making use of corpus analysis, discourse analysis, surveys, and classroom interventions. According to these studies, candidates consistently face challenges in grammar, lexical range, coherence, L1 transfer, and task management, while the proposed solutions strongly emphasize genre-based instruction, model-essay noticing, contrastive rhetoric teaching, focused feedback, strategy training, and AI-supported diagnostic tools.
 

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A significant advantage associated with peer corrective feedback (CF) is the opportunity it provides for teachers in terms of increasing the opportunities for language learning and practice. Studies have even proved its influential role and higher impact for effective learning compared to the teacher-provided feedback. Nevertheless, teachers seem to practice caution in using it in their classes. One of their significant concerns is the emotional repercussions associated with this correction resource. The present study is an attempt to shed light on the dark parts of teachers’ perception of peer correction by seeking learners’ views and comparing them with those of teachers. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 31 Iranian EFL teachers as well as 159 Iranian EFL learners on the most critical issues discussed in the literature in relation to peer CF. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using Braun and Clark’s (2005) thematic analysis framework. The results pointed to teachers’ misconceptions about how their learners might react to correction from peers; while teachers had a conservative attitude to peer-provided correction due to their emotional concerns, learners looked at it as an effective learning resource and their major concern was related to the quality of the provided peer corrections. The findings have valuable implications for language instructors and teacher development programs.
 

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This study examines how emotion wrods are reflected in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) textbooks. This research focuses on two textbook series, namely Touch Stone and Four Corners, and evaluates them based on emotional words. To investigate the emotional impact of the textbooks, TagAnt and AntConc tools were employed, using the English word database of emotional terms (EMOTE) by Daniel Grühn. Emotion words with a range higher than 5 and lower than 2 were selected to gauge their degree of emotionality refelected in the analyzed textbooks. The findings indicate that the Touch Stone series contains a higher range of emotional words compared to Four Corners. Finally, the attitudes and experiences of teachers towards the emotion words represented were examined through interviews with a focused group of English language teachers.
 

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This qualitative study explored how mentoring and reflection can really support the development of preservice EFL teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) at a public teacher training university in Iran. The research which is grounded in an interpretive paradigm tried to understand the lived experiences of eight preservice teachers in their final year of undergraduate study. The data for the study were gathered through semi-structured interviews, reflective journals, and classroom observations. The analysis tried to follow Strauss and Corbin’s coding procedures. It included open, axial, and selective coding. After the analysis, five main themes emerged: the integration of theory and practice, the reflective transformation of teaching beliefs, the impact of mentorship on professional identity, challenges within teacher education programs, and the importance of peer collaboration and communities of practice. The findings clearly showed that mentoring and reflection could be vital in helping preservice teachers to connect pedagogical theory with classroom application, and to create context-sensitive teaching strategies, and to gain confidence in their instructional decisions. However, the study also highlighted the existing shortcomings in the current teacher education system, such as insufficient ongoing mentoring and limited opportunities for peer reflection. The research concludes that developing structured mentorship, reflective engagement, and collaborative professional communities can strengthen preservice EFL teachers’ PCK to a great extent and help close the gap between theory and practice which are apparent in Iranian teacher education.
 

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This study explores the challenges of translating humor and cultural references in the Persian subtitles of The Golden Girls, Season 5, Episode 24. The primary objective is to identify and analyze the translation strategies used in semiprofessional Persian subtitles and to compare them with AI-generated translations, to determine whether the loss of comedic tone, dilution of culture-specific elements, and difficulty conveying sarcasm persist or manifest differently within subtitling constraints when using AI tools. The analysis reveals common human strategies like adaptation, omission, and domestication used to address these challenges. Our findings indicate that while AI translations may achieve greater literal accuracy and consistency, they often exhibit a more pronounced failure in replicating comedic timing, recognizing nuanced sarcasm, and making contextually appropriate cultural substitutions, instead defaulting to overly literal or culturally neutral renderings that further diminish the source text's humor and cultural specificity. The paper proposes solutions, including cultural adaptation, creative clarification, and hybrid human-AI workflows to improve viewer understanding. The findings underscore the critical balance between staying faithful to the source and ensuring accessibility for the target audience in audiovisual translation, highlighting the continued irreplaceable role of human cultural and comedic intuition.

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Neologisms emerge within the language mainstream and constitute an indispensable aspect, particularly in literature and new phenomena in our lives. These novel terms, born from creative minds, often lack defined equivalents in other languages, posing challenges for translators. In the realm of translation studies, neologisms, especially those related to the coronavirus pandemic, have garnered significant attention. This study focuses on slang "coroneologisms" and their translations compiled by Thone (2020). Utilizing the resources provided by english-corpora.org, the frequency of coroneologisms was examined.  A questionnaire featuring a selection of the most frequently occurring neologisms was randomly selected and distributed to twenty-nine translators to gauge their translation approaches. The results, classified according to Newmark's (1988) taxonomy to reveal the normalization status of equivalents. Strategies employed for translating normalized examples are identified using Molina and Albir's (2020) framework. The study finds that various neologism types, such as blends and derived words, undergo normalization, primarily through translation into blends. While translators employ diverse strategies like amplification and generalization, they generally lead to normalization. However, old words with new meanings often face mistranslations or omissions rather than normalization. Overall, blends emerge as the most normalized neologism type, whereas old words with new senses exhibit the least normalization.

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Abstract: In the globalized world today, translation plays an important role to make people of all around the world closer together by introducing each other’s cultures. However, translation is impossible in some cases or it is, sometimes, a severely challenging task for translator, due to the existence of cultural items or conceptualizations. This study determined and rated the translation strategies applied in the translation of a sample of culture specific items (CSIs) in the English translation of the novel “Missing Soluch” by Dowlatabadi. To do so, 46 culture-specific items were selected from this novel, based on purposive sampling and text analysis of the field of Cultural Linguistics. Then, the applied strategies for translating these items were determined and classified through utilizing the Newmark’s (1988) translation classification. Results revealed that the most frequent translation strategies were “functional equivalence”, “literal translation” and “descriptive equivalence. However, the most successful strategy was applying “functional equivalence” which leads to more loyalty of target text to the source text and preserving the source text impression on the target audience.